A-Rawlo talks about UmojaFest PEACE Center & #More4Mann Campaign
Seattle’s rising hip-hop star A-Rawlo talks about how the UmojaFest PEACE Center helped him change his life, the #More4Mann Campaign and how to help youth redirect from self destructive lifestyles to lead more productive lives.
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Garfield Students Walk out!
From CentralDistrictNews.com
Hundreds of Garfield High students walk out to protest budget cuts – UPDATED
By Tom FucoloroHundreds of students walked out of Garfield High School in the middle of the school day to protest harsh budget cuts from the state legislature.
The walk out comes on the heels of large protests in Olympia, including an action lead by Garfield AP US History teacher Jesse Hagopian in which he brought handcuffs to arrest legislators for failing to uphold what he said was their constitutional mandate to fund education.
Justin from our sister site Capitol Hill Seattle is on the scene:
CHS posted about the planned action, including this message about the planned walk out posted to the Occupy Your High School Facebook group:
We are Garfield High School students, speaking on behalf of and with Seattle Public Schools students tired of the constant cuts to our education. We are the people who have been affected most by these cuts, and we are showing that we care. For too long, this state’s budget has been balanced on the backs of its students. Apparently, our representatives in Olympia have forgotten that the constitution says that funding education is this state’s paramount duty. This is a student voice reminding our legislature of that fact. And also of this one: We are this country’s future. We will vote. And we will hold them accountable.
We will walk out of Garfield High School on Wednesday the 30th of November at 12:30 PM to march to City Hall and tell the world that we are fed up with the lack of funding for education.
We have two primary goals we hope to accomplish:
We want to stop the constant cuts to education that have hurt our school and other schools in the state.. We want to insert a student voice into the political discourse in issues regarding education.
Following are our grievances, things that have already happened as a result of past cuts:. Students who want full schedules have been denied them due to a lack of teachers. Many seniors were denied a science class due to a complete lack of state science funding.. Academic courses, such as math classes, have been repeatedly cut from our school.. The removal of summer school and night school has removed resources that allowed many students to graduate on time, therefore effectively increasing the amount the state must spend on those students.
Join the movement (Walk Out), spread the word, get active.
UPDATE: More photos from jseattle:
Occupiers at the 23rd and Alder house cheer the students
UPDATE x2: The students marched to City Hall, where they got the mayor’s attention:
Also, jseattle posted video of the march over at CHS:
December 1, 2011 · 11:26 pm
TWO ARRESTED IN SEATTLE AS MEMBERS OF HIP-HOP OCCUPIES AND OCCUPY SEATTLE JOIN YOUTH ADVOCATES
From BlackSeattle.com…
TWO ARRESTED IN SEATTLE AS MEMBERS OF HIP-HOP OCCUPIES AND OCCUPY SEATTLE JOIN YOUTH ADVOCATES TO OBTAIN SPACE IN CLOSED PUBLIC SCHOOL BUILDING
BlackSeattle.com – On Friday Nov. 11th representatives of the United 4 Youth Coalition joined by members of the Occupy Seattleand Hip Hop Occupies attended a community meeting to address the use of Horace Mann school building in Central Seattle.Two people were arrested as youth and advocates repeatedly challenged the wasting of resources and the refusal of the group to recognize their grievances and positive input.Seattle Hip Hop artist and lifelong Central District resident J-Infinite was arrested along with veteran human rights advocate and founder of the African American Heritage Museum at Colman school, Omari Tahir-Garrett. Both are lifetime residents of the neighborhood which is historically the center of Black life in the Pacific Northwest.“I came to talk with the leaders of this program about what needs to be done to better use this community space and they had me arrested…they are not working it out for the youth and I’m tired of do nothing programs getting resources in the name of the youth” stated J-Infinite after being released from the King County Jail.“They need to listen to us, we are the young people they say are trying to help…they need to share the space, plain and simple…we have the youth and the progrrams, let’s really work it out.” J-Infinite added.
