For five days in October, Chicagoans will get a taste of some of the most forward-thinking music, visual art, performances and discourse from Black artists in the city via the 10th annual Afrofuturist Weekend.
But the event may not see an 11th year.
It is one of several free local festivals that lost funding in May after President Donald Trump’s administration canceled grants issued through the National Endowment for the Arts. The Elastic Arts Foundation was promised $20,000 to offer the event, which runs Oct. 1-5 in Garfield Park and Logan Square.
“It was pretty devastating,” said Samuel Lewis, who is the organization’s co-founder and director of outreach programs.
Fortunately, a funder stepped in to cover the amount, which accounts for two-thirds of the festival budget.
“But who knows what’s going to happen next year?” Lewis said. “People rise to the occasion sometimes during an emergency, but all organizations are pretty stressed right now. And so who’s to say people are going to be able to rise to the occasion next year if the same thing happens?”
Other event organizers are also contemplating the future of the city’s free festivals amid big funding shifts in the sector, including NEA funding cuts. Both the Englewood Jazz Festival and the Hyde Park Jazz Festival (running Saturday and Sunday) found replacement funding this year, but support for next year is still uncertain. And funding for the 2026 iteration of About Face Theatre’s Re/Generation Studio fest is also in jeopardy.
As they work to raise money, event organizers are considering whether they should make changes to programming or even begin charging for admission.
“Artists and spaces for art and culture are so valuable and vital and connected to our humanity,” said Megan Carney, artistic director for About Face Theatre, which promotes LGBTQ+ artists and stories. “And that space for imagining and dreaming and relaxing together and being in community is so imperative. It’s just that the business model is rapidly changing. And I think we’re all kind of asking the same questions right now.”
After announcing changes to the NEA’s grantmaking criteria and programs in February, President Trump said in May that he would withdraw grant money previously promised for 2025. He also proposed eliminating the federal agency’s budget for the future.
This year, the NEA pledged $37 million for 1,474 recipients nationwide, with 80 Illinois arts organizations due to receive $2 million. Some groups received notices that their programming did not align with Trump’s new priorities, which include celebrating the 250th anniversary of American Independence.
Among the major Chicago events that lost NEA funding are Open House Chicago (Oct. 18-19), the free festival hosted by the Chicago Architecture Center, and the Black Harvest Film Festival (Nov. 7-16). To help fill some of the gaps, the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events allowed impacted organizations to apply for relief grants between $10,000 and $25,000. Recipients will be announced later this fall.
Because federal grants require organizations to complete programming and apply for reimbursement, some organizations had already spent money when they received termination letters. That was the case for About Face Theatre, which had already hosted Re/Generation Studio, a weekend of free workshops, performances and other events, in March. The theater received its full grant amount of $15,000 after submitting an appeal letter.
But Carney said the organization will have to find a different funder next year, or consider restructuring the event or introducing a low ticket fee.
“Wanting art to be accessible and wanting to make art for everybody and remove those financial barriers from participation — that’s so key to who we are,” she said.
It’s also a priority for the Englewood Jazz Festival, which was forced to replace $25,000 in NEA funding. Event founder Ernest Dawkins said he was concerned about the future, pointing to additional changes in the sector, such as the city’s new rule that organizations can only receive a cultural affairs department CityArts grant for up to two consecutive years before taking a year off from qualifying for funding.
“We want to keep it free because our communities are starved for the music, and the people that do support us really support us,” he said. “So we attempt to bring the services to the community. And we’re not an outside entity bringing something into them. We’re in the community bringing it to them. It’s a big difference.”
Organizers of the Hyde Park Jazz Festival say they are also dedicated to presenting an event on the South Side, where so many jazz pioneers emerged. Though the fest replaced $30,000 withdrawn by the NEA, securing support for next year will be challenging, said Kate Dumbleton, the fest’s executive director and artistic director.
Dumbleton and other organizers say they are also feeling added pressure from Trump’s attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion. They say there is a fear that events centering artists from marginalized communities will not be financially supported.
Dumbleton said it is “reductive” to categorize Black art as DEI.
“It isn’t a program for us,” she said. “It is about jazz culture, which is rooted, especially on the South Side, in Black culture and Black history and the Black experience. The money is one thing, but it’s really alarming in terms of thinking about the future and how to stay true to the narrative and the story and the history and be able to sustain an organization.”
Samuel Lewis said work by diverse artists deserves to be highlighted, not just by Afrofuturist Weekend, but by the country.
“We feel like it is important for people, especially in these times, to look at things that are coming from BIPOC folks that are positive, forward-thinking and changing the way people are thinking about themselves and what possibilities exist,” he said.
About Face Theatre also said it would remain devoted to its mission to “advance LGBTQ+ equity.”
“We are really committed to staying loud, staying proud and continuing to do this work,” Carney said. “We might not know the long game right now, but we know how to be in hard moments and how to look out for each other.”