Dr. Karen Suarez Flint is the Secretary-Treasurer of the Chicago Federation of Musicians, Local 10-208. She also serves as a Vice President of the Illinois AFL-CIO, and a member of the Chicago Entertainment Industry Labor Council (CEILC).
Dr. Karen Suarez Flint is the Secretary-Treasurer of the Chicago Federation of Musicians, Local 10-208. She also serves as a Vice President of the Illinois AFL-CIO, and a member of the Chicago Entertainment Industry Labor Council (CEILC).
She is the founder of the Change the Culture committee, an ad hoc group of women leaders throughout the American Federation of Musicians, whose aim is to confront the epidemic of sexual harassment and abuse in classical music, while creating effective policy that ensures safe work environments for all musicians. Karen is responsible for piloting the use of the #NotMe app for anonymous reporting of inapropriate workplace conduct at the CFM, which was later adopted by the AFM, at the international level.
She is the founder of the Change the Culture committee, an ad hoc group of women leaders throughout the American Federation of Musicians, whose aim is to confront the epidemic of sexual harassment and abuse in classical music, while creating effective policy that ensures safe work environments for all musicians. Karen is responsible for piloting the use of the #NotMe app for anonymous reporting of inapropriate workplace conduct at the CFM, which was later adopted by the AFM, at the international level.
She is a tireless advocate for musicians, including Chicago's Hip-Hop artists, as they work to end the "pay to play" culture and fight the exploitation of their craft and communities by corporate record companies and streaming platforms. Recently, Karen entered the junk ticket fee debate in Illinois educating legislators on the need to expand their consumer protection-based priorities to include the monopolistic gouging of musicians’ profits.
She is a tireless advocate for musicians, including Chicago's Hip-Hop artists, as they work to end the "pay to play" culture and fight the exploitation of their craft and communities by corporate record companies and streaming platforms. Recently, Karen entered the junk ticket fee debate in Illinois educating legislators on the need to expand their consumer protection-based priorities to include the monopolistic gouging of musicians’ profits.
For many years Karen worked as a freelance classical musician, performing on orchestral stages and in theater pits around the US, prior to being elected to union leadership in 2022. She served over twenty years as Adjunct Professor of Horn at Carthage College while also maintaining a studio of private students. Karen holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts and a Master of Music in Performance & Literature from the Eastman School of Music, as well as a bachelor's degree in Music Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
For many years Karen worked as a freelance classical musician, performing on orchestral stages and in theater pits around the US, prior to being elected to union leadership in 2022. She served over twenty years as Adjunct Professor of Horn at Carthage College while also maintaining a studio of private students. Karen holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts and a Master of Music in Performance & Literature from the Eastman School of Music, as well as a bachelor's degree in Music Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.