It seems to me that if we really want to diversify cultural audiences, we should get more people of color into college and more money in their pockets.

I say this after reading a recent study on cultural attractions put out by Morey Consulting last month through LinkedIn noting that, relative to the census, Blacks are underrepresented as attendees by 50%, Hispanics by 250%. One of the major barriers to entry for all racial groups was price: 17.4% of Black respondents worried about cost, as did 20.4% of Whites, and 30% of Hispanic respondents. The median income for Blacks, as Morey Consulting points out using 2018 US Census data, is 41% lower than that for Whites, and 52% lower than the median income for Asians. Hispanic median income is 27% and 40% lower than White and Asian incomes, respectively. Those involved in the study who attended cultural attractions made more across the board, but there were still striking disparities between races: Black visitors made 24% less than Whites and 32% than Asians, and Hispanic visitors made 17% and 25% less.

Education is a huge predictor of whether people will attend a cultural attraction. While only 24% of Blacks and 17% of Hispanics in the US have a college degree, 68% of Black and Hispanic cultural attendees completed an undergraduate program. (By comparison, 38% of Whites and 55% of Asians in the US hold degrees, and 76% and 88% of attendees from those groups hold degrees, respectively.) The good news is that Blacks and Hispanics with degrees come out and take part in cultural activities; the bad news is there are just too few within those groups who have gone to college to move the needle.

By pointing out that money and education are important impediments to cultural attendance for Black and Hispanic populations, I don’t mean to imply that they aren’t for other racial groups. White participants in the Morey study were 3% more concerned about price than Black participants, and Asian concern was at 29.2%, practically on par with Hispanics at 29.6%. And there are a lot of Whites with only a high-school diploma out there who aren’t going to cultural attractions.

What I am saying is that the economic and education barriers are most pronounced among those who identify as Black or Hispanic, two racial-ethnic groups that cultural attractions and arts organizations particularly aspire to attract. And although I’ve seen other studies and surveys identify both level of education and price as primary barriers for cultural participation, I have yet to see anyone in the arts-and-culture field pose any solutions as to how we can remove them.

Leaders who really want to ensure that our cultural institutions will be enjoyed and supported today and for generations to come will recognize that higher education is the key, and that economic stability provides people with the security they need to explore their intellectual curiosity. It’s tough for non-profit cultural groups to talk about political issues–they can lose the support of major donors or even their 501(c)(3) status–but doing so now might help set the foundation for a renewed interest in culture that can help everyone.