Our discussion uses 1930s America as a starting point, a period when African-American artists such as Aaron Douglas and William Johnson actively engaged with issues about race. Dr Michael McMillan asks artists Sonia Boyce RA, Dr Kimathi Donkor and Jacob V Joyce whether it is the responsibility of black artists today to challenge global and national issues of racial prejudice? Can art and spaces for art contribute to an ongoing dialogue between visual culture and activism in the context of racial prejudice? How do artists see their role? Is art an effective vehicle for protest, grief or hope?