By definition, Free Arts serves children and families who have experienced trauma due to abuse, neglect, or homelessness. Societal issues such as generational trauma, economic disempowerment, racism, and poverty are underlying causes that can lead children and families into systems such as foster care and shelter services. These social issues and systems can cause further trauma, even as providers coordinate much needed services. Organizations like Free Arts, that provide services adjacent to these systems, have a responsibility to understand and address the inequities that have led children and families to our programs.
Though we do not have an advocacy-specific mission, we will support education and advocacy working on behalf of children and families experiencing trauma. We can borrow from our colleagues in social work who follow ethical standards that guide their work in social justice and in valuing the dignity and worth of a person.
To support ethical standards around social justice, Free Arts will educate people who may not directly experience discrimination about the struggles of others who may not have the same level of privileges in our society. We will examine our own biases and encourage others to do the same. We will educate our staff, volunteers, and supporters about equitable support systems and identify structural conditions that contribute to disparities in the health and wellbeing of individuals and communities.
To support valuing the dignity and worth of a person, we will work to be mindful of individual differences in thinking and behavior, as well as cultural and ethnic diversity. We will treat all people with dignity and respect. We will seek to eliminate factors that threaten the dignity and worth of individuals and do so with a decentered approach that respects differences. Rather than imposing our own values, we will leverage the values of the children, families, and communities we serve.
Free Arts has many practical avenues for supporting these ethical standards. We will work to recruit volunteers that have lived experience, cultural identities, and language that mirror the children we serve. We can ensure that adults who represent Free Arts are educated about cultural backgrounds and identities that may be represented in the children that we serve. In our training and onboarding, we will educate our staff and volunteers on systemic inequities and how these inequities can perpetuate the trauma and negative health outcomes experienced by children in our programs. Through our efforts to build Free Arts into a more equitable organization, we will work to ensure all places where power is concentrated allow space for diverse voices and influence.