Helping build Colombia’s future with hiphop
At the end of July the Enlace ('Link', 'Junction') Hiphop School
in the centre of Bogotá was officially introduced to the
press, organisations and the public. Approximately fifty young people,
almost all of whom come from problem neighbourhoods in the Colombian
capital, presented the best of what these students have produced
during the past weeks in workshops in breakdance, DJ-ing, MC-ing,
graffiti and rap to a full house. A show that made an impression
due to the performer’s considerable enthusiasm and talent.
'People who create hiphop are contributing to culture. And people
who contribute to culture are not busy stealing, dealing drugs,
or worse. We are helping build the future of Colombia with hiphop,'
says Jeyffer Renteria. Himself a hiphop artist, he was one of a
group of young people who initiated the recently opened Casa de
Cultura, in which Enlace give workshops. The underlying idea is
to offer his peers an alternative to the poverty and the social
problems with which they grew up via the cultural centre.
Even though the hiphop workshops started without much publicity,
the number of registrations grew to three hundred in just a few
months. Teachers, including familiar names from artistic circles
in Bogotá, also offered their services spontaneously. They
want to offer supplemental lessons in theatre, poetry and voice
training. This is all the more striking because the workshop instructors
work for a token stipend. The lessons are free to the participants,
because even though there is no lack of enthusiasm at Enlace, there
is certainly a lack of funds.
That is why the founders want to link the activities in the Casa
de Cultura to another initiative that has been in existence longer:
the hiphop clothing line Ayara. The collections of this micro company
are designed, produced, distributed and sold in the company’s
own store within the same group of young people and their family
members. The objective is to offer other course participants at
the Casa de Cultura courses in fashion design and manufacturing
in the future so that they can earn income via Ayara. The initiators
want to help finance the activities in the centre with the profits
from their sales. They are considering exporting clothing to the
Netherlands, for example.
Katja Noordam
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