The program in question, Work It Out, is a project sponsored by Peoples Institutional Baptist Church. The program received a $100,000 grant from the city of Seattle Department of Neighborhoods among other funds to pilot a program at the building.According to reports from project staff, there are currently three students enrolled in the Work It Out program. Still, they refuse to allow groups affiliated with the United For Youth Coalition such as the UmojaFest P.E.A.CE. Center to bring in effective programming and more community engagement to activate the space.The United for Youth Coalition has launched a “More 4 Mann!…Mann 4 More!” campaign to create a dynamic and vibrant community center that engages youth and effectively addresses pressing community issues including educational enrichment, cultural development, jobs for young people, public safety and community economic development.The proposed use includes a communiversity, music recording studio and multimedia center, fitness and boxing gym, visual art and fashion design studio and a microenterprise incubator.“We want to address the issues of our community and we think that University Heights, Phinney Ridge Center, El Centro De LaRaza and Youngstown Cultural Arts Center provide some good models for maximizing the use of the Mann building…We need more for Mann and Mann for more!” stated K. Wyking Garrett, Founding Director of the UmojaFest P.E.A.C.E. Center.They are also seeking proposals from other groups for innovative ways to activate the space. Members of the Occupy Seattle and Hip-Hop Occupies movements joined in solidarity as the space provides a viable option for the Occupy cause to have a central hub of education and organizing the next phase of the growing movement for positive change. The issue will be a key issue raised at the upcoming “Rise & Decolonize” concert and rally produced by Hip-Hop Occupies, to be held on November 18th at Westlake Center.
About the United 4 Youth Coalition
United For Youth Coalition is a growing coalition of community based organizations, businesses and individuals committed to creating safer communities by recognizing and engaging youth as assets rather than liabilities. Our mission is to reduce and eliminate youth violence through full employment of youth in culturally relevant personal and community development activities. Our long term goal is the development of a world class cultural center featuring recording studio, film and video program, fashion design center, early childhood development center, performance hall, technology, arts and small business incubator; programs that will bring our youth in from the streets to learn and develop their potential. For more information visit http://www.unite4youth.com.
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November 19, 2011 · 4:49 am
SEATTLE YOUTH RALLY TO PROTECT PUBLIC SCHOOL BUILDING
SEATTLE YOUTH RALLY TO PROTECT PUBLIC SCHOOL BUILDING
FROM PRIVATIZATION AND CONDOS
by Leith Kahl
The downsizing and privatizing of education in the US is a brutally physical process. Perhaps nowhere was this more clear than in Seattle´s Central Area on Veterans Day, when a crowd of young people refused to leave a public meeting about the future of a public school building at 24th and Cherry, which has sat vacant since the end of 2008. Police were called to eject the public from the building, and one youth and one community elder were arrested and charged with “tresspassing” and “disorderly conduct”.
An advertisement in the The Facts Newspaper had clearly invited the general public to this meeting. The meeting called by the leaders of an organization called “Family Life Center”, a ministry of Peoples Institutional Baptist Church, which also sometimes does business under the name “Work It Out”.
This entity was awarded a lease on the building by the Seattle Public School District about a year and a half ago, even though their lease bid was neither the highest bid, nor was it a bid that contained any committment to the school district to use the building for any purpose relating to public education. Their were other bids which did offer such an explicit committment, including one from the nearby Umojafest Peace Center which has a track record of turning blighted buildings into vibrant centers of community programming with almost no budget at all.
The United For Youth Coalition, a coalition of which the Umojafest Peace Center is a member, called upon its members and supporters to attend this public meeting and voice their concerns, which they did. When the “Work It Out” entity reacted to the presence of these youth by first cancelling the meeting, and then asking the Seattle Police Department to eject the public from the building, the Coalition responded by staging a protest on the sidewalk immediately outside of the building. Some members of Occupy Seattle and other local groups also attended both the meeting and the protest which followed it.
