Culture at the Table

Kemi Ilesanmi, The Laundromat Project, photo c/o NOCD-NY

In November 2013, NOCD-NY hosted a discussion at the “Talking Transition Tent” about how arts and culture play an integral role toward a just and equitable city. Participants shared recommendations for how future Mayor Bill DeBlasio and the New York City Council should embrace arts and culture, like:

• Imagining what arts and culture for a just and equitable city would look like and bringing people together around that vision

• Revitalizing our city from the neighborhood up

• Increasing civic participation

• Supporting transformative change in areas like food and environmental justice, transportation, parks, youth development

Talking Transition pioneered the first open transition in New York City. The initiative transformed the typically closed-door transition process between Election Day and the Inauguration into an opportunity for New Yorkers to make their voices heard. The conversation happened in an open tent filled with transition-related events on Canal Street, in mobile “tents” in public spaces in the boroughs, and on an online forum.