Empower Youth Against Hate
Project Aim
To recoup $15,900 of a $159,000 grant awarded to Music in Common by the Obama administration in January, then suddenly revoked by the Trump administration in June. The grant was to fund critical programming focused on reducing stereotypes and hate between American teens of diverse backgrounds including Muslim, Jewish, Christian, refugee, immigrant, and American-born.
Why We Need Your Help
Your investment in the continuation of our programs will have profound returns in the benefits to communities and lives across the country. The federal grant was the single largest source of funding in Music in Common’s 12-year history. It was a lifeline we worked tirelessly to achieve. Your generous contribution to this campaign is a direct, viable act of resistance toward the trends, policies, and decisions that violate the very foundation our country was founded upon - e Pluribus Unum - from many, one. It will enable programming proven to deepen mutual understanding, reduce stereotyping and prevent the disaffection that can lead to extremism and violence. It will make a difference.
Why Music in Common Matters
Music in Common programs are proven, positive, collaborative, peacemaking experiences that empower youth to create real and lasting change, today and tomorrow. This is what Music in Common does and will continue to do with your support.
Music in Common programs have successfully bridged divides between youth of diverse ethnicities, cultures, and religions for over 12 years. In the short video below you will see and hear the voices of youth who are counting on our program and your support.
We have staff, partners, and programs in place to immediately implement Music in Common programs that bring young people together for an intensive dialogue, songwriting, and multimedia project followed by ongoing collaborations that empower them to wage peace individually, in their schools and communities, and as future leaders. Our programs mitigate intercultural/interfaith tensions that put communities and people at risk.
Who Benefits?
Everyone! The communities Music in Common has served and plans to serve value our work as an essential step toward counteracting the atmosphere of hate and divisiveness that is tearing our country apart.
Why Now?
Our plea is for the survival of Music in Common and the continuation of our impactful programming. Our work to cultivate understanding and empower youth of diverse faiths and cultures through creative collaboration is vital - because, with more peace and understanding, there is less extremism and violence.
This is your opportunity to say NO to hate and to say YES to peace!
THANK YOU!
To learn more about Music In Common, please visit our website and our Facebook Page.
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Giving Thanks and #GivingTuesday
over 6 years ago
Greeting Friends!
As we enter the season of Thanks and Giving, we offer our sincere gratitude for your generosity that so far has raised $13,332 of our $15,900 goal for this Pure Charity Campaign. With your help, we can complete this portion of our #EmpowerYouthAgainstHate campaign with just $1,668 more on or before #GivingTuesday on November 28.
Perhaps you can give just a bit more and/or share this link with friends and family, giving them the opportunity to make a difference for MIC Youth like the American-born and refugee teens who completed a JAMMS Program in Laguna Beach, CA just this past weekend. The remarkable transformations made are represented powerfully in the lyrics and in their performance. We cannot wait to share their song and their stories with you very soon!
We wish you a wonderful season with much to be thankful for!
With Gratitude, The MIC Team
P.S. You can check out some of the other ways people are fueling the important work on our #GivingTuesday Page!
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You and James Taylor Have Something in Common
over 6 years ago
Dear Friends ~
Read More
WIth the generous support of people like you and James Taylor, Music in Common has reached nearly $45,000 toward our total goal of $159,000 in the #EmpowerYouth AgainstHateCampaign. And nearly $12,000 of that includes new donors toward the $20,000 needed to meet our match!
We are looking forward to some exciting events and other ways to continue to help us to reach our total goal by December 31! Please see them on our website! But, we want to tell you about one in particular that we know you'll want to check out.
We could not be more grateful and honored that Music in Common's #EmpowerYouthAgainstHate campaign is being supported by the legendary singer/songwriter, James Taylor! He has made a generous donation of a Yamaha Model FG800 guitar, which he has autographed and will personalize for one contributor. JT's support, along with so many others is fueling us to grow to new levels of excellence and impact.
The drawing of one name will take place on Saturday December 2, 2017 at a MIC Benefit Concert by Todd Mack at Dewey Hall in Sheffield, MA.
Tickets available HERE and will also be available at Music in Common Events until December 2 or by emailing info@musicincommon.org.
