Your Culture Our Jam

Cultural Jam announces new YouTube Channel:
“Your Culture Our Jam”

Every culture has a story. Every person has a voice. Your Culture, Our Jam is where traditions, identity and community come together through real conversations with people from all backgrounds.
We invite you to subscribe, explore, listen, and chime in to our new YouTube channel – because understanding starts when we truly hear each other.

Subscribe here: Your Culture Our Jam

For 20 years, Cultural Jambalaya has opened minds, sparked meaningful conversations and reminded us that curiosity about one another is one of the strongest antidotes to fear. Our mission has always been to promote understanding, respect and shared humanity especially through creative tools that help educators broaden students’ worldviews and deepen appreciation for diverse cultural backgrounds.

Today, many educators and communities are feeling the impact of shifts in how social studies and cultural education are treated in schools. Diversity, equity and inclusion efforts are increasingly discouraged, and some teachers feel uncertain or afraid to bring authentic cultural content into their classrooms. We knew we needed a new way to connect, one that brings the richness of people’s lived experiences directly to a wider audience.

That’s why we’re launching a YouTube channel dedicated to culture, identity, and the real stories of people in our communities. We initially envisioned sharing how the many cultures that make up the United States keep their traditions alive, enrich the places they live, and help shape the communities we all call home.

We will continue to do that. But recent events in Minnesota (where we are based), including heightened immigration enforcement activity and the community response to it, have underscored why this work is needed now more than ever. Across the state, people are talking about how these changes affect their sense of safety and belonging, how families and neighborhoods are coping, and how individuals and communities, too often painted with a broad brush, want to be seen and understood.

Voices of Minnesota

We are offering a platform called Voices of Minnesota, a space for people from all walks of life, every nationality, race, religion, and background that contributes to the rich fabric of this beautiful state to share:

  • Who you are and what your community means to you
  • How recent events have affected your daily life and sense of security
  • What you want others to understand about your story, your culture and your hopes for the future

This is not about politics or promoting a single point of view. It is about listening deeply to lived experiences and making room for voices that are too often unheard. Whether you come from a long-established Minnesota family, are newer to the state, represent an immigrant or refugee community, a farming town, educators, youth, or elders, every story adds to understanding.

We also welcome voices from across the country and around the world to reflect on community, culture, belonging, and what it means to live together with respect and empathy.

We invite you to share your voice, your stories, and your truth. Together, we can build connections, deepen understanding, and show what it truly means to live in a diverse and resilient community like Minnesota.

Gail Shore, Executive Director
gshore@winternet.com