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1300 E 1st St, Los Angeles, CA 90033

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Self Help Graphics & Art Statewide

Youth Interventions

Introduction

With generous support from The California Endowment, and in partnership with artists

and community-serving organizations, Self Help Graphics & Art (SHG) created a series

of interventions aimed at youth across the state of California. The interventions were

a tool to encourage youth leadership and support the creation of artwork reflective

of community health issues. The projects are thematically connected and reflect the

values of SHG’s ongoing community and youth empowerment work through Building

Healthy Communities (BHC)* Boyle Heights.

Our organizational partners include the Oakland Public Library in East Oakland, Washington

Neighborhood Center in Sacramento, Mid City-CAN in City Heights, San Diego, Designmatters

at Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles, and SHG’s Youth Committee.

Each project focused on topics relevant to the respective community, all from the

viewpoint of youth empowerment.

The workshop in Oakland focused on the city’s history and anti-displacement. In

Sacramento, youth learned how to dismantle stereotypes on race, class, and gender

through the popular game, Lotería. In San Diego, students learned how art is used as

a tool for activism; and in Los Angeles, the SHG Youth Committee gathered responses

from the community’s youth to create maps of existing resources.

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the following people and organizations for their

collaboration and making their space available for new partnerships:

Linda Nguyen, Peter Tovar, and the Teen Advisory Board of the

César E. Chávez Library, Ariana Federico, and the Youth Council

of Mid-City CAN, and Joey Ramirez from The Washington Neighborhood

Center. Special thanks to Jennifer May, Kimberly

Velazco, and Garrett Scullin of Designmatters at Art Center for

inviting us to work together and for all your help with the project’s

coordination. Thank you to Esther Pearl Watson and her Image+Idea

students for engaging in authentic collaboration and designing

beautiful maps to distribute in our communities. Thank you to the

Invest in Youth Coalition for the space and organizational contacts

to crowdsource resources. Lastly, we would like to thank Ken

Eby-Gomez, Lorain Khalil Rihan, Dr. Luis-Genaro García, and the

2019-20 SHG Youth Committee for your leadership and vision to

create impactful projects where the arts are used as a tool for

social change.

This publication aims to act as a resource and network for youth and educators

across California facing similar issues through the exchange of ideas and resources.

Photo credit: Sydney Barnett

Photo credit: Alexandra Uzárraga

*Building Healthy Communities (BHC) is a 10 year, $1 billion comprehensive community initiative

launched by The California Endowment in 2010 to advance statewide policy, change the narrative, and

transform 14 of California’s communities devastated by health inequities into places where all people

and neighborhoods thrive.

About Self Help Graphics & Art

Since its incorporation in 1973, SHG has produced more than 2,200 art print

editions, including 54 atelier projects and exhibitions all over the world. The

organization remains dedicated to the production, interpretation and distribution

of prints and other art media by Chicana/o and Latinx artists; and its multidisciplinary

intergenerational programs promote artistic excellence and empower community

by providing access to working space, tools, training and beyond. Now, nearly a

half century later, SHG continues to foster emerging Chicana/o and Latinx artists

through its world-class printmaking practice and supports the role of artists as

leaders, both within its organization and the community.

Self Help Graphics fosters uplifting the narrative of the issues of our community

by supporting advocacy through artivism, policy change and practicum. Through

projects such as the “Know Your Rights” campaign in collaboration with the

National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON), the Invest in Youth campaign

through the Boyle Heights Building Healthy Communities (BHBHC) initiative, antidisplacement

work through Eastside LEADS and advocacy previously through

“Residents and Artists Investing in Community Development and Empowerment

Strategies” (R.A.I.C.E.S.), we share a vision of informing, empowering and healing

community in a way that has become part of the fabric of our work that stretches

beyond the print studio.


Anti-Displacement and Art Workshop

February 1, 2020, CEsar E. Chavez Branch,

Oakland Public Library (OPL)

The workshop in Oakland took place at the César E. Chavez Branch of OPL in the community of

Fruitvale, focusing on the topic of Anti-Displacement since the city is experiencing a surge in gentrification.

