The clichéd concept that art can be used as a tool for social justice bears repeating today as a group of teens, affected by gun violence and police brutality, translate their anger into change.
Via NYDailyNews:
Twenty youngsters affected by gun violence and police brutality were given an outlet to express their pain through music and poetry, during a four-day intensive Hip Hop Summer Camp for Social Justice at Harlem’s SCAN Johnson Community Center.
The program is sponsored by Urban Art Beat, Art Start and The Next Youth Coalition. It launched on August 18 in the wake of protests over the death of Eric Garner in Staten Island and Mike Brown in Ferguson, MO, both of whom died at the hands of police misconduct.
“I was furious, scared, nervous. I didn’t know how to act toward it at all,” said 21-year-old rapper Michael David after witnessing cops act violently with his friend. “I want people to feel what I’ve been through […] I can paint a vivid picture with music.”
Aspiring MCs, poets and singers can visit HERE for more information on how to join this program or any other community initiative.
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Photo: WENN/Instagram
