COMMUNITY & CULTURE
TAKE IT FROM ME…
with Cecilia Nadal
SOCIOLOGIST. CULTURAL DIVERSITY LEADER. ACTIVITIST.
By Diane Kline
I
t is no wonder that Cecilia Nadal has dedicated her life’s work to
encouraging cultural diversity.
If you were to list all the ethnicities on her family tree, it
would make a forest. Her heritage includes Afro-Puerto Rican,
Irish, Cherokee, Moorish, French and African-American. Add
to that her experience as a U.S. Air Force “brat” living in 12 states and
four countries, and you see how she grew to appreciate and understand
people from different backgrounds.
Nadal earned her master’s degree in sociology from Webster
University, and completed the course work for a doctorate degree at
Saint Louis University, but decided it was more important to work on
issues than study about them.
Af ter running her business, Productive Futures, for 21 years, she is
currently the executive director of Gitana Productions, an organization
she co-founded in 1997. The nonprofit uses arts and education to bring
people of diverse backgrounds together. Nadal serves as artistic director
and producer for hundreds of multicultural arts programs, for example,
bringing the Chinese Orchestra to St. Louis, the first event of its kind.
But she is also a teacher and visionary to thousands of students who
have participated in classes at Gitana, where they use the arts to address
conflict, anger and racism. She was most recently appointed chair of the
2019 National Drama Competition for the National Society of Arts and
Letters Saint Louis Chapter.
Her daughter is Missouri Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal, who inherited
her mother’s commitment to activism and community.
“I’m always proud of her, and you may be surprised that we agree
more than we disagree,” said Nadal of her highly visible (and vocal)
politician daughter.
Below, read about the unique insights Nadal has gained from a
lifetime of helping others feel accepted.
My work keeps me going.
As a sociologist, I am always observing people and wondering why
they are as they are. People immigrated to America with high goals of
freedom, but they easily turned into oppressors. Like jealous children in
the family, they wanted to be better than others. Power and materialism
fed the flames. My work is to help everyone feel equal.
The more I study, the more I change my point of view.
Oppression is so pervasive. You have to consider that this may really
be part of our human nature. What’s more interesting to me is people
who are generous and thoughtful, who counter with the impulse to
dominate. This is what is missing in our social education: how not to
use power to dominate.
My mother taught me I could do anything.
She made it clear that women should be their own people. She didn’t
see barriers. We could do anything if we dedicated ourselves to it.
Growing up with eight brothers and sisters, our parents were tough.
We woke up at 5 a.m. to clean the house, iron our clothes and get ready
for school. In high school, you had to get a good GPA or you wouldn’t
get a scholarship and be able to go to college. It was up to you.
Don’t let fear of failure hold you back.
In college, I started writing a play called “Burial Master.” I sent the
synopsis to a publisher, who said that when it was completed, he would
come to see it. This terrified me. I was worried about failing, and told
myself, “This is not going to work out.” So I didn’t finish it. I learned that
you can’t walk away; you just have to do it.
I don’t fight with people over ideas.
The arts bridges differences.
As I looked at how to bring people together, I saw that the arts would
work with all kinds of backgrounds. It’s a way to put ideas in front of
people, without them shutting down, and without so much criticism.
You’re in a meditative state when you experience the arts, and it affects
how you see the world.
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GAZELLE
In college, I was dogmatic and in constant fighting mode. That’s not
good for the soul. And if you have to change your soul, it’s on your own
timetable. It will happen when it’s meant to come. I no longer fight with
people who have already made up their minds. I won’t waste energy
that I can use toward making changes.