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'Race: The Lived Experience' - A Multi-Media Mural Exhibit and Workshop by Hartford Youth Researchers

High school youth action researchers from The Institute for Community Research, working with artists Victor Pacheco and Luella Pavey, and staff from the Youth Action Research Institute have created a mobile mural on racism. The mural reflects findings from research that 30 Hartford teens conducted with their peers and adults during ICR’s 2007 Summer Youth Research Institute. Using interview, survey, and visual research methods, the youth researchers studied how racism experienced by Hartford teens is a function of attitudes and behaviors of adults and youth, the educational system and the media. They surveyed 133 youth, conducted interviews with 16 adults and youth,and produced a documentary, Docin’ Da Beat, through which they deepened their own critical consciousness while exploring predictors of racism and how they manifest in everyday life. The mural and related programming will be presented at four venues through Connecticut during April and May.

A remarkable exhibit of photographs and Cape Verdean stonemasonry will be on view at the Jean J. Schensul Community Gallery at The Institute for Community Research from April 4 to June 14, 2008. The exhibit opening will take place on Friday, April 4 from 5 to 8 pm, and will include a presentation on Cape Verdean history, language, and dance by students from Norwich Free Academy; a wine tasting offered by a Cape Verdean vintner; and Cape Verdean food. The gallery is located at 2 Hartford Square West, Ste. 100 (146 Wyllys Street), in Hartford, CT; gallery hours are 10 am to 5 pm on weekdays or by appointment.

A lively, educational bus tour will celebrate one of Connecticut’s signature resources – maple syrup – and its roots in French Canadian culture. Guided by Connecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program (CHAP) Director Lynne Williamson, tour participants will visit the 18th Annual Maple Festival in Hebron to learn about the production of maple syrup and then travel to East Hartford for a traditional French-Canadian soirée. The tour is a collaboration between CHAP, a program of The Institute for Community Research (ICR), and Manchester Community College. The tour bus will depart from Manchester Community College’s Parking Lot C on Saturday, March 8, 2008, at 10 am, and will return to MCC by 7 pm. The fee for the tour, which includes transportation, food at the soirée, and entertainment, is $75. Advanced registration is required; please call Manchester Community College Continuing Education at 860-512-3232 or 860-512-2800 to register.

Each month a group of Peer Health Advocates (PHAs) gather at The Institute for Community Research (ICR) in Hartford, CT to build their knowledge and skills, and to discuss important community issues. These PHAs, trained through ICR’s Risk Avoidance Partnership (Project RAP), deliver harm reduction and HIV prevention messages and materials to those at risk for HIV infection in their communities. Over several months, the PHAs created artwork conveying HIV prevention and harm reduction messages as well as personal messages of family, hope and healing. RAP It!, an exhibition of their work, will be on display at the WindhamARTS Collaborative’s Next Step Gallery, 866 Main Street, Willimantic, CT from March 13 through April 9, 2008, with an opening reception on Thursday, March 13 from 5 to 7 pm.

The latest science on HIV/AIDS will be the topic of February's Hartford HIV Forum. Kevin Dieckhaus, M.D., Chief of Infectious Diseases at the University of Connecticut Health Center, will speak on Tuesday, February 12, 2008 from 12:00-1:30 pm at The Institute for Community Research, 2 Hartford Square West, Suite 100, 146 Wyllys Street, Hartford. Dr. Dieckhaus will present an update from the 15th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) to be held in early February in Boston, MA. The CROI is a scientifically focused meeting of the world's leading researchers working to understand, prevent, and treat HIV/AIDS and its complications. The HIV forum is free; lunch will be provided and advanced registration is required at 860-278-2044. The Hartford HIV Forum is presented by ICR and the CT AIDS Education and Training Center.

Female condoms were introduced worldwide in 1992. Since then, the female condom has proven as effective as the male condom in preventing both unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV, when it is used consistently and correctly. Though studies have shown high acceptability of the female condom in many populations around the world and in this country, female condom use remains low.
In 2004 The Institute for Community Research in Hartford was funded by the National Institute on Mental Health to explore factors that enhance or impede the use of female condoms for HIV/STI prevention. Results from the study, which included a survey of 500 women in Hartford, CT, are now available in summary format and poster presentation. Click here for more female condom project details.

Watch a Channel 8 News interview with ICR Executive Director Margaret Weeks about the project findings. Click here to read a recent news article about the female condom project.

