Virtual Art Exhibit Gives Youth A Way to Voice Their Concerns Through the Eyes of Their Community

                                                         “One picture is worth ten thousand words.”—Chinese Proverb

PhotoVoice is a collective impact project by which community members highlight and bring awareness to their needs, history, culture, issues, and desires through photography in conjunction with narrative and story-telling. On Thursday, June 4, 2020, Rethinking Access to Marijuana (RAM) will present a virtual PhotoVoice exhibit from 12:30 pm-1:30 pm. Photos from youth throughout Los Angeles County will be featured, including Community Coalition (CoCo) youth leader Eliana R., who is a 14-year-old high school freshman. RAM seeks to prevent marijuana-related harms by limiting youth access and exposure to marijuana. The group does not support or oppose legislation about cannabis. Still, they do strive to raise awareness regarding its adverse effects on young people’s verbal, cognitive, and attention abilities.

Participating in PhotoVoice gives participants a chance to visually portray their lived experiences and share personal knowledge about particular challenges that are oftentimes difficult to express with words alone. Participants of past PhotoVoice projects have found the process to be therapeutic and empowering because it allows them to reclaim the narratives of their communities while also strategically positioning them to inform policies. 

Participants document issues in their community via photography, develop a narrative or caption to describe their photographs, and use their photos to engage decision-makers and community members in dialogue that can inform public policy and effect social change. Eliana, who is part of South Central Youth Empowered Through Action (SCYEA), felt it was important to participate and capture the need for substance abuse prevention through her photo series, “My Normal Is Not Your Normal.”

“I think the project helps us express the way we feel and see our reality. This project helped me reflect on my community and my life.  I was able to express the way I feel in regards to South Central LA.  and how my neighbors are kind, but our conditions make South Central LA, and us, look bad. I get to tell my story as a youth in South LA.”

“What I found the most interesting is how my community is different from others. I have family in South Gate, and their community is cleaner. There are no blunt wraps, weed capsules, or bottles. This project helped me see how my community could be better,” says the young photographer.

When asked what message she hopes to share with her photos and what impact she thinks they can have, Eliana explains, “I hope that I can open other people’s eyes and show them my normal and how others are living in a better neighborhood. It is not fair to us youth to live in an environment that is not safe for us. Liquor stores, dispensaries and smoke shops surround us, which aren’t good for our mental and physical health. People use drugs to cope with pain, they lose everything, and we need to help them. I want our community to be better. We need resources. We need access to therapy, shelters, and better healthcare. We need fewer liquor stores and more markets, daycares, and parks. There is a lot of room for improvement.”