In Dorchester, our aim this year is to reach out to local organizations and find ways to collaborate, with the mindset that there is power behind numbers. We have a group of ten youth organizers that are enthusiastic about using the arts as a vehicle to reach the goals they have set for the 2013 – 2014 work year. Teen Empowerment and The Record Company have combined efforts to open a fully functio
ning record label at Balfour for youth and worked by youth! Studio time is every Thursday from 4 to 6pm. To schedule studio time, please contact Samantha @ 617-427-1599 or @ [email protected]. We are looking to develop initiatives and contribute to other initiatives via avenues that highlight the strengths and talents of our community. Last year, our youth organizers worked on the theme “Cage.” The group’s focus was on the internal and external forces that fuel the critical issues that young people face in their community. Through many discussions, we realized that these issues are all connected and feed into each other. A cycle is created that gives the sense of feeling stuck—or caged. Internal forces are factors such as individual behaviors and external forces are factors such as systems and social beliefs. The issues we identified as most pressing are: violence, drug and alcohol abuse, police/community relationships, communication, lack of jobs, teen pregnancy, and access to quality education. Our goal this year is to connect people and work together towards fixing these issues. We believe the first step is to talk to our community. While all of our events and projects will ask us to think deeply about the issues that our community faces daily, we are also interested in learning about the strengths and talents of our community. We aim to build relationships between people and organizations. We cannot change our community alone, and everyone’s participation is essential to build a better and safer community.
