We are proud to share information on one of our sister organizations Manifesto Jamaica's upcoming 2nd Annual Festival.

"Manifesto Jamaica's 2nd annual Festival of ART'ical Empowerment is shaping up to be another fantastic weekend of art, community building and edutainment. The artistes we worked with last year have grown in big, beautiful ways and we've been blessed with so much new talent, which we'll be showcasing at the festival. We'll be at Edna Manley College again this year, November 18-20, for 3-full days of art'ical workshops, reasonings and live performances. One love. One light." - Lesley Welsh, Executive Director, Manifesto Jamaica

A large crew of amazing Torontonian's went to Manifesto Jamaica for the inaugural festival and we are expecting a solid group again this year.  Artist lineup will be announced soon and will be including some good ol' Toronto love.

Check out last year's Press Release for the festival HERE and one of last year's festival lineups Omega Vibrations HERE to get a vibe of what to expect.  Last year's final show of the festival was headlined by Tarrus Riley, Protoje, Jah9 and more.

This is a short recap so you can see what you missed:

Stay tuned to Manifesto Jamaica's Facebook page and manifestojamaica.com for the full schedule of events coming soon.

Manifesto Jamaica is also currently fundraising to make the festival be the best it can be.  Below is the full info on the fundraising efforts (Click HERE to give):

A Passion for the Power of the Arts...

In 2009 the core members of the Manifesto|Jamaica team started meeting...and meeting...and meeting. Meeting about what?...About what we were going to do to elevate Jamaica's Art & Culture, bringing it to the forefront as an agent of personal, community and national empowerment, and how we were going to do it. We decided to start with our peers - the youth of Jamaica - who are the one's who will have to BE the change.

Manifesto|Jamaica is an arts-focused, youth-led non-profit Movement based in Kingston, Jamaica. Our mission to EDUCATE, EXPOSE and EMPOWER youth through art and culture is furthered through community-based initiatives including arts workshops, seminars and healing activities, as well as staged productions where we expose the creativity that we unearth and develop. Our culminating activity is the annual Festival of ART'ical Empowerment, which is a 3-day celebration and showcase of our work throughout the year.

What's the difference?
Your contribution will bring the educational and healing power of art and creative expression to youth in Jamaica's "inner cities" and rural communities who have a wealth of talent, but have limited outlets to explore or express it. This same energy that has the potential to create has the potential to destroy, if not properly nurtured and chanelled. Be a part of Manifesto|Jamaica's mandate and mission to love, unify and uplift Jamaica's most precious natural resources; our people, our art and our culture.

So what do we need?

This year, we've financed all our community impact initiatives through fundraisers and investments of our personal resources. Our team is 100% volunteer-based, and we do not receive any government or private sector funding. This is where the need for people power comes in :)

Our 2nd annual Festival of ART'ical Empowerment is November 18-20, 2011 at the Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts (which is the only Art School in the entire Caribbean!). We need to raise at least $2,000 to feed our team members, volunteers and participating artists, and to transport the youth we work with from their communities to the festival venue.

We're big on reciprocity, so when you donate

$10-$19 ...you get a hand-made Manifesto|JA pin

$20-$29 ...you get a hand-made Manifesto|JA keyring

$30 - $49 ... you get an autographed CD from an artiste of your choice who's on this year's show (TBA)

$50 or more ... you get a Special Edition Manifesto JA T-Shirt!

Sharing is Caring

Don't keep the good news to yourself! Share it with anyone and everyone.

Twitter...Facebook...Youtube...LinkedIn...Vimeo...post the info wherever you go :)

BE A PART OF IT!

Click HERE to support.