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Non-profit

Center for Cultural Power

Website:

www.culturalpower.org
Location:

OAKLAND, CA
Tax ID:

45-3154473
Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(3)

Budget (2018):

Revenue: $1,842,110
Expenses: $1,310,163
Assets: $1,363,141
Predecessor Organizations:

Citizen Engagement Lab Education Fund

CultureStrike
Founded:

2019
Founder and President:

Favianna Rodriguez
Type:

Arts-based Advocacy

Contact InfluenceWatch with suggested edits or tips for additional profiles.

The Center for Cultural Power (previously Citizen Engagement Lab Education Fund) is a left-of-center organization led by women of color artists focused on activism and community organizing through art. 1 It was founded by left-progressive artist and activist Favianna Rodriguez. 2 The Center supports artists from low-income communities of color, and indigenous and migrant communities. Issue areas are immigration, climate, and gender and racial justice. 3

The Center sponsors an annual Disruptors Fellowship program, a three-month fellowship for screenwriters of color who identify as trans and/or non-binary, as disabled, or as undocumented or formerly undocumented immigrants. 4 Additional programs include Climate Woke which is intended to get low-income communities of color, and indigenous and migrant communities involved in climate change activism by supporting the production of videos and performance pieces on climate change, 5 and Reclaiming the Border Narrative which provides funding for immigration activists and artists to work on content and stories that support expanded immigration. 6

Donors to the Center include left-of-center philanthropies Ford Foundation, Kendeda Fund, Kenneth Rainin Foundation, Kresge Foundation, Libra Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Rockefeller Family Fund, Surdna Foundation, Compton Foundation, and William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. In June 2021, philanthropist, author, and ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos MacKenzie Scott donated $11 million to The Center for Cultural Power. 7

Background or History

The Center for Cultural Power was founded in 2019 by left-progressive artist and activist Favianna Rodriguez. It is a left-of-center organization led by women of color artists focused on activism and community organizing through art. Focus issues are migration, climate, and gender and racial justice. 8 It was originally the Citizen Engagement Lab (CEL) Education Fund.  9

The Center for Cultural Power supports artists through fellowships, training, and opportunities for activism, and organizes artists around issues related to migration, climate, and gender and racial justice. 10  The Center focuses on artists of color, immigrant and undocumented artists, disabled artists, transgender artists, indigenous artists, and women artists. 11

Programs

The Disruptors Fellowship is a three-month fellowship for artists of color who identify as trans and/or non-binary, as disabled, or as undocumented or formerly undocumented immigrants. 12 It was created in 2020 by Center for Cultural Power in partnership with 5050by2020, 13 a trans and nonbinary artists’ support network that is an activist program of the left-of-center women’s advocacy organization Time’s Up. 14 The program provides mentorship, workshops, networking, training and development, and a stipend of $6,000. 15 As a result of the program, the fellow completes a pilot television program. The program will be choosing its third set of ten fellows in 2022. 16

Climate Woke is a program which is intended to get low-income communities of color, and indigenous and migrant communities involved in climate change activism by supporting the production of videos and performance pieces on climate change. 17 It started with a Climate Woke convening hosted by the Center for Cultural Power founder Favianna Rodriguez in Hollywood in 2019. Artists, musicians, and actors participated to share ideas. 18 One Climate Woke campaign is Cancel Prime, which claims that Amazon is responsible for air pollution and labor exploitation and subscriptions to its services should be canceled. 19

The Good Energy Playbook was released in April 2022 to provide artists and writers with tools to create stories to advocate for environmentalist approaches to counter climate change. 20 It was co-created with artists, writers, climate advocates, and environmentalist activists. Good Energy was funded by left-of-center philanthropies including Bloomberg Philanthropies, Walton Family Foundation, and Kenneth Rainin Foundation as well as environmental advocacy groups Solutions Project, 1.Earth Fund, and Sierra Club. 21

The Constellations Culture Change Fund began with a 2020 Constellations Convening of artists and activists funded by the Surdna Foundation. The design team included representation from The Center, Firelight Media, First Peoples Fund, and Race Forward. It is a 3-year $23 million initiative to support black, indigenous, and people of color artists and storytellers 22 who are working to advance left-progressive policies, “dissolve white supremacy, and mitigate the consolidation of wealth and power.” 23

