If you are between 10 and18 years and have an interest in hip-hop as an art form, UNITY Charity is looking for you.
UNITY offers drop-in programs in Toronto, Scarborough and Mississauga that focus on building skills through peer-to-peer mentorship and artistic performance, using elements of hip-hop.
The organization, which began in 2007, teamed up with Tangerine, a Canadian direct bank, to host eight weekly community programs in those communities.
“When we first heard UNITY was expanding its community programs, we wanted to get behind them and lend our support,” said Peter Aceto, president and CEO of Tangerine.
“Over the years we’ve seen first-hand the positive impact their programs have on local youth, so we’re thrilled to expand our partnership to help them grow these efforts.”
UNITY Charity seeks to empower Canadian youth 10-18 years of age to be role models and leaders in their communities through after school and community programs in break dancing, graffiti art, spoken word poetry and beat boxing.
The community drop-in programs for 2016 include topics such as MC and turntable foundations, basics of break dancing and beat boxing battles, musicality, physical wellness, and cultural context.
“We are so excited to be expanding UNITY’s community programs to create more accessible arts programming across our city and safe spaces for youth in the critical hours after school,” said Michael Prosserman, aka ‘Bboy Piecez’, founder and executive director of UNITY Charity.
“These programs meet youth where they are at, while providing opportunities for youth to express their stress in a safe, positive and encouraging space almost every day of the week.”
Over the years, the organization engaged more than 100,000 youth across Canada using powerful messaging integrated with urban art forms to inspire students to find their voice amongst their peers and their community when dealing with issues such as bullying, violence, school life and cultural concerns.
For program locations, dates, times and updates, check www.unitycharity.com/weekly-events or on Twitter at @UNITYCharity or Facebook.com/UNITYCharity.