Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Bard on the Beach operates on the ancestral lands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples. We are grateful to live, work and connect on this incredible land.
BARD ON THE BEACH COMPANY COMMITMENTS
We are a Shakespeare Festival whose performance venue is located on Vanier Park/Sen̓áḵw, the site of a vibrant Coast Salish village which was the home of Indigenous nations for thousands of years. We take our responsibilities as occupants of this space seriously, and describe them as follows:
At Bard, we welcome people of:
- all races
- all religions
- all countries of origin
- all sexual orientations
- all gender identities
- all abilities and disabilities
- all immigration statuses
In our office and work spaces, gathering places, stages, rehearsal halls and backstages, we are working towards addressing and combatting:
- racism including but not limited to anti-Indigeneity, anti-Blackness and anti-Asianness
- religious discrimination including but not limited to anti-Semitism and Islamophobia
- xenophobia
- homophobia and transphobia
- sexism and misogyny
- ableism
The responsibility to create and maintain this inclusive, accessible and anti-oppressive environment is shared by the Bard community, regardless of employment, seniority, job title or relationship to the company.
The above is not comprehensive; this is a living statement. We continue to be open to questions, feedback and dialogue.
History
Leadership Statements
JANUARY 20, 2021 UPDATE: Over the past seven months, our organization has invested a significant amount of time and resources to better understand how Equity, Diversity and Inclusion issues have impacted our Company, artists, audience members and staff. We’re providing this in-progress update today and will continue to bring you fresh information as our plans and projects develop further. [Read on…]
VIEW ALL LEADERSHIP STATEMENTS
Accountability Timeline
- March 2021: EDI webpage developed
- January 20, 2021: Leadership Statement updated
- January 2021: Staff & Board EDI working group formed
- December 2020: EDI Bard Staff Book Club formed
- November 2020: Internal Leadership Pledges created to encourage EDI values within the company (e.g. Executive Director’s Leadership Statement)
- November 2020: Bard Company Commitments created
- June 30, 2020: Leadership Statement updated
- June to December 2020:
- Weekly Meetings with Community Consultants Sereana Malani, Marci T. House, Christine Quintana, and EDI Working Group Claire Sakaki, Christopher Gaze, Rhea Shroff, and Dean Paul Gibson
- Introduction to EDI for Boards led by Carol Liao and Shona McGlashan, given to Board of Directors
- Review of public statements by April Sumter-Freitag (external consultant) with EDI Working Group
- Community and Culture Foundational questions exercise, facilitated by Sereana Malani
- Consultation with AdHoc Assembly’s Donna-Michelle St. Bernard, with Christine Quintana
- Staff-wide introduction to Anti Discrimination Response training with Dr. Ishu Ishiyama
- Mission/Vision/Values investigation (Part 1), facilitated by Jivesh Parasram with EDI Working GrouP
- Consultation on Shakespeare Education with Nitasha Rajoo, with Education Department and EDI Working Group
- Centering Coast Salish Sovereignty in Land Acknowledgments – staff-wide session facilitated by Christine Quintana, with video clip statements from Charlene Aleck / Ts’simtelot (Tsleil- Waututh), Tłakwasikan Khelsilem (Squamish), Christina Nahanee (Musqueam), and Irwin Oostindie (Dutch Settler).
- Implicit Bias – staff-wide session facilitated by Christine Quintana, using Stanford’s Allyship and Anti-Racism module with video clip statement from Vernā Myers
- Ongoing paid consultations with Bard Company members and Teaching Artists, led by Sereana Malani and Christine Quintana
- Review of Respectful Workplace Policy by Sereana Malani, Marci T. House, and Christine Quintana
- Creation of streamlined reporting policy by Marci T. House and Rhea Shroff
- Creation of Anti-Oppression Response Framework by Christine Quintana
- Weekly staff-wide open discussion sessions on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
- Discussion of integrating EDI values into leadership styles through Leadership Pledge, created by Christine Quintana and Dean Paul Gibson
- Anti-Racist Theatre workshop with Nicole Brewer, taken by Sereana Malani and Christine Quintana
- Staff-wide Anti-Oppression 101 presentation, facilitated by Sereana Malani and Christine Quintana
- Implemented revised Board recruitment process to encourage diversity of board candidates
- June 2020: Leadership Statement released and External Consultant Engaged
Bard Updates
Pieces that the company is working on
Working Group Committee updates
Policy Updates
Social Media Guidelines
Sponsorship/Membership Commitments
Resources
Blogs/vlogs
Articles
Book suggestions
Feedback
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