#ImagineAwrld
#ImagineAwrld:
Statement from YAC Lead Curator-Educator, Augustina Warton
#ImagineAwrld began as a writing prompt for one of NYCapsule’s first sessions and developed from there. In the sessions that followed with our guest artists, the youth dove deeper into learning about the power of art and its ability to create social change. As we progressed, it became clear that “imagining a world” was a call to action for us. We asked ourselves, “If we can’t imagine what comes after COVID-19 or the current uprisings against police brutality, how does anything change?” Our #ImagineAwrld video is our collective call to action, a blueprint in writing, words, and images where we hope you will join us in manifesting a new world, in the words of Youth Action Council, “Free from violence, where we promote brotherhood and sisterhood. Where freedom is not dependent on the exploitation of others and is deeply rooted in respect for our earth... just imagine.”
Descriptive Caption for overall #ImagineAwrld video:
A three-and-a-half-minute video features a spoken word piece with images of NLE Youth Action Council members in Zoom rooms, attending protests and exhibitions, and in their homes. These images and videos are placed among historical and personal photographs. Throughout the video, the title of the video and poem, #ImagineAwrld, is repeated and hand-written in various ways. The video communicates joy, solidarity, and community.
#ImagineAwrld
Imagine a world where you are an equal…
For the world, we imagine I will stand with Justice.
In order to have that world, we imagine we need peace, because…
For the world, I imagine I am fighting for unity.
For the world, I imagine I am fighting for diversity,
because diversity is a symbol of unity for all people.
Where people would take the lives of others into consideration.
Imagine a world where we promote brotherhood and sisterhood
Where there are no strangers, only brothas and sistas
I fight for a world where freedom isn’t a dream but a reality.
Liberation means that my freedom isn’t based on the exploitation of others.
That we teach the histories of the past to inspire the next generation to feel empowered.
Imagine a world where those who are supposed to protect you aren’t the ones massacring you. The ones who are supposed to care for you don’t neglect you.
Imagine our streets being safe and clean from crime, no police to strip us of our time.
It would feel like the warmth of a blanket.
Or like the chest of a guardian.
Imagine a world warm and mild
Where we fought ignorance with bliss
It would feel like connectivity.
When we gathered, you would see callused hands of workers,
Alongside the promising hands of a new generation.
Working as one.
Fingers locked together through every smile and every wince.
Imagine a world where we respect our origins and end all abuse
We can be like plants that stretch their roots
We can be the lungs that gave life to Earth
Hear the cry from our ancestors like a roar,
The hope of a new world, a new start, a beginning to fight to preserve.
Imagine a world where people saw you
The real you, the authentic you, the unbroken you,
The beauty that lies behind your unwavering eyes
The strength that’s unknown inside of you
Imagine a world where you are truly FREE,
If you feel like something is holding you back
Emerge above the water and reach and touch the stars in the sky
It can feel like the weight from your chest is slowly floating away
Imagine a world where everyone is a dreamer, just imagine!