Empowering Black and Brown Youth of
Lawndale, Chicago
OLAAI builds on past unification projects in North Lawndale and Little Village (South Lawndale) to create new power and real liberation for our communities by providing collaborative and brave facilitation, fresh thought-partnership, experienced leadership, racial healing towards black/brown solidarity and access to high quality, community rooted arts-based resources that create a new, liberated and unified Lawndale- One Lawndale.
One Lawndale Youth Unity Project
Summer 2025
OLAAI is thrilled to share our dynamic critical youth development initiative to engage Lawndale youth with paid opportunities to heal, activate, create, and celebrate in community this summer!
Our programs serve Lawndale residents aged 14-19 and pay at 50% above minimum wage. Learn more about summer programs today!
Artivism Project of Lawndale
The first phase of this project is now complete, engaging 10 youth—5 from North Lawndale and 5 from South Lawndale—in powerful community storytelling. Through hands-on archiving workshops, these Lawndale youth learned to document their lived experiences in Lawndale. They began researching their neighborhoods and translating their stories into original artwork, capturing the heart of their communities through their own eyes and voices.
Racial Healing
Providing youth trauma-informed circle spaces
Violence Prevention
Engaging youth with a critical analysis for making change in their lives and the world
Unlock Youth Potential
What will result from unifying youth, elevating their power, and transforming community?
Community Voices & Essential Inquiries
Community Engagement
A homeplace for black and brown youth on the southwest side of Chicago to heal, build, and create change. Youth receive guaranteed income and through artist workshops, liberatory educational workshops, healing circles, and street activations we will build a united and empowered One Lawndale.
One WHY
OLAAI was created as one response to the police shooting of Adam Toledo on Farragut Career Academy IB World School's campus in 2021. Leading the school community through grief, Cecily was motivated to create a place to engage the Adam Toledos of Lawndale who- united, resourced and empowered- will together create a thriving One Lawndale.
Mural by Milton Coronado @Milt1Coronado
Uniting Lawndale through Art & Activism
Make a donation | Haz una donación
Incubation Phase: OLAAI is growing and we need you in the circle. We’re weaving together the powerful threads of our pilot programs to build a bold, unified future for Lawndale—one rooted in youth leadership, racial healing, and creative resistance. Every dollar helps us deepen our impact, employ youth at dignified wages, and amplify Black and Brown voices on Chicago’s Southwest Side. Thank you for being part of the change!
Fase de incubación: OLAAI está creciendo y te necesitamos en el círculo. Estamos tejiendo los poderosos hilos de nuestros programas piloto para construir un futuro audaz y unificado para Lawndale, basado en el liderazgo juvenil, la sanación racial y la resistencia creativa. Cada dólar nos ayuda a profundizar nuestro impacto, a emplear jóvenes con salarios dignos y a amplificar las voces de las personas negras y latinas en el suroeste de Chicago. ¡Gracias por ser parte del cambio!