With support from the Teen Librarian, Linda Nguyen, the library’s active Teen Advisory

Board (TAB) approved the workshop. In addition to members of the TAB, other library patrons, from

seniors to Kindergarten students, joined the workshop.

Artist and Biking Advocate Ken Eby-Gómez led the participants on a one hour walk of the surrounding

community. He focused on areas of cultural significance and discussed the changing landscape

due to gentrification and a new bus rapid transit line currently under construction on International

Blvd, which connects all of East Oakland. The participants also visited a section of Sausal Creek in a

nearby park. The creek is mostly underground in the flatlands of East Oakland, opposed to the hills

where the creek is above ground. A brief discussion was held on why the creek is located underground

in some areas and not in others. But it was understandable given that the neighborhoods

with more access to natural resources are wealthier and situated in the hills of Oakland. Most of

the participants had never visited the creek before and were surprised to find that they had access

to this body of water so close to home. Although the creek is accessible, it is not well maintained.

The site visit gave the youth an opportunity to imagine and discuss what the area could look like if

they knew about it before and cared for it.

Lastly, they visited a new affordable housing development at Fruitvale Station, next to the library.

Ken shared the different ways to help keep communities accessible, from affordable housing initiatives

to the Oakland Community Land Trust. Participants returned to the library to debrief and

create zines, including a collaborative zine, using different materials such as historical pictures and

instant photographs taken on the tour. The zines reflect what they learned, saw, and gave them a

deeper understanding of their relationship to the community.

What is the most interesting thing you learned

during the workshop?

I learned more about the affordable

housing resources accessible to me

and my community. Before the workshop,

I had only heard of it once or twice but

now I know how and where to reach out

to apply.

- Valentina de Jesus,

Teen Advisory Board member


Artist Bio

Ken Eby-GOmez

I am a Chicano/a/x/@ writer, (sometimes)

bike courier, and educator. My writing focuses

on movement in cities and practicing

awareness of the places we share. I also

write zines based on classic kids’ books.

My latest projects are Rethinking Travel

and Adventures Close to Home. Rethinking

Travel is a workbook on reevaluating what

we value when moving around our cities and

neighborhoods. Adventures Close to Home

is a written narrative of a bike ride from the

bottom of East Oakland to the top of the East

Bay Hills, reflecting on the cultures, built environment,

and environmental history of the

area. Past zine projects include the smash

hits Zinester’s Guide to San Diego and If You

Give a Punk a Coffee (an update of a classic

children’s book).

My experience working with Self-Help

Graphics for the Anti-Displacement

Teen workshop was fantastic, from

brainstorming to writing up the plan

and goals and working alongside Cesar

Chavez Library. The library’s central

location in the Fruitvale neighborhood

provided several examples of the built

environment, environmental modification,

and housing access (or lack of)

for energizing discussion. We hit several

locations, shared knowledge and

experience, and made it back on what

was already a gorgeous afternoon.

SHG’s assistance in the open-ended

zine and art workshop after our walk

allowed youth to express new energy

to engage the work against displacement

and express their own stories.

- Ken Eby-Gomez



About the Cesar E. Chavez Branch of Oakland Public Library

The César E. Chávez Branch Library, formerly the Latin American Library Branch, was founded in

1966. It was one of the first public libraries in the United States to offer services and materials in

Spanish, and was the first branch library exclusively dedicated to the Spanish-speaking community

in the United States. The branch opened at its current site in the Fruitvale Transit Village in February

2004. The César E. Chávez Branch is fully bilingual offering information services and collections

in Spanish and English.

Chavez Branch also has a Seed Lending Library. The Cesar Chavez Seed Library is a free urban

seed project committed to increasing the capacity of our community to feed itself wholesome food

by means of education that fosters community resilience, self-reliance and a culture of sharing.

Anyone is welcome to come in and check-out seeds.

