The Black Emergency Cultural Coalition Inc. (BECC) was organized in January 1969 by a group of African-American artists, in response to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's "HARLEM ON MY MIND" exhibit, which omitted the contributions of African-American painters and sculptors to the Harlem community. Members of this initial group that protested against the exhibit included several prominent African-American artists, including Benny Andrews and Clifford R. Joseph, cofounders of the BECC. The primary goal of the group was to agitate for change in the major art museums in New York City, so that there would be greater representation of African-American artists and their work in these museums, and that an African-American curatorial presence would be established. The Coalition described itself as an action oriented watchdog group that strived to develop the legitimate rights and aspirations of individual African-American artists and the total art community. This process, which began in 1969, culminated with the call to boycott an exhibit at the Whitney Museum of American Art in 1971, after talks between the BECC and the Whitney to curate an African American art exhibit failed to achieve greater participation and visibility for the African-American artist.
In 1971 the work of the Coalition grew to include the creation of an Arts Exchange program in correctional facilities. This program arose in response to major riots at the Attica correctional facility in New York. The BECC was stirred by the prisoner's demands for rights and justice. The first class in September 1971 was held at the Manhattan House of Detention. The program grew exponentially in the following year and was implemented in twenty states. Three different types of teaching arrangements developed within the program. In New York, Rhode Island and Massachusetts, classes were taught by artists from the BECC. In other institutions such as the Greenhaven Correctional facility in Connecticut inmates taught classes, with monthly visits from artists in the Coalition. In the third variation of the program, visiting artists taught classes once or twice a month at places such as Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary and the Federal Correctional Institution in Tallahassee, Florida. The BECC also sponsored arts programs in juvenile detention centers and mental health facilities throughout the United States.
The BECC was incorporated in 1972 as a not for profit organization. The initial directors of this newly incorporated organization were Clifford R. Joseph, Benny Andrews, Camille Billops, Vivian Browne and Russell Thompson. Cliff Joseph and Benny Andrews were named co-chairmen of the Coalition with Michael Chisolm as the coordinator of the program. The work of the Coalition officers was done on a purely volunteer service with no salaries being paid. Funding for the organization came from contributions from private parties and grants. To finance the arts programs the Coalition applied for and received grants from various agencies including the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York State Council on the Arts.
Voluntarism was a major part of the BECC arts program efforts. Instructors and teachers in the BECC arts programs worked without compensation receiving small amounts of money to offset transportation expenses and supplies. Their Prison Arts Program instructors were recruited by word of mouth and by inquiries about the programs made directly to the BECC. It is noted that in some cases artists had began programs independently and sought the Coalition's help to gain legitimacy and sponsorship. The classes offered in each institution were largely dependent on the expertise of the volunteer. Thus, a variety of arts, crafts and creative writing programs were offered. The BECC advocated partnering with interested artists, university programs, and cultural groups to achieve their objectives.
BECC published a newsletter with contributing articles from its members chronicling their arts program activities, and Benny Andrews, co-chairman of the Coalition published several articles about the BECC's experiences in newspapers and art journals across the country. The Coalition also sponsored but did not administer a number of programs such as the Artisian Alliance and the Sinbad School of Art. Both of these programs were given administrative and financial support. Over the years of its existence the BECC also supported several lectures, discussions and talks about the African-American artist and society, using art in prisons and various other topics concerning the African-American community and art. They sponsored the Xango exhibit in 1980 held in New York City at the Countee Cullen Branch Library in Harlem. The exhibit, which featured the works of the German photographer Leonore Mau, captured images of Black religious rituals and rites in the African Diaspora. The BECC had offered the exhibit to the American Museum of Natural History but they had declined.
In 1981 the Coalition was given notice by the New York Department of Labor, Unemployment Insurance Division, regarding their liability for contributions that should have been made since January 1st 1978. There is no evidence of how this matter was resolved. The records of the official work of BECC cease after 1982, the year they were denied funding by the National Endowment for the Arts. There is evidence that some instructors continued their programs in various institutions but it is unclear whether they ever received reimbursement for their work or how long they continued to offer classes.
The formal closure of the BECC is not documented in the collection.