Imagine Open Doors
The MIO table at the Rally for Recovery on September 18 in Kennedy Park in Lewiston.
On Saturday, September 18 Maine Inside Out participated in the Rally for Recovery in Lewiston’s Kennedy Park. MIO artists performed a short original play - Imagine Open Doors - and individual poetry and music on the themes of addiction, trauma, recovery, community, and social change. Watch the live stream of MIO’s performance followed by calls to action by Maine Prisoner Advocacy and Maine Youth Justice.
The rally was joyful and bittersweet. It was a beautiful celebration of community and a reminder of the people we miss. It was a testament to hope and a reckoning with the toll of trauma and addiction. It was a moment to reflect, to connect and to take action. In the words of Joseph Jackson,
"Young people are losing their lives. We need to come together. We need to demand that our decision-makers come up with a plan to address this - really invest in this. Without this investment we will continue to see the same thing. We are here to be a part of the solution.”
In July 2020, Maine Inside Out released a statement about the loss of six young people in our community. Since then, two more MIO members have died. We will continue to speak out against systemic violence and to build a culture that affirms community and life over isolation and death. In the midst of continuous grief, the MIO community has created practices - like grief circles - to remember those we’ve lost and to hold each other close. In the words of MIO facilitator Darryl Shepherd Jr, “when we can’t make it right in the world, we can make it right in our hearts.”
Thank you to the City of Lewiston, Recovery Connections of Maine, Recovery Housing of Maine, Maine Prisoner Advocacy Coalition, Maine Youth Justice, and all the incredible organizations who participated and contributed to the Rally for Recovery. We are here to be part of the solution together.
“Theater itself is not revolutionary: it is rehearsal for the revolution”
- Augusto Boal
The MIO and Theater of the Oppressed New York teams at our three day training. From left to right: Sulu LeoNimm, Chiara Liberatore, Gariyana Williams, Adan Abdi, Joseph Jackson, Tyler Jackson, Noah Bragg, Stacy Perez, Darryl Shepherd Jr., and Bashir Matan.
Last week Maine Inside Out participated in an Forum Theater training with Theater of the Oppressed New York (TONYC)! We learned new theater games, play building techniques, and the art of “jokering” or inviting audience members on stage to improvise solutions for the problems presented in the scene. MIO adapts techniques, exercises and philosophy from Augusto Boal's Theater of the Oppressed to activate audiences and facilitate collective problem solving. The core ideas informing Theater of the Oppressed come from Paolo Friere’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed:
Oppression is a “limiting situation” which can be transformed.
Imagination can help us find the way to transform oppression and tell a new story. Embodying the transformation with our art is practice for realizing it in the world.
Thank you New Beginnings for hosting us and to TONYC for the incredible training.
Community Investment Highlights from our Business Partners
Portland Food Co-op is a 100% community owned market open to the public featuring over 200 local Maine farmers and producers. Portland Food Co-op supports local nonprofits through monthly register round ups. The October register round-ups will support MIO!
Rose Mary Jane is unapologetically fighting for freedom + equity in cannabis. Check out this article in the Portland Phoenix featuring Co-Executive Director Bruce King speaking about our partnership with Rose Mary Jane.
Allagash Brewing strives to create some of the best Belgian-inspired beers in the world. As a certified B Corp, they’re constantly pushing the sustainability of their brewing operation, putting their employees first, and working to be a positive member of our community. In September, Allagash tasting room guests raised over $14,000 for MIO.
Hannafords’ Bloomin for Good Program works to give back to local communities. For the month of November 2021, MIO has been selected to receive a $1 donation for every $12.00 Bloomin' 4 Good Bouquet with the red circle sticker sold at the store located at 99 Main Street, Gorham ME.
Fall Event Schedule
Thursday, October 14 at 11am - 5pm
Healing Inside Out: Health and Recovery in the Carceral State
The National Acupuncture Detoxification Association trains people in the NADA protocol, an ear acupressure and acupuncture intervention for trauma, substance misuse, abuse, dependence and related behavioral and mental health conditions. This online meeting will explore how theater and visual art, research initiatives, innovative re-entry programs and mental health interventions such as the NADA ear acupuncture protocol promote healing in carceral and post-carceral settings (ex. jails, prisons, reentry programs, juvenile detention centers).
October 15th at 11-12pm
Maine Women’s Lobby Summit on Economic Justice
A community-focused conversation on the connections between civic engagement and economic, gender, and racial justice. Featuring LaTosha Brown, co-founder of Black Voters Matter, as the Keynote Speaker. Presented by Maine Women’s Lobby Education Fund. MIO Co-Executive Director Margot Fine and Board Member Mary Lou Michael will facilitate a conversation about people’s experiences with and hopes for equitable community leadership.
Saturday, October 16 at 9am - 4:30pm
Anti-Racist Organizing in Maine
Community Change Inc. invites you to come take part in a convening of organizers, activists, leaders, and educators committed to the movement for racial justice in Maine. This is a unique opportunity to deepen in regional anti-racist education, learn from front line activists, and strengthen our community relationships towards more robust collective action. Maine Inside Out will share original art and speak on a panel in the afternoon alongside Black POWER, Maine Youth Justice, and Racial Equity & Justice.
Wednesday, October 20 at 12:30-1:30pm
Social Justice and Art with Maine Inside Out
SLICE (Students Learning Innovative Creative Endeavors) is a multi-disciplinary arts education and engagement program designed to encourage students ages 13-18 to explore Waterville’s unique, high-quality arts and cultural programs and institutions. Maine Inside Out will lead an interactive workshop about creating art for social change.
SLICE is free and open to Waterville youths ages 13-18.
October 21 at 6-7pm
ART & Art for Social Change Panel hosted by the Colby College Museum of Art
Join us for a conversation that delves into how art has the ability to strengthen social justice work. We’ll hear the perspectives of educators and artists from a diversion program in New York City called, Project Reset, in which participants attend an arts program as an alternative to appearing in court, as well as leaders of Maine Inside Out. A Q&A will follow the conversation. This program is the first in a three-week series of talks that connect to the exhibition, Bob Thompson: This House is Mine.
November 8 at 730pm
Freedom & Captivity Performance at the Emery Community Arts Center at the University of Maine in Farmington
Join MIO and the Freedom & Captivity Project for original performances followed by dialogue and action. In association with the exhibit: sea/sky, blood, earth, you. Check out the Freedom & Captivity event calendar.
Tuesday, November 23 at 12-1pm
Literary Lunch: Ravi Shankar talks about his new book “Correctional”
Portland Public Library is excited to partner with Maine Inside Out to present Ravi Shankar in conversation about his new book Correctional. The first time Ravi Shankar was arrested, he spoke out against racist policing on National Public Radio and successfully sued the city of New York. The second time, he was incarcerated when his promotion to full professor was finalized. During his ninety-day pretrial confinement at the Hartford Correctional Center—a level 4, high-security urban jail in Connecticut—he met men who shared harrowing and heart-felt stories. The experience taught him about the persistence of structural racism, the limitations of mass media, and the pervasive traumas of twenty-first-century daily life.
Monday, December 6 at 4:30pm
Artivism: The Power of Art for Social Transformation
A virtual event series hosted by Adelphi University. The vision of Artivism is to generate a movement with committed social artivists in response to historic global unrest. Join MIO Co-Executive Directors Bruce King and Margot Fine for a conversation about MIO and the ecosystem of organizations and leaders in Maine building the social infrastructure needed for a world without prisons.