Keep Our Culture Alive – Support ACCC

My name is Rafael Feliciano-Roman, and I serve as the President & CEO of the Afro-Caribbean Cultural Center, Inc. in Waterbury, Connecticut. I founded this center with a vision: to create a vibrant, affirming space where Afro-Caribbean, Black and Taíno, and broader BIPOC communities can celebrate our histories, express our truths, and build futures rooted in culture, justice, and healing.

In September 2024, we were honored to receive a $130,000 federal grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) through the ArtsHERE initiative—a powerful validation of our mission to serve underserved communities through the arts. Half of those funds arrived last fall, fueling youth theater, intergenerational programs, and educational initiatives rooted in cultural pride.

But now, that dream is at risk.

Due to sweeping NEA cuts under the Trump Administration, we’ve been informed that the remaining $65,000 of our funding has been frozen indefinitely.

“We regret to inform you that due to the abrupt federal funding freeze, disbursement of your remaining NEA-supported grant funds has been suspended until further notice.” – New England Arts Foundation

This loss isn’t just financial—it’s structural. Without those funds, the Afro-Caribbean Cultural Center faces:

Our families depend on this center is more than brick and mortar. It’s where young people explore who they are through art and theater. It’s where elders reconnect to ancestral knowledge. It’s where we build power through culture.

That’s why I’m asking—as a leader, an artist, an educator, and a son of the diaspora—for your support to close this $65,000 gap and keep our mission alive.

What You Can Do:

✅ Donate whatever you can

Share this campaign with your networks

Stand with us to protect culture, healing, and youth futures

This is our community’s space. And together, we can defend it.

With hope and deep gratitude,

Rafael Feliciano-Roman

President & CEO

Afro-Caribbean Cultural Center, Inc.