Ready to Rise: Meztli Projects
Meztli Projects’ (Ready 2 Rise Project) is a unique set of interlocking programs between youth, artists and cultural workers from East Los Angeles who have been impacted by street violence and incarceration, developed to specifically center impacted youth by building a framework for participation, decision-making, apprenticeship, and entrepreneurship. The suite of programs which include the Youth Art & Activism Summer Workshop Series, a 10-month Fall program that encompasses Healing Conversations through collaborative art-making, and Apprenticeship/Youth Advisory Committee are designed to create a pathway for youth in various career tracks such as art, arts education, community organizing and culturally-based approaches to racial and economic justice efforts. These programs are for youth impacted by incarceration, school suspension and expulsion, migration and gender constructs, attending schools or receiving services located in greater East Los Angeles.
This project is funded through a $138,000 grant provided by Ready To Rise a partnership between L.A. County Probation, Liberty Hill Foundation and the California Community Foundation.
Cultural Worker Apprenticeship
Professional Development & Entrepreneurship
Between February 2020 and June 2021, a cohort of youth and young artists will be learning about a variety of popular education pedagogies for teaching art in communities while also engaging Indigenous cultural practitioners, scholars, elders and other knowledge carriers to learn about stewardship, relationship to land & water, Indigeneity, trauma/violence (structural, interpersonal, communal), Indigenous-based conflict resolution (holding space, circle keeping), and gender justice, among a few others key frameworks. They will also engage with folks whose work is embodied by their Indigeneity. They will co-design their own learning curriculum as-well-as serve as facilitators for the Summer and 10-month youth arts programs.
Guest Facilitators
• Damien Montaño
• Melanin Mvskoke
• Deon Mitchell
• Monique Castro
• Olivia Perez Biera
• Susana Parras
• Heidi Harper Lucero
Youth Arts & Action Workshop Series
Youth Activism & Organizing
Between July and August 2020, Meztli Projects will provide a 100-hour arts & action workshop series (Mondays through Thursdays, 11 am to 3 pm) in East Los Angeles. Youth (ages 16-24) will learn about key issues impacting them through various art forms such as screen-printing, painting/muralism, zines, and beading. Learning as a cohort and making art collaboratively offers youth the opportunity to create connections with each other that promote Indigenous values of respect, reciprocity and kinship.
In response to Covid-19 this program was provided as a fellowship opportunity for young Native/Indigenous identified artist. Check out their exhibition. Click below to view.
Arts-Based Healing Practices
Restoring harmony to self and our circles
From September 2020 to June 2021, Meztli Projects will offer a 10-month youth (ages 16-24) arts program consisting of three tracks meeting twice a month. The program will incorporate practices and elements of Indigenous talking circles and collaborative art-making. The intention of weaving these two practices is to hold space for difficult dialogues, support youth in navigating their experiences and offer an art form to process this journey.
PRINTMAKING (5:00 - 7:30 pm)
• February, Mon. 1 & Mon. 15
• March, Mon. 1 & Mon. 15
• April, Mon. 5 & Mon. 19
• May, Mon. 3 & Mon. 17
BEADING (5:00 - 7:30 pm)
• February, Thu. 11 & Thur. 25
• March, Thu. 11 & Thu. 25
• April, Thu. 8 & Thu. 22
• May, Thu. 13 & Thu. 27
ZINE MAKING (5:00 - 7:30 pm)
• February, Tue. 2 & Tue. 16
• March, Tue. 2 & Tue. 16
• April, Tue. 6 & Tue. 20
• May, Tue. 4 & Tue. 18
PAINTING (11:00 am - 1:30 pm)
• February, Sat. 13 & Sat. 27
• March, Sat. 13 & Sat. 27
• April, Sat. 10 & Sat. 24
• May, Sat. 15 & Sat. 29
Arts-Based Healing Practices
$2.59 Million Awarded to 20 Nonprofit Organizations to Provide Community-Based Youth Development Services
LOS ANGELES – July 18, 2019 –The public-private partnership between L.A. County Probation, Liberty Hill Foundation and the California Community Foundation has awarded $2.59 million to 20 L.A. based nonprofits providing community-based youth development services. The initiative is called Ready to Rise: Expanding Opportunities for All L.A. County Youth.