prompt: What community engagement strategies did the artists and their collaborators utilize in this project? What are your thoughts on the effectiveness of these strategies?
The artists hosted the performance in a public space (rooftop parking lot) in full view of the streets of Oakland. They invited people from the street to freely walk through the parking lot -allowing them to wander and listen in on conversations allowed people to hear a range of varying opinions from the high school students. The act of eavesdropping also provides a sense of intimacy that keeps audience hyperaware. I believe having community members walk up to cars, some opening doors to listen more closer, helped physically remove the barriers of perceived difference between the young adults and greater community. Having a clear open dialogue created a role reversal- the image of these students was plastered openly throughout the media, but they were never engaged or heard. Now the consumers of the media were left on the sidelines and having to listen to the other side's perspective without being able to jump in or add their piece; this was very impactful and, I believe, purposeful as if the audience was left comfortable they wouldn't learn or challenge their misconceptions they way that they did.
Part of the engagement is that the students did not have a script, which allowed them to share their true thoughts and views freely and in a way that the audience could likely relate to. The audience got to feel like they became part of those conversations despite not being allowed to respond directly to the students and were able to exercise agency by choosing which conversations they wanted to hear. Their unfiltered thoughts and educated chats offered a stark contrast from what Oakland citizens heard about the students in the news and media. People in different neighborhoods from different class lines got to hear about and sympathize with the struggles of lower class kids. Exposure to the student's conversations helped change adult's perspectives of them, most importantly. In addition to changing how the community views them, this performance empowered them to keep up a social dialogue with the community and bridge the gap between generations.
The artists hosted the performance in a public space (rooftop parking lot) in full view of the streets of Oakland. They invited people from the street to freely walk through the parking lot -allowing them to wander and listen in on conversations allowed people to hear a range of varying opinions from the high school students. The act of eavesdropping also provides a sense of intimacy that keeps audience hyperaware. I believe having community members walk up to cars, some opening doors to listen more closer, helped physically remove the barriers of perceived difference between the young adults and greater community. Having a clear open dialogue created a role reversal- the image of these students was plastered openly throughout the media, but they were never engaged or heard. Now the consumers of the media were left on the sidelines and having to listen to the other side's perspective without being able to jump in or add their piece; this was very impactful and, I believe, purposeful as if the audience was left comfortable they wouldn't learn or challenge their misconceptions they way that they did.
Part of the engagement is that the students did not have a script, which allowed them to share their true thoughts and views freely and in a way that the audience could likely relate to. The audience got to feel like they became part of those conversations despite not being allowed to respond directly to the students and were able to exercise agency by choosing which conversations they wanted to hear. Their unfiltered thoughts and educated chats offered a stark contrast from what Oakland citizens heard about the students in the news and media. People in different neighborhoods from different class lines got to hear about and sympathize with the struggles of lower class kids. Exposure to the student's conversations helped change adult's perspectives of them, most importantly. In addition to changing how the community views them, this performance empowered them to keep up a social dialogue with the community and bridge the gap between generations.
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