The Southbank in London is a cultural hotspot. The National Theater sits alongside superb art cinemas from the British Film Institute (BFI Southbank). And then there is the Southbank Centre. This includes an art exhibition space called the Hayward Gallery, the National Poetry Library and three (count them) concert halls: the Purcell Hall, the Queen Elizabeth Hall and the magnificent Royal Festival Hall.
Sunday, Apple
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It is the first such partnership for Apple in the UK, or even Europe, and is part of the Apple Racial Equity and Justice Initiative (REJI). This led the company to invest in an investment and learning center in Atlanta, a developer academy in Detroit, and more.
The partnership with the Southbank Center is the latest initiative and will offer training and development programs to overcome barriers black creatives may face, as well as collaborations with local schools to spark a passion for creativity. These programs will operate in three UK cities: London, Birmingham and Manchester.
Cook spoke to attendees of a program called Photo-Fantastic, where 15 black photographers held photo and video shoots in a week, asking them about their experience and how they found the program. As is always the case with Cook, he was observant, listening intently and skillfully asking research questions. I’ve seen him do that before, win over the people he talks to with his sincerity, his genuine interest.
Afterwards, I asked Cook about the activities of a tech company involved in something like the Racial Equity and Justice Initiative. “It’s about values,” he replied, “about making a difference. Apple believes we should leave the world better than we found it, making people’s lives better. We committed to this through REJI.
Apple said it would spend $100 million when the initiative was first announced in 2020. But since then? “We exceeded our initial commitment of $100 million, well beyond that,” Cook said. To be precise, the figure is already over $150 million.
Misan Harriman is the president of the Southbank Center and an accomplished photographer who has made significant contributions to Black Lives Matter, for example. He is also passionate about what programs like this can accomplish. Referring to photographers, he said: “You just saw how important it is: to be seen, to put on a show at Southbank and to have access to great teachers and photographers. This is just the beginning.”
Cook agreed, saying, “You saw how important a project like this was to the photographers who took part in it. Not everyone gets the opportunities they should.
And when asked what Steve Jobs would have thought of this latest partnership and REJI’s work, Cook referenced Jobs’ passion for unleashing people’s talent. “Steve loved seeing people tap into their creativity, and he loved helping them do things they didn’t know they could do and show them their talent.”