Jamaal Hankey Organizes Cultural Learning Events in Essex, VT
Jamaal Hankey is the youngest associate with The Creative Discourse Group and first became involved as a student with the Essex Westford School District, one of TCDG’s longest client relationships. As a student activist, Jamaal was a founding member of Voices for Education (VFE), a student- and community- led committee that worked with the school district to support and advise on equity and inclusion. Voices For Inclusion in Essex and Westford (VIEW) was born out of a recommendation by VFE, and is now a nonprofit organization independent of the school district in order to best serve both the broader Essex community and the Essex Westford School District as a truly collaborative effort.
A 2022 graduate of Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, GA, where he studied IT Management and Social Justice, Jamaal is providing leadership for VIEW in its emergence into a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and continues in his role as a TCDG associate.
Jamaal and members of VIEW organized two community events in August and October of 2022 to build awareness of teen issues that center the voices of marginalized youth and to celebrate Latin American and Caribbean diversity.
Jamaal coordinated a community screening and Q&A of the movie Listen Up, an original musical inspired, created, and performed by Vermont teens. Working with producer Bess O’Brien and the cast of Listen Up, the screening held at Essex Cinemas was attended by over 40 people including community members, educators, legislators, students, and Essex Westford School District leadership.
Listen Up gets at the heart of current youth issues, including mental health, resilience, racial justice, sexual identity, friendship, love, family, community, social justice, and current issues that young people are grappling with including covid, climate change, and the future of Vermont for young people.
On seeing the performance live a year prior, Vermont Health Commissioner Mark Levine said, “I was absolutely blown away by the insights and wisdom of our youth, and the frank exploration of the lived experiences and emotional roller coaster ride called adolescence that Listen Up provided me. Most importantly, the musical effectively catalyzes the important conversations teens, their parents, school mentors, and communities need to be having about the complex issues facing teens, society, and the planet today.”
Members of VIEW also worked with Jamaal to plan and host a Caribbean Carnival Celebration at the Essex Experience Green & Barn. Community members came together to learn about and celebrate the history of Latin America and Caribbean cultures in connection to the African diaspora. Over 250 meals were served by Billy St. Louis and the Jamaican Supreme food truck while music by Soca Chris and DJ Eruck kept people dancing for hours.
