As a boy growing up in Kansas City, Enrique Chi connected to his culture through music. Years later, as a Latin Grammy-nominated artist, he and his bandmates wanted to help young musicians find that same connection. This past July, they staged an ambitious arts and music festival, allowing emerging talent to perform alongside national acts. But first, they had to get through rehearsals.

Wing Luke was the first elected Asian-American in Seattle, a civil rights hero who fought for visibility for Seattle's Chinatown International District. Decades later, the museum founded in his memory continues that fight. This July, the Wing Luke Museum planned a festival to celebrate the neighborhood as part of the Arts For Everybody campaign. But then, an international news event upended those plans – and challenged the very existence of the museum itself.

COVID-19 impacted people all across America. In Providence, Rhode Island, the impacts of the pandemic were felt especially acutely in the city's public housing projects. Perhaps most frustrating for residents – many of the decisions about how those communities ran were made by people who did not live there. In 2024, residents and local artists embarked on a unique project to make their voices heard.