In March 2021, Ford Foundation announced a partnership with the Center for Cultural Power, Borealis Philanthropy, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and the National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures along with a donation of $4.5 million to launch Reclaiming the Border Narrative. This program provides funding for immigrant rights activists and artists to work over the following three years on content and stories that support immigrants’ rights and border communities that include illegal immigrants. 24

Beyond Status was launched in 2021 by the Center for Cultural Power, led by lead content creator Jesús Iniguez. 25 Beyond Status is a showcase of five short films about migrants, created by migrants. A second showcase is in progress, targeted for a 2023 release. 26

Associated Organizations

The Cultural Engagement Lab (previously Citizen Engagement Laboratory) is the 501(c)(4) action arm of The Center for Cultural Power. It is a left-of-center artists’ collaborative focused on creating content that supports progressive political campaigns. 27 Some of its programs included Color of Change, an online activist organization focused on “building black power”; 28 UltraViolet, a left-progressive advocacy organization that fights for feminist culture and expanded abortion access; 29  and Coworker.org, which helps workers launch campaigns in their workplace. 30 31

CultureStrike is a left-of-center sister organization, made up of a network of migrant artists focused on increasing political power through art. 32 The online CultureStrike Magazine supports open immigration and migrants’ rights. 33

Revolutions Per Minute (RPM) is a nonprofit organization providing support for liberal activism to over 1,000 musicians. Programs include disaster response, artist activism retreats, and election-year strategies. 34 RPM has transferred ownership of some programs to Center for Cultural Power. 35

The Center for Cultural Power partners with over 15 left-of-center advocacy groups including Caring Across Generations, MomsRising, and Community Change. 36

Financials

The Center for Cultural Power’s 2019 tax return shows revenues of $7,672,706 and expenses of $3,273,281. $1,340,816 was paid out for employee compensation and benefits. 37

Donors

Center for Cultural Power has received support from major left-of-center grantmaking groups. The Ford Foundation has made over $2.25 million in grants to the group since 2019. 38

In 2020 the Compton Foundation donated $225,000 for general support. The foundation refers to the Center for Cultural Power as a way for the progressive movement to create culture change in support of migration, climate, race, and gender issues. 39

In 2021 the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation donated $400,000 to the Center for Cultural Power to “build the power of its network of artist-activists”. The foundation has donated $1,926,000 to the Center from 2012 to 2021. 40

In June 2021 MacKenzie Scott announced donations of $2.74 billion to 286 groups. The Center for Cultural Power received $11 million, with $3 million allocated for general support and $8 million for the Constellations Culture Change Fund. 41

In November 2021 the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation donated $400,000 to the Center for Cultural Power for general operating support associated with their climate and energy focus. 42

Leadership

Favianna Rodriguez is founder and president of The Center for Cultural Power. 43 Previously, Rodriguez was co-founder and director of EastSide Arts Alliance and Cultural Center, 44 which is an organization of artists and activists of color in the Oakland area advocating for left-progressive social change. 45 She co-founded Taller Tupac Amaru, 46 an Oakland based artists’ collective that uses screen printing as a tool for political activism. 47 She was hired by the Citizen Engagement Laboratory to launch Presente.org, which is a national left-of-center online organizing network focused on building political power in left-progressive Latino communities. 48 Rodriguez became president of the Cultural Engagement Lab in 2008, a left-of-center artists’ collaborative focused on supporting progressive political campaigns, especially those trying to reach Black, Latinx, Asian American and Pacific Islander, Indigenous, and young people. 49 In 2011 Rodriguez co-founded CultureStrike, which is a left-of-center arts organization focused on migrant rights. 50 Rodriguez is a member of the Justseeds Artists’ Cooperative, which is a group of artists whose art focuses on political and environmental activism 51 and a board member of environmentalist advocacy group Solutions Project. 52

Jenifer Fernandez Ancona is the board chair as of the 2019 tax return. 53 Ancona is treasurer and secretary of Donors of Color Action, 54 the action arm of Donors of Color Network, a community of high-net-worth left-progressive donors of color that engages in advocacy and political activities focused on racial and gender issues. 55 She is co-founder and vice president for left-progressive donor network Way to Win. 56 Previously Ancona was vice president at Women Donors Network, director of strategic communications at Citizen Engagement Laboratory, and a consultant to the Democracy Alliance. 57

