UforChange works with new Canadian and low-income youth living in and around St. James Town to inspire them and give them the tools to succeed by providing support and resources to pursue higher education, volunteering, job shadowing and/or employment opportunities. They help to connect youth with professionals, artists, and community leaders who teach them how to use the arts as a vehicle for economic, cultural and social change.
UforChange is a federally funded pilot project until March 31, 2012.
If you’d like to see this program continue, you can make a donation HERE.
(Tax receipts are available for donations of $25.00 or more.)
Toronto Facts
In the 1950’s, community organizations such as the Canadian Negro Women’s Association began to celebrate the importance of the history of the black community in Toronto. In 1979, Toronto became the first municipality in Canada to proclaim Black History Month through efforts of many individuals and organizations such as the Ontario Black History Society. In 1995, Toronto Area MP Jean Augustine introduced a motion which was passed unanimously by the House of Commons to recognise Black History Month across Canada.
For a complete list of City of Toronto Black History Month events, CLICK HERE.
Video courtesy of the University of Toronto (Sacarborough Campus).
Last year we posted the trailer for “Esha”, a short film about a modern-day love story rooted in the cultural backrop of how people change their names to fit into western society. After being in a series of Film Festivals around the world, Toronto Director Rez Dahya has made Esha available online.
If you’re not from the east, there’s a good chance you’ve never heard of The Avro, a small Queen Street East bar owned and operated by Rachel Conduit and Bruce Dawson. Since they opened their doors in 2010, they’ve been helping to reinvent the Leslieville area with a variety of community events featuring local talent. Most recently, The Avro launched a calendar project entitled “East Side Icon Project”, which honours some of the area’s unsung heroes. All the money raised from this project will go directly to community-building initiatives to rejuvenate the East Side.
It’s been a few months since our last “1 LOVE T.O. Around The World” post, but that doesn’t mean YOU haven’t been wearing your t-shirt wherever you go. In this edition, we’ve posted some photos from Europe, China, Africa, the Philippines and even Jerusalem. Take a look to see where else 1 LOVE T.O. has been over the past few months…
CLICK ON THE IMAGE TO ENLARGE IT!
Photos in order (Left To Right/Top to Bottom):
1-2. Europe
3. Hawaii
4. India
5. Jamaica (Bob Marley’s home)
6. Jerusalem
7-9. England
10. Miami
11-12. China (Great Wall)
13. Philippines
14-15. Munich
16. Tanzania (Africa)
17. Uruguay
18. California
19. Unknown
20-27. Toronto
If YOU go on vacation or have a great pic of yourself wearing the t-shirt, please email us at: info@1loveto.com.
If you want your own 1 LOVE T.O. shirt, stop by our shop located at 707 Dundas St. West (east of Bathurst). Our winter hours are Saturday and Sunday 1-5pm.
The official film of the “UNHATE” worldwide communication campaign, as part of the UNHATE Foundation, launched yesterday in Paris by Alessandro Benetton. The film by French director Laurent Chanez, tells of the precarious balance and complex interweaving between the drive to HATE and the reasons to LOVE.
Most of you should remember Bryan Espiritu’s first solo art show, “Because The Kids Don’t Play”, held on Friday, May 13th of this year. Well, prior to the show, we got the chance to give you a sneak peek of Bryan in action. We also posted The Legends League Trailer, which is a glimpse into the life and times of Bryan Espiritu as an artist/designer (TheLegendsLeague/IDEALL). The latest video to come from this project is a short 1 minute piece entitled “Work In Progress”, which shows Bryan’s technique while working on 1 of his 56 mixed media canvases for the show.
Former Mayor of Toronto, David Miller speaks on “Redefining Citizenship” at the 2011 TEDxToronto event that took place on September 23rd. If you can spare 17 minutes, it’s worth the watch!
Toronto artist, Kit Knows, expresses his thoughts on graffiti and the culture he grew up appreciating/participating in.
