Activism & advocacy

Activism and advocacy is essential to our work. Central to everything we do is the knowledge that things need to change, and we’re committed to pushing for that change however we can.

We want to see a world free of genocide, poverty, war, racism (both interpersonal and structural), ableism, homophobia, transphobia, sexism, and all oppressing forces that stop communities and individuals from living well.

We stand by our core values, no matter the cost.

Our core values

  • Integrity

    We are committed to justice, and refuse to benefit from anything that we believe is wrong. This means that we will never be funded by organisations who are directly involved in unethical deals such as arms trades, or those that actively censor and silence the oppressed. We refuse to work with anybody who we do not beleive aligns with our values, and will call out any attempts of opression that we see.

  • Accountability

    We are constantly evolving, as an organisation, and as people. This means that we will always take constructive criticism or feedback, and we will work to provide a welcoming space for this across all of our work. We are committed to holding ourselves accountable, and working towards equitable solutions to any problems we face

  • Innovation

    We aim to create work that excites and inspires, and to do this, we will need to innovate and transform as we go. We encompass innovation in everything - from the structure of our organisation, to the day-to-day plans of our projects. Our commitment to pioneering and refining supports us to produce fresh, bold, inclusive work.

Actions we’ve taken

We are proud of the actions that we have taken to ensure that we stand by our values.

Potato Milk

During our Potato Milk project, Culture Workers Against Genocide supported calls for an Arts and Cultural Colleagues Strike, in light of our industry’s silence surrounding the ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people. The strike took place on one of our production days.

We completely supported this strike, however, as the strike was announced less than a week before the date, we could not find an ethical way to cancel the show without letting down our creative team, and ticket bookers alike.

So, we found a solution: we donated the equivalent to all income generated through Potato Milk ticket sales on Friday 31 May 2024, to a family fleeing Palestine. Please note: these funds did not come from the theatre or Arts Council - they were deducted from Marcella’s artist fee.

We shared our intention to do so alongside calls to other (particularly richer!) artists and organisations to do more. We believe that if you can, you should. We’re sharing this story here to hold ourselves to the standard that we have set, and encourage everybody to think creatively about how you can use whatever privilege you have to be a part of vital change.

Launchpad

In 2024, Marcella was invited to join CRIPtic Arts’ Launchpad programme, which they designed to fit the work of Turning Worm, as we began to formalise as the company.

Launchpad provided a unique opportunity for Marcella to debut their writing at the Barbican, introducing their work to a London audience.

Following Barbican’s cancellation of Pankaj Mishra’s lecture about the ongoing genocide in Gaza, we knew that we could not allow our work to be platformed in a space where calls for Palestinian liberation were silenced. We therefore publicly committed to stand by Culture Workers Against Genocide’s list of demands, and refused to platform our work in the space unless these demands were met.

Our work holds disability justice at its heart, and the violence inflicted upon Palestinians is a direct assault on that justice. Not only are disabled Gazans at increased risk, either directly by IDF violence, or due to the dire lack of medical supplies, but every day that the horrors of this occupation are allowed to continue, more people are being disabled. This cannot be overlooked in conversations around disability justice.

We are committed to do everything within our power to see a liberated Palestine, and part of this is fighting the censorship of those that speak out for a liberated Palestine. It didn’t happen in time for us to be able to share our work there, but we hope to see all of Culture Workers Against Genocide’s demands met, and encourage all cultural workers to stand behind their activism regarding this.

We would like to give thanks to CRIPtic Arts for their support in our development as artists. Their work to platform disabled creatives in spaces like the Barbican is incredible, and we cannot stress enough how thankful we are for the opportunity offered to us. We sincerely hope that the Barbican acknowledges the harm done, and commits to honouring Culture Workers Against Genocide’s demands.

May we never sacrifice our solidarity for professional gain. None of us are free until we are all free.