Ebony McKinney, tireless arts organizer, dies
Ebony McKinney, a determined and energetic cultural advocate for artists and social justice, died suddenly July 29 at the age of 41.
Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Ms. McKinney graduated from Chatham University and worked as the manager of programming and outreach at Kelly Strayhorn Theater, before moving to San Francisco with her then-husband, Davu Flint, a musician and poet.
[...] in those years, she co-founded two crucial organizations — Emerging Arts Professionals San Francisco Bay Area (EAP/SFBA) and Arts for a Better Bay Area (ABBA).
ABBA, founded in 2014, is a coalition of more than 500 arts workers, including composers, curators, administrators, grant makers and artists of all disciplines.
Most importantly, she was a coalition builder who used her talents to change the Bay Area arts sector at its core.
A connector of people, Ms. McKinney first made her mark by launching an informal group called ExperiMentors, which endeavored to build diversity and leadership.
“She was interested in the future of cities and how they could be shaped by the arts,” said Adam Fong, executive director of the Center for New Music and the co-founder of EAP/SFBA.
In addition to her work for EAP/SFBA, she and Leifheit formed ABBA to build public goodwill and increased funding for the arts.
“One of Ebony’s signature moments for ABBA was organizing more than 30 people to give public comment at City Hall during the budget hearings in 2015,” Leifheit said.
At the heart of everything, she was deeply compassionate and peaceful and wanted to help people.