The nominations are in for the 12 Days of Charitable Giving 2010. Our fourth of twelve charities to be featured this year is Critical Exposure which teaches youth to use the power of photography and their own voices to become effective advocates for school reform and social change. They provide at-risk youth with cameras, training, and the opportunity to show the world how it looks through their eyes.
Here’s what our nominee had to say:
I love the idea of highlighting reader submitting charitable organizations and I could not pass up the chance to highlight one of my favorites.
My dear friend Adam Levner started a charitable organization with a friend several years ago. Adam has given his life and his career to helping the youth of our country. Originally a teacher, Adam saw that today’s urban youth are not always given the best opportunity to learn and achieve. Unfortunately, this sentiment is not new and has been a problem for many years, but Critical Exposure, his organization, is using a different approach to try and change things. It is one thing to have people talk about the misfortunes of others and try to make change. Critical Exposure works with schools and youth programs to empower the children themselves to tell their stories and describe their situations. The program hinges on the idea that you can make a difference at the same time as you are explaining to others that a difference needs to be made. The program instructs youth in the art of protest and documentary photography. It provides an education in positive and constructive thinking and it provides a creative and informative outlet for the urban youth of our country. Programs throughout the country have been successful in reaching as high as the governors of some states, making the real message to its participants that everyone can make a difference.
As you can see, I really believe in the program and hope that you will give it a chance to be a part of your 12 Charities of Christmas.
The website is: http://www.criticalexposure.org/
