The past few weeks have felt like a bit of a fever dream. The world, even two years after a global pandemic that claimed millions of lives, feels more than ever like an incredibly strange place. It’s a place where violence has become commonplace, and divisiveness fuels hatred among neighbors and between communities. A place where terms like “equity” and “diversity,” meant to promote inclusivity and inspire justice, are now dismissed as pejorative. And one in which, with dizzying speed, one of history’s briefest periods of racial reckoning is being rapidly reversed.

Even for the most optimistic of us, these days feel uncertain and uncharted.

It’s why we wake up, every day, committed to the work we do at NEXT. At NEXT, we understand that in times of division and social discord, art has the power to bridge the divides. When all else seems to fail, art prevails.

Last November, we witnessed firsthand the transformative power of art at the NEXT Movement film screening, organized in partnership with MARTA, WABE and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. Five NEXT artists captivated a diverse audience with powerful, commissioned works at the intersection of art and justice, performed on a MARTA train transformed into a soundstage. Their performances evoked laughter, tears, a spontaneous call and response, and culminated in a rousing standing ovation. It was a powerful showcase of how art connects, heals, and, ultimately, can inspire change. For a moment the world was calm, the future bright, and path forward clear.