Inner-city Muslim Action Network (IMAN)

• Started in 1997 on the Southwest Side of Chicago (Chicago Lawn)

• Focus on Three Major Areas:

• Community Organizing

• Direct Services

• Arts and Culture

Arts & Culture

• Takin’ It to the Streets

• Community Café

• Youth Programs

• Artist Retreat

• Mostly between the ages of 15 – 40, with support from elders

• South Asian, African American, Arab, and Latino

• 75% Muslim

• Varying levels of income and education

• Live on the South Side, throughout Chicago, and in the Suburbs

• Value strong sense of community, appreciate the arts

Core Audience

Free and Open to the Public

Engaging New Audiences

• Expanding our reach:

• City Center Dwellers• World Music Lovers• Arts Connoisseurs• Curious Citizens

• Other Muslim communities/ethnic backgrounds

Partnership with DCA and Millennium Park

• Partner on a “pre-concert” at Millennium Park

• Bring IMAN’s core audience to Millennium Park

• Drive Millennium Park regulars to Takin’ It to the Streets/Marquette Park

• Incentivize both events

• Collect Data at both events

Anticipated Outcomes

• One promotional event before Takin’ It to the Streets

• 1,000 People from IMAN’s base attend the Millennium Park Event

• 1,000 People from Millennium Park event attend Takin’ It to the Streets

• Increase IMAN’s database by 500 people based on the partnership

• 20,000 total attendees

Actual Outcomes

The festival expands to an entire week!

Actual Outcomes

Actual Outcomes

Actual Outcomes

Actual Outcomes

Actual Outcomes

20,000+ attend week’s events, 18,000 came to Takin’ it to the Streets,

3,000 People added to IMAN’s database

(and almost 200 artists!)

Actual Outcomes

Great media support, coverage, and exposure(WBEZ, Time Out, Chicago Reader, CNN, Washington Post)

Sustained Support from Institutions and Foundations(Department of Cultural Affairs, Old Town School of Folk Music,

Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art)

Sources of Audience Data

• 2007 - 2009: • Hand-held counters• Audience Surveys• Social Media• E-Mail List

• 2010:• Hand-held counters• Pre-registration• On-site registration (with demographic information)• Incentives for registration • Interviews• Audience Surveys• SMS Campaign• Chicago Police Department• Video Footage• Social Media• E-mail List

What’s Next?• 2011 will serve as a year of evaluation and planning with limited

programming

• Artists engagement: surveys, interviews, and retreat

• Development of Arts Council

• Consolidate methods of Data Collection

• Better integrate database

• Create long term partnerships

• Leverage Social Media

Advice

Build in time for analysis, evaluation, and reflection!