Ms. Julie Garreau
The Radical Importance of RedCan
Posted by Aug 14, 2019
Ms. Julie Garreau
Five years ago, I remember feeling profound sadness and disappointment when I thought about the condition of too many buildings in my town of Eagle Butte, South Dakota. Not only were the structures in rough shape; graffiti tagging had further defaced them. I’ve been the executive director of the grassroots, nonprofit Cheyenne River Youth Project since 1988, and three decades of youth development work here on the Cheyenne River reservation have taught me that our young people need to find healthy ways to explore their identities, find their voices, and share their stories. That’s fundamental to who we are as Lakota people, because for us, art is life. And without a positive outlet for so much youthful creative energy, vandalism is inevitable. I found myself wondering if CRYP could make a difference. In 2014, we invited a professional graffiti artist to complete a mural in town and provide lettering classes for our teens. We didn’t know it then, but this little test project was the proverbial pebble thrown into a lake, and the ripples are still expanding.
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