Urban Arts' Cultural Discovery - that we might be a blessing to others Most of us can identity a spccial talent or skill we may have early in life. There is an old saying which we apply to one very special outreach program produced by Urban Arts. Through Cultural Discovery, we attempt to share very special skills and talents with those who may be unable to participate in activities tar geting mainstream society. "We are blessed, that we might by a blessing to others." Cultural Discovery, based on the premise that the arts are for everyone, use the arts to provide a unique forum for persons with special need's to' allow them to express their creativity, feelings, and to identify positive self esteem. The program brings the" arts to special "members of our population including handi capped, convalescent, the homeless, and older adults. Standing alone as the only arts program which addresses the needs of these populations, Cultural Discovery serves over ten centers and schools in the Forsyth County area which pro vide carc for these special populations have been identified as being handi capped in more ways that one. The homeless may be handicapped by society; many convalescent and older adults arc often handicapped by dis eases such as Parkinson's or Alzheimer's; handicapped adults and children may be emotionally, physi cally or hearing or visually impaired; and, there are the mentally impaired with problems ranging from educable or trainable to autistic or profoundly mentally impaired. Yet, all of these special members of our community share one handicap. That is, they are overlooked by the mainstream of society. Cultural Discweryls the com-~ muniry^ouireach arts program which reaches this overlooked populace by providing arts activities specifically designed to meet the special needs of its participants. Each site is given a different arts activity each visit. Pro gramming includes performances, art therapy, field trips, visual arts pro jects, creative music and drama aciiv- those less fortunate then ihemselves. ities and projects. - These activities The Cultural Discovery program has ArtsReach By REGGIE JOHNSON provide a noncomp^ip^ fnrmn fnr children, youth and adults with spe cial needs which allows them to develop artistic expression and cre ative problem-solving skills._The out ? come is that these populations devel op skills which can be useful in other aspects of their lives. The challenge presented to both participants and those leading the activities also deliv ers many rewards. Volunteers, instructors and performers who may teach self-esteem through the arts receive gratification through helping TTTawn interest from any qualified individuals throughout the communi ty, but also has received support from local arts organizations whjch assist in coordinating special activities as a pari of the program.- This year's pro gram once again is seeking individu als who wish to volunteer as perform ers, teaching artists, craftspeople who are interested in being a part of such a rewarding activity. Anyone interested in sharing their "blessing" should contact Sandra Toney at Urban Arts' offices, 722-5293 for further informa 'Growing UP' highlights youth in public housing Most of us over the age of 31 arc mighty glad that we don't have to grow up in the nineties. I can't tell you the number of times I have heard older folk say, "I sure am glad I don't have to try and raise my children dur ing these trying times." Its enough to drive you crazy. That was the backdrop for Satur day night's special program entitled "Growing up in the Nineties," hosted by WXII news anchor Denise Fran^TinT" The half-hour program presented - an insightful look into some of the difficulties and challenges faced not only by the children today butalso by ^theirjiarcmfc "*"* Well obviously, you can't cover all that in a half-hour but you can give the audience something to think about. And that's what Growing Tj p" - ? did. ? Although the program did pre sent a few of the well known negative statistics affecting the life and health of the citizens of North Carolina, "Growing up in the Nineties" was not about despair. It was really about small victories with the promise of greater rewards. Saturday's program presented ,a very positive, hopeful, and promising look at youngsters and their parents who are coping and thriving -- even in the midst of some pretty tough everybody there carry a gun? Well, give credit to reporter Anthony Wilson who took a deeper look to find a young man who may one day turn out to be a modem day limes. A lot has been written and said about a place called Happy Hill Gar ~~lieTtfr--esBgcial)y lately. I don't know the people who live there and frankly * the only thing that I, like so many others have ever heard about the pi ace , ls~rhat"ti"t^"^ij ru^Trrrf csreii , -rcrime-ridden^ and violent-public housing area. But 1 will tell you that I have always felt that there must be people there who, still, despite the pressures, are trying to do the right thing. * Course, that's always been the case. But where are they? Why aren't they being shown or written about? Docs Horaiio Alger; a youngster named Rico Sutherland, an aspiring busi nessman. Sure, as "Growing Up" pointed ? out, there are young people who live in that area who are having to pay the price for succumbing to peer pres sures ?-fur making thc^wrong xieci ? sions, ? ? But for every one of them, there were many more like Rico Suther land, standing just as tall as they could, maintaining their own sense of dignity, pride and self-deterfhination. Growing up also focused on some of the young people who didn't do the right thing, what they had to say and ihe way they "said it was~ revealing -- indeed if young viewers saw or heard anything, I hope that they heard the comments of Donald Snow who offered this one bit of advice; "If you can't read, write and spell,, there ain't much you are going to he able to do in this world. Stay in school and off the streets!" There were other heroes like 13 year-old D.J. Chisolm who attends Cook Middle School and, for five, ?tfoy-s-ft-weck. volunteers in a chil dren's center working with handi capped children. He was wonderful. And how about the young cheer leader, Katy Fry, who presented a true profile of courage, and the diligence of two students who scored perfect marks on the SAT exams. Local media, both electronic and print, tend to focus on what a -good cent club" " that perennial