Resources

• Causa Justa/Just Cause

They work on housing justice issues and you can volunteer with them. cjjc.org

• Oakland Community Land Trust

They purchase land to be used for the community and to keep it permanently affordable.

oakclt.org

• Properties/Non-Profits part of the land trust

• Cycles of Change: Local, non-hierarchical and POC led cycling advocacy non-profit working

with youth, adults, and schools across Alameda County for 20+ years. Cycles of Change’s

office and community bike shop is housed in a building kept affordable through stewardship

by the Oakland Community Land Trust.

• Hasta Muerte Coffee: Collective run coffee shop and radical community space, own their

building with the Oakland Community Land Trust.

Photos credit: Sydney Barnett

Photos credit: Sydney Barnett


Artivism Workshop

February 21, 2020, and 28, 2020 at Mid-City CAN

On February 21 and 28, SHG hosted the second expansion of this series in City Heights, San Diego.

The SHG team worked with Mid-City CAN’s Youth Council and local artist Lorain Khalil Rihan for two

afternoons of artivism. During the workshops, Youth Council students learned to use printmaking

as a tool for advocacy by pairing a symbol or image with a demand that either advocated for, or

protested against, a cause they were passionate about.

On the first day, participants learned about Lorain’s practice and saw examples of how artists use

printmaking as a tool for activism. They then worked collaboratively to come up with ideas for poster

designs.

On day two, they learned to transfer their drawings onto a carving block, carve the image, and

handprint their designs. The themes of the posters varied, but all were connected to issues of systemic

injustice affecting their communities: transportation justice, domestic violence, gentrification,

and their ongoing Youth Council campaign that advocates for an Independent Community-Led

Commission on Police Practices (Independent CRB).

The second day was also a day of celebration. The participants’ artwork was exhibited and over 30

members of the community attended. Food was shared, Youth Council members spoke about their

artwork, and community members heard about the campaign for an independent CRB. Mid-City

CAN plans to use the artwork for promotional purposes and to decorate the walls of their office

space, showcasing the important work Youth are doing in their community.



Artist Bio

Lorain Khalil Rihan

Lorain Khalil Rihan is an interdisciplinary

visual artist, educator, and community

organizer. Lorain’s pedagogical approach

takes on a social justice framework as she

invites students to consider their surroundings

and to examine the social and political realities

that impact them as individuals and their

communities. Her community organizing is

focused on building power intersectionality

across communities of color. Her practice

as an artist challenges dominant discourses

around refugees, investigates relationships

of power, and explores art as an instrument

for healing.


It was an honor to facilitate the protest poster workshop

with so many powerful youths in San Diego. Their courage,

commitment to social justice, and sense of community give

me hope that another world and future are possible for all

of us.

- Lorain Khalil Rihan




About Mid-City CAN Youth Council

Mid-City CAN is a non-profit organization composed of residents of the City Heights neighborhood

in San Diego, CA who care about making a lasting impact in this community. Focused on advocating

for the top issues residents care about, forming teams of volunteers. Mid-City CAN helps organize

these teams to accomplish their goals. Their mission is to create a safe, productive,and healthy

community through collaboration, advocacy, and organizing.

Mid-City CAN hosts a weekly Youth Council, attended by high school students of the surrounding

neighborhood. The primary focus is to disrupt the school-prison pipeline through campaigns that

empower youth to advocate for their communities and participate in meaningful decision-making.

Youth Council’s goal is to dismantle institutional policies designed to criminalize and incarcerate

youth. By giving youth the voice and power to change these policies, they can lead juvenile justice

reform and end the school to prison pipeline.

Their short-term goal is to place a measure on the 2020 election ballot to replace the current Community

Review Board on Police Practices with an independent Commission. Our long-term goal is to

create an independent, community-led commission on police practices with two youth seats

that have the power to increase accountability and transparency in policing.

“This is a great format to

spread your word through

the medium of art.

