Actor and Activist Michael K. Williams To Be Honored At Benefit For Diversionary Justice Program
Fundraiser for Young New Yorkers features auction of work by 80+ artists, including
Kara Walker and Shepard Fairey
On May 10th, Young New Yorker’s fifth annual Silent Art Auction will fund the grassroots arts-diversion program for teenagers facing criminal charges as adults in New York.
“Young New Yorkers uses art to create empowered spaces of justice, expression, and a place to be for our city’s kids.” –Michael K. Williams
“We are thrilled to be honoring Michael K. Williams. As a Brooklynite and activist, Michael continues to bring his voice to the urgent need for criminal justice reform, especially for our city’s extraordinary young people. As an actor, he has played characters who are too often written as stereotypes—Michael has these characters bristle with the beauty of their humanity, unexpectedly expanding the viewer’s empathy.”
—Rachel Barnard, Executive Director and Founder of Young New Yorkers
YOUNG NEW YORKERS (YNY): YNY is committed to using art to bring systemic change to the ways that teens are prosecuted and sentenced in New York’s adult criminal justice system. Since YNY began in 2012 more than 400 participants have successfully graduated from YNY’s court-mandated programs:
• YNY’s Arts Diversion Programs allow court-involved young people to avoid jail and a lifelong criminal record at as young as 16 years old.
• YNY’s participant-led exhibitions bring together prosecutors and judges with the very young people they have tried and sentenced. This humanizes the culture of the courtrooms and leads to better case outcomes for Brooklyn teens.
DATE: Wednesday, May 10th, 7-10 pm ET
LOCATION: 548 W. 28th Street, New York, NY
LINK TO PURCHASE TICKETS: bit.ly/YNYSAA17
LINK TO ONLINE AUCTION WITH PADDLE 8: www.paddle8.com/auction/young-new-yorkers
FEATURED ARTISTS INCLUDE: Kara Walker, Shepard Fairey, Hanksy, and Nicholas Galanin. Full list available upon request.
Winners of artworks receive a complimentary We The People print designed by Shepard Fairey, courtesy of the Amplifier Foundation.
CURATORS: Layqa Nuna Yawar and Ann Lewis
Online: youngnewyorkers.org | Facebook.com/YoungNewYorkers | Twitter and Instagram: @YoungNewYorkers
SPONSORS: 1xRun, 44 North Vodka, Amplifier Foundation, Authentic Transport, Balance Water, Castle Fitzjohns Gallery, GV Art Conservation, Handwerk Design + Art Consulting, Lagunitas Brewing Company, Paddle8, Robert A. M. Stern Architects, Rochester Endovascular, Scratch DJ Academy, T. Edward Wines, Three Tiers Bakery, Threes Brewing Company, Voyager Estate
A Gift from Amplifier: Winners of artworks receive a complimentary We The People Amplifier print designed by Shepard Fairey.
Donated artwork from, from top down: Anthony Geathers, In the Air, 2016. Digital archival inkjet print on
matte paper, 16 x 24 in, 1 of 9; Dain, Il Barbarino Tux, 2016. Acrylic, spray paint, and screen print on paper, 48 x 36
in. ; Vicki DaSilva, Resist, 2017. Lambda Digital C Print, 22 x 30 in, 1 of 3.