“Poetry is a political act because it involves telling the truth…If you’re in the difficult process of living as a poet, you’re constantly trying to make an attunement to yourself which no outside manipulation or propaganda can disturb. That makes …
Author: Restoration Village Arts
Oceti Sakowin, a poem for Standing Rock
Oceti Sakowin We woke up to the drone of planes circling above and soft horse whinnies— animal breath making heat. Over the loud speaker, a man told us that the black snake oozes closer, feeding on: our stone hopes thrown …
Art as a Forum for Justice
Our friend, Belle Alvarez, is a professional dance instructor and performer in Philadelphia, as well as a member of the Carnival de Resistance 2016 crew. Below she shares her thoughts on embodiment, art, and justice. If justice is about making …
More Art, Less Violence with Cienaños
As people are rising up in resistance to government corruption and totalitarianism across Honduras, the band Cienaños is writing music for the fight– music to lift the spirits and engender hope in the hearts of Honduran people. But Cienaños is much …
Art is the Movement with Carnival de Resistance
Often, art is treated as incidental to gatherings, conferences, institutions, movements. Artists are invited to participate for their additions of texture and creative flair— but what happens when art is centered in the struggle for collective liberation? Last month, Restoration …
Collecting Healing
Collecting Healing grace aheron I address the crowds within me: Rustling robes of people I know only from dreams, Childhood friends with small hands, My parents– One who left his body behind. When I take steps in this world, …
La Frontera
Grace Aheron, RVA Program Director, was featured in the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia’s quarterly magazine, The Virginia Episcopalian, with her piece on her recent pilgrimage to the US/Mexico border, a place where hope and beauty grow in spite of the dark …
Holy Foolery
The gang of holy fools at the Carnival de Resistance have the audacity to believe that play, jest, delight, and art can unhinge the topsy-turvy, upside-down nature of our broken world. Longtime friends and co-conspirers with Restoration Village Arts, …
A Convening of Artists
Restoration Village Arts will be playing a central role in facilitating conversations and gatherings around justice and art at the Summit for Change, put on by Sojourners, June 22-24. This year’s conference will focus the many intersections of racial identity …
Coffee, Justice and Community on the Border
Our dear friends at Cafe Justo y Más opened their doors this Saturday to their new cafe and roastery on the US/Mexico border. Felicitaciones, amigos! Cafe Justo y Más is an ethical, cooperative effort to combat corporate farming and empower communities …