I set out on Tuesday ready to meet Nancy, another woman in the restorative justice field referred by Denise, across town at a small coffee/ice cream shop called Sebastian Joe's, but it was not to be. Through a number of miscommunications on my part, and an extended cab ride that seemed to rely on my knowledge of the city(which I found funny), I missed my meeting with Nancy. To my great relief, Nancy agreed to meet me the following day a spot closer to me. However, I was still on the south side of Minneapolis with a full day ahead of me, and no meetings, so I decided to hatch up a plan B. I looked through my spreadsheet of contacts and emails to see if I could rig something up on the fly. Voila, an email from my cousin Adam pointed me in the direction of Julie Kurtz, a friend of his and activist-artist working for an organization just a little over a couple miles away. I called her up and introduced myself as Adam's cousin, told her what the fast and tinny scoop was about what I am doing and why I'd like to meet with her, and was thrilled to hear she could meet with me that afternoon. She warned me that she was going to be pretty busy that day, but if I could be flexible about when we met she was in for it. This was fantastic news!
With the time I had till our meeting I set out in the direction of another organization I wanted to check out called Intermedia Arts. As I walked through the Uptown neighborhood a store front caught my eye, and I pressed my face nearly to the glass before realizing it was actually an art gallery. As I stood there peering in awkwardly, I saw a slender shadowy figure. Realizing this wasn't my own image somehow reflecting back at me, I sheepishly backed away from the door as the owner approached from within. The woman who greeted me was Carolyn of Soo Visual Arts Center. She welcomed me in, even though they were closed, and not only turned on all the lights allowing me to take a look around, but set me up with an extended list of other organizations working on projects similar to mine. After taking a look around, we said goodbye warmly, and with genuine gratitude on my part for her unexpected help.
Heading down the street a few blocks I had no trouble spotting Intermedia Arts, as the building is largely covered in spray-painted images and graffiti, rawesome. While I had tried to get in touch with the organizations Ex. Director without much luck, I still wanted to see the space they had created. Immediately I was struck by the viby accessibility of the layout. There were places to chill, but also a nice flow that lead from the organization’s work space, reception area, and open gallery of youth art work including an instillation area, and everywhere there was info about the organization's mission and programing. They even had a chalkboard wall! Very, very cool. I left daydreaming about creating a space in Madison that is something between a community center and art studio/gallery(and as long as I'm dreaming large it would at least have one chalkboard wall with a set of big chalk).
Not long after I got a call from Julie letting me know she'd be ready shortly to come pick me up outside the Wedge Co-op. She warned me there was one qualifier, she was headed to a candle light vigil held by anther organization called Breaking Free and we would have to talk en route. I didn't ask many questions about the vigil, but quickly agreed to whatever time she was able to talk with me. It was with a sense of familiarity from our phone conversations throughout the day, that I met Julie, in accordance with her self description wearing red flowing pants and shortish brown hair, myself being tall blond and wearing jeans. Tossing poundage of bulk items from the Co-op amidst her bike in the backseat, we were off and talking. I gave her the full scoop about my trip and why I was so excited to be talking with her, and she gave me the low down on Breaking Free and the work she had done with them. I learned that we were headed to a protest and candle light vigil in honor of women and children who had lost their lives to the abuse of prostitution and sex-trafficking. On the drive there I drilled Julie about the work she was doing with art in the community, specifically low income communities, and with victims of trauma.
Julie explained how she had started the Aldrich Arts Collaborative because she recognized the space at her church as being well suited for some kind of community art project with kids. The first round of classes held were done without funding, but soon after they received grant money from Minnesota's extensive sponsorship of the arts. They started holding two rounds of classes a year, and each session ended with an open gallery night. The classes are held once a week for four weeks, and the fifth week is the gallery night when parents/guardians, family, friends, and community members are welcome and encouraged to come. Community artist also participate in the gallery night, so that youth art work is hung side by side with professional artist's work. Julie shared a story of one boy who made his art out of found objects, his piece was hung next to a professional artist who made a quilt out of similarly recycled material. At the end of the evening, this boy went up to the artist and told him he was really happy their artwork was hung next to each other. I was happy Julie shared this story, as it is just one example demonstrating the power of art to have ones self expression openly appreciated and validated, and to make connections with positive adult role models who understand and practice the love of creating. This appreciation, acknowledgment, and support is also furthered by the presence of a young person's community at gallery night. All in all the youth as well as everybody involved in the classes and gallery get to celebrate expressions of youth creativity, and come together around something positive which strengthens and engages their sense of community.