Your voice is powerful,

but art makes it more

powerful and makes it

stand out more”

-Denise,

Youth Council Member



Reimagining ‘La Loteria’

February 29, 2020, at Washington Neighborhood Center

The Washington Neighborhood Center is an organization with deep roots in Sacramento’s

Chicano art movement and was host to one of SHG’s statewide workshop in Sacramento. Artist

and Educator, Dr. Luis-Genaro García, led participants in a workshop that reimagined the game

of Lotería. La Lotería is a popular bingo-type game that originated in Mexico and is played

widely by Latinxs.

This workshop presented a brief history of La Loteria and provided an opportunity to reflect

on some of the images depicted in the game. Drawing from participants’ familial and cultural

knowledge, and using stories and experiences, participants created new Loteria cards that

countered images such as El Borracho, El Valiente, La Sirena, La Dama, El Mundo, and El Apache.

Dr. Luis-Genaro García used the idea of La Lotería to draw attention to community issues such

as immigration, community advocacy, gender fluency, mental health, justice, healthy living, and

community empowerment. Using paper that Dr. Garcia previously silkscreened, participants

painted new Loteria cards onto colorful backgrounds, using images that positively reflected

the community or brought attention to political circumstances affecting them.

Additionally, thanks to Dr. García’s connections across the state, students, teachers, and parents

from Stockton to Oakland traveled to Sacramento to participate in the workshop; enhancing

the experience and connection even further.

About the Washington

Neighborhood Center

The Washington Neighborhood Center is

located at 400 16th Street in one of Sacramento’s

oldest neighborhoods. The Center

was originally founded by the Fremont

Presbyterian Church as an outreach

program in 1952. The Center has provided

residents of the Alkali Flat and Washington

neighborhoods a wide complement of

programs and services for over 50 years.

Offering programs in the arts, education,

recreational activities, health, culture and

an overall emphasis on the development of

youth, the Center and its programs have

served as a refuge for many who reside in

a troubled environment.

Photo credit: Tomás Montoya and

The Washington Neighborhood Center

Photo credit: Tomás Montoya and The Washington Neighborhood Center


Artist Bio

Luis-Genaro GarCia

Luis-Genaro Garcia is a Los Angeles artist and former arts educator in South Central Los

Angeles. His work as an artist and educator brings attention to issues of race, class, and gender,

by drawing on the cultural capital of communities to create relevant and accessible understandings

of Los Angeles history. As an educator, he draws on students’ knowledge and art education to

creatively challenge dominant narratives and social barriers in communities of color. He is an

artist, educator,

activist, and scholar that has dedicated his work to improving the academic and socio-political

experiences of students and their communities by co-developing the social consciousness of

students and communities. He is currently an Assistant Professor of Art Education at California

State University Sacramento where he is preparing the next generation of art educators.

Artist Reflection


I appreciated the opportunity to work with the Washington Neighborhood Center in Sacramento.

Understanding their history in Sacramento’s Chicano art movement and with the Royal Chicano

Air Force enabled me to continue reflecting the philosophies of art, community and social justice.

Developing the workshop around the

already popular game of La Loteria

provided me with the opportunity to use

its popular culture to develop the consciousness

of the participants. Students,

teachers, and parents from the cities

of Sacramento, Stockton, and Oakland

were able to engage in critical conversations

about our communities, and the

issues of race, class, and gender that

have been normalized in our society

through the game of La Loteria. Drawing

on the understanding and knowledge of

playing Loteria in their homes, students

were able to recreate Loteria cards

that pushed back against gender norms,

machismo, stereotypes, and other negative

representations of our communities.

Overall, I saw students,educators, and

parents, engage with each other to

understand how the history of La

Loteria has affected their communities.

The transformational experience was

reflected when the participants all

shared the idea behind their new

Loteria cards through a socially conscious

perspective where they drew on their

own experience to challenge issues

that are affecting their community.

Mapping Youth LA,

February 2020 - May 2020 at Self Help Graphics

and Art Center College of Design

The Self Help Graphics Youth Committee 2019-20 cohort created a set of community resource

maps in collaboration with students from the Design Matters program at ArtCenter College of

Design in Pasadena, to encourage youth to explore their neighborhood and motivate them to

become more involved.

