Artist-led Youth Workshops

Empowering young people to find and activate their voices for justice

“Community Exploration,” our initiative for youth, builds awareness of economic and social justice issues by exposing our participants to multi-disciplinary art forms.

Despite the uncertainty and challenging circumstances caused by the pandemic, Bread and Roses Missouri re-launched the Youth Initiative at two New City Fellowship centers under the leadership of Luisa Otero Prada and thanks to 10 talented and dedicated artists.

We are thrilled that our Youth Initiative is now funded by Deaconess Foundation, St. Louis County Children’s Service Fund and Missouri Arts Council and has a strong start on the upcoming year.

The goal of the program is to develop “community actors” who can begin to use their creative skills to engage in actions that lead to social change.  Prior to the pandemic, artist-led workshops are an integral part of summer camp programs at six St. Louis city recreation centers that mostly serve Black youth, and four faith-based venues for immigrants and refugees. The program has served 250 to 300 youth between the ages of 7 and 12 over two months every June and July since 2012.

The Youth Initiative was initially conceived by Dail Chambers, Joan Suarez and Brett Williams in 2010.

Download our Youth Initiative Overview.