Institute of the Arts and Sciences: Mia Eve Rollow and Caleb Duarte – EDELO

January 31 – April 20, 2025 • Tues – Sun • 12 – 5 • FREE
100 Panetta Ave • Santa Cruz • Wheelchair accessible 


First Survey Exhibition of these artists 

EDELO brings together new and existing works emerging from their collaborative and individual 15-year explorations into the roles art can play in radical modes of community building and social, political, and economic change.

EDELO features video, sculpture, installation, and performance works, many of which have never before seen in an art institutional context, which together show the trajectory of  the artists’ collaborative practice since 2009. That year, Rollow and Duarte repurposed the abandoned United Nations building in San Cristóbal de las Casa, Chiapas, Mexico, renaming it EDELO (En Donde Era La ONU/ Where the United Nations Used to Be). The building had been abandoned by the UN after displaced indigenous community members occupied its offices. 

SURJ Santa Cruz County Sync Up!

January 23, 2025 • Thurs • 7-8 PM • Online

SURJ Santa Cruz County invites you to join us on Thursday, January 23
from 7-8pm for an online Sync Up meeting.

This Zoom gathering will introduce our local organizing to start off 2025 in resistance and community. We’ll discuss how SURJ, along with other allied organizations in Santa Cruz County, will be working together to defend our neighbors currently being targeted by the new administration. We’ll hold space to get to know each other, and we encourage all Gear Up participants to join to meet others outside your circle. There will be time at the end for questions and discussion about the local campaigns and activities.  

Curious or committed, join us by registering online: http://bit.ly/jan23SURJ 

Organizing White Men for Collective Liberation (OWMCL) Community Connection

Tuesday, December 10th at 8pm ET/5 PT

OWMCL’s monthly Community Connection gatherings are a chance for the OWMCL community to connect and commit to action. OWMCL will share what it has to offer, focus on relationship building, and share ways to move your anti-racist energy into action. For some, this is a chance to reconnect. For others, it’s a chance to connect for the first time. Invite a friend, bring a loved one, and help OWMCL sustain this beloved community well into the future.

Register here.

Organizing White Men for Collective Liberation (OWMCL) Reading Circle

Monday, December 9th at 8:30pm ET/5:30 PT

Join us to discuss the second half of Imagination by Ruha Benjamin. We’ll read chapter four through to the end of the book. Here’s more about the book:

In this revelatory work, Ruha Benjamin calls on us to take imagination seriously as a site of struggle and a place of possibility for reshaping the future.

A world without prisons? Ridiculous. Schools that foster the genius of every child? Impossible. Work that doesn’t strangle the life out of people? Naïve. A society where everyone has food, shelter, love? In your dreams. Exactly. Ruha Benjamin, Princeton University professor, insists that imagination isn’t a luxury. It is a vital resource and powerful tool for collective liberation.

As always, feel free to join us no matter how much of the book you’ve read. We look forward to gathering and learning more together!

Register here.

Community Forum: Alternatives to Youth Incarceration

Wednesday • November 20 • 6:00 – 8:00PM • Wheelchair Accessible • FREE
PVPSA • 411 East Lake Avenue • Watsonville.

(Note that there is a related, educational event on Tuesday, November 19. Details here.)

Recent initiatives by Santa Cruz County Probation to convert part of the juvenile hall into a SYTF and CAMP prompted the community to come together and advocate for a more equitable and inclusive approach to juvenile justice. This forum is intended to provide an alternative dialogue with community members and their families who have been impacted by the Juvenile Justice system as well as invite other partner organizations of various sectors who are or wish to develop a comprehensive community response that effectively serves our youth. 

Objectives:

  • Foster partnerships among local organizations, stakeholders, and community members to create a unified approach to supporting young people in the justice system.
  • Discuss and strategize on advocating for policy changes that promote a more equitable and inclusive juvenile justice system in Santa Cruz County.
  • Gather input from community, young people and their families to inform the development of programs and initiatives that directly address their needs and experiences within the justice system.
  • Get commitments from attendees to advocate either Nov 25th probation meeting and/or Dec 10th BOS meeting

Register here.

