Lorraine Hansberry – Keith Barrow Community Empowerment Center (HBCEC)

The Hansberry – Barrow Community Empowerment Center is a project the Coalition for Justice and Respect (CJR). CJR is a membership based social justice and civil rights organization of African-American Same Gender Loving Black Gays and Lesbians funded by the Foundation for the Coalition for Justice and Respect.

 The Lorraine Hansberry – Keith Barrow Community Empowerment Center is named in honor of two Chicago natives: American playwright and painter Lorraine Hansberry  who died of cancer , and singer and civil rights activist Keith Barrow who died of complications AIDS.  Both were active members in their careers and committed to social justice and civil rights. This center will continue their efforts of community empowerment through activities they were both familiar and participated in. 

 As a pioneering community space focusing on empowering the primary population of African-American Same Gender Loving Black Gays and Lesbians, The Hansberry – Barrow Community Empowerment Center is a not for profit center that provides direct services in public health information and education, civic engagement, and public and community issues as well as advocacy for youth, young adults and adults. The Hansberry – Barrow Community Empowerment Center serves as a community resource and clearinghouse of African-American Communities.  

The programs and services offered by the HBCEC include employment information services, adult education and scholarship information, support groups, empowerment workshops, cultural events, community information forms, public street demonstrations, civic engagement projects, and networking opportunities with like-minded programs locally and nationally.

Programs of Lorraine Hansberry – Keith Barrow Community Empowerment Center:
Advocacy and Case Management of individuals that victims of hate motivated crimes and discrimination, social service support in securing housing stabilizing elements to meet individual needs, continuing education, public education on prevention health strategies.

Eye to Eye Empowerment Session is a two and half workshop for Black African-American Men to build esteem and combat stigma. The participants and engage them to know their status, take action, and to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS. This workshop is safe space for Black African-American men to discuss and ask questions of concern regarding HIV/AIDS and its transmission. The workshop expands prevention messages with seldom used approaches. The workshop will also discuss conversation starters for partners around safer sex options.

Town Square An On-Line Blog, Web Site, and E-Mail lists that people can dialogue on issue of healthy living concerning issues around HIV/AIDS and other health and life and living challenges and issues. Though these conversations and internet events and conferences participants will be driven to where and when they find out their HIV status as will as receive support for making other healthy choices that will affect behavioral choices. The goal is to have 1,000 people sign up on email list. Through our civic responsibility efforts, summer jobs program, and other community events we have a base of over 300 people to begin building this community.

Party of 12 – Party 8 Creating social networks that will call upon long term Same Gender Loving couples to mentor new couples in a promotion of life choices of monogamy and reducing sexual partners. Creating social networks that will call upon individuals that will speak frankly about behavioral choices that will decrease risky sexual life choices. This project will run from November 2008 to June 2009.

Project Smart Sport will develop relationships with area health clubs, sports leagues, gym and the Chicago Park District for the purpose of having street teams that will distribute condoms and provide prevention messages of HIV/AIDS and other Sexual Decease Infection (SDI) to patrons of these facilities. Project Smart teams will operate from January to June 2009. Project Smart Sport will target African-American men between the ages of 15-45 years of age.

Lift Every Voice will contract with a Gospel Music Director to develop a Mass Community Choir made of affirming and welcoming faith communities that will perform at an All City-Wide Reconciling Concert in summer 2009. The program is three-fold: the first will be to show Black African-American Same Gender Loving Gay Men and Women of supportive places in the Black African-American communities. Second, reduce the stigma in faith communities. Third, develop directory safe places of worship.

Finding Our Voice working with skilled professionals in broadcasting and communication this program will establish a workshop for young people between the ages of 15-24 years, by producing and airing two broadcast shows, targeting the African-American communities one radio and one television show with information that will direct them to knowing their status and making healthy life choices of prevention.