[CPRB] Prison Arts Festival

[Brian Dolinar]

Greetings fellow citizens,

The CU Citizens for Peace and Justice meeting is cancelled this Saturday,
Apr 21, so that we can attend the Prison Arts Festival.

Carol is on the "School to Prison Pipeline" at 4 pm Saturday.
The panel and all events will be at the IMC.
It would be good if we could make a strong showing.
Saturday night there is a poetry and hip hop affair.

See you there.

Peace, BD

THE SECOND ANNUAL CHAMPAIGN-URBANA PRISON ARTS FESTIVAL
20-21 April 2007
All events are FREE and are held in the Independent Media Center
(in the old Post-Office building in downtown Urbana)

Friday, 20 April, 8:00: Art Opening and Dance Party
Come view art made by prisoners from around the state of Illinois.
Heartbreaking and funny, gorgeous and ugly, forgiving and accusing,
terrifying and joyous, the art speaks to the humanity and potential of those
the state chooses to warehouse.  Follow your art viewing by shaking the
night away with Desafinado, a Brazilian dance band.

Saturday, 21 April, 1:00-3:00: Film Screening of Mario's Story
Mario's Story is an award-winning film chronicling Mario Rocha's long road
to justice.  Falsely accused, wrongfully convicted, and unjustly imprisoned,
Mario nonetheless used his time in California prisons to become a renowned
poet, essayist, and activist.  Then, after ten years of imprisonment,
lawyers and activists finally won his release. Filmed on location in
California prisons, and full of interviews with leading activists and
artists, Mario's Story demonstrates how, despite overwhelming odds,
institutional racism, and the trials and tribulations of gang-related life
in Los Angeles, one young man chose a path of dignity and honor.  Discussion
following the film will be led by Susan Koch, the director of the film.

Saturday, 21 April, 4:00-5:30: Town Forum on the "Schools-to-Prisons
Pipeline"
One of the reasons America's prisons are stuffed is because our schools
stink; some of them are so bad that activists now refer to a "schools-to-
prison pipeline."  Helps us shut that pipeline by sharing your experiences
and ideas. The town forum will begin with a short presentation by Professor
Erica Meiners, author of Your Right to be Punished and a recognized hero in
the Midwest activist community—she'll diagnose the problem for us.  We'll
then ask members of Champaign-Urbana Citizens for Peace and Justice, other
local activists, and audience members to help us construct sensible answers
to this dilemma.

Saturday, 21 April, 7:00-late: Poetry Reading and Hip-Hop Celebration
To help us close the Prison Arts Festival, come hear local poets—including
formerly incarcerated poets—share their remarkable poetry.  Last year's
poetry reading left the audience howling with laughter and crying with rage,
so don't miss this exceptional demonstration of beauty and dignity in the
face of oppression.  And because all poetry is musical at heart, we'll then
dance the night away to the heavy grooves laid down by U.C. Hip Hop.  Come
renew your commitment to peace and justice; come meet fellow activists and
artists; come celebrate the empowering dynamism of poetry and music!

To Volunteer your time or money, contact Stephen Hartnett:
hartnett at uiuc.eduor 333-1593

SPONSORED BY THE CENTER ON DEMOCRACY IN A MULTIRACIAL SOCIETY

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-- 
Brian Dolinar, Ph.D.
303 W. Locust St.
Urbana, IL 61801
briandolinar at gmail.com
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