Declaration on the termination of funding for xart splitta

Dear supporters, dear communities, dear friends, dear visitors, dear everyone,

Unfortunately, we have to inform you that our long-term basic funding for 2020 has not been extended. This means that we will have to end our work in February 2020. We are speechless, sad and angry. With xart splitta another space closes that focuses on intersectional empowerment, decolonisation and the (re-)centring of marginalised perspectives and is lead and shaped by Black People and People of Colour.

What happened?

In the course of the numerous structural and staff connected changes that xart splitta underwent in 2019, a new board was recently elected and convened. For the first time since the association was founded, xart splitta had thus become a space in which BPoC alone shape anything connected to organisational and content matters.

During this period of these changes , several attempts were made to contact the foundation that provided our basic support or to obtain information about it. For reasons that were withheld from us, the foundation wanted to remain anonymous. In the summer of this year, xart splitta was asked to submit an application for further funding for the year 2020, by an old board member, who had direct contact to the funding agency. We did this. The application contained a detailed list of the projects planned for 2020. With regard to the content of this planning, we stayed true to to our fundamental approaches and objectives: the continuation of our educational task, offers focusing on intersectional empowerment , as well as the expansion of our network and our various cooperations.

We were not given any comprehensible reasons for the withdrawal of our long-standing funding. Unfortunately, we now join the current sudden closure of various intersectional civil society associations working in the fields of antidiscrimination and antiracism. In addition, we are might also lose our space; a space that is wheelchair accessible including the toilet and has always been open for the use of external affiliated groups . Our space was used annually by over twenty different political initiatives and organisations.

Despite and besides our shock and anger, we are also very grateful. Grateful for the large number of people who, in one way or another, have contributed to xart splitta becoming what it has become: a place where intersectionality and decolonisation are not only discussed theoretically, but also put into practice through and with the manifold perspectives that the employees and many other people have brought into it.

What’s on the agenda now:

At the moment we are trying to find other ways and means to keep xart splitta alive in the very short time we have until the end of the year. Since we don’t have anything concrete in our hands, we already wanted to inform you about our situation and the possible end of xart splitta in the very near future.

If you have concrete questions or suggestions, how we want to continue or what we are considering to do, please contact us (up to and including January 2020): contact@xartsplitta.net.

Keep your fingers crossed for us and send us any positive thoughts and support you can think of.

With much gratitude and hope,

xart splitta Team and the Executive Board