Engage
As an organization that celebrates jazz as an artform born from and rooted in the African-American experience, SFJAZZ understands the importance of using our platform to connect and engage with vital Bay Area and national organizations focused on furthering social justice, ending racism, and supporting arts and culture in Black communities. SFJAZZ encourages you to learn more about these organizations, what they do, how they are affecting change, and how you can get involved.
RACIAL JUSTICE
Bay Resistance
Black Lives Matter
Black Organizing Project
Causa Justa :: Just Cause
Equal Justice Initiative
Essie Justice Group
National Black Justice Coalition
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund
Southern Poverty Law Center
COMMUNITY BUILDING
African American Achievement and Leadership Initiative (with Spark* SF Public Schools)
Black Earth Farms
Black Futures Lab
East Oakland Collective
Ella Baker Center
The Hidden Genius Project
Moms For Housing
People's Programs
Planting Justice
Prism Reports
SF Boys and Girls Club
Urban Services/YMCA/YWCA
Where Are All The Black Designers
Youth Uprising
HEALTH
Black Women's Health Imperative
Black AIDS Institute
People’s Breakfast Oakland
Rafiki Coalition
Roots Community Health Center
LGBTQ+:
Black Trans Travel Fund
The James C. Hormel Gay and Lesbian Center
The Marsha P. Johnson Institute
Oakland LGBTQ Center
Our Family Coalition
Queer Women of Color Media Arts Project
SF LBGT Center
Tenderloin Health
TGI Justice Project
MUSIC & ART:
Black Music Action Coalition
Destiny Arts Center
Oakland Public Conservatory of Music
Oaktown Jazz Workshop
Roadies of Color United
Racial Equity Action and Change
SFJAZZ has presented, produced, and provided music and educational programs centered around jazz for over 37 years. We acknowledge that as an organization, we have fallen short of our goal to be a leading figure in supporting Black, Indigenous, and people of color. As presenters of an art form rooted in the Black American experience, SFJAZZ has a unique responsibility and acknowledges that systemic racism and bias has impacted Black, Indigenous, and people of color throughout our region, the larger jazz ecosystem, and within our own organization.
SFJAZZ is committed to the difficult work to transform our culture and processes. As an early step, we have convened a Racial Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee to engage stakeholders across the SFJAZZ community and identify historical and current manifestations of anti-Blackness and its relationship to other forms of oppression and white supremacy, and to identify paths to racial healing, while developing skills for effective cross-racial dialogue and trust-building. While we do not yet have all the answers as to how to reach these ambitious goals, we seek to center the voices of people of color in our work and decision-making to reimagine systems currently in place, and ensure accountability, while also providing space for healing and forgiveness.
SFJAZZ strives to honor the experiences of the artists that created and continue to move jazz and related music forward, which are entwined with the experiences of descendants of enslaved people. This difficult history is embedded in the souls of the artists and music we present, and we endeavor to address the lasting consequences of this history in systemic racism, gender representation, inequality, and access. SFJAZZ is committed to the voices, past, present, and future, that chronicle our painful history, the struggle for equality, and offer ways to enlighten and connect to a common humanity. This process of transformation requires a long-term commitment. As we continue to evolve, we will continually assess and acknowledge both our progress and our setbacks.