2021 IA National Gathering

A note from the organizers of the Imagining America National Gathering – New Orleans – 2021

Dear Imagining America and New Orleans community,

We hope that you are well during these challenging times. Earlier this year, a diverse steering committee assembled in New Orleans to organize the next Imagining America National Gathering. Comprising over 40 individuals, our committee is made up of artists, culture bearers, elders and representatives from local arts, community, and cultural organizations as well as students, faculty, and staff from local institutions of higher learning, especially Xavier and Tulane Universities, and members of the IA staff and its National Advisory Board. We are all enthusiastic and committed to working together and with you to develop critical and compelling experiences for the National Gathering.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, this group has made the decision to postpone the in-person IA National Gathering in New Orleans to October 1-3, 2021. Please mark your calendars for what promises to be a time of great reunion, celebration, and critical dialogue. While we will postpone the in-person Gathering, we will not be silent in the fall of 2020. Instead, we are currently developing a set of creative ways to mark this moment, share stories with one another, and convene via various media and modalities regionally and across the national IA network. Our goal is to offer opportunities to come together this fall in a way that builds connection, inspires hope in this difficult time, and sets the stage for the 2021 in-person gathering in New Orleans.

Please stay tuned.

With much appreciation,

2020-21 IA National Gathering Planning Organizers

Diana, Ryan, Wood, Erin, Mina, and Erica

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