We are thrilled to support keynote speaker Mitchell Esajas’ (New Urban Collective and The Black Archives, Amsterdam) participation in the #StopHatredNow 11–15.5.2026 in Helsinki and online!
#StopHatredNow
What role and responsibility does art play in a cultural transition? How do different choices shape our lived reality—what do the representations seen on stage, the curatorial choices made in museums and other institutions, or the direction of cultural policy reveal about our times? To whom do power, freedom, and responsibility in the art world fall?
The #StopHatredNow 2026 event week seeks answers to these pressing questions. As polarisation deepens, funding shrinks, and discourses on representation and equity intensify, #StopHatredNow turns the spotlight on power, accountability, and care. The keynote lectures, panel discussions, and workshops organised during the event week will delve into these topics from different perspectives, including leadership, curation, accessibility, and inclusion. There will also be concrete advice and tools presented that will benefit both larger institutions and individual artists alike.
#StopHatredNow 2026 kicks off on Monday, 11 May 2026, with the Institutional Day held in Hakaniemi, Helsinki. The programme is tailored specifically for those working in and with art and cultural institutions, but anyone interested is welcome to register.
Register for the Institutional Day on the #StopHatredNow website.
The entire event week programme is free of charge and can be enjoyed from anywhere in the world, as the majority of the programme will be streamed live. The events are held in English or Finnish.
Discover the full programme of #StopHatredNow.
#StopHatredNow was initiated by UrbanApa and Sonya Lindfors, facilitated by Sonya Lindfors and brought to life through the collaboration of several organisations. Lisa Kalkowski acts as the event’s producer and project coordinator. The platform strives to create discourse and offers tools for building a more inclusive, diverse, and feminist art field — where inclusivity, diversity, non-discrimination, accessibility, and social as well as ecological sustainability shape the future of every art and cultural institution.
About Mitchell Esajas
Mitchell Esajas is the co-founder of New Urban Collective, a network for students and young professionals from diverse backgrounds with a focus on the Surinamese, Caribbean, and African diaspora. Esajas studied Business Studies and Anthropology at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. In 2016, he co-founded The Black Archives in Amsterdam, a cultural centre based on a unique collection of books, documents, and artefacts documenting the histories of Surinamese and Black people in the Dutch context. The Black Archives develops exhibitions and public programmes based on the collections and urgent societal issues.
In his keynote Working Through Conflict in Communities – Tools & Strategies, on Tuesday 12.5. at 11:20–11:40 EEST, Esajas focuses on working through conflict, offering strategies and concrete tools and takeaways that can be utilised when discussing difficult topics. Following his keynote, Esajas will join a panel discussion How to Continue – On Community, Conflict & Care with Paola Jalili & Elina Waage, moderated by Yasmin Ibrahim.