Creative Equity Toolkit

An open letter to reviewers, critics and editors

'Hello, lovely to meet you. I’m Cessalee: a Black woman, DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) consultant, director and performer, arts audience member, and advocate for a better industry – can we talk?'

'Comparing ... a play about a specific Asian community to another play ... from an entirely other Asian country tells me you’re not talking about the quality, talent or skill level ... you’re talking about the category you’ve created called ‘plays about Asian things I don’t understand'.'

Angela Davis: 'Racism is embedded in the fabric of this country'

Activist and scholar Angela Davis speaks about the 2020 anti-racism movements, and the role of global capitalism in creating and perpetuating racism.

"What's so exciting about this moment is that we are recognising that racism is indeed institutional and structural. It is embedded in the very fabric of this country, and we're trying to figure out ways to begin to initiate the process of eliminating that racism."

Anti-racism requires so much more than 'checking your privilege'

Article responding to the celebrity 'I take responsibility' pledges sparked by the Black Lives Matter movement.

'The mainstreaming of anti-racist discourse is causing many people to question their own position in the world. As welcome as this is, let’s not stop at self-reflection. Unlearning personal prejudices should coincide with undoing the structures, logics and economic arrangements that perpetuate global anti-blackness.'

Art, Whiteness, and Empire

Curator Dr. Kelli Morgan explores the themes of colonialism and whiteness in encyclopedic art museums. Morgan proposes a reinstallation framework that includes showcasing vital works that can anchor a reinstall about colonialism, highlighting portraits of actual colonizers, and using art to illustrate the history of global economy and colonialism.

Australia’s media has been too white for too long. This is how to bring more diversity to newsrooms

Article outlining ways to bring more diversity to Australian newsrooms, including offering increased training to CALD journalists, strengthening talent pipelines through better CALD networks, mentorships and events; improving CALD talent pipelines and consulting with people of colour. It also recommends undertaking and publishing regular diversity audits.

'The ABC and SBS publish regular diversity reports, and arguably, the very existence of these reports shows some progress is being made.'

Australia's Music Festival Diversity Problem By The Numbers & Some Steps To Improve It

This article calls out the 'top 5 cop-outs for booking a lineup that is not diverse' and has statistical information on the lack of diversity in music festivals - and by extension the music industry. It interviews women of colour and non-binary artists like the Papua New Guinea-born musician Ngaiire who tells us it's time to "look outside of what the 'industry gods' tell us what’s marketable".