The "Xperience: Vol. II" CD Release Show was a great success, drawing more than 200 people on Saturday, January 19, 2008 at the Charter Oak Cultural Center. The audience was entertained by Xperience rappers, singers, poets, and dancers who had been preparing for this event as well as the release of their new CD for about 4 months. Their original works of art, conveying drug prevention messages, were well received by the community who attended the concert in support of drug-free entertainment for youth in the Hartford area. Audience members received a free copy of the "Xperience: Vol. II" CD at the end of the show. The Xperience team will be working towards a new show and CD with a new group of youth this spring.

View Pictures | Show Press Release

ICR Executive Director Collaborates with 4researchers

Executive Director Margaret Weeks, Ph.D., is a contributor at 4researchers.org, a project funded by the National Institute of Mental Health that disseminates practical "how-to" information about conducting research through online video interviews. Weeks has recently completed a series of five interviews on a broad range of topics.

Applying anthropological principles

Challenges with supervising staff in fieldwork situations

Critical local connections

Setting up a local partnership

Challenges with translating a Hartford, CT survey for use in China

Applied Cultural Anthropologist Joins ICR Research Staff
Stephen Pavey, Ph.D., recently joined The Institute for Community Research as an Ethnographer for the 3-year study MDMA and STD/HIV Risk Among Hidden Networks of Ecstasy-Using Young Adults in the Greater Hartford Area, known as "Borders beyond bliss." Dr. Pavey is an anthropologist, activist, and artist who last worked as an assistant professor and faculty engagement coordinator of the ALIVE Center for Community Partnerships at Western Kentucky University. During his tenure at WKU he directed the development of the Kaleidoscope community youth arts program. "I came here to engage in and support community-based research that addresses pressing local inequities, fosters sustainable community development and advocates for social justice," he says. "Learning about ICR from the Crossroads II Conference, I felt it would be a great fit." Dr. Pavey has studied Mandarin in Taiwan and conducted field research in Hong Kong for his dissertation, "Envisioning / Embodying Christianity in Hong Kong: Theologies of Power and Crisis," which he completed at the University of Kentucky in 2005. His anthropological training is further informed by a background in missiological anthropology provided by a Master of Divinity degree at Asbury Theological Seminary.

ICR Researchers Present Cutting Edge Participatory Action Research Approaches with Community Residents

ICR Senior Scientist & Founding Director Jean J. Schensul, Ph.D. and Associate Director for Training Marlene Berg addressed a presidential session at the American Anthropological Association in Washington D.C. on November 30, 2007 entitled Collaborative Anthropologies, Public Engagements, and Epistemologies of Equity, organized by Luke Eric Lassiter, Ph.D., Marshall University Graduate College. The presentation is also a paper to be published in spring 2008, along with others in the session, in the inaugural issue of the journal Collaborative Anthropologies. Paper authors are Schensul, Berg and Ken Williamson, Ph.D., formerly of ICR and now of the University of South Florida Department of Anthropology.

High school age youth from throughout the Hartford and New Haven area attended and participated in an open mic night focused on teen relationships and dating violence on Thursday, December 27, 2007, from 7-10 pm at ICR, 2 Hartford Square West, Suite 100 (146 Wyllys St) in Hartford. Singers, poets, rappers, dancers and other young artists took part. Over the past year, youth from four communities throughout Connecticut have been involved in a collaborative youth-driven research action project of The Institute for Community Research (ICR) in Hartford and the CT Office of the Child Advocate. As a next step in the project, this Koffee House/Open Mic evening offered an opportunity for youth to express their feelings, beliefs, knowledge, experiences, and to learn about dating violence in teen relationships. The Koffee House/Open Mic will take place on The event was free; refreshments were served. The first 50 attendees received door prizes. Contact Chiedza Rodriguez at 860-278-2044 x256 or Damion Sincere Morgan at 278-2044 x312 for more information.

In 2004, AIDS was the 4th leading cause of death among Latinos in the United States. The fastest growing population in the country, Latinos face particular barriers in accessing health care, prevention services, and HIV treatment. Claudia Martorell, M.D., M.P.H. is Director and Principal Investigator at The Research Institute in Springfield, MA, specializing in infectious diseases. She addressed HIV & Latinos at Hartford’s monthly HIV Forum on Tuesday, December 11, 2007 from 12:00-1:30 pm. The forum took place at The Institute for Community Research, 2 Hartford Square West, Suite 100, 146 Wyllys St in Hartford, CT. The event was free; lunch was provided and advance registration was required.