References

  1. “Keep Powering the Culture Wave.” The Center for Cultural Power – About. Accessed May 6, 2022. https://www.culturalpower.org/about
  2. “Favianna Rodriguez.” The Center for Cultural Power – People. Accessed May 13, 2022. https://www.culturalpower.org/people/Favianna%20Rodriguez/
  3. “The Center for Cultural Power.” Idealist. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://www.idealist.org/en/nonprofit/c24ec479f4694944826b61bcac7c30c9-the-center-for-cultural-power-oakland
  4. Ryan Lattanzio. “Center for Cultural Power Wants to Disrupt Hollywood Inequality With New Diversity Initiative.” IndieWire. February 14, 2020. Accessed May 12, 2022. https://www.indiewire.com/2020/02/disruptors-fellowship-center-for-cultural-power-1202211537/?msclkid=a95dc87cd09e11ecaab51a90f4fc81aa
  5. “Climate Woke.” KBOO. August 3, 2020. Accessed May 13, 2022. https://kboo.fm/media/82270-climate-woke
  6. “Ford Foundation, Borealis Philanthropy, Center for Cultural Power, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures Launch “Reclaiming the Border Narrative”.” Ford Foundation – News & Stories. March 18, 2021. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://www.fordfoundation.org/news-and-stories/news-and-press/news/ford-foundation-borealis-philanthropy-center-for-cultural-power-national-association-of-hispanic-journalists-and-national-association-of-latino-arts-and-cultures-launch-reclaiming-the-border-narrative/?msclkid=d443d33ed09d11ecb56245bba77d0f25
  7.  Favianna Rodriguez. “The roots that grow the cultural field we need today.” Philanthropy News Digest. August 20, 2021. Accessed May 12, 2022. https://philanthropynewsdigest.org/features/commentary-and-opinion/the-roots-that-grow-the-cultural-field-we-need-today?msclkid=6d165e24d09f11ec8cb9d6ef791003af
  8. “The Center for Cultural Power.” Idealist. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://www.idealist.org/en/nonprofit/c24ec479f4694944826b61bcac7c30c9-the-center-for-cultural-power-oakland
  9. “Powered from the Roots Up.” The Center for Cultural Power – About. Accessed May 12, 2022. https://www.culturalpower.org/origin-story
  10. “The Center for Cultural Power.” Idealist. Accessed May 29, 2019. https://www.idealist.org/en/nonprofit/c24ec479f4694944826b61bcac7c30c9-the-center-for-cultural-power-oakland.
  11. “The Center for Cultural Power.” Datanyze – Nonprofit & Charitable Organizations. Accessed May 13, 2022. https://www.datanyze.com/companies/the-center-for-cultural-power/470614927
  12. Ryan Lattanzio. “Center for Cultural Power Wants to Disrupt Hollywood Inequality With New Diversity Initiative.” IndieWire. February 14, 2020. Accessed May 12, 2022. https://www.indiewire.com/2020/02/disruptors-fellowship-center-for-cultural-power-1202211537/?msclkid=a95dc87cd09e11ecaab51a90f4fc81aa
  13. “Screenwriting Fellowship Breaks the Mold.” The Center for Cultural Power – Stories. August 18, 2020. Accessed May 12, 2022. https://www.culturalpower.org/stories/v-screenwriting-fellowship-breaks-mold/
  14. Sue Yacka-Bible, “Hollywood leaders sign letter from GLAAD and 5050by2020 to improve trans stories.” GLAAD. August 7, 2018. Accessed May 9, 2022. http://glaad.org/blog/hollywood-leaders-sign-letter-glaad-and-5050by2020-improve-trans-stories
  15. “About.” The Disruptors. Accessed May 12, 2022. https://www.artistdisruptors.org/
  16. Valerie Complex. “The Disruptors TV Screenwriting Fellowship Applications Now Open For The Third Year.” Deadline. May 2, 2022. Accessed May 12, 2022. https://deadline.com/2022/05/the-disruptors-tv-screenwriting-fellowship-applications-1235014685/
  17. “Climate Woke.” KBOO. August 3, 2020. Accessed May 13, 2022. https://kboo.fm/media/82270-climate-woke
  18. “Artists Get Climate Woke!” The Center for Cultural Power – Stories. March 26, 2020. Accessed May 13, 2022. https://www.culturalpower.org/stories/get-climate-woke/
  19. “Cancel Prime.” Climate Woke – Campaigns. Accessed May 13, 2022. https://getclimatewoke.net/campaigns/
  20.  “The Good Energy Playbook.” The Center for Cultural Power. April 25, 2022. Accessed May 13, 2022. https://www.culturalpower.org/stories/playbook/
  21. “Our Partners.” Good Energy – About. Accessed May 13, 2022. https://www.goodenergystories.com/about/partners
  22. “Constellations Culture Change Fund.” The Center for Cultural Power. May 12, 2020. Accessed May 12, 2022. https://www.culturalpower.org/stories/creating-constellations/
  23. “The Constellations Culture Change Fund” deck. The Center for Cultural Power – Constellations Culture Change Fund. April 6, 2021. Accessed May 12, 2022. https://backend.ccp.colab.coop/media/pdfs/Constellations_Deck_04_06_21.pdf
  24. “Ford Foundation, Borealis Philanthropy, Center for Cultural Power, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures Launch “Reclaiming the Border Narrative”.” Ford Foundation – News & Stories. March 18, 2021. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://www.fordfoundation.org/news-and-stories/news-and-press/news/ford-foundation-borealis-philanthropy-center-for-cultural-power-national-association-of-hispanic-journalists-and-national-association-of-latino-arts-and-cultures-launch-reclaiming-the-border-narrative/?msclkid=d443d33ed09d11ecb56245bba77d0f25
  25. [1] “Beyond Status Showcase.” The Center for Cultural Power – Stories. March 25, 2022. Accessed May 13, 2022. https://www.culturalpower.org/stories/beyond-status-showcase/
