August 8, 2018

Learning, art, and activism blended this summer at the Skokie Public Library. A group of teens gathered each Wednesday for 6 weeks to collaborate with Milton Coronado, a CAASE Educator and graffiti artist, on a mural inspired by efforts to end sexual harm.

Jarrett Dapier, Young Adult Librarian at the Skokie Public Library, connected with our Prevention Education Program about providing summer programming for teens. Milton proposed a multi-week partnership that incorporated a mural. The library gave the project the green light, calling it Artists for Equality. Milton’s artistic talent and expertise empowering youth to end sexual harm laid a foundation for the creative program.

Artists for Equality kicked off with a learning session where participants absorbed information about personal boundaries, sexual harm, and exploitation. The group took what they learned and creatively expressed it through sketches. Milton gathered the group’s ideas and synthesized them into one cohesive piece that he presented to the group. The teens were proud to see elements of their drawings combine to make a unified concept. Milton’s work made them even more excited to start painting! He taught them how to control the medium, showing the group how to manipulate spray paint cans to produce different effects. The group began practicing on the wall, honing the skills it would take to make their vision a reality.

Over the next few weeks, the teens got to work creating their bold painting with a purpose. Everyone pitched in and had a blast working together. As you can see, the teamwork paid off. On August 1st, they completed the project and have something to be truly proud of. The mural will bring color and life to the library for years to come while engaging viewers on the issue of sexual harm.

Milton was able to use his unique artistic talent to connect with this group and show them that creativity has a role to play in creating change. While Milton is moving on from CAASE, we wish him luck in his artistic career and appreciate the lasting impression he has made in Skokie by guiding this mural and much more broadly by empowering countless youth throughout Chicago to end sexual harm during his time with our organization.

To learn more about Milton’s art, visit his website at www.crownedart.com.