Cultural Power Annual Report (2024)
For over 13 years, The Center for Cultural Power has led the charge in transforming the arts and culture landscape, empowering Artist Disruptors and Culture Bearers to challenge the status quo and build narrative power. As we reflect on 2024 and look toward a new era with incoming CEO, Aisha Goss, we reflect on a year of transformation, growth, and renewed commitment to the fight for justice.
2024: A Year of Impact and Reimagination
Last year, Cultural Power doubled down on its mission to center artists as architects of social change. Through groundbreaking initiatives, we continued to demonstrate that culture is not just a reflection of society but a force that actively shapes it. Our 2024 End-of-Year Report highlights the tangible ways we advanced this mission:
- Training and Mobilization: Over 500 Artist Disruptors and Culture Bearers expanded their skills and networks through workshops, commissions, and fellowships.
- Civic Engagement: Our Movement to the Ballot Box campaign reached more than 5 million voters, reinforcing the critical role of culture in political participation.
- Community Investment: We provided nearly $500,000 in awards to California-based artists, ensuring that resources flow directly into communities most impacted by systemic inequities.
- Thought Leadership: Cultural Power emerged as a leading voice in narrative and cultural strategy, featured in major publications and speaking at global conferences to advance the role of artists in shaping social movements.
A New Chapter: Leadership Transition & The Path Forward
With the departure of Co-Founder and President Favianna Rodriguez in early 2025, we honor her legacy through the establishment of the Favianna Rodriguez Legacy Fund—a dedicated initiative ensuring that Cultural Power continues to thrive in the years to come. Under Aisha Goss’s leadership, we are poised to build on our foundation while sharpening our focus on strategic impact, resilience, and expansion.
This leadership transition marks a pivotal moment for Cultural Power. As we move from a phase of continuous experimentation into one of refinement, our commitment remains unwavering: to equip artists and culture workers with the tools to challenge oppressive narratives and build a more just world.
Meeting the Moment: Culture in a Time of Crisis
2024 was a year marked by escalating threats to democracy, human rights, and cultural sovereignty. From rising authoritarianism to systemic assaults on bodily autonomy, the need for bold cultural interventions has never been more urgent. Artists have met this moment with courage, using their voices to counteract disinformation, elevate community wisdom, and reimagine a future rooted in equity and care.
As we move into 2025, Cultural Power stands resolute in our mission. We will deepen our place-based strategies, strengthen networks of cultural leaders, and continue advocating for the transformative power of narrative change.
Looking Ahead: A Vision for 2025 and Beyond
The future of Cultural Power is expansive and filled with possibility. In the coming year, we will:
- Expand Cultural Strategy Networks to unify intersectional stories across racial justice issues, geographies, and movements.
- Launch a Rapid Response Cohort to provide real-time cultural interventions against regressive narratives.
- Deepen Community Collaborations with grassroots organizations and philanthropic partners to ensure sustainability for BIPOC artists and cultural strategists.
- Continue to Challenge Power by uplifting the stories that mainstream media often ignores and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in narrative change.
As we enter this new era with fresh leadership and renewed vision, we invite our community to continue walking this path with us. The work of building cultural power is ongoing, and together, we will forge a future where artists are at the forefront of justice and transformation.
Read the full 2024 End-of-Year Report and join us as we shape the next chapter of culture-driven change.
The CultureStrike Network
We’re formally announcing the launch of The CultureStrike Network — A Creative and Political Home for connection, collaboration, resources, learning, and collective action in this critical moment. This network exists because of years of stewarding relationships and collaboration with all of our communities and pa
What are Deep Narratives?
At The Center for Cultural Power, we define Deep Narratives as the most enduring, deeply-situated themes and ideas that have permeated stories for over 50 years.
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