  26. “Beyond Status Showcase.” The Center for Cultural Power – Stories. March 25, 2022. Accessed May 13, 2022. https://www.culturalpower.org/stories/beyond-status-showcase/
  27. “Connecting Artists and Activists.” Cultural Engagement Lab. Accessed May 6, 2022. https://www.engagementlab.org/
  28. “About Color of Change.” Color of Change. Accessed May 14, 2022/ https://colorofchange.org/about/
  29. “Our Work.” UltraViolet. Accessed May 14, 2022. https://weareultraviolet.org/our-work/
  30. “Who We Are.” Coworker.org. Accessed May 14, 2022. https://home.coworker.org/about-us/
  31. “Who We Are.” Cultural Engagement Lab. Accessed May 14, 2022. https://www.engagementlab.org/whoweare
  32. CultureStrike home page. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://www.culturestrike.net/home/
  33. “The Magazine.” CultureStrike. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://www.culturestrike.net/the-magazine/
  34. LinkedIn – Revolutions per Minutes. Accessed May 12, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/company/revolutions-per-minute/about/
  35. “Keep Powering the Culture Wave.” The Center for Cultural Power – About. Accessed May 12, 2022. https://www.culturalpower.org/about
  36. “Getting Ready to Get Loud in 2022.” The Center for Cultural Power – Stories. November 11, 2021. Accessed May 13, 2022. https://www.culturalpower.org/stories/getting-ready-get-loud-2022/
  37. The Center for Cultural Power. Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax. (Form 990 – Part I). 2019.
  38. “Grants Database: The Center for Cultural Power.” Ford Foundation. Accessed May 17, 2022. https://www.fordfoundation.org/work/our-grants/grants-database/grants-all?search=%26SearchText%3Dcenter+for+cultural+power&page=0&minyear=2019&maxyear=2022.
  39. “The Center for Cultural Power creates a thriving ecosystem for artists and culture makers to shift worldviews away from domination and extraction toward collaboration and interdependence.” Compton Foundation – Grantmaking. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://comptonfoundation.org/grantees/center-for-cultural-power/?msclkid=a95d2e9cd09e11ec9bcd8d5ab07aad00
  40. “The Center for Cultural Power.” MacArthur Foundation – Grant Search. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://www.macfound.org/grantee/cel-education-fund-45034/
  41.  Favianna Rodriguez. “The roots that grow the cultural field we need today.” Philanthropy News Digest. August 20, 2021. Accessed May 12, 2022. https://philanthropynewsdigest.org/features/commentary-and-opinion/the-roots-that-grow-the-cultural-field-we-need-today?msclkid=6d165e24d09f11ec8cb9d6ef791003af
  42. “Grants – The Center for Cultural Power.” William & Flora Hewlett Foundation. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://hewlett.org/grants/the-center-for-cultural-power-for-general-operating-support-3/?msclkid=d4428010d09d11ecae1f290cd72c7ada
  43.  “Favianna Rodriguez.” LinkedIn. Accessed May 6, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/favianna-rodriguez-5b85aa4/
  44. “Favianna Rodriguez.” LinkedIn. Accessed May 6, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/favianna-rodriguez-5b85aa4/
  45. EastSide Cultural Center website. Accessed May 6, 2022. https://www.eastsideartsalliance.org/
  46. “Favianna Rodriguez.” LinkedIn. Accessed May 6, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/favianna-rodriguez-5b85aa4/
  47. “Taller Tupac Amaru: A Decade of Radical Printmaking.” University of San Francisco (USF) Thacher Gallery. Accessed May 6, 2022. https://www.usfca.edu/sites/default/files/pdfs/tallertupac_0.pdf
  48. “Favianna Rodriguez by CultureBank.” YBCA. October 22, 2018. Accessed May 9, 2022. https://ybca.org/culturebank-storybank-favianna-rodriguez/
  49. “Connecting Artists and Activists.” Cultural Engagement Lab. Accessed May 6, 2022. https://www.engagementlab.org/
  50. “Favianna Rodriguez.” The Oakland Artists Project, a Digital Archive Created by Mills College Students. Article by Camille Brown. Accessed May 5, 2022. https://artsinoakland.org/articles/favianna-rodriguez/
  51. “Favianna Rodriguez.” The Oakland Artists Project, a Digital Archive Created by Mills College Students. Article by Camille Brown. Accessed May 5, 2022. https://artsinoakland.org/articles/favianna-rodriguez/
  52. “Favianna Rodriguez.” ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer. Accessed May 9, 2022. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/name_search/index?utf8=%E2%9C%93&q=Favianna+Rodriguez
  53. The Center for Cultural Power. Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax. (Form 990 – Part I). 2019.
  54. “Board of Directors.” Donors of Color Action – About Us. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://donorsofcoloraction.org/board-of-directors/
  55. Donors of Color Action website. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://donorsofcoloraction.org/
  56. “Meet the Team.” Way to Win. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://waytowin.us/team
  57. “Board of Directors.” Donors of Color Action – About Us. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://donorsofcoloraction.org/board-of-directors/
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Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: December - November
  • Tax Exemption Received: September 1, 2012

