Image: At a vacant lot in McKinley Park, Myrna Salgado-Romo facilitates as organizers of various generations, affiliations, and neighborhoods swap stories. Activities visible in the background include painting with guest artist and environmental justice organizer Chéma Hernandez Canchola, tabling by community groups, and a drop-in installation that passersby can add to. Photo by Marya Spont-Lemus.
Image: Guest artist Joelle Mercedes (McKinley Park Mutual Aid, Chicago BIPOC Birders Club) leads a bilingual bird walk through McKinley Park. Photo by Marya Spont-Lemus.
Image: Alfredo Romo of Neighbors for Environmental Justice (N4EJ), Gaylord Minett Jr., and local residents help paint a banner designed by William Estrada for N4EJ. Photo by Marya Spont-Lemus.
Photo by Alejandro Reyes.
Photo by Alejandro Reyes.
Photo by Alejandro Reyes.
Photo by Alejandro Reyes.
Photo by Alejandro Reyes.
Image: On the last day of Mobilize! programming, in McKinley Park, William Estrada offers free family portraits, surrounded by various other creative workshops. In the background, volunteers begin to set up for a culminating community dinner. Photo by Alfredo Romo.
Week of August 29th, 2021
"Mobilize! Creative Blocks, Collective Dreams" in McKinley Park
[español abajo]
This summer, the Mobilize Creative Collaborative presents “Mobilize! Creative Blocks, Collective Dreams”: a series of weeklong community gatherings, happening outdoors in five neighborhoods on Chicago’s South and Southwest Sides, co-designed with a team of partner artists and partner organizers who are also rooted in these places. The McKinley Park gathering is offered in partnership with Neighbors for Environmental Justice (N4EJ), with additional programming and support from the Chicago Park District, Southwest Collective, McKinley Park Mutual Aid, Chicago BIPOC Birders Club, Defund CPD, and Full Spectrum Features, as well as 12th Ward IPO, Bridgeport Alliance, the Budget for Black Lives Coalition and The People’s Lobby, Chicago Asian Americans for Environmental Justice, Illinois Environmental Council, Little Village Environmental Justice Organization, Southwest Environmental Alliance, Tierra Y Paz Urban Farm, We Will Chicago, and more.
Neighbors of ALL AGES are invited to FREE creative workshops, critical conversations, and playful explorations focused around justice and your dreams for your communities. With participatory music, art, and theater activities, live performances, skill-sharing, and more, we hope to amplify and connect existing local efforts, as well as to cultivate spaces that center imagination, joy, and people-led solutions.
Locations
McKinley Park (2210 W. Pershing Rd.; we will be just south of the playground)
Archer/Leavitt lot (3595-3599 S. Archer Ave.)
McKinley Park Schedule
Events are drop-in (participants are welcomed to come and go throughout), unless noted otherwise (for starred* events, please try to be there for the beginning). All workshop materials are provided.
Times are approximate. Schedule is subject to change.
Sunday, August 29th, from 12-6pm
at McKinley Park (2210 W. Pershing Rd.; we will be just south of the playground)
Theme: Community Grounding & Visioning
12-6pm – Various creative activities/workshops from the Mobilize! team, including:
12-2pm – Theater games
3-4pm – Global Newspaper Theater
3-5pm – Create your own windchimes
and more!
12-6pm – Conversations and activities with community organizations
1pm – *Opening reflection
2-3pm – *Community futures imagining session
Wednesday, September 1st, from 4-8pm
at Archer/Leavitt lot (3595-3599 S. Archer Ave.)
Theme: Environmental Justice
4-8pm – Various creative activities/workshops from the Mobilize! team, including:
Meditative bead work
Improvisational beat making and music making
Creating an onsite installation
Mask drawing with LVEJO
and more!
4-8pm – Conversations and activities with community organizations
4:30-7:30pm – Live drop-in painting with Chéma Hernandez Canchola
6-7pm – *Organizer storytelling
Thursday, September 2nd, from 4-8pm
at Archer/Leavitt lot (3595-3599 S. Archer Ave.)