No need to be present to win. Notification will be by email or phone.
THANK YOU for your continued investment in the youth of our country who will lead us to a more peaceful world. Change is happening and you are part of the reason.
With Gratitude from The MIC Team -
WOW! Look what you've done!
over 6 years ago
Greetings Friends,
You rock! Your unwavering belief in Music in Common to create real and lasting change fuels us to charge forward. Thanks to you and many others, we have raised nearly 26% of our $159,000 goal in the first eight weeks of our #EmpowerYouthAgainstHate Campaign.- $13,182 raised on our Pure Charity crowdfunding campaign to which you have so generously contributed
- $28,053, from donors on our website and checks by mail or at events
- $41,235 total raised so far!
Can you take a moment to reach out to friends, family, and colleagues via conversation, email, and social media to help us reach $15,900 in this Pure Charity Campaign (10% of our total Pure Charity goal) by September 30? That's 5 days from now!
You have helped us get this far and we want to make it easy for you to magnify your contribution. We realize that folks may want to provide their support in a variety of ways, which is why we continue to work diligently to make it as easy and engaging as possible for everyone to support this important work to #EmpowerYouthAgainstHate.
In addition to sharing this link via email, conversations, and social media, here are some of the activities we have in place so far that you might consider!- Pure Charity Campaign - Help us reach $15,900 by September 30!
- Match Challenge - If we raise $20k from new donors, we will receive an additional $10k!
- Donations on our website - Click the button for PayPal or send a check!
- Film Screenings - Attend or host a screening of our short documentary films!
- Benefit Concerts - Attend or host a live concert to benefit Music in Common.
- Dedicate your birthday, anniversary or another occasion to Music in Common by encouraging "in lieu of" gifts!
THANK YOU!
Todd and the MIC Team
Read More - $13,182 raised on our Pure Charity crowdfunding campaign to which you have so generously contributed
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$10,000 Match Challenge!
over 6 years ago
Dear Friends,
Thanks to your support of this campaign, #EmpowerYouthAgainstHate has been widely shared and seen by thousands of people who had not previously known about our work. The momentum is growing and we are inviting you to help us meet a challenge!
An anonymous donor has offered to support Music in Common with a $10,000 contribution if we can raise $20,000 from new donors by the end of the year.
Though you have already donated, there are still some ways you can help us meet this goal:- Share THIS LINK on social media and in email with a comment about what inspired you to donate.
- Encourage friends, family, and colleagues new to Music in Common to make a donation, perhaps with a challenge of your own.
- Invite your church or synagogue and their congregants to participate in the challenge by making a donation. We can provide information and materials that can be distributed.
- Approach your school or kid’s school about participating in the challenge. Music in Common is about youth empowerment!
"I have become more open-minded in my perspective on the world and in my ability to collaborate with people different from me. Through finding our similarities and the value in our differences, we can respect and support each other and thus find ways to reach common ground."
Many Thanks for your continued support in all the ways that you show it.
Peace ~ Lynnette and the MIC Team
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If hate is learned, can it be unlearned? UPDATE #4
over 6 years ago
That poignant question was posed the other day by a participant in our MIC JAMMS program with a group of refugee, immigrant, and American-born teens in Springfield, MA. It is a question we've asked ourselves often and we know the answer to be a resounding "YES". But even better than unlearning hate is never learning it to begin with. At it's core, THAT is what Music in Common does. We teach understanding, compassion, curiosity, and mutual respect so that hate has no room to breed.
Working with refugee and immigrant youth is always an eye-opening experience. The challenges, the sacrifices, the hardships and heartaches, and the triumphs and joys they experience are all part of the journey. As we examine more deeply, we come to see that no matter where we were born we all share this experience in one way or another. In the words of one of the many immigrant youth we've had the honor of working with, "it may be different, but we all go through something".Imagine a world where everyone could see that "something" in one another. What a wonderful world it would be! It is a world we are ever committed to working towards. One song, one video, one conversation, one face to face experience at a time.Read More
I am proud to present to you the latest song & video written by a group of students who embody that very ideal of what the world can be. Your generous support is the very reason they can tell their incredible stories. Thank you!