Youth Council Artivism Program

Hello Community members! Mid-City CAN is thrilled to announce that our third Youth Council Artivism Summer Program returns this summer! We are collaborating with The AjA Project -- a compassionate space for young people, activists, visual artists and educators to engage critically with issues that affect our community and realize our collective liberation through participatory storytelling and the documentary arts.

Our Artivism program is FREE for youth ages 13-18 and this year’s program will center on photography, art, youth organizing, community, activism and more!

What will Youth gain from Artivism?

An opportunity to create change in their communities and learn from local artists, activists and organizers. The focus of the program will revolve around The Civil Liberties Project which is rooted in studying the social and political context of the Japanese American Internment Camp’s history. This will include field trips to the Japanese American Historical Society in City Heights and the Japanese American Museum in Los Angeles. Potential workshops for youth to participate in include silk-screening, collage making, zine-making, photography, filmography and recording! Selected youth will have an opportunity to complete a fellowship with The AjA project after the program.

How can I or my youth register?

Youth who are interested in participating in Artvisim can sign up by clicking this link:

https://bit.ly/Artivism2023

Program Details:

Date: June 29 - August 11th (Thursday and Friday)
Time: 3 p.m. - 5 p.m.
Location: Mid-City CAN Office, 4305 University Ave Suite 550 San Diego, CA 92105

Art materials/supplies, lunch, food/snacks, and water will be provided by Mid-City CAN.

It will be a great experience for youth and we’re looking forward to hosting them! If you have questions, please contact Mid-City CAN Youth Organizer Victor Ponce at [email protected] or by phone 619.272.7582 x 122.

Artivism 2022 Celebration and Exhibit held at Copley-Price YMCA

We said goodbye to our wonderful and talented 2022 Youth Council Artivism Program students on Tuesday, August 16, with a celebration and exhibition of their artwork at the Copley-Price YMCA.

"Major shoutout to all of you, I'm so proud of all of you," teaching artist Lorain Khalil Rihan said to all of the students during the celebration. "The world that we live in, there's a lot of cruelty happening. And the way that you all show up, with the level of love and compassion and care that you have for one another, and cares that you have for the world and for the future is so inspiring."

Family and friends of the artists enjoyed food, beverages, learned about the Artivism program and saw the beautiful artwork of the students. The celebration also included a music performance and testimonials from students.

Congratulations students for completing the program! It was an honor to have you and we wish you continued success in school and in all of your endeavors!

Thank you to the sponsors of our Artivism program, Level Up SD, San Diego Unified School District, San Diego Foundation, and Price Philanthropies, for your generous support. Many thanks to Copley-Price YMCA for hosting our event.

It's a Wrap! 2022 Youth Council Summer Artivism Program Concludes

Artivism 2022 program

Our Youth Council Summer Artivism Program ended on Friday, July 29 and we want to thank all of the wonderful students who participated in the program! We hope that it was a fun and enriching experience for everyone. A huge shout out to Lorain Khalil Rihan, our amazing teaching artist. Lorian taught the process of print making using different materials and techniques. She also opened and closed the class with a circle where students expressed how they are feeling that day. Participants also learned the basics of youth organizing focusing on police accountability, juvenile justice, and transportation justice.

"These past weeks have been amazing and life-changing," said Artivism student Jasmine. "I would like to give a special shout out to Lorain the teaching artist for everything she has done and taught us. She was immensely an inspiration to me personally. I learned so much about youth organizing and have been inspired and moved to join Youth Council and become more involved with Mid-City CAN."

Artivism Chicano Park

The students went on four field trips, visiting Balboa Park museums Mingei International Museum, Museum of Photographic Arts, Museum of Us, and the San Diego Natural History Museum. They visited Barrio Logan and learned about the murals thanks to Alberto Pulido of the Turning Wheel Project, University of San Diego's mobile classroom. Students also stopped by local bookstore Libelula Books & Co and were welcomed by co-owner Jesi Gutierrez.

"I feel really close to all of the students after spending about a month and a half with them," said Lorain. "I am so grateful for the time that I have had to be able to learn from them, learn with them together, and to really explore these issues that are so important to us and our communities. I'm just really blown away and inspired by how powerful each individual student voice is. Programs like this are so important especially in cultivating youth leadership."

All youth participants will display their art projects at the Copley-Price YMCA in City Heights in August. Stay tuned, we will post more information about their exhibit at the Copley-Price YMCA on our social media channels.

Thank you to the sponsors of our Artivism program: Level Up SD, San Diego Unified School District, San Diego Foundation, and Price Philanthropies.

Artivism Classroom

To get involved with Youth Council and sign up, click here.

To view photos please visit our Flickr page by clicking here.

📷: Ron Sanchez, Mid-City CAN

Video of our second annual 2022 Youth Artivism Program

2022 Program Information

Artivism

Art is advocacy. Art is organizing.

The Youth Council's Artivism Program is a fun and informative 3-week youth power curriculum centered on youth leadership and activism. This hybrid program explores how art is used to tell the stories of our communities and the important role it plays in our history and social justice movements.

Students will have the opportunity to learn about several famous social justice artists who have helped memorialize important social movements, political moments, and the experiences of people of color. In addition, students will also learn the fundamentals of government systems: how government works, advocacy, policy, and leadership.

Artivism

This program is geared for high school youth ages 13-18 and is also open to students who will be enrolled in San Diego Unified School District in the Fall 2022.

The summer program will have two sessions:

Session 1: June 21 - July 8 (3 weeks)
Session 2: July 11 - July 29 (3 weeks)

DAY: Tuesday - Friday

TIME: 2 pm to 5 pm

LOCATION: Hoover High School, 4474 El Cajon Blvd, San Diego, CA 92115

Students can join the 1st session, 2nd session, or both sessions!

No cost, supplies or previous experience needed!

What will students get out of the program?

- Create and learn about art
- An opportunity to exhibit completed artwork projects in a community setting
- 2-4 field trips
- Balboa Park annual pass
- Certificate of completion
- Community service hours
- Recommendation letters
- Lasting friendships and memories

Click here to sign up.

For questions or additional information, contact: Yasmeen Obeid at [email protected]