On Friday, November 30, and Saturday, December 1, 2007, a series of World AIDS Day events in Hartford, CT drew dozens of people to discuss the local impacts of the global pandemic. Rise [Up] Lift, organized by The Institute for Community Research, the CT AIDS Resource Coalition, the Hispanic Health Council and other community organizations, encompassed a gallery exhibit, panel discussions, and a community concert, all focusing on individuals infected and/or affected by HIV/AIDS. The weekend kicked off with a silent auction of work donated for the exhibit “Celebration of Life: Affirmation, Remembrance & Activism,” which raised almost $500 to offset event costs; and closed with a free community concert featuring Latin jazz, West African drumming, spoken word, and other performances. The main draw was a series of panel discussions, held at The Institute for Community Research and the Hispanic Health Council, which focused on marginalized populations such as youth, transgender people, and prisoners. The event was an opportunity for advocates, researchers, service providers, public health officials, activists, youth organizers, and others to network and learn up to date information on HIV/AIDS in Hartford, as well as to connect and look into new ways to work together against the pandemic. “The final panel was really representative of people working on different aspects of the pandemic – research, advocacy, service, outreach, and public health,” said one member of the audience. “It was refreshing that instead of trying to compete with each other, everyone there was looking for ways to work together.”

World AIDS Day Events in Hartford Focus on Local Impact of HIV/AIDS

Hartford has the highest rate of new HIV infections and the highest number of people living with AIDS of any city in the state, according to the Connecticut Department of Public Health. As rates among Blacks, Latinos, women, and young people in Hartford continue to climb, The Institute for Community Research (ICR), the CT AIDS Resource Coalition (CARC), and the Hispanic Health Council joined forces with several community agencies to organize three events for World AIDS Day in Hartford. “We need to make noise,” says Evelyn Baez, a researcher at ICR who chaired the Hartford World AIDS Day Committee. “We need to let people know that AIDS is still with us.”

Every month, Peer Health Advocates (PHAs) gather at The Institute for Community Research (ICR) to build their knowledge and skills, socialize, and discuss important issues in their communities. Members of the Community Advocacy Group have been trained to do harm reduction and HIV prevention outreach to people using drugs in Hartford. Over the last several months, the PHAs have engaged in interactive sessions where they create art that tells their personal life stories. They were asked to create harm reduction posters and worked on making quilt squares as part of a large AIDS Awareness quilt, which will be part of ICR's permanent art collection. Their work has been on display at ICR’s Jean J. Schensul Community Gallery, 2 Hartford Square West, Ste. 100 (146 Wyllys St) in Hartford, since November 16, 2007. Gallery hours are 10 am to 5 pm, or by appointment.

An unusual bus tour explored Hmong culture and attend the community’s most important annual festival. Guided by Connecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program (CHAP) Director Lynne Williamson, the tour traveled to Enfield, where the majority of Connecticut’s 500 Hmong live. Tour participants joined the Hmong to celebrate their New Year. The tour is a collaboration between CHAP, a program of The Institute for Community Research (ICR), and Manchester Community College. The tour departed from Manchester Community College’s Parking Lot C on Saturday, November 17, 2007, at 1 pm, and returned to MCC by 8 pm. The fee for the tour, which included food, was $55.

Xperience Hartford Adds Production Team; Moves to Mi Casa
Begun in 2005, Xperience Hartford is an arts-based intervention encouraging Hartford area youth not to use drugs. Several young artists have performed through the project, most recently at a CD-release show drawing over 180 people in May. Now, Xperience has expanded in both aim and scope. Mi Casa, a longtime partner of The Institute for Community Research (ICR), will host Xperience as an after-school program for local youth. And in addition to roughly 20 artists recruited in August and September to incorporate drug-prevention messages into their original work, project facilitators will train new youth to produce the shows – running stage, house and promotions operations themselves. The youth are currently working on another CD, which will be released at a show in January 2008. All participants are between 14-20. If you are interested in joining the next phase of Xperience, please call 860.982.9985 or visit www.xperiencehartford.org; the next round will begin in February 2008.

