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Announcing
#StartSmall grant
to support Chinese Culture Center
SAN FRANCISCO, CA—Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco (CCC) is proud to announce a major investment from #StartSmall, Jack Dorsey’s philanthropic initiative. The new partnership will implement “We The Future” in the San Francisco Chinatown community to address and be a strong counter-voice to anti-AAPI Hate through creativity.
“We are beyond thrilled to be a recipient of #StartSmall. This grant is the largest one-time arts investment to Chinatown in a decade, a true demonstration of Mr. Dorsey’s leadership that art is powerful, transformative and contributes to building healthy communities,” says CCC’s Executive Director, Jenny Leung. “Artists have been at the forefront of relevancy and change, but they are often under-resourced or excluded. This support begins the dialogue on decades of funding inequity to Chinatown, and is a gamechanger.”
#StartSmall funds will support “We the Future” initiative to present bold art with social transformation and community impact by sparking critical dialogues on equity, in collaboration with BIPOC communities. “We had plans to lead a rapid response art intervention program in Chinatown with the intention to build multi-racial solidarity and seed long-term cross-sector partnerships for a just and equitable future. Our dream has come true with this generous gift,” commented Hoi Leung, CCC’s Curator.
For the past year, CCC has been at the forefront in support of Black Lives Matter, working with “Stop AAPI-Hate” to address racist violence and misogynist hate against Asian women: “From Bay to Atlanta” rally, “Share the Square Art Action” in commemoration of Juneteenth, uplifting Asian American women artists with “Arts in Recovery” murals and “Art, Culture and Belonging” projects.
Asian arts organizations are an integral part of the BIPOC community in contributing to a safe and healthy California and its recovery. “We the Future” initiative is our commitment to Chinatown’s social and economic recovery, and healing a fractured nation,” concluded Jenny Leung.
#StartSmall is Jack Dorsey’s philanthropic initiative to fund global COVID-19 relief, girls' health and education, and efforts towards Universal Basic Income. Dorsey transferred $1 billion (28% of his wealth) to #StartSmall in 2020.
CCC is also supported by the San Francisco Foundation, Phyllis C. Wattis Foundation, Fleishhacker Foundation, Wells Fargo Foundation, Zellerbach Family Foundation, Grants for the Arts, the San Francisco Arts Commission, National Endowment for the Arts, the SF Community Challenge Grant program, California Humanities, California Arts Council, and the Mayor’s Office of Economic Workforce and Development.
About Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco
Chinese Culture Center (CCC), under the aegis of the Chinese Culture Foundation of San Francisco, is a non-profit arts organization established in 1965. CCC elevates underserved communities and gives voice to equality through education and contemporary art. Rooted in San Francisco’s Chinatown, CCC is a loud and creative voice to uplift social and economical transformation. We provide a safe environment for artists who champion activism, resiliency, and healthy communities. In doing so, we shift dominant narratives, empower change, and reimagine our futures.