An organization working with Compton youth to build community among people of color though history and art.
Color Compton is “An organization geared towards working with the youth to build community relationships among people of color while exploring identity, and creating art. Grounded on history, students will be introduced to concepts and history to engage in dialogue and use art mediums to develop their own narratives through collective engagement. All students will be able to gain leadership skills and play a critical role in community activism”
They hope to "aim to empower all students in the Compton community by sharing the histories of people of color and introducing art as a form of communication"
Community Partners include: GirlSpace International, Compton G.IRLS Club , and The Variety Group.
Please give a warm welcome to Abigail Lopez-Byrd, founder and executive director of Color Compton. Abigail is a Compton native and her vision was to cultivate a creative space for Compton youth and community to have a space where they could have conversations about art, history, identity and community. She herself recalls her first experience with the arts (photography) in high school and how that allowed her to look at life through an artistic lense. She recalls having to qualify for this extracurricular class and how they would meet after school, making it inaccessible for all students. With Color Compton, Abigail hopes to expose youth to the power of communication and knowledge through art. Alongside unlocking a creative outlet which allows youth to explore their self identity and how they see themselves in and apart of a collective community.
Like many of the organizations we have today, Color Compton has shifted to accommodate on a remote platform due to COVID-19. Color Compton and their sister organizations have moved to host conferences online as well as limited in person events. For example, Paint Night & Wine Tasting was hosted over the summer. Tickets were limited at an outside venue for social distancing and masks were required. Color Compton has been working to adapt to the social distancing while still providing for its community. Color Compton has also partnered with their sister organizations to raise funds for families who have been affected by the global pandemic. Community is one of the organizations pillars, so it was especially important for them to show up for their community and provide mutual aid to alleviate some financial burden many people are having to face. Color Compton is also providing limited access to office space to provide to the community because they recognize that one of the challenges brought by the global pandemic is people not having a quiet space to do their work.
For more information, click on the link to learn more about Color Compton and if you feel inclined to, follow the support tab at the top to make a donation.
