Welcome to Grassroots Artists MovEment (G.A.ME) in Bedford-Stuyvesant
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Our New Executive Director Francis Peña
Please welcome our NEW Executive Director of Grassroots Artists Movement (G.A.ME)
Francis Peña.
Francis will be overseeing all current and upcoming projects of G.A.ME, including Black VegFest. Peña is a co-founding member of our 22-year operation with exemplary caliber and a tremendous talent for high-level organizing.
The outgoing ED, Omowale Adewale said, “Francis has been the most valuable asset
About Us
G.A.ME, Inc.
Grassroots Artists MovEment (G.A.ME) in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, NY is a fully 501 c3 organization.
The mission of the Grassroots Artists MovEment (G.A.ME) is to use Hip-Hop art and social justice programming to empower poor Black and Latino communities against socio-economic and political injustices. We aim to help our community control the resources we create. Using Hip-Hop’s historically powerful anthems against social injustice we address youth incarceration, poor healthcare access, and the labor issues affecting artists. G.A.ME has focused on three main components: artists, young people and health care inequity.
G.A.ME History
International Artists Union (I.A.U) Between 2001 and 2012 we focused on protecting and strengthening artists’ labor rights while using art to raise awareness about health inequities. This work later became apart of the I.A.U. The I.A.U. organized dozens of performances, developed two music compilations while focusing on educating artists. There were 40 NYC artists under the I.A.U.
G.A.ME HealthCare Network (GHCN) From 2003-2010, the G.A.ME HealthCare Network spawned in order to provide medical and other health resources to our members and communities in need. From 2004 to 2006, we testified at congressional hearings on behalf of artists and poor communities of the Bronx about America’s inadequate healthcare system and specific policies. We started working with HealthcareNOW! in 2004 and began holding events to raise awareness about HR676 (Universal Healthcare bill). The number of current NYC participants was 20, including three doctors.
R.E.B.E.L (Rallying, Educating & Building Effective Leadership) started in 2005 to develop youth leadership and prevent youth incarceration. There existed a number of different programs and projects under R.E.B.E.L. G.A.ME’s South Bronx Greenmarket (GSBG) helped young people of color learn how to manage their own business, generate income and provide healthy food and important information to the community.
Today’s Work!
+Black VegFest is a long-term vegan intersectional project that empowers people to think about the overlapping oppression in our neighborhoods and worlds. We want to restructure a planet that centers quality health and eliminates animal oppression.
+R.E.B.E.L is a Youth Program in Bedford-Stuyvesant.
The R.E.B.E.L Alternative to Incarceration (ATI) project has helped young people avoid jail and secure detention by enrolling them in our 14-week curriculum based program, while learning how to take community justice into their own hands.
R.E.B.E.L Boxing Club teaches healthy living, boxing, enrichment, youth leadership in Bedford-Stuyvesant. We address bullying using self-defense methods to protect while encouraging discipline and self-control to deescalate hostile situations. RBC is designed to create awareness among youth populations of color about nutrition, especially the necessity for plant-based foods like fruits, vegetables, legumes and grains. RBC critiques the lack of healthy options that are more prevalent in certain communities often called “food deserts”. Food deserts are where healthy produce is scarce and unhealthy fast food is more available.
Ways to Support Our Work
Make a donation to G.A.ME using your credit card
Volunteer to help at our office
Volunteer to conduct a workshop