My father and mother attended the same school—Garfield High School. It was there that music had a powerful influence on my father’s life. It was at Garfield that my father found meaning – and friendship – in the Garfield High music program, performing with Quincy Jones, who later introduced him to my mom. I recall many meaningful arts experiences that had a profound impact on me and my life. Music, arts, and poetic expression have always been important to me and my family. I believe these are the gifts and talents that we will be remembered by—not the budget appropriations for our roads or our laws.
I believe the arts is a path by which we can reach our youth; and, likewise, our youth can reach us.
This thought brings to mind a meaningful arts experience. In January 2017, when I was serving as the Seattle City Council President, I agreed to co-sponsor the Seattle Annual MLK Jr. Unity Day.
I could not have imagined that a cold night in Seattle’s Town Hall would turn out to be for many, including myself, a life-changing experience. The selection of music and the energy was exhilarating – I was transformed by the First Nation Native Drum Group & Ceremonial Prayer, Hip Hop Artist Gabrielle Teodros, Leija Farr (the first ever Seattle Youth Poet Laureate), the Sea-Town All Stars, and Soloists Josephine Howell and Stephana Sneed. And, during that evening, the inspirational message from Angela Davis clearly had an impact on the audience, the media, and me. It was electric and that experience transcended generations, cultures, genders, religion, and ideologies. In fact, that evening showcased the city’s diversity and forged partnerships with municipal leaders and community activists that would support Seattle’s No Youth Jail movement. The youth, the music, and Angela reached us – it was transformational.
My neighborhood, Zip code 98118, was noted as one of America’s top 20 most diverse neighborhoods – including a mix of immigrants from across the globe, which includes 59 languages. Before the pandemic, the arts in my neighborhood was vibrant and alive. The voices and perspectives of my neighbors were well reflected in my community. Over these years, I’ve observed local organizations who are committed to curating, facilitating and promoting arts and cultural experiences. We should not hold back, but continue to drive forward and strategically work in creative placemaking, as well as facilitate more partners from public, private, non-profit, and community sectors to continue to shape the physical and social character of our neighborhoods.
When you walk through my community, you will experience incredible smells of many cuisines, colorful attire, paintings, and cultural activities. My community is known for having the best selection of foods, music, and culture that you can find anywhere in the city. However, to preserve all that we have enjoyed, I believe we need to be more strategic and work urgently in collaboration with other partners to continue to shape the physical and social character of our neighborhoods. The arts give our neighborhood permission to examine what it means to be human. It gives us permission to voice and express our challenges, particularly during our current environment. It helps us build our community, support one another, and collaborate as we face our challenges together.
In 2014, I supported Seattle City Council Resolution 31555, a resolution creating an Arts & Cultural Districts program and implementation plan for Seattle and designating Capitol Hill’s Pike/Pine/12th Avenue neighborhood as the first officially recognized Arts & Cultural District. That designation has also been extended to the Columbia Hillman Arts & Cultural District. The purpose of the Cultural Districts is to support arts and cultural uses and the economic benefits they provide.
As you have likely observed through the pandemic, arts organizations are increasingly threatened with displacement due to rising rents and redevelopment. It will take Arts & Cultural Districts to protect and preserve organizations like the Royal Room and the Columbia City Theatre. Also, when the equity lens of Seattle’s Arts & Cultural Districts program continues to be utilized in our community, it will ensure that all Seattle residents can preserve and benefit from the cultural activities that strengthen our neighborhoods.
My track record supporting arts is proven and I will continue to be a strong advocate for arts as Mayor. My experience and vision clearly aligns with the collective arts mission of promoting the value of arts, ensuring that a wide range of high-quality artistic experiences are inclusively available to everyone, encouraging artist-friendly environments, and promoting Seattle as a destination for arts. We will allocate resources, focusing on the artist, the creative arts community, and the next generation of artists.
Few sectors of our economy have been as hard hit as our city’s dynamic – and critical – arts, music, food and nightlife economy. Let’s re-imagine how we support these critical nonprofits and businesses – from preservation of historic buildings and venues, to exploration of sustainable revenue to support organizations that advance equity, inspire and teach, and provide a stage for the next Quincy Jones, Macklemore, or countless other creative voices in our community.
Rent stabilization and the threat of displacement are some of the largest impediments to artists in Seattle. I would examine the potential to replicate the 12th Avenue Arts model—a combined affordable housing and performance space—elsewhere in the city. From a policy standpoint, I will make sure we invest to prevent displacement and to come up with policies to help with rent stabilization. Artistic space is something we need to preserve and invest in.
I have attentively reviewed the Seattle Arts Commission 2021 priorities letter and will work with the Seattle Arts Commission and community stakeholders to examine the proposed recommendations. I will be an advocate for the types of bold, innovative policies that will make Seattle a national leader in driving opportunity and ensuring fairness and equity.
As Mayor, I will also examine additional resources and partnerships to further advance grant opportunities for cultural organizations, art groups, and individual artists.
We also need to show young people who are considering a career in the arts that it is a viable career path. Through community programs and organizations, support for performance and display opportunities, school mentorship, and a larger emphasis and embrace of our artistic values, I believe we can help inspire the next generation of creatives and artistic leaders.
We should also look at regulatory barriers – whether they exist in starting a new business, making a film or production, or any other facet of the creative economy. The last year placed an undue burden on the arts sector to take necessary but extremely disruptive precautions to protect health and safety. Going forward, we should review where we can speed up our processes and better expedite artistic creation.