Let’s Talk Juvenile Justice – SB823 Virtual Overview & Learning Session

Tuesday • November 19 • 6:00 – 7:30PM • ONLINE • FREE

Join MILPA and Laura Ridolfi from The Burns Institute on Tuesday, November 19th, from 6 pm – 7:30 pm to learn about the implementation of SB 823 Juvenile Justice Realignment at the local level and how YOU can support making a change in your county.⁠

Register here.

And then join a Community Forum in person on November 20. Details here.

SURJ Post Election Mass Meeting – In Person!

Sunday • November 17 • 2:00 – 4:00 • Wheelchair Accessible • FREE
Address Private • Santa Cruz

Across the country and in our local communities, we are facing the truth of the devastating reality that Trump will be our next president. This is a time to reach for each other, to feel together, and to recommit to our values: community care, solidarity, and justice for all.

In the midst of your grief, rage, and fear– come together with other people in your community who care. To our fellow white people: we play an important role right now to show up, fight white supremacy, and recommit to organizing our own people away from the far right. There have always been white people who rejected racism and chose solidarity and justice. It is our calling to step into that legacy in the days, months, and years ahead.

Join SURJ for a community meeting to get grounded together, get clear on our analysis of how we got here – and then get organized for the work ahead.

Register HERE

Redistribute Wealth: Center for Farmworker Families Holiday Gift Drive & Farmworker Support

This holiday season the Center for Farmworker Families is partnering with other community-based organizations to provide over 2,000 gifts and gift cards to farmworker children. Hundreds of those gifts come from direct donations from people like you!

If you have the capacity to contribute a gift before the year’s end, your generosity would be truly appreciated! You can make your donation directly through their website. Your support makes a significant difference!

Looking ahead, there’s so much more to be done to support farmworker families. Whether you’d like to go on a farmworker reality tour (next tour Sunday, Nov 10, 2-6pm, click here to register via Eventbrite), make a donation, or inform yourself and become an advocate, we invite you to participate!

Native American Heritage Month

Native Stories by and for Native People
Mondays • Nov 11 & 25 • 7:00 PM x • FREE
Subrosa Community Space  • 703 Pacific Ave • Santa Cruz • Wheelchair accessible

Celebrate Native American Heritage Month with Subrosa! Watch films written and/or directed by Native American creatives. Popcorn and refreshments will be offered for $2+ donations. All proceeds will be donated to the Amah Mutsun Tribe and Uniting Natives Culturally & Intertribally (UNCI).

Monday, Nov 11, 2024: Lakota Nation vs the United States (2022)  Trailer

Monday, Nov 25, 2024: Fancy Dance (2023)  Trailer

Re:Collect: Remember Your Cosmic Roots

Art Forum Gallery
Oct 18, 2024 – Mar 2, 2025 • Thurs – Suns 12 – 6 PM • $10 or FREE on First Fridays
705 Front St • Santa Cruz • Wheelchair accessible

Re:Collect emerges as an immersive AfroSpeculative art space, transcending conventional boundaries to explore the intersection of cosmic memory, ancestral narratives, and visionary imagination.

Subverting the typical museum experience, Re:Collect invites visitors to immerse themselves fully, engaging with art that pushes the boundaries of what is remembered from the past and imagined for the future. Through sound, visuals, layout, and even smells, Re:Collect envelops visitors in a holistic sensory experience, inviting them to journey inward and outward simultaneously.

Re:Collect is guest curated by Luna High-John Bey and features artists Dynasty Ogun, Alim Smith, Zoe Boston, Timothy B, Witch Prophet, Zuzu, Soull Ogun, and Shogun Shido.

Learn More