The maps highlight the communities of Boyle Heights/ Unincorporated East Los Angeles,

MacArthur Park/ Koreatown, and South Central, all neighborhoods where Youth Committee

members have lived, worked or studied. The maps illustrate neighborhood services, community

organizations, and a variety of places where youth can safely gather and interact. These

resources were crowdsourced through a workshop that was part of the Invest in Youth

Campaign, and a digital survey distributed through youth-serving organizations and social

media. The project was spearheaded by Karla Jacome and Oscar Dominguez of the Youth

Committee with support and feedback from the whole cohort.

Students in the Image+Idea class, an undergraduate illustration course taught by Professor

Esther Pearl Watson at Art Center, created the map designs. The students met with the Youth

Committee at Self Help Graphics on February 26, 2020, for an initial meet and greet to learn

more about the project and each other. They had one additional in-person meeting, and two

more via videoconference due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Each design was inspired by the student’s visit to the

neighborhoods and their distinct cultures. To ensure that

each map was genuinely representative of each community,

students sent work samples throughout their design

process, to continuously receive feedback from the Youth

Committee.

All the maps will be available on the Self Help Graphics

website, and printed versions will be distributed to

schools and organizations at each community to share

with the youth they serve.

Map Illustrators and Designers

Boyle Heights/East LA: Moonie Uceda, Tiffany Dang,

Sophia Kiuchi, Ashley Wong, Jianting Li

MacArthur Park/Koreatown: Alyson Kim, Jessica

Khosravian, Avery Cooper, Phoebe Wang, Ciara Hart,

Tina Chu

South Central: Seyeon Juhnn, Megan Uchida, Hae Jin

Kang, Daisy Lee, Rachael Chan

Photo credit: Anna Vasquez and

Maria Romero / Las Fotos Project.

About SHG Youth

Committee

The Self Help Graphics Youth Committee is

a paid youth opportunity where burgeoning

youth leaders from Boyle Heights and the

greater LA community come together to gain

experience in civic engagement and advocacy.

Through this professional leadership experience,

participants receive training to create and

lead programming for other youth to increase

the awareness of community health issues,

youth incarceration, restorative justice in

education, LGBTQ+ advocacy, and more.

The SHG Youth Committee serves in an

advisory role as well, developing critical youth programming to activate the SHG space for youth

initiatives and the many issues that youth currently face. The 2019-20 SHG Youth Committee are

Arlene Campa, Gabriella Claro, Oscar Dominguez, Karla Jacome, Aimee Martinez, Jake Montoya,

Samantha Nieves,Hélène Philippe, and Milo Woods.

About Designmatters

ArtCenter recognizes the power of design to change the world. Through research, advocacy and

action, the College’s social innovation department, Designmatters, engages, empowers and leads

an ongoing exploration of art and design as a positive force in society. Designmatters courses vary

from term to term, but include academic, discipline-specific and studio-based offerings that engage

students across all majors, taught with a dynamic, entrepreneurial and experiential approach to

design education.

Through Designmatters, the College offers a minor in social innovation, providing a transcripted

specialization for undergraduate students who want to master a toolkit of design skills and strategies

to navigate the complex dynamics of working with communities and designing for social impact.

Photo credit: Anna Vasquez and Maria Romero / Las Fotos Project.

Photo credit: Anna Vasquez and Maria Romero / Las Fotos Project.

To find out more about the Artists and Organizations

featured in this publication visit:

Oakland Public Library

oaklandlibrary.org

Mid-City CAN

midcitycan.org

The Washington Neighborhood Center

thecentersacramento.org

Designmatters at Art Center College of Design

designmattersatartcenter.org

Ken-Eby Gómez, Artist

reallybigmochilaxvx.wordpress.com

Dr. Luis-Genaro García, Artist

luisgenarogarcia.com

Lorain Khalil Rihan, Artist

lorainkhalilrihan.com

Self Help Graphics Youth Committee

selfhelpgraphics.com/youth-committee

This project was made possible by funding from

The California Endowment.


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