Connecting Through Culture in Oklahoma City
A recap of the September 16-17 United We Stand: Connecting Through Culture Convening in Oklahoma City co-hosted by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and Oklahoma Humanities with support from the Henry Luce Foundation.
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography
In mid-September, leaders from the nation’s state and jurisdictional humanities councils attended the United We Stand: Connecting Through Culture Convening, co-hosted by NEH and Oklahoma Humanities with support from the Henry Luce Foundation.
The convening marked one year since NEH awarded United We Stand: Connecting Through Culture funding to the 56 state and jurisdictional humanities councils. With the funding, councils developed place-based humanities programs and resources that fostered cross-cultural understanding, empathy, and community resilience; educated the public on the history of domestic extremism and hate-based violence; promoted civic engagement, information literacy, and social cohesion; and deepened public understanding of community, state, and national history. The councils’ United We Stand: Connecting Through Culture projects all advanced the goals of the initiative and were as diverse as the states and jurisdictions they serve.
Convening the councils represented a learning and community-building opportunity. NEH invited each humanities council to send up to two staff members to the event. Over one and a half days, more than 100 humanities leaders explored local history through engaging presentations and moving site visits; exchanged learnings, strategies, and questions during facilitated conversations and energized group work; and shared meals, reflections, and meaningful time together.
On the first evening of the convening, NEH Chair Shelly C. Lowe (Navajo) delivered a keynote address woven with highlights of councils’ public humanities programs, poetry, and hope. In her address, Chair Lowe spoke to the role of the humanities at this critical time, saying, “NEH’s founding legislation states that ‘Democracy demands wisdom and vision in its citizens.’ Now, more than ever, we need to stand together and challenge easy answers, question our assumptions, and bring new people to the table. This is a time for strength and a time for boldness. A time to think critically, to read widely, and to leave this world a little better than we found it.”
Come along as we recap the 1.5-day event in 15 photos.
Attendees arrive in Oklahoma City for the September 16-17 United We Stand: Connecting Through Culture Convening.
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography.
The convening kicks off at First Americans Museum.
Photo courtesy of Yennie Tse.
Thanks to First Americans Museum staff and volunteers, attendees experience guided gallery tours, Indigenous performances by the First Americans Museum singers and the Oklahoma Fancy Dancers, educational activities led by Ace Greenwood (Chickasaw Nation/Cherokee) (pictured here), and Indigenous menus prepared by Chef Loretta Barrett Oden (Potawatomi).
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography.
Caroline Lowery, Executive Director of Oklahoma Humanities, and Dr. Kelli Mosteller (Potawatomi), Executive Director and CEO of First Americans Museum welcome guests to the convening and museum. NEH Chair Shelly C. Lowe (Navajo) gives the keynote address (pictured here).
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography.
September 17 begins with a Welcome Breakfast and remarks from Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt (Osage) speaking to the power of the arts and humanities to unite people and communities across divides. Convening co-hosts Caroline Lowery, Executive Director of Oklahoma Humanities, and NEH Chair Shelly C. Lowe (Navajo) are seen here with Mayor David Holt (Osage).
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography.
Next on the Welcome Breakfast agenda is a presentation by NEH’s Office of Federal/State Partnership, the NEH office that works most directly with the 56 state and jurisdictional humanities councils. Karen Kenton, Director of the Office of Federal/State Partnership (pictured here) and staff present on councils’ United We Stand: Connecting Through Culture projects, summarizing and highlighting projects by format, region, and area of focus.
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography.
Following the Welcome Breakfast, participants attend sessions designed to explore Oklahoma’s local and state history. The sessions provide place-based context for several humanities projects. Scholars and representatives from community-based organizations present and encourage participants to engage through discussion and Q&As. In one session, community leaders from Greenwood Rising and the Greenwood Cultural Center in the Historic Greenwood neighborhood in Tulsa help attendees explore community healing, race and reconciliation, and the general impacts of the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921.
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography.
In another session, leaders from the City of Oklahoma City Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs invite attendees to explore and discuss the healing work of documenting intentionally marginalized stories and events of hate-based racial erasure.
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography.
And in another session, public humanities scholars facilitate an exercise to explore models, insights, and inspirations for pathways to community dialogue and conversations.
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography.
The conversation then shifts from place-based to national. In the next session, a discussion with leaders from Bedrock, the Anti-Defamation League, National Urban League, and Urban Rural Action, attendees and discussants explore the role of trusted messengers and the humanities in preventing hate-motivated violence in communities across the nation.
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography.
After the discussion, it’s time for breakout groups – and lunch. Attendees participate in a working lunch where they discuss strategies, challenges, and learnings from their respective council’s United We Stand: Connecting Through Culture projects. After small group discussions, tables share with the room. This group share segment results in friendly competition, joyful laughter, and actionable ideas.
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography.
After lunch, attendees board shuttles to the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum. There, they hear from leaders from Oklahoma City National Memorial Museum and El Progreso Memorial Library who discuss the role of their institutions in response to acts of hate-based violence in their communities, and how cultural organizations collaborate to support one another. Attendees tour the memorial and museum.
Photo courtesy of Yennie Tse.
Attendees depart Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum by shuttle and head to Oklahoma Contemporary where they tour current exhibitions, share a meal, and connect before the final convening activity.
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography.
ArtistYear leads the final activity, encouraging attendees to pause and reflect on the past day and a half. Through this guided exercise, attendees are given the tools, space, and prompts to write a letter and read it aloud to their tables and room (voluntary), practicing reflection, vulnerability, exchange, and understanding.
Photo courtesy of Yennie Tse.
After a full and fast one and a half days, the convening concludes. Attendees depart carrying with them the beauty and possibilities that abound when we connect through culture.
Photo courtesy of Chelsi Dennis Photography.
Interested in learning about the humanities council in your state or jurisdiction? Find your local council and connect.