Theme: Health/Wellness/Safety
3:30-5pm – *SPECIAL TIME: Environmental Walking Tour of McKinley Park with N4EJ (register here)
4-8pm – Various creative activities/workshops from the Mobilize! team, including:
4-8pm – Collaborative building workshop
4-8pm – Banner painting
4-8pm – Reflective writing
5:30-7:30 – Design/build activity
and more!
5-8pm – Drop-in air monitoring excursions with N4EJ
6-7pm – *Defund CPD workshop
Friday, September 3rd, from 4-9pm
at Archer/Leavitt lot (3595-3599 S. Archer Ave.)
Theme: Being in Community
4-8pm – Various creative activities/workshops from the Mobilize! team, including:
4-8pm – Collaborative building workshop
5:30-8pm – “Get to know your neighbors” activities
6-8pm – *Talking circle
and more!
5-7pm – Spray-painting workshop with Delilah Salgado-Mata
Saturday, September 4th, from 12-8pm
at McKinley Park (2210 W. Pershing Rd.; we will be just south of the playground)
Theme: Celebration & Moving Forward
8-10am – *SPECIAL TIME: Paseo Con Los Pájaros / Bird Walk in McKinley Park with Daniela Herrera (Chicago BIPOC Birders Club), Rebecca MacDonald (Chicago BIPOC Birders Club), and Joelle Mercedes (Chicago BIPOC Birders Club, McKinley Park Mutual Aid); meet by the fieldhouse
12-5pm – Various creative activities/workshops from the Mobilize! team, including:
12-2pm – Flower crowns
2:30-4pm – Food Stories and Seed Starting
Family Portrait Project
and more!
1-3pm – *Make Your Own Mosaic with Enrique Mendoza (Southwest Collective)
5-6:30pm – Dinner with community reflections
7-8pm – Dance party featuring DJ Audio Jack, presented by Full Spectrum Features
Please consider staying for Full Spectrum Features’ Chicagoland Shorts Vol. 7, happening from 8-9:30pm!
Accessibility
Most events will be in English and Spanish (bilingual or interpreted). A Mandarin/English translator will be onsite from 1-4pm on Sunday, August 29, and from 5-8pm on Wednesday, September 1. To request a Mandarin translator for other times, please email hello@mobilizecreative.com and we will do our best to honor your request.
The park has paved paths and wheelchair-accessible bathrooms. The lot will have an ADA-compliant Porta Potty on event days. Programming in both locations will take place on flat grass surfaces and/or concrete (in the lot, there are cracks in the concrete); please enter the lot via Leavitt. Contact us through www.mobilizecreative.com with any questions or requests about access needs/accommodations.
Semana del 29 de agosto, 2021
"Mobilize! Creative Blocks, Collective Dreams" en McKinley Park
Este verano, Mobilize Creative Collaborative presenta “Mobilize! Creative Blocks, Collective Dreams” (¡Movilizar! Cuadras Creativas, Sueños Colectivos): una serie de reuniones comunitarias de una semana de duración, que se llevan a cabo al aire libre en cinco vecindarios en los lados sur y suroeste de Chicago, co-diseñado con un equipo de artistas y organizadores comunitarios que también tienes raíces es estos barrios. Esta programación en McKinley Park es hecha en conjunto con Neighbors for Environmental Justice (N4EJ), con programación adicional y apoyo por el Chicago Park District, Southwest Collective, McKinley Park Mutual Aid, Chicago BIPOC Birders Club, Defund CPD, y Full Spectrum Features, además 12th Ward IPO, Bridgeport Alliance, el Budget for Black Lives Coalition y The People’s Lobby, Chicago Asian Americans for Environmental Justice, Little Village Environmental Justice Organization, Southwest Environmental Alliance, Tierra Y Paz Urban Farm, y más.
Vecines de TODAS EDADES están invitades a talleres creativos GRATUITOS, conversaciones críticas y exploraciones centradas en la justicia y sus sueños para sus comunidades. Con actividades participativas de música, arte y teatro, presentaciones en vivo, intercambio de habilidades y más, esperamos amplificar y conectar los esfuerzos locales existentes, así como cultivar espacios que centren la imaginación, la alegría y las soluciones dirigidas por la gente.
