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Valerie Freedom

dance instructor thinking

Jedi Mind Tricks, Day 2

Media and Dance, Day 2 This morning, Christine guided our media class and we brainstormed more ideas for the music video. She started with general icebreaker questions so that everyone could connect to each other. We watched different music videos for inspiration, including one she produced for Thrive Collective of their “Campeones” mural in Tijuana…

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paint rollers

Turn Up the Value, Day 1

Media and Murals, Day 1 Today is our very first day at the Harlem Hub Summer Arts Academy, and I’m very, very excited! We started off in the media classroom to hear a sneak preview of “Turn Up the Value,” the song we’ll finish writing over the next week. Then we began imagining an upcoming…

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sapling mascot happy

Introducing Valerie Freedom & The Sapling

I’m Valerie Freedom, author of The Sapling. My story begins in the Lower East Side as a teeny, tiny seed blowing on the wind and landing comfortably in a schoolyard at Franklin Delano Roosevelt School. Over time, children at the school painted Dream Walls, I Am Loisaida, and Dream Walls 2.0, expressing their creativity in the…

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smiling girl

The Art of Healing through Creativity

On Saturday, June 30th, a spirit of healing reverberated throughout our first ever Art of Healing festival where we stood, arms in arms against gun violence and provided space for individuals to heal through pain through creative fun, music, and games. With support from the community, colleague arts organizations, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance,…

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