“Although music and film is what I spend most time on now, I discovered a lot of Toronto, and my self, through my experience with graffiti. The city is full of views, rooftops, abandoned buildings, old bridges, or just little spaces between all the hustling.”
Toronto’s Reel Asian International Film Festival is back for it’s 15th edition, running from November 8-13th. Last year I had the pleasure of watching “One Big Hapa Family” by Canadian filmmaker Jeff Chiba Stearns. This year I’d like to see “Sunday Menu” by Director Liesl Nguyen. Filmed in Berlin, Sunday Menu offers a poetic look into the world of a German-Vietnamese teenager as she confronts generational and cross-cultural conflicts through the ritualistic power of food (watch the trailer above). If this film doesn’t interest you, dont’ worry, there are so many great films to choose from.
Tyrone and I took off to Spain last Monday for an unreal trip to take part in the “American Express Unstaged” music series. From start to finish, we received the Platinum treatment from American Express Canada, including: car service to and from the airport, access to Amex’s premium lounge inside Pearson Airport (available to Platinum Cardmembers), incredible accommodations downtown Madrid at the Hotel De Las Letras (with a wrap-around terrace), private dinner reservations for us and 3 other bloggers, and, of course, tickets to see Coldplay perform at one of Spain’s most famous arenas – Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas. And all of this came courtesy of our very own personal Amex concierge and Personalized Travel Services team, who worked with us to plan our perfect itinerary.
We were only in Madrid for 48 hours, but we managed to create some lasting memories. We wandered the city streets, taking in the architecture, the Spanish culture and of course, the shopping! But the main reason for our trip was to see Coldplay perform live as part of the American Express Unstaged music series – the 6th such concert since the program launched last year and the first one outside of North America.
Both Tyrone and I agreed that one of our favourite parts of the show (aside from standing on the same ground where the historic bull fights took place), was when Coldplay’s Chris Martin spray-painted “Madrid” right in front of us on a projection screen. We also loved the fact that thousands of Spanish-speaking fans were singing every word in English, proving music is truly a universal language. It was also cool to see our Toronto Twitter followers tweeting and re-tweeting about watching the concert live with us via VEVO on YouTube – all part of the Unstaged experience.
Coldplay’s amazing performance was the first concert we’ve ever been to that was streamed live around the world, and we hope it’s not our last! In case you missed the live-stream, you can check out clips of the concert here: youtube.com/ColdplayVevo.
Here are a few more photos from our adventure in Spain…
We’ve been invited to the “American Express Unstaged” music series, featuring one of our favourite bands… COLDPLAY!
On October 26th, they’ll be performing live from one of Spain’s most famous bull-fighting arenas, Plaza De Toros de Las Ventas, in Madrid. And here’s the best part: American Express, in partnership with VEVO and YouTube, will be streaming the concert live. That means YOU can watch it online, right here in Toronto! (Or anywhere else you may be next Wednesday)
The American Express Unstaged music series is all about connecting fans with their favourite artists in person and online. Next week’s live stream will let you choose your own camera angles and you can tweet the band questions for a special pre-show.
You can create your very own butterfly with the chance to have it appear on the screen during Coldplay’s performance of “Paradise”. Take a look at what T-rexxx and I created (below).
Since 2010, the American Express Unstaged music series has featured some incredible artists and filmmakers, who direct the show to make it a unique viewing experience. This has included: Arcade Fire directed by Terry Gilliam and John Legend & The Roots directed by Spike Lee. This time, famous filmmaker Anton Corbijn will be directing the entire COLDPLAY experience, and you’ll be able to watch it LIVE, all thanks to Amex.
Now, T-rexxxx and I are off to meet with our very own American Express Platinum concierge, who’s going to hook us up with our flights, accommodations and Spanish travel tips. Hopefully our concierge can find us some good seats for a soccer match! (fingers crossed)
Make sure you follow us on twitter @1LOVETO and @Trexxx1LOVETO for exclusive twit pics and updates during the show.
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