Lugares
McKinley Park (2210 W. Pershing Rd.; estaremos al sur del área de juegos)
En lote en la Archer y Leavitt (3595-3599 S. Archer Ave.)
El programa para McKinley Park
Este evento es gratuito, para gente de todas edades, accesible, y al aire libre. Excepto cuando indicado lo contrario, puede unirse a eventos o talleres a cualquier hora guste. Para los eventos con (*), se pide que participe desde el principio. No necesita traer ningunos materiales.
Los tiempos son aproximados. Programación sujeta a cambios.
Domingo, 29 de agosto, de 12-6pm
en McKinley Park (2210 W. Pershing Rd.; estaremos al sur del área de juegos)
Tema: Introducción y Visión Comunitaria
12-6pm – Varios talleres y eventos creativos del equipo Mobilize! incluyendo:
12-2pm – Juegos de teatro
3-4pm – Teatro de Periódico Global
3-5pm – Crea campanillas de viento
¡y más!
12-6pm – Conversaciones y actividades con organizaciones comunitarias
1pm – *Reflexión inicial
2-3pm – *Sesión comunitaria para imaginar futuros
Miércoles, 1 de septiembre, de 4-8pm
en el lote en la Archer y Leavitt (3595-3599 S. Archer Ave.)
Tema: Justicia Ambiental
4-8pm – Varios talleres y eventos creativos del equipo Mobilize! incluyendo:
4-8pm – Taller de construcción collaborativa
5:30-8pm – Taller Teatrico: Construyendo un Futuro Justo Para el Ambiente
¡y más!
4-8pm – Conversaciones y actividades con organizaciones comunitarias
4:30-7:30pm – Pintando en vivo con Chéma Hernandez Canchola
6-7pm – *Cuentos de Organizadores
Jueves, 2 de septiembre, de 4-8pm
en el lote en la Archer y Leavitt (3595-3599 S. Archer Ave.)
Tema: Salud/Benestar/Seguridad
3:30-5pm – *HORARIO ESPECIAL: Recorrido Ambiental de McKinley Park con N4EJ (registrese aqui)
4-8pm – Varios talleres y eventos creativos del equipo Mobilize! incluyendo:
4-8pm – Taller de construcción collaborativa
4-8pm – Pintando pancarta
4-8pm – Escritura reflectante
5:30-7:30 – Actividad de diseño y construcción
¡y más!
5-8pm – Excursiones para el monitoreo del aire con N4EJ
6-7pm – *Taller de Defund CPD
Viernes, 3 de septiembre, de 4-8pm
en el lote en la Archer y Leavitt (3595-3599 S. Archer Ave.)
Tema: Estando en Comunidad
4-8pm – Varios talleres y eventos creativos del equipo Mobilize! incluyendo:
4-8pm – Taller de construcción collaborativa
5:30-8pm – Actividades de “conozca a sus vecinos”
6-8pm – *Círculo de conversación
¡y más!
5-7pm – Taller de pintura de aerosol con Delilah Salgado-Mata
Sábado, 4 de septiembre, de 12-8pm
en McKinley Park (2210 W. Pershing Rd.; estaremos al sur del área de juegos)
Tema: Celebración y Siguiendo Adelante
8-10am – *HORARIO ESPECIAL: Paseo Con Los Pájaros con Daniela Herrera (Chicago BIPOC Birders Club), Rebecca MacDonald (Chicago BIPOC Birders Club), y Joelle Mercedes (Chicago BIPOC Birders Club, McKinley Park Mutual Aid); nos reuniremos junto a la casa de campo
12-5pm – Varios talleres y eventos creativos del equipo Mobilize! incluyendo:
12-2pm – Coronas florales
2:30-4pm – Cuentos de Comida y Empezando Semillas
Proyecto de Retratos de Familia
¡y más!