Hmong embroiderers, a Romanian woodcarver and a Somali basket weaver are just a few of the artists who sold their work at a traditional artists’ marketplace on Saturday, November 3, 2007 from 11 am to 5 pm at The Institute for Community Research (ICR), 2 Hartford Square West, Suite 100 in Hartford, CT. The event, which was free and open to the public, also included rug weavers, crochet artists, and jewelry makers, representing recent immigrant and refugee groups from across Southern New England. Organized by ICR’s CT Cultural Heritage Arts Program (CHAP), the marketplace was part of Hartford Open Studios Weekend, a creative showcase for local artists held annually in Hartford.

The Institute for Community Research (ICR) sought creative individuals who are infected, affected or working in the field of HIV/AIDS, artists (emerging, mid-career) and youth (ages 13-21) to submit artwork for exhibition and auction to “Celebration of Life: Affirmation, Remembrance, & Activism.” The exhibit, hosted at the institute until December 21, 2007, honors those who are living with HIV/ AIDS, and those who have died, and is a call for prevention and sustained support and care for people who are affected and infected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The opening reception and auction were held on November 30, 2007, from 4:30-8:00 pm. Auction proceeds from donated work were used to offset the costs of Rise [Up] Lift, a series of free educational workshops, panels, and a community concert on December 1, 2007, World AIDS Day.

Dr. Gary Blick, who has worked with HIV/AIDS patients since the outbreak of the disease in the United States, presented on HIV & Cardiovascular Health at October's HIV Forum at The Institute for Community Research. The forum took place at ICR, 146 Wyllys St, Suite 100, Hartford, CT, on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 from 12:00-1:30 pm. Lunch was provided and advance registration was required.

Over 400 people attended an evening worship service focusing on HIV/AIDS awareness on Saturday, September 22, 2007. Organized by CeCe Jones of Sing For Change, the service took place at Bethel A.M.E. Church in Bloomfield. Jones partnered with Sankofa Enterprises, The Institute for Community Research, The CT AIDS Resource Coalition, Latinos Community Services and the church to provide a training entitled, “Approaching HIV from a Theological Perspective” – particularly focusing on the surge in rates among African-Americans. After a dinner and training, gospel singers took over the night, interspersing their performances with testimonials from people infected and affected by HIV/AIDS. The event was sponsored by Abbott Laboratories, Gilead, Inc, the Hilton Garden Inn, and the Sheraton Hartford Hotel.

The Southern New England Folk and Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program was seeking master traditional artists in Connecticut, Rhode Island, or Massachusetts who want to teach their art form to an apprentice from their community in one of the other states. Now in its tenth year, the program is designed to foster the sharing of traditional (folk) artistic skills and cultural knowledge through the apprenticeship learning model of regular, intensive, one-on-one teaching by a master artist to a student/apprentice. A new group of apprenticeships began in November 2007; applications were due October 2, 2007. ICR's Connecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program manages this program for traditional artists in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The program is a collaboration among the three statewide folk arts programs in Southern New England, located at the Institute for Community Research in Hartford, the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts in Providence, and the Massachusetts Cultural Council in Boston. Primary funding for the Program comes from the National Endowment for the Arts, along with the Program partners. For more information, please contact Lynne Williamson at 860-278-2044 x251 or Lynne.Williamson@icrweb.org.

The Institute for Community Research has begun a new 5-year study, entitled “High-risk Establishments and Women’s HIV Prevention in Southern China.” The intervention encourages sex workers to use the female condom as an HIV/STD prevention method. Continuing a longstanding collaboration, U.S. and Chinese investigators will work with Hainan and Guanxi provincial health departments, local communities, and sex-work establishment proprietors to conduct the study in two rural and two mid-sized urban towns in these provinces. Researchers will identify, through triangulated data, which characteristics are most likely to affect risk and intervention outcomes. The project has significant public health implications, because increased female condom use would reduce sexual HIV transmission in this high-risk population, and therefore in the broader population of their sexual networks.

The “downlow” refers to secret sex among men who don’t identify as gay, and who are often in relationships with women. “My concern is for women who are being faithful and have no clue that this is going on,” says CeCe Jones. In addition to her position as Membership Services Coordinator at the Connecticut AIDS Resource Coalition (CARC), Jones has founded Sing for Change, a non-profit that works with churches to fight the spread of HIV. To shed light on the hidden community of the downlow, Jones organizes symposiums across the state of Connecticut that invite women to learn more about the downlow and HIV risk. A forum sponsored by CARC, The Institute for Community Research (ICR), and True Colors, Inc., took place at ICR, 146 Wyllys St. in Hartford, on Tuesday, September 11, 2007, from 6-8 pm. The event was free and open to the public; light refreshments were served.