Looking back on the role artwork played in my own experience throughout grade school, I think it was this sense of acknowledgment and appreciation through the arts that kept me engaged in all other aspects of adolescent life. Where I as largely check out of my academic ans social expectations, the arts kept me grounded to a sense of purpose and belonging, and fueled my motivation to interact and participate. As I talked with Julie I realized to another degree what I've come to believe, that the arts are not just a thing done to create a finished product, feel good, or provide escape, although all these things are and can be true. Art is a tool for survival both as individuals and communities. Artists of all disciplines regularly use their craft to express the most extreme elements of the human condition, including pain and love, to continue engaging in their life. Through this expression, they remake and re-imagine the world that they live in, they can acknowledge and release unbearable pain and injustice, they can celebrate and focus on their favorite aspects of life, and honor their self-worth by creating a place in the world for their art – and then bring something into that space. As these visions and transformations occur for the individual, the community can likewise be affected. In this way bringing a community together in the creative process has the power to unity, uplift, and transform the community at a whole. I thought about this as we approached Breaking Free, and how Julie had done a theater workshop with the women working to provide and receiving services there, women who had been through unimaginable heartache and trauma.
As we approached the house, a group of women had formed in a half circle almost spilling out into the street. At the center was a woman with a microphone rallying women to memorize the chants we would use as we walked down the street in protest, “We will not be bought, sold, or traded at any price!”, “Pimps and johns go home, leave our women and children alone!”, “Tricks are not for kids!”, “Stop the demand, stop buying our women and children!” The woman with the mic reminded us that we were here for the women who had lost their lives to murder and suicide from this life of abuse, and urged us to find our voices and use them loudly as we spoke for the women who could no longer do so. We were off. Some women had signs, some held hands, some including myself yelled until our voices started to break. I felt the power that comes from the strength of unity, felt connected as a woman, and felt that this was just one more face of the social/cultural monster I am trying to get a finger on. Just recently Minnesota has changed their laws so that a girl under the age of 16 can no longer be charged with prostitution, but is considered instead a victim of a crime. This change comes with the recognition that children do not choose this life for themselves but are forced and coerced in to it by larger social injustices and adults profiting from the world of prostitution. This awareness largely comes from the work done by the women at Breaking Free to educate law enforcement and officials about the underlying issues that lead to and perpetuate the abuse of prostitution.
When we returned to the house we each received a candle and gathered to commemorate the women who had either been brutally murdered, or committed suicide in the past year. Other women, friends, and family members came up to speak about these women, and in honoring their memory helped heal the community they had left behind. It is the hope of the women at Breaking Free that they will have a year when there is no candle light vigil, but that year hasn't come yet.
As Julie drove me back downtown, she told me about her own desire to continue using her art to work with victims of trauma and to build community. Eventually a non-profit? I can only hope so, her dynamic strength and vision are much needed, and I was so happy to have found guidance in her experience. Her pieces of advice were: find a mentor you can talk to regularly, if you're going to be a non-profit get a board to help brainstorm and support decision making, keep your eyes out for 'magic-miracle-money'(an organization she worked for got a large one time donation that made their start up much much easier), and you're not crazy so keep going for it. As she dropped me off we hugged goodbye and she bounded off to yet another socially engaged arts meeting, seemingly tireless. I on the other hand walked home, head spinning and expanding, attempting to reassemble the days experiences into meaningful lessons. Beyond Julie's encouraging words and vision, I was strongly impressed with the broader idea of art being a way to heal and restore communities and individuals who have gone through trauma. This connected immediately in my mind with the goals of restorative justice, to recognize the harm, and take actions to heal the hurt. Although not entirely sure how this will manifest in the mission of RestArt; I feel that working with a broader community of people who have been or continue to go through traumatic experiences is an important piece of the work that needs to be done to heal our community. I am hopeful that this can be addresses through community art.
Julie's book recommendation was:
Girls Like Us by Rachel Loyd
Organization websites:
www.breakingfree.net
http://aldricharts.wordpress.com
I'd like to end on the note that the Twin Cities rock, I like them a lot. In the midst of trying to find various museums, organizations, and galleries, people have shown extreme generosity and patience with my lumbering tourism. Thank you all that have helped me find food, bathrooms, and the ever illusive Mill City Museum, it is very appreciated! All of this is also topped off with the beautiful view of the Mississippi river running along the edge of downtown Minneapolis, crested with a series of bridges, and lined with trees and boardwalks. As I walked home from my meeting with Julie, I was accompanied by a full moon reflecting off the river, and shinning brightly over numerous architectural wonders. So if you get the chance to visit, it's just a train ride away.
Thank you for reading, I hope you are all well!
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