Dear Members of the CVPA Community:

Inspired by mass actions and worldwide protests demanding racial justice, CVPA’s Arts in Context continues the Kritikos Anti-Racist Reading Group this summer, moderated by Mason faculty members Jessica Kallista and Kristin Johnsen-Neshati, with help from co-organizers, Josiah Arnett, Cynthia Fuchs, Jordan McRae, Sang Nam, Aries Wilson.

Members of the CVPA community are called to meet in Summer 2022for a 90-minute session once a week with a goal of long-term commitment to relationship building, awareness, reimagining, transformation, and action, around anti-racist practices, racial justice, and the creation of conversations as well as systems of compassion and healing. We continue to focus on anti-Black racism and its effects on society.

Grounded in the knowledge that it is not a question of whether we are racist, but rather, how racism is expressed and experienced in ourselves, our lives, our behaviors, and our institutions, we explore books, music, art, essays, podcasts, and documentaries that allow us to critically question and consider our roles as artists, thinkers, citizens, and creatives in a society founded on racist values and practices.

Jessica and Kristin