1-3pm – *Haga su Propio Mosaico con Enrique Mendoza (Southwest Collective)
5-6:30pm – Cena con reflecciones comunitarias
7-8pm – Fiesta de baile con DJ Audio Jack, presentado por Full Spectrum Features
Por favor considere uniendose con Full Spectrum Features’ Chicagoland Shorts Vol. 7, de 8-9:30pm!
Facilidad de acceso
La mayoría de los eventos serán en inglés y español (bilingüe o interpretados). Una intérprete mandarín/inglés estará disponible de 1-4pm el domingo, 29 de agosto, y de 5-8pm el miércoles, 1 de septiembre. Para pedir interpretación mandarín para otros días, por favor póngase en contacto con nosotres en www.mobilizecreative.com/contactenos y haremos lo posible para honrar su pedido.
El parque tiene caminos de pavimento y baños accesibles para sillas de ruedas. El lote tendrá un porta potty accesibles para sillas de ruedas. Eventos en ambos sitios ocurran en áreas planas de pasto y/o concreto (en el lote, hay rajas en el concreto); por favor entre el lote por la Leavitt. Ponga se en contacto a través de nuestra página www.mobilizecreative.com con sus preguntas o requisitos de facilidad de acceso.
Meet the McKinley Park Team
Andrés Lemus-Spont | Designer, educator, and fabricator
Andrés Lemus-Spont (he/him) is a designer, educator, fabricator, and proud child of Mexican immigrants, who is based on Chicago’s southwest side. He teaches art and architecture in various in-school and afterschool programs for youth from kindergarten through high school, and studied architecture at College of DuPage and Illinois Institute of Technology. Andrés believes strongly in the value of mentoring and does so formally through Big Brothers Big Sisters and informally through apprenticeships for college and early-career designers. Andrés founded and directs Building Brown Workshop, a design and fabrication studio serving artists, architects, and communities. With Marya Spont-Lemus, Andrés co-founded ¡Anímate! Studio, a shared community arts practice that is a vehicle for playful, intergenerational creative workshops centered around joy and criticality in public space. From 2015-2019 that work took the form of the FrankenToyMobile. Andrés is a founding member of the Mobilize Creative Collaborative.
IG | @a.lemusspont, @aniimate_studio, @building_brown_workshop , Website | http://www.animatestudio.org
Marya Spont-Lemus | Writer, interdisciplinary artist, informal educator
Marya Spont-Lemus (she/her) writes fiction and personal narratives, critically re-makes objects, and educates/facilitates/collaborates, often in public spaces. Marya co-created the FrankenToyMobile (an ¡Anímate! Studio project) and co-founded the MCC. She works as a teaching artist, interviews for Sixty Inches From Center, and was part of the ensemble that devised and performed Free Street Theater’s “Still/Here: Manifesting Joy and Survival.” Marya is a white U.S. American of Polish, Irish, and Swedish descent. She has a BA in Cinema and Media Studies (University of Chicago) and an MA in Art Education (Community track; University of Texas-Austin). Trainings through Chicago Freedom School, among other experiences, have significantly informed her ongoing work toward building a more just society, an intentionally anti-oppressive practice, and a less harmful life. An 11-year resident of McKinley Park, Marya is active locally through Neighbors for Environmental Justice, Chicago Community Jail Support, and other efforts.
Website | http://www.animatestudio.org or www.maryaspontlemus.com
Myrna Salgado-Romo | Activist, organizer, humanitarian, informal student/educator
Myrna Salgado-Romo is community organizer, activist and advocate for environmental justice in Chicago, IL. For over 15 years, Myrna has worked in the administration office as an office manager for two charter schools. In 2018, she organized to help form a union at Namaste Charter School. In the same year she, along with friends and neighbors, helped form and organize Neighbors for Environmental Justice to address the inequities and negative impacts of environmental racism, racial injustice, education injustice, and climate injustice in the McKinley Park community and surrounding Chicago neighborhoods. In June of 2020 Myrna formed a mutual aid committee and began a food distribution program with N4EJ to help support communities and families in need due to the effects of the COVID 19 pandemic. Myrna actively continues to engage the community in individual and systemic solutions to address issues related to environmental justice, social issues and climate change.
IG | @myrnavsr , Website | https://n4ej.org
