Violence Destroys the Light of Today

  • The eight mural panels depict are based on "anti-violence."
  • The team created a display of their design sketches to share with community partners at a design pitch.
  • The youth fabricated the mural panels in a classroom at PS/IS 109 before they were installed on the wall at the underpass.
  • NYC Council Member Jumaane Williams led the youth in unveiling the mural panels.
  • The PS/IS 109 students proudly display their awards at the dedication ceremony.
  • A close-up of one of the panels.

Project Description

With the support of NYC Council Member Jumanne Williams through the Department of Cultural Affairs' Cultural Afterschool Adventures program, twelve PS/IS109 students worked with two Groundswell artists to create a series of anti-violence mural panels for the LIRR Underpass near their school in East Flatbush. The students researched, designed, and fabricated the mural panels over the course of sixteen afterschool sessions. 
 
 
The imagery in the eight panels addresses the causes and effects of violence in our communities, portrayed as a spectrum with violence at one end and the counter-balances to violence at the opposite end. Three of the panels feature the components of a healthy community, including creativity, nature and green space, and a nurturing family, and three panels at the opposite end of that spectrum portray violence and crime, innocent victims of gun violence, and the shattered homes that result. 
 
The panels were unveiled at a public ceremony attended by PS/IS 109 students and staff, participants' families, community members, and Council Member Williams.    

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Project Info

Location: Glenwood Road between Schenectady Avenue and East 45th Street Brooklyn, NY 11203

Fun Facts

Impact
The Violence Prevention Alliance (VPA) is a network of World Health Organization (WHO) Member States, international agencies and civil society organizations working to prevent violence.
Quote
"It's great to see our kids in this community working towards a better tomorrow." -Nichelle Clark, NYC Middle School Educator
Fun Fact
Gang members are more likely to be arrested or involved with drugs and alcohol than non-gang members.