5.3 Wiki page & Argument
Section 1: 'Wikipedia-style' Entry
The Center for Cultural Power
The Center for Cultural Power is a company based in Oakland, California that specialises in using art, design and culture to create a harmonious environment that brings communities together. Create a world where everyone lives equally and understand one another. With the assistance of culture and community the company has grown with their supporters and made something that no one can replace.
The company is very design and illustration based, and they believe in artist development within the industry as well as believing that creating an empowered group of powerful creatives will change the narrative that is being written by stereotypically white men as well as giving the underrepresented a chance to address issues that need to be stopped.
History:
‘The Center for Cultural Power is a woman of colour, artist-led organisation, inspiring artists and culture makers to imagine a world where power is distributed equitably and where we live in harmony with nature.’ (CulturalPower, 2021). The Center for Cultural Power is led by Favianna Rodriguez and co-founded with Jeff Chang in 2020. The company started as a project called CulturalStrike, which then evolved into the company that it is now, and this launched in 2011(CulturalPower, 2019). Years later, the company kept growing and helping those artists to make a change in the economy. The Center for Cultural Power has many stories to tell the public, and this is done by addressing the issues that affect other people's daily lives through art and engaging the audience in their pieces.
Teaching:
The Center for Cultural Power is all about teaching those who are less fortunate and treated negatively, and one of the founders, Favianna Rodriguez, personally does this through her own website; however, Cultural Power highlights the importance of change and embracing new ideas through teaching those who would like to make a change in the world and their community. Giving those the chance to change their future and the world around them can become something that has a larger impact on the community that is underrepresented in their lives.
Our Voice, Our Power, Our Future, Campaign:
There are many projects of interest that stand out; however, Our Voice, Our Power, Our Future is a movement that is key when bringing groups together. The use of this project is to strengthen the way that Cultural Power can collaborate with different artists and complete the objectives that they hold, which include creating an environment that lets artists be creative and use their skills to create artistic pieces and engage with other people. (Eryn. W, 2025).
The art style used in this project highlights the diversity that is being portrayed within the project, and it creates a sense of encouragement to those who are underrepresented, leading to the project being highlighted as a key part of the company's vision. These collaborations also created space for radical imagination and sharing these ideas with other parts of the world, and this has already reached “over 3 million and engaging more than 85,000 people”. (Eryn. W, 2025) Being able to reach this many people strengthens the possibility for change within this theme of underrepresentation, and that is exactly what Cultural Power wanted the creation of their projects to do through the media.
Rooted in Joy, Campaign:
The Rooted in Joy project was created to highlight joy, cultural memory, and interdependence as crucial elements for climate justice (Aly H, 2025). This project uses colour and vibrance to steer away from the upsetting narrative and change it to something that is joyful, highlighting the importance of the situation and how it can be changed. Aly highlights “Our Vision: Art as a Catalyst for Change” when speaking about this project. She believes that through storytelling and education, many artists involved can make a change in society. Roughly eleven artists, as well as ten core movement partners, have worked together to make this come to life and create digital illustrations that highlight love, hope, joy and reassurance to shift the idea that people of minority backgrounds can't be equal with everyone else.
Other Campaigns:
References:
Aly Honore (2025). Rooted in Joy. [online] Available at: https://www.culturalpower.org/stories/rooted-in-joy [Accessed 13 Nov. 2025].
CulturalPower (2021). Artists for Social & Racial Justice - Cultural Power. [online] Available at: https://www.culturalpower.org/about [Accessed 13 Nov. 2025]
CulturalPower (2019). Our Roots - The Center for Cultural Power. [online] Available at: https://www.culturalpower.org/origin-story [Accessed 13 Nov. 2025].
Eryn Wise (2025). Our Voice, Our Power, Our Future. [online] Available at: https://www.culturalpower.org/stories/our-voice-our-power-our-future [Accessed 13 Nov. 2025].
Section 2: Argument
In 2021, The Center for Cultural Power was able to source $315,000 to over 200 artists of colour to be able to create creative and enticing work that highlights cultural change through different narratives. They were able to provide these artists with training and various workshops to help develop their creative power (Culturalpower.org, 2021). The effect they have on people who are underrepresented highlights the type of impact they hold, and this shows how they deserve recognition.
I believe that The Center for Cultural Power should have a Wikipedia page, as they have a significant impact on people, and this is seen in that they have done many notable things to contribute to the public and ensure that everyone is given equal opportunities. A Wikipedia page would document their work and highlight the impact they have, make it accessible to people and influence others to get involved in the movement. With Wikipedia being one of the most visited websites, I believe that this will bring an even larger audience to see the type of work that they produce and push others to create similar work. Having a well-written and documented page can also help provide more information that is correct about the company, as there may not be much about it online. This can also lead to them having more global impact and reach as many people as possible, who could access their page from around the world.
Cultural power is a company that focuses on its impact on other artists and culture makers, as they want to be able to build a world where power is equally distributed among everyone. This supports artists to be able to engage in social and political issues that occur in society. “No longer can the injustice be quietly ignored by switching off the news or closing the front door”(Reni Eddo-Lodge, 2017).The company creates intersectional stories and content that highlights large issues that need to be spoken about, for example, they speak about migration, gender and racial issues as well as climate change. By doing this, it opens a large door for those who are underrepresented and want to make a change revolving around these issues in society, as Cultural Power does provide resources as well as strategies to support the artists who go to them for opportunities.
In an art piece that was created in 2022 by a creative in Cultural Power (image above), they believe that “When Black, Trans, and disabled folks can realise Reproductive Justice, all of us can be free. When we call for Reproductive Justice, we strive for collective liberation for us all.” (Culturalpower.org, 2022). This portrays their ideas, and by using this design style, it is something that is playful and bold; however, it holds meaning behind it that a viewer can identify when looking at this piece. The piece is able to speak for itself and highlight the importance of protecting each other and being able to stand up for what is right.
I believe that Cultural Power really embraces their company name as they understand design as well as knowing when design is needed for good. Designers can use their talent to highlight issues that need to be changed, and this can make design so important when presenting an idea through illustration or other creative practices. Cultural Power uses its resources to bring those who are underrepresented together and build a world where humanity lives in equality as well as harmony. Making these campaigns or teaching opportunities isn’t just for a company to make money and move on. I believe that they care about what they produce and believe in the artists who are a part of the minorities and want to see those who aren’t represented enough make a future for themselves and change the world. Favianna Rodriguez herself said “Those artists who have lived these experiences deserve to control their own narratives, and migrants deserve a chance to see their stories reflected in the mainstream.” (Zandt, 2020)
References:
CulturalPower (2021). Available at: https://culturalpower.org/annual-report [Accessed 20 Nov. 2025].
CulturalPower (2022). Abortion Justice Is Intersectional: Emulsify. [online] Available at: https://culturalpower.org/gallery/abortion-justice-intersectional-emulsify/ [Accessed 20 Nov. 2025].
Zandt, D. (2020). Center for Cultural Power - Pop Culture Collaborative. [online] Pop Culture Collaborative. Available at: https://popcollab.org/grantee/center-for-cultural-power [Accessed 23 Nov. 2025].
Books:
Reni Eddo-Lodge (2017). Why I’m no longer talking to white people about race. London: Bloomsbury Publishing. [Accessed 25 Nov. 2025].