In the significant time that has passed since the “Work It Out” entity was awarded the lease on the property by the school district, the impressive building and the grounds around it have continued to sit fenced, empty and vacant, except for a few occasional days when work parties of volunteers organized by the Umojafest Peace Center were allowed into the building by “Work It Out” officers to perform the grunt work of cleaning up the facility. Although the “Work It Out” entity holds the lease and the keys, it has no budget of its own sufficient to pay for the lease that was awarded to it, and is only able to make the payments on this lease by means of a public grant of over $100,000 that it is recieving from the City of Seattle´s Department of Neighborhoods. The “Work It Out” entity has also recently announced in The Facts Newspaper that a religious organization will be moving into the building.
The Seattle Public School District has already established its reputation for privatizing public buildings this year, and for doing so in a manner that has become infamous for intrigue and cronyism. The most well know example was the controversial sale of Martin Luther King elementary school to a private religious organization, which in turn was issued public funds with which to purchase the now vacant and derilect school. (See Seattle Times article June 5th, 2011 “State investigates Seattle district´s sale of MLK school” –seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2015242396_mlk06m.html ).
As a matter of fact, the Seattle Schoold District even has a page on its website dedicated to the “property leasing and sales of closed school buildings”:
http://www.seattleschools.org/modules/cms/pages.phtml?sessionid=5360f4081095c72c5fad01e7710e9580&pageid=222336&se… . “The Seattle Public Schools leases out portions of operating school buildings, closed buildings, and conducts sales of surplus buildings from time to time”, this website proudly proclaims.
The very idea that a public school district would use the term “surplus” to describe any of its facilities at a time when prisons and detention centers are still being rapidly constructed throughout the country displays a certain degree of contempt for the public trust that has been invested in this school board. The recent financial scandals that have led to the termination of former superintendent Goodlowe Johnson and the arrest of the scam artist Silas Potter further illustrate the school districts contempt for that public trust.
Is this pattern now repeating itself yet again in the case of the Horace Mann school building?
Why would a building leased to a private organization at public expense proceed to sit vacant for over a year and a half? The reason why becomes apparent, even to the amature investigator, when we simply examine who sits on the “Work It Out” project´s steering committee (workitoutseattle.org/staff.html).
This ten person committee nominally claims to include eight members of the Peoples Institutional Baptist Church community, including Jocquelyn Duncan and Charelyn Stennis (daughters of the late Bertha Jinkens), Charisse Cowan Pitre (an associate professor of Teacher Education at Seattle University), Erin Fleeks (a staff member at the Central Area Senior Center), Loris Blue (Vice President of enrollment at SCCC), and local Seattle DJ Guy Davis.
There are, however only two members of this committee who are directly connected to the Seattle ruling class power structure and the investment capital behind it. These two are Kristen M. Link and Sheryl Frisk, Investement Associate and Vice President, respectively, of a real estate investment and trading firm called LEXAS Companies (www.lexascompanies.com).
LEXAS Companies publicly describes itelf as “a private real estate investment company that creates value in quality projects with distinct competitive advantages” organized to “strategically select geographical areas, submarkets, product, and cycle timing to create superior risk adjusted returns”.
The company website goes on to state the following about its “KEY EXECUTIVE TEAM”:
“The LEXAS Companies is lead by Joseph Strobele, a former senior executive of Legacy Partners and Lincoln Property, Co. along with John Midby, also Chairman of The Midby Companies, a Las Vegas developer with over 40 years experience in developing a diverse array of assets. Additionally, our company recruits, develops and retains only the most highly skilled and experienced professionals. Together our long term experience in several geographical markets along with our expertise in the development field has resulted in an array of successful projects in the Puget Sound region and has poised us to expand even further.”
