WOMANHOOD PASSAGE FUNDRAISER & WOMANHOOD LEARNING PROJECT
Hip-Hop Association Hosts Inspirational Fundraiser, Honors Pioneers of Hip-Hop Culture
NEW YORK, NY (May 12, 2009) – The Hip-Hop Association, in collaboration with the Center for Multicultural Education and Programs at New York University, proudly presents the Womanhood Passage Fundraiser, a special evening acknowledging the strength, beauty, leadership, challenges, and successes of women in Hip-Hop. With an exquisite rooftop view of Washington Square Park and New York City, the event will take place at NYU’s Rosenthal Pavilion, located in the Kimmel Center, from 7pm-10pm on Thursday, June 25, 2009.
Special guests represent Hip-Hop artists, as well as executives, activists, media makers, and entrepreneurs. Confirmed speakers include: MONIE LOVE, ROCKAFELLA, BARAKA SELE, TOOFLY, MARCELLA RUNELL HALL, DJ BEVERLY BOND, KIM OSORIO, DJ JAZZY JOYCE, RACHEL RAIMIST, THEMBISA MSHAKA, DR. ROXANNE SHANTE, MARTHA COOPER, and CINDY CAMPBELL, the Mother of Hip-Hop. The Womanhood Passage Fundraiser is meant to serve as a safe space where we can address issues affecting women. The youngest guest speaker is 15 year-old P-STAR, who will talk about her documentary P-Star Rising, recently screened at the TriBeCa Film Festival. The event kicks off the Hip-Hop Association’s 2009 Womanhood Learning Project (WLP) initiatives.
Womanhood Passage Fundraiser
June 25, 2009
7pm -10pm
NYU Kimmel Center-Rosenthal Pavilion, 10th Floor
The Womanhood Learning Project magnifies women’s roles and leadership positions within Hip-Hop culture and the community. The two main goals for the WLP in 2009 are a resource book entitled, Fresh, Bold, So Def: Women in Hip-Hop Changing the Game and the Ladies First Fund, the first grant for women in Hip-Hop. Fresh, Bold, So Def: profiles over 300 artists, activists, and entrepreneurs, while the Ladies First Fund is an initiative that offers a $5,000 grant to a candidate dedicated to social entrepreneurship in the Newark, New Jersey area.
The WLP is supported by the likes of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, The Center for Urban Entrepreneurship & Economic Development at Rutgers Business School, New York Liberty, Ford Foundation, Union Square Awards, and the NYU Office of Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Student Services (LGBTSS).
“This event is more than just honoring those that have paved the way, it is also promoting intergenerational healing amongst women,” says Martha Diaz, Founder of the Hip-Hop Association. “Too often the negative associations of women in Hip-Hop go unresolved; we hope to have the Womanhood Passage Fundraiser move us toward a resolution while promoting some of the most positive women in Hip-Hop.”
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