Gamma Xi Phi joins thousands of arts organizations and communities across the nation to celebrate National Arts and Humanities Month throughout October. GXP will carry this message to the community through activities that honor the efforts of artists, historians, teachers, and cultural groups working to make the arts and humanities a part of everyone’s life.

Everyone in the community is encouraged to participate in what has become the country’s largest annual collective celebration of the arts and humanities. The following special events are planned for National Arts and Humanities Month among members of the nation’s leading fraternity for artists.

Today, October 1, Gamma Xi Phi launches the Artists Day of Prayer. Led by Beta Lambda Chapter, serving rural and remote communities in the southeastern region of the United States, the Artists Day of Prayer has gathered clergy and lay people to use their faith traditions to elevate important conversations impacting the arts. Participants include Dr. Ansel Augustine, Reverend Arnette Georges, Reverend Chris Dorsey, Minister Kim Upshaw, Elder Damien Gardner, Minister Omari Jahi Aarons, and National President Rashid Darden.

On October 7, members of the fraternity will celebrate 11 years of artistic service since the organization’s founding by four students at Ramapo College in Mahwah, New Jersey. Chapters will come together informally to reflect upon the meaning of over a decade of philanthropic work in the arts.

On October 8 through October 10, a record number of fraternity delegates will assemble for the fraternity’s Fifth National Convention, themed “Perfecting the Design of a Decade.” Originally scheduled to be held in Atlanta, Georgia, the virtual event will honor Atlanta institutions such as Southern Fried Queer Pride and will feature presentations from noted Atlanta-based psychologist Dr. B. Nilaja Green and writer/educator Jéri L. Ogden. The fraternity will also announce the 2021 Young Artisans Award winner, a student artist at a local Atlanta school.

“The arts are the lifeblood of our communities, raising morale, creating community cohesion, and providing comfort during dark times, while also delivering a huge economic footprint. The sector has suffered devastating losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so it is vital that we support our creative workers in the months and years to come,” said Nolen V. Bivens, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts. “National Arts and Humanities Month gives us a chance to celebrate the values that the arts impart in our lives, and it is more important than ever that everyone take part to recognize the creative and cultural value of the arts and humanities in our communities.”

National Arts and Humanities Month is coordinated by Americans for the Arts, the national organization working to empower communities with the resources and support necessary to provide access to all of the arts for all of the people. This month-long celebration grew out of National Arts Week, which was started in 1985 by the National Endowment for the Arts and Americans for the Arts.

More information about National Arts and Humanities Month is available at www.AmericansForTheArts.org/nahm. View events across the nation and add yours to the celebration at http://artsmeet.artsusa.org.

Gamma Xi Phi is a predominately African American organization of men and women in the arts, including literature, visual art, music, theater, and dance. The purpose of Gamma Xi Phi is to honor the achievements of artists through fellowship, philanthropy, social justice, and service. The fraternity promotes philanthropy and service to the arts, brotherhood among all artists, and leadership development in artistic professions through collegiate and community outreach to people of color across the world.