Western States Center

General Support/Americana Musicians Project

2019

$100,000

Led by civil rights strategist Eric K. Ward, Western States Center (WSC) is a national organization working to build a shared democracy by training community organizers and movement leaders to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion. In recent years, Ward—who has studied white supremacy for more than 20 years—has focused on combating white nationalism. For WSC, this means helping social justice organizations understand how anti-Semitism animates white nationalism, and the ways in which anti-Semitism and other forms of racism are thus inextricably linked. Inspired by the musical artists who played a role in advancing public support for Civil Rights in the ’50s and ’60s, WSC is looking to recruit and train a new kind of organizer in 2020: Americana musicians. Working in thought-partnership with groups in rural America, WSC will support touring musicians so they can effectively promote tolerance to large audiences.