17 May Amplifying the Voice of the Sistrunk Community
FLORIDA ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY LAUNCHES THE MEGAPHONE AMPLIFYING THE VOICE OF THE SISTRUNK COMMUNITY
On Saturday August 29, a team at Florida Atlantic University (FAU), in partnership with the Northwest Progresso Flagler Community Reinvestment Agency (NPF CRA) of the City of Fort Lauderdale officially opened to the public from 12:00 to 5:00 p.m. the Share Sistrunk Megaphone. The “Megaphone” metaphor is used to relay the story of the Sistrunk community internally and externally to the world. This metaphor is physically embodied by a shipping container repurposed to work as an amplifier for the voice of the Sistrunk community. The FAU team has transformed this shipping container by painting, applying artwork, installing interactive maps, and creating a staging area to create a megaphone which showcases the community and reflects the unique values and identity of Sistrunk residents. Located on 1017 NW Sixth Street, in the corner of NW Tenth Terrace and Sistrunk, the shipping container is on a vacant lot. Through a series of workshops, community engagement events and story sharing techniques, FAU has identified naturally occurring cultural opportunities that range from soul food to music, from poetry to dance – providing the community an intramural stage and hub to share their stories, their life, and most of all, to learn from each other what is valuable to their everyday lives.
There are places that are invisible to urban planners, nonprofits, charitable organizations, public officials, tourists, and other community outsiders, but that are very tangible and important to Sistrunk residents and workers. These places gain value through the use and activities that are organically happening in the area. We have seen through the exchange of local knowledge gathered during engagement events, discussions with community stakeholders, and previous intervention events, the values and principles which truly matter to the neighbors along this corridor. We learned that people in the neighborhood value family, community, a sense of connection to others and respect for religious observance. We discovered these aforementioned values to be of the highest priority and saliency to the neighbors, but the list of community passions held dear by this group of individuals doesn’t end there. As secondary values, music, origin of culture, soul food, dance, art, and tradition, are cultural activities that are happening within schools, churches, businesses, and public space, including vacant lots. These cultural assets and individual talents that are not necessarily understood as special and idiosyncratic to the area, have the potential to become the seeds of start-up businesses and opportunities for all of the citizens who are currently unemployed, unchallenged, and or those who have any other needs which are simply not being met due to lack of professional opportunity in the area.
Unemployment and health are some of the main concerns in the area. Many of the neighbors along the corridor do not have access to professional opportunity, educational services, adequate transportation, and/or financial resources to obtain sustainable employment. This deficiency is furthered due to the high number of residents who are afflicted with mental health issues, physical disabilities, and less than adequate accommodations in the workplace. If these factors weren’t enough of a challenge, there is also an aboveaverage perception of criminal activity and corresponding fear associated with the area. This perception stems from several hotspots along Sistrunk where unfortunately there is a high level of illegal substance exchange, prostitution, vandalism, theft, and other varieties of criminal activity. However, we have found that residents know how to steer clear from trouble, and hence do not have a sense of fear for the place, but avoid where these illicit activities happen and watch for the youth to steer clear from them, too. With that said, it is important to identify the potential professional opportunities that fit the current economic makeup of the area, as well as empower the youth and the natural leaders that are emerging from the ground up.
The Megaphone provides a place to collect the stories, concerns, data, and other information to then be amplified to the outside world. The shipping container also serves as an echo, where residents can become conscious of their own potential. The space will not only encase Share Sistrunk, as the exchange of local knowledge for the documentation of the everyday stories of place, but also will juncture into toolkits that support and promote new creative industries, technical training and economic opportunities that lead to a “Made in Sistrunk” mentality. Amplifying these voices, through the conduit of the Megaphone, encourages connection, among neighbors within the Sistrunk corridor in addition to bridging the gap between area residents and the outside community. This connection will yield understanding, mutual ground, and opportunity for educational, professional, and social growth. This could then create an incremental solution to the current lack of economic prosperity in the area, which will serve as scaffolding for infill development that is contextually appropriate to the area.
During this event, community members came together to congregate, share food, enjoy arts and entertainment, and most importantly, share their stories. The stories showcased the professional opportunity present within this area, the personal journeys endeavored by neighbors, and words of inspiration for the future leaders of the community. This event has successfully taken a new step toward prosperity and development of the Sistrunk neighborhood, allowing individuals the opportunity to connect with one another as well as the external community, and thus establish grounds for positive economic, educational, and social change. external community, and thus establish grounds for positive economic, educational, and social change.