16 Bars: Youth (Off)ending Justice

2016
The New School Auditorium in Alvin Johnson/J.M. Kaplan Hall
New York, NY

CAST

Dahnaishia (Latune) Finch-Mellowes, Kevin Williams, Rashaun Thomas, Ivelis Palou, Alima Seyid, Traekwon Isaac

ABOUT

In Spring 2016: 6 exalt students traveled to Albany to speak to State Legislators about Raising the Age of Criminal Responsibility in New York State which remained one of the last two states in the US to charge 16-18 as adults in the criminal justice system. Justine Gonzalez: exalt Internship Development and Outreach Manager and Kadeem Gibbs: of The Children’s Defense Fund, led students and in preparation, provided historical context on youth justice policies in New York. They were joined by Louisa Strothman, a New School student enrolled in a course taught by exalt Senior Teacher Brian Lewis and New School professor Cecilia Rubino.

Upon returning from Albany, Louisa Strothman conceived of fusing her exposure to the documentary theater techniques being learned in the course with the inspirational power of the stories and experiences of exalt’s young people. This would ultimately lead to the creation of 16 Bars. Created in two months in the summer of 2016, 16 Bars is a gripping and thought provoking documentary theater project – the first of its kind, produced by exalt youth. 16 Bars: Youth (Off)ending Justice features music, story-telling, visual imagery and other acoustic expressions conceived by exalt alumni; all focused on fostering awareness about Raising the Age of criminal responsibility in New York State.

The piece was directed by Brian Lewis and Cecilia Rubino. Following the performance at The New School, the Hon. Daniel J. O'Donnell of The New York State Assembly, Sonja Okun, Founder of exalt and Vincent Warren, Executive Director of Center for Constitutional Rights responded to key themes from the script and discussed with the public ways to push for a more equitable vision of youth justice in New York.