group of individuals who no matter what, always manage to find a way to make life miserable for the rest of us. It was good to see the local folks at WX1I take the time to focus on the other 98 percent of us! Columnist gets dose of rap group's mouth disease Why is the 2 Live Crew contro- negative references to women are versy more an issue of censorship damaging. (Why denigrate women ^t and/or racism as opposed to respect? all?) Wett I don't think I was prepared for More disturbing is that it is more ? the answer I got (half of which I can't and more acceptable. So much so, that Behind The Scenes By LISA COLLINS print) when I posed the question to Luther Campbell backstage at the recent MTV Music Video Awards. My colleague, Lee Bailey (of Radio Scope) whispered "maybe he got so upset because the question was com ing from a black woman." Fact is, the room applauded Campbell's departure, which was preceded by a whole slew of curse words, as he charged, "where were the sisters before 2 Live Crew came around? They walked by all those porno flicks and magazines to grab one f ? ing 2 Live Crew tape out of the whole rack, with Dice Clay and fcddie Murphy, and say okay we're gonna f-k with them because that's a black ass company. And what they do is ridicule us and use us for some s-t that's been burning in the back woods all their lives. F--k this." Campbell's actions show that this whole controversy is really getting to him. People like Spike Lee arc calling him ignorant, and Minister Far rakhan reportedly called him "a dis grace to the black community" while addressing a Miami crowd (with Campbell present). Fact is, Campbell's an all new girls rap group "Bitches With Problems" is being primed to debut on CBS Records. And get this, the title of their song is "Two Minute " (Guess what goes in the blank.) Another group has just produced a rap tunc called "We want to Wake Your Daughter Up." So why single out Campbell? Because rappers like BBD, who fall just short of the like in their lyrics, know better than to project it as their image. This is Campbell's biggest mis take. The tragedy, as witnessed back stage. is he can't help it. It's what he's all about. Fact is, controversy, not tal ent, got Campbell where he is. As to his defense of voluntarily stickering his own albums, stickers didn't stop our youth from hearing his "Me So Horny" smash which received a great deal of radio airplay. And it wasn't adults singing these tunes, but kids, most of them young girls, who didn't fully understand the implications. As to where were the sisters, the history of black women in America has been riddled with rape (both phys ically and psychologically), and hclp 6 lessncss. First by slaveowners, and then by horny white men (who. while _ seeing them in much the same manner Luther projects in his music), had their way with them, as their men stood helplessly by. Today, much like black on black crime, it's black on black psy chological assault. (As to the ludicrous cries of racism0 C'mon Luther, those arc the healthy cries of appalled citi zens.) And we must remember that when a race of people demeans its own women (perpetuating the cycle of broken families), history has shown that that race will not stand. What's even sadder is those who don't even see the parallels. Like fel low rapper Queen Latifah, who, while supporting Campbell in his fight against censorship, added that there were some women who fit Campbell references. Of course, this gets back to Harry White's key issue of black women respecting each other... Per haps Flavor Flav (of Public Enemy fame) couldn't have put it better when he said "there's a big point people arc missing with all this dissin', instead of fighting each other, we should be kiss- ? ing"... Besides, we get dangerously off course when we make Luther Camp bell the whole problem. He is, rather, a symptom. The real problem is the way wc see ourselves... By the way: Flavor Flav has a solo album coming out next spring. It's called "Lifestyles of the Rich and HEATING SALES, SERVICE and INSTALLATION ? ALL MAKES MODELS ELECTRONIC AIR CLEANERS MD HUMIDIFIERS FREE ESTIMATES ? 919-788-3322 tion and scheduling. It is time to mention a few upcoming events. Holiday Expo, the art exhibition for minority and grass roots artists is gearing up to put plans in motion. Any artist who qualifies in the Triad area is invited to apply in a timely manner in order to be included in this year's exhibition. Traditionally held from December through January and held in the Milton Rhodes Gallery of the Sawtooth Building, Holiday Expo is an opportunity for local artists to compete for awards and share their talent with the general public. Please contact our offices as soon as possible, the deadline is near. Appearing in the 1989 Black Theater Festival, and brought back by popular demand in last February's presentation of "Do Lord Remember Me", Jomandi Productions will again return on February 2, 1991 presented by Urban Arts of the Arts Council Inc. in "Queenie". Mark your calen dar now, and watch this column for more details. Last year's production of "Do Lord" was a sellout. Don't miss this one! And the fabulous Betty Carter will be appearing in our very own Stevens Center on April 27 as part of the 1990-91 season. Presented by Urban Arts, Ms. Carter has been rec ognized as one of the best female jazz vocalists of our time. She has been compared to artists as the great Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughn and Carmen McRae. Following her worldwide appearances with the Lionel Hampton Band, she went on to greater heights developing her career as a soloist. Consistently receiving critical acclaim, Betty Carter will render an evening of jazz vocalization to be remembered for a long time to come. Tickets are $12 for adults, and $10 for students and seniors. This one, too, will go fast! ) ? Reggie Johnson is the executive director for Urban Arts of the Arts Council Inc. TO SUBSCRIBE CALL 722-8624 ? * ? * * ? * ASTRO-DESTINY Mar. St - Apr. II TAURUS GKMDfl Mirtl'limM CANCER J? ? ? Ji fwciiini without Ml knowledge of Ifct ilMHdo - << con be downright Midi and Y?u,.T!m w '* l?y *?? 'm r~? VW* too tick Mm4W?|I. Nk it Nvchwl W J. your, concern. ? M Community protects or* thot * ? * Tour family yellow oro beginning to mom you un? der. There really it noting to be accomplished by ?. Aa?te ' THip will rt?M Ik. ' I vet. ' ? 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