Abolitionist Toolbox Series
The Crenshaw Dairy Mart is pleased to present abolitionist toolbox, a new series of program workshops, roundtables, and oral histories examining the local contemporary and historical legacies of Black artists and artists of color-founded arts spaces in Los Angeles. The series examines an intergenerational stewardship of community through built micro-economies as sanctuary spaces for safety, placemaking, skill-sharing, communal learning, archiving, storytelling, and coalition-building. These intergenerational conversations between contemporary and historic community arts spaces empower community members through historical isolation, divestment, and erasure. Through the lens of the Crenshaw Dairy Mart artist collective’s vocabulary of collaboration with a myriad of multi-hyphenate artists (for example, artist-organizer; artist-gallerist; artist-curator; artist-writer; artist-educator; artist-administrator), abolitionist toolbox explores survival tools for Black artists and artists of color in the contemporary landscapes of abolition and the creative economy. As part of abolitionist toolbox, the Crenshaw Dairy Mart will record and archive a contemporary history of the rapidly gentrifying community of Inglewood in the tradition of oral histories, concurrently mapping a coalition of Black-led-and-founded artists spaces in Los Angeles.
Collaborating artists and organizations include Dr. Avriel Epps, Black Girls Code, Patrisse Cullors, Kelsey Reynolds, Avery Collinsbyrd, Waunette Cullors, gene aguilar magaña, Terrick Gutierrez, and Jacqueline Alexander-Sykes of St. Elmo Village.
This workshop series is made possible by Teiger Foundation.
Pass It On: Telling and Hearing Stories for Survival
Stories are a form of human technology and have been essential to keeping alive cultures under siege. From the pulpit to the picnic to the Nobel Prize podium, folks have shared both wisdom and warnings, while also naturally archiving our stories for the next generation. This event invites a storytelling call and response, in the spirit of community. Rooted in ancestor authors Toni Morrison’s and Toni Cade Bambara’s commitments to crafting and heeding stories, we will share and hear our own stories, trusting in their inherent wisdom.
Facilitator: Dr. Courtney Baker
Financial Literacy: Understanding your Relationship with Money
Get ready to dive deep into your money mindset and gain financial empowerment that will change your relationship with those dollar bills!
Financial Literacy. Do you want to learn more?? Every financial challenge holds the key to a lesson—unlock it, and you will grow in both wealth and wisdom. Financial struggles are temporary; the lessons they teach can last a lifetime. Success with money starts with clarity—know where you are, where you want to go, and the steps to get there.
Facilitators: Loretta Fields Powell and Javi Merritt
Stitching Our Stories: A 4-Part Hand Quilting Workshop Series
A hands-on series exploring community, cultural preservation, and storytelling through the slow, shared practice of whole cloth quilting.
Inspired by the legacy of the Freedom Quilting Bee and the creative traditions of Black women artists like Faith Ringgold, bell hooks, Alice Walker, and Nikki Giovanni, this four-part workshop series invites participants to slow down, gather in community, and practice the art of whole cloth hand quilting.
Together, we will learn simple, powerful stitches and be introduced to basic embroidery and appliqué techniques, while also engaging with short readings and personal writing. Each participant will create their own quilt over the course of the series, which will be shared at a culminating community showcase on Nov 9.
Each session blends quilting, reflection, and conversation as we explore how working with fabric can be a means to tell stories and hold memories. This is a space for care, storytelling, and creative inheritance– but also a space for letting go of perfectionism. We will play, improvise, and make with joy.
Facilitator: Kelsey Reynolds
Black Being presents Breathing Room: Restorative Practices for Liberation
This Fall, join us as we slow down, breath and lean into our bodies
This event is all about showing how freedom and wellness go hand in hand. Through meditation, breathwork, movement, sound, and plant meditation, participants get to explore rest, presence, and resilience.
We'll discuss the role of abolition in wellness, connecting personal healing with collective liberation. The goal is to provide education, experiential sessions, invite folks to BlackBeingLA's Community Week, and help folks leave feeling grounded, restored, and inspired.
Facilitators: Allison ‘Alli” Simon, Jade Smith, Ché F.M, and Brittany Pollard
Archiving Our Histories: Community Digitization Day with Black Image Center
For our final abolitionist toolbox workshop of the year, we are partnering with Black Image Center and Madelyn Inez, owner and lead archivist of Ode2LA, for a beautiful afternoon of preserving Black and local histories. We’ll be offering free digital archiving services for the community, while fostering intergenerational storytelling, memory sharing, and cultural preservation.
Besides hands-on digitization, we will have community collage and scrapbooking stations, where participants can use materials provided to build their own art projects. This workshop will join together the practice of archiving with the opportunity for creative expression and artmaking.
This program is great for anyone looking to start their digital archiving journey and those curious about maintaining a personal and family archive. By building our personal and community archives, we can take control of our memories and stories for generations to come. Have a family member or community member that could use some help starting their archiving journey? Bring them in!
Facilitator: Madelyn Inez