Art helps us tell stories that define who we are as a people. These stories can be used to promote social change or for propaganda to dehumanize people.
“We don’t believe that art is ever neutral,” said Kirsten Wilson, Executive Director of Motus Theater in Boulder. “How Motus Theater uses art is to make sure the voices that are often marginalized in our community because of historic inequality are amplified so that more of the stories of our community are told.”
Motus Theater is amongst several Boulder County organizations using the arts for social change. One of its projects, “Do You Know Who I Am?,” is a one-act show featuring autobiographical monologues written and performed by undocumented immigrant youth. The show took a unique twist in Spring 2017 when the Boulder County district attorney, the county sheriff and police chiefs from Longmont, Lafayette and Louisville took on the roles of these immigrants for a single performance.
“It felt like the most important thing we could have done after the election,” Wilson said. “Boulder County has awesome law enforcement leaders who are very outspoken about the need to have separation between immigration enforcement and policing. We thought if we could get some of these leaders to tell the stories of undocumented community members, we could support them in this time of stress but also be part of the national law enforcement conversation and let people know there’s no association between being undocumented and being a criminal threat.”
More than 10,000 people live-streamed the sold-out performance at the Dairy Arts Center. And 3 million listeners heard a feature story about it on National Public Radio. Wilson said she plans to make a film of the performance for law enforcement officers across the country to use for educational purposes.