LEXAS Companies describes its Vice President Sheryl Frisk thusly:
“In the capacity of Vice President, Sheryl Frisk is responsible for the acquisition and management of income producing projects for The LEXAS Companies and its subsidiaries. Sheryl manages all phases of operations of the real estate process, from locating and acquiring assets to the repositioning and disposition of investments. Sheryl serves as the key liaison with banks, investors, and Board of Directors on all aspects of the projects she develops. Sheryl is responsible for managing project specific sales teams, construction companies, consultants, and administrative and on site employees.
“Prior to joining The LEXAS Companies, Sheryl worked for the Seattle Monorail Project as the Right of Way Acquisition Manager. She was responsible for development processes including contract negotiation, managing all acquisition, property management and relocation contractors, as well as coordinating with land owners, tenants, and city officials. Sheryl’s background in land acquisition, development, property management, construction and mechanical contracting give her a keen understanding of the acquisitions and development process making her a positive asset to our team.”
LEXAS Companies is clearly not in the business of educating young people. It is in the business of deriving profit from real estate investment transactions.
Peoples Institutional Baptist Church is an old, venerable, and relatively respected institution in the Central Area, but it does not and never has weilded power within the the downtown city machine or within the world of major investment capital. Anyone who thinks that PIBC, on its own, is capable of developing the Horace Mann building is not thinking realistically. In this case, the church is being used as a pawn by LEXAS Companies, a tool with which to occupy a space on the real estate chess board which the school district is either unable or unwilling to protect for the benefit of our children.
In this writer´s opinion, the church will only be useful to LEXAS until the real estate market and the political climate are ripe for LEXAS to make its move to develop the site into high priced and profitable condominiums, just as the Housing Resource Group corporation has done with 90% of the space inside of the old Coleman building, a small corner of which is still laughably touted as the “Northwest African American Museum”. Until then, LEXAS just needs the “Work It Out” steering committee to maintain a pretense in the media that some community activity is taking place under its auspices, while ensuring that the building itself remains empty and fenced off.
That is the reason why the ministers of “Work It Out” believed they needed to summon the Seattle Police to eject members of the public from a publicly advertised public meeting in a public building on Veterans Day of 2011. They are loyally protecting the real estate interests of downtown investors who are unlikely to ever reward them for this favor.
Peoples Instututional Baptist Church can change this course of events by directing its ministry to unite with the Umojafest Peace Center and the United For Youth Coalition to actually produce public programming in this public space for the benefit of the young people who need it most.
In the meantime, people of good moral fibre should continue to support the Umojafest Peace Center and United For Youth Coalition in their efforts to protect this valuable public resource from the opportunistic and creeping acid of private investment capital. The United For Youth Coalition´s position on the matter is excellently presented in a youtube video at the following link:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBNrSOUdAGY .
2 Samuel 7:2 See, now I dwell in a house of cedars, but the ark of god remains outside in a tent .http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBNrSOUdAGY
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United For Youth Coalition Letter to Mayor Greg Nickels
Mayor Gregory Nickels
City Hall
5th Avenue
Seattle, WA 98122
Dear Mayor Nickels:
We the members of the United For Youth Coalition (UFYC) are requesting a meeting with you regarding the implementation of the Youth Violence Prevention Initiative. Responding to President-Elect Obama’s call for service we want to fully execute our responsibility as citizens by working with the city directly to effectively address the crisis in youth violence at the roots and be accountable for our role in the stewardship of public resources.
The current crisis of youth violence is the culmination of years of bad policy, insider dealing and government facilitated corruption that has disenfranchised and destabilized the African American community in Seattle. This is most clearly illustrated by the government facilitated co-opting of the African American Heritage Museum & Cultural Center from a community based institution to instill positive culture in our youth to a privately owned Urban League Village real estate development.
We are committed to working directly with government officials to solve the problem of youth crime in our city however we are expressing a no-confidence vote in the arbitrary appointment of the Urban League as coordinator of youth violence prevention network without community input. The Urban League is not a respected authority on addressing issues of youth violence in our community. A no-confidence vote goes to agencies that are not truly connected to our community and have failed to solve any of our problems, yet have received the majority of the resources to solve the problems.
