The art opening and the two-week project was a unique experience for the participants. The burgeoning young artists are spending the two weeks guided by several accomplished artists. The teaching artists include Kevin Kaplicki - a stencil graffiti artist who works with Visual Resistance in NYC, Michael Chameides - TSL staffer and director of the documentary Young, Jewish, and Left, and Naima Penniman - 2002 Harambe Slam Champion and a featured poet and panelist at the 2004 National Black Writers Conference.

In the workspace, Sophie Wedd, age 15, cuts negative space into cardboard to make a stencil portrait as she talks about her experiences, "The workshop has been a whole new introduction to stencil graffiti with cool people who have a lot of talent."

When Wedd is finished with her stencil, she will have a cut out that can produce hundreds of identical images - the same portrait can be spray painted onto t-shirts, paper, stickers, and walls.

Through intense networking and outreach, Monique Roberts, director of the Media Arts and Activism Youth Project, assembled a group of 8 kids who were ready and capable of taking time out of their summer to work on creating political art. Roberts made several visits to the Hudson High School and Hawthorne Valley School, talked with community activists, and passed out fliers all over Hudson.

In between conversations with the students, Roberts gleefully comments on the workshop: "These are passionate young people using art to speak out. They have ideas on political, religious, and daily life. They are immersed in creating - and I'm extremely excited about their work."

Most of the young artists could not afford the tuition price for the program and scholarships were provided by TSL members and the Hudson High School Faculty Association.