OUR ORIGINS
We are an expansion and transformation of The Yvonne Bechet Theatre Project, created in 2014 to tell the story of Yvonne Bechet, one of New Orleans' first Black female police officers. An original play inspired by her norm-shattering life and career, BLACK AND BLUE, had its premiere at Dillard University in 2018.
THE VISION
In October 2020, the play was revived in an online reading produced by HowlRound Theatre Commons, alongside a panel entitled Black and Blue 2020: Art / Activism / Transformation. Inspired by the urgent necessity for change in all areas of society, we have chosen to focus on three: community safety, climate change, and disability justice
We know what happens to young people (people of all ages!) when they get a great comic book in their hands: they become absorbed, they start imagining alternative worlds and narratives, and they start talking about it.
When our comic book is complete, we will work with community partners to distribute the comic free to schools, community centers and summer camps throughout Louisiana.
We will consult regularly with youth leaders and teachers, camp counselors and other youth development workers on ways young people can adapt our comic book and creative process to inspire cultural and political actions of their own to reduce, re-direct and otherwise reform the law enforcement systems in their communities.
OUR GOAL: to inspire at least 25 new youth-led cultural and political actions across Louisiana each year by 2025 that we will then support through the creation of a small community-based arts fund based in part upon future income from the comic book.
THE PROCESS
Issue #1: Over the course of 15 months (November 2021 - February 2023), a team of six artists (3 teens, 3 adults) spent a total of approximately 300 hours in conversation, research, reading and drawing to create the world of Trinity City and its first issue.
Issue #2: Over the course of 10 months (January - October 2024), a new team of six artists (3 teens, 3 adults) will spend another 200 hours in conversation, research, reading and drawing to create the second issue. Issue #2 will answer important questions raised by Issue #1, like: What is the Pact, and why are so many people against it in Trinity City? Where is Rowan’s sister, and what is the connection between her disappearance and the mysterious gang known only as “The Poboys”?
THE VALUES
Emergent Strategy: We use the nine principles outlined in Adrienne Maree Brown’s book Emergent Strategy to guide both our creative process and the content of the graphic novel itself:
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Small is good, small is all.
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Change is constant (Be like water).
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There is always enough time for the right work.
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Never a failure, always a lesson.
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If you trust the people, they become trustworthy.
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Move at the speed of trust.
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Focus on critical connections more than critical mass.
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Less prep, more presence.
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What you pay attention to grows.
Youth Empowerment: Our project moves fluidly between youth leadership, adult mentorship and group creation, trusting the intelligence and intuition of the teen artists.
Collaborative Creation: We value a process that is truly collaborative, with each artist bringing their own skill set into the center of the work.
Shared Copyright: We value shared investment: when complete, all six artists will share the copyright to this comic.
