American Diversity concert tonight in Cambridge

by philg

I received a mailing from a music organization in Cambridge, Maskachusetts, “A unique program of music written by women and people of color”:

I’m very sorry that I can’t attend and see if The Mask is about an N95 mask and his/her/zir/their journey of protection (modern update to Gogol’s “The Nose”?). Maybe it will be explained in the program notes and pre-concert lecture.

Note that the concert is entirely free to those who limit their working hours so as to qualify for SNAP/EBT (“food stamps”):

We are proud to participate in the Mass Cultural Council’s ‘Card to Culture’ program. EBT card holders who present their EBT card in person at the Box Office receive 2 free Gold section tickets to a Spectrum Singers concert.

Related:

  • Thankful for archive.org (Government-supported Harvard University hosts a play in which only those who identify as Black can attend: “We have designated this performance to be an exclusive space for Black-identifying audience members”)
  • Why you want to be on SNAP/EBT

9 thoughts on “American Diversity concert tonight in Cambridge”

  1. Isn’t OK to identify as who you think you are or want to be, without need for a reason? In this case, I think it should be fine to identify as Black and attend the Harvard concert even if you are white or Brown. (Why do we capitalize Black and not white when referring to to the color of a person?)

    • I don’t think the capitalization of black makes a lot of sense since as you point out the basic rule in English is that adjectives are not capitalized. The idea as I have read it is that black is something like an ethnicity so like Italian, Jewish or French, Black man should be capitalized. But black is not an ethnicity — it is a skin pigmentation. Some say that in the US it identifies a group with similar experiences. But then a recent immigrant from Nigeria should be be called “Black’? Also there is a lot of diversity among Africans and I doubt someone from Nigeria would want to be grouped with someone from Mali or an Ethiopian would feel much in common with someone from Chad. Should an Ethiopian immigrant to Israel be called “Black?” notwithstanding that he probably feels no identity with African Americans. I have worked in Africa and African culture has zero to do with African American culture — which in general they find appalling. Anyway, ascribing different names to black people — Colored, Negroes, African Americans, Black has been going on for the better part of a century and doesn’t seem to have accomplished anything for black people so whether you call an American of African descent black or Black probably doesn’t matter.

  2. If one strays from diversity but still would like the mask topic, I suggest “Un ballo in maschera” by the white-and-male-identifying Giuseppe Verdi.

  5. Attending a DIE concert doesn’t have much risk. A true believer might instead show xheir commitment to DIE by flying on United Airlines: “UA launched its Aviate Academy in 2022 to address the shortage and diversify a workforce that is overwhelmingly White and male. The academy’s first graduating class was 80% women or minorities.”

    https://www.cbsnews.com/news/united-airlines-training-program-aviate-academy-pilot-shortage-graduating-class-women-minorities/

    • So many reasons not to fly United. I would want the best pilot, regardless of color or gender …the best flyer, just with my safety in mind. Now for attendants and other staff ..United already hires the worst, regardless of color .so

  6. Look at the bright side, you no longer have to show your Dr. Fauci-issued, CDC-approved, woke-blessed, COVIDFear Sacrement card.

    Just walk in, and say “Today, I’m a black woman and forgot my EBT card at home” and voila, you get the best seat in the house for free.

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