YOUTH RESILIENCY INSTITUTE
YOUTH RESILIENCY INSTITUTE
An Answer to Violence Through the Arts
Saturday May 2nd 12:30-3:00pm
A Celebration of Reggae Legend Peter Tosh
Guest Speaker: Niambe McIntosh, daughter of Peter Tosh and Administrator of the Peter Tosh estate. &
The Youth Resiliency Institute (YRI) announces the Baltimore Guitarist's Against Violence Program Tosh Roots Reggae Youth Cohort Induction
WHAT: On Saturday, May 2, 2015, fifteen youths ages 8-18 from Baltimore's Cherry Hill Homes, Albemarle Square, and other parts of the city will be publicly inducted into the Tosh Roots Reggae Youth Cohort as part of the Youth Resiliency Institute's Baltimore Guitarist's Against Violence (BGAV) program. "It is apparent even more so, as evidenced by the violence and social unrest displayed on Monday following the funeral of Freddie Gray that Baltimore City does not have a youth problem, it has an adult problem. Providing outlets for our youth is a responsibility of adults in order to protect our youth." said Fanon Hill, co-founder of the Youth Resiliency Institute, along with his wife, Navasha Daya.
BGAV Cohort members will have the opportunity to make their own guitars under the tutelage of musician and instrument maker Abu the Flutemaker; learn guitar basics from master guitarists; perform roots reggae concerts throughout Baltimore City beginning in September; and learn about legendary reggae artist Peter Tosh's life, music, and his example of responding to police brutality through art, not counter -productive violence.
Students will research and learn from incidents of police brutality and intimidation that have plagued impoverished Black communities throughout Baltimore. Students will also attend Baltimore Police Department monthly Community Relations Council meetings familiarizing themselves with the organizational structural of each Baltimore City police district.
BGAV curricula honors the traditions, history and restorative capacity of the neighborhoods students live in, while demonstrating the power of reconciliation, forgiveness and conflict mediation through special visits from relatives of homicide victims and anti-violence activists.
"Imagine a Baltimore City where it was as easy to get a guitar as it is to get a gun," said Hill. "As cultural arts organizers and artists we need to go on the offensive and provide youth with opportunities to create art, fresh imagery and original songs that corroborate their experiences and challenge the status quo in Baltimore's cultural arts community."
The event is free and open to the public and will feature guest speaker Niambe McIntosh, daughter of reggae legend Peter Tosh and administrator of her father's estate. McIntosh will speak about her father and his legacy, with an eye to the importance of that legacy for young people living in difficult circumstances. According to Hill, "Peter Tosh had a lot of swagger, as you might say, but he never was a violent person. He never resorted to violence. Although he spoke about issues related to police brutality, he fought with his music, with his art form."
WHEN: Saturday, May 2, beginning at 12:30 p.m.
WHERE: Area 405, 405 E. Oliver St., Baltimore, MD 21202
For more information, contact Fanon Hill at fanon@youthresiliencyinstitute.org or (443) 934-1972.
www.youthresiliencyinstitute.org
The Youth Resiliency Institute is a program under the umbrella of Fusion Partnerships, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization registered in the state of Maryland.