Agenda - Parks and Recreation Commission - 01/09/2025

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or not you call it"white supremacy," it tends to devalue and undermine both the lives and experiences of people of color and native/indigenous peoples." As a result of the controversy, the Walker Art Center and the broader community had meaningful discussions about the role of diversity and cultural sensitivity. Protestors gave new public awareness to the history of cultural genocide and the tragic hanging of 38 Dakota men in Minnesota in 1862. The Walker Art Center adopted new diversity education programs and started a program to get earlier feedback from diverse communities. In her pledge to continue the efforts, the Executive Director stated: "It's an amazing community that really understands the importance of culture and art as a platform for conversation, for difficult conversations. . .we are living in a really challenging, difficult moment and art can open the door to conversations." (Eldred 2017, p. C-1) Pamela Jo Landi (2012) offers a definition of public art that fits well with the topic of this study: "Public art encompasses both functional objects in the landscape and expressive, decorative forms either permanent or temporary, that belong to any established classic or contemporary artistic disciplines such as but not limited to sculpture, mural, relief; installed with the intent to enhance, physically define, promote or establish identity in a space or a place. The person who creates or designs public art falls to anyone that identifies themselves as a professional artist, craftsperson or citizen involved in the creation and design of these installations." (Landi 2012, p. 6). The physical location is one means to differentiate public art from non-public art (Phillips 1989) and these sites are openly available to the public as opposed to a location specifically 33