What we want:
- Restoration and expansion of funding Rainier Beach Central District Initiative and staff which successfully supported youth initiated violence prevention projects.
- The city to act in good faith regarding the implementation of Youth Violence Prevention Initiative, including more transparency and a community-based oversight committee for the initiative.
- Funding support for development of the UmojaFest PEACE Center, the new grassroots youth culture center in the Central District.
- A moratorium on public funding to the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle until an investigation regarding their acquisition of Colman School is completed.
- Green Jobs not Jails. Employ youth to build communities via a Youth Community Safety & Development Corps.
- Partner with community-based organizations to take advantage of surplus capacity in the Seattle school district by developing programs to attract youth for extracurricular activities.
United For Youth Coalition is a growing network of community-based organizations, businesses and individuals committed to creating safer communities by recognizing and engaging youth as assets rather than liabilities. The coalition’s long term goal is development of a world class youth-focused African American Heritage Museum & Cultural Center.
Currently the coalition members are focused on developing the UmojaFest PEACE Center at 24th & Spring in Central Seattle. The center will feature audio recording and Video production studios, a youth violence memorial & Organic Garden, office space for community organizations and an outdoors stage. In addition the UFYC is also producing a series of Youth & Community Violence Prevention Forums titled “I choose Life…We Are Change” For more information the UPC visit www.umojafestpeacecenter.ning.com.
The organizations and members of the United 4 Youth Coalition embody a track record of successful youth development initiatives including:
· Cultural Enrichment Program at Garfield Teen Life Center (1997)
· Umoja Fest Summer Academy (Established 1997)
· Central Kings Youth Basketball (1998)
· Rainier Beach High School Men’s Group (Established 1998)
· UmojaFest Stars Baseball Organization (Established 1999)
· Hiphopreneurs: CEOs in Training Program (Established 2003)
· Youth Stakeholders Project (Established 2007)
· Hip-Hop Youth Think Tank (Established 2008)
· Game Recognize Game Urban Sports Marketing Academy (Established 2008)
· Music Business Technology Program at Seattle Vocational Institute (Established 2006)
· We Got Next Young Artist Showcase & Workshop (Est. 2006)
· Hip-Hop Debate Program (Established 2007)
· Hip-Hop Coffee Shop (Established 2007)
· Multi Media Center 206 Hiphopumentary (2008)
· African Youth United
The programming is being developed based on surveys of hundreds of youth from across Seattle. Youth expressed the desire for more positive outlets and programs. Our collective programming of the United For Youth Coalition member organizations provides culturally relevant strategy to prepare youth for the demands of an increasingly competitive global economy where persons lacking a global perspective and competencies in the areas of technology, finance, business and civic life frequently find themselves at a distinct disadvantage unable to enjoy the full benefits of society. The implementation of the programs under the umbrella of the United For Youth Coalition and UmojaFest P.E.A.C.E Center, specifically seeks to fill the void in effective services delivered to this vulnerable segment of our population.
To deliver services, we have formed partnerships with community based institutions, organizations and agencies including Seattle Vocational Institute, Seattle Youth Employment Program, Rainier Beach High School, Central Area Chamber of Commerce, Seattle Public Library, National Hip-Hop Summit Action Network, Hip Hop Congress and are actively developing others with a mission of engaging, challenging, and preparing our youth for a rewarding, economically and personally fulfilling lives. Programming focus on Cultural Enrichment & Life Skills, Technology Literacy, Financial Literacy, Media Literacy & Production, Employment Readiness, Entrepreneurship and Civic Engagement and Advocacy.
We look forward to your positive response. Please contact Cochise Moore at 206.321.3038 via email at cochisem@gmail.com to schedule a meeting.
Sincerely,
United For Youth Coalition
CC: Seattle City Council
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Welcome to United 4 Youth
Welcome to the official online space of United 4 Youth Coalition. We are looking to connect with all positive individuals committed to building with and for youth.
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United 4 Youth Coalition 