After two consecutive years of tragic loses to gun violence at J’ouvert, lawmakers and anti-gun violence advocates are hoping that music will be able to stem the tide of gun deaths at the annual West Indian Day Parade.
Near the Campus of Medgar Evers College, Assemblyman Walter Mosley (D-Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, Prospect Heights and Crown Heights) announced that he will be hosting the first annual “Love Yourself, Brooklyn Peace Concert” in partnership with Council Member Laurie Cumbo (D-Fort Greene, Clinton Hill), Senator Jesse Hamilton (D-Central Brooklyn), and District Leader Geoffrey Davis.
Mosley, along with Davis, who heads the James E. Davis Stop Violence Foundation, organized the free community concert in an effort to educate the youth and promote peace across the borough of Brooklyn and citywide.
Brooklyn’s own rising rap artist Joey Bada$$ will headline the concert. Additionally, Kings County Politics is one of the sponsoring businesses,
“This concert is an opportunity to unify and educate our citizens through music and presentations from J’Ouvert historians, and I look to continue to build upon this message of peace with similar events year-round,” said Mosley.
The event comes off the heels of the recent change in time of the annual Labor Day festival, which late last month was officially changed to sunlight hours for the first time in its history. Traditionally, J’Ouvert begins at about 2 a.m. and runs until the start of the parade. However, this year the hours for the permitted procession will start at 6 a.m. and end at 11 a.m., J’Ouvert City International President Yvette Rennie told the New York Daily News.
Just last year, two individuals were fatally killed at the event, 17-year-old Tyreke Borel and 22-year-old Tiarah Poyau by a brazen gunman who opened fire into a crowd of people at the event. In 2015, 45-year-old Carey Gabay was fatally shot in the head when he stumbled into a gang fight. Gabay was a lawyer in Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration at the time.
“We’re going to utilize the arts to talk to our young people, through this dynamic young rapper from Brooklyn. We are going to use the arts to talk to the youth, we aren’t going to preach to the choir but we’re going to let our young people come out to this concert and then we’re going to address the history [of J’ouvert], were going to educate and we’re going to inspire our young people. We’re going to say, put the guns down,” said Davis.
Mosley went on to note that the goal of the event is to educate teens and young adults about the rich history and culture of the event while also promoting anti-gun behaviors and a gun free initiative.
The Assemblyman is also hoping that headliner Joey Bada$$ will resonate with teens and young adults to help bring a calm and positive atmosphere to a sometimes chaotic event.
“I’m a father of two and I hope that one day when my children want to come to J’ouvert, that I feel comfortable knowing that they are going to come back safe. But never should a parent feel that whenever their child leaves their home, that this will be the last day they see them alive. That is outrageous in the year 2017 to have that mentality and it’s equally outrageous that in the year 2017, we as adults can’t do something about in our efforts to work with young people,” said Mosley.
Crown Heights resident and Executive Director of the Green Earth Cafe, Curtis Harris, knows the importance of arts in young adults and feels that a concert is the perfect vehicle for reaching struggling youths.
The arts have always helped to heal, to help bring to light a lot of issues that are getting ignored, it gives voice to concerns. When people are able to express themselves–the hurt the pain the discomfort, the disillusionment–their less prone to solving their problems violently,” said Harris.
Hot 97’s Shani Kulture will host the event. Besides Joey Bada$$, others on the bill include Caribbean legends Dahved Levy and Bobby Konders, J’Ouvert City International’s Steel Drum Bands, Rhythm Sections, Dancers and educational speakers. KCP Founder/Editor/Musician Stephen Witt is also slated to perform.
The “Love Yourself Brooklyn Peace Concert” will be held from 4-7 p.m., Monday Aug. 28 at Medgar Evers College Amphitheater, 1650 Bedford Avenue in Crown Heights. The event is free and open to the public.