    • Available Filings

    Period Form Type Total revenue Total functional expenses Total assets (EOY) Total liabilities (EOY) Unrelated business income? Total contributions Program service revenue Investment income Comp. of current officers, directors, etc. Form 990
    2018 Dec Form 990 $1,842,110 $1,310,163 $1,363,141 $92,466 Y $1,285,622 $543,142 $0 $295,449 PDF
    2017 Dec Form 990 $1,713,332 $4,581,822 $872,046 $133,318 N $1,176,363 $147,496 $118 $390,987 PDF
    2016 Dec Form 990 $8,533,034 $10,236,713 $3,919,877 $312,659 N $7,869,128 $365,901 $0 $648,411 PDF
    2015 Dec Form 990 $13,519,367 $13,086,642 $8,625,383 $639,486 N $12,788,243 $712,969 $0 $342,283 PDF
    2014 Dec Form 990 $17,006,609 $10,339,923 $8,627,420 $1,074,248 N $16,280,274 $737,524 $0 $672,136 PDF
    2013 Dec Form 990 $13,288,422 $12,445,354 $7,643,579 $6,757,093 N $13,275,511 $0 $13,194 $114,493 PDF
    2012 Dec Form 990 $1,795,700 $1,752,282 $1,599,658 $1,556,240 N $1,795,681 $0 $0 $0 PDF

    Additional Filings (PDFs)

    Center for Cultural Power

    360 GRAND AVE 146
    OAKLAND, CA 94610-4840