Fields Wolf Memorial Fund Logo Javad and Vivian


Shattered Dreams Exhibit

In many ways, Aurora is a typical American suburb: endless wide streets, lots of single-family residential housing, and the automobile as preferred means of travel. However, look more closely, and the city takes on its truer character: Old Aurora is much more urban than suburban in its demographic make-up. The oldest, northwestern, neighborhood of Aurora has a population of approximately 21,000 people, 77% of which is Hispanic and 12 % African American/ Black. Eighty-one percent of the students attending public school receive free/reduced lunch in schools, indicating that they live in a household wherein their parents income is 200% below the federal poverty level.

One of old Aurora’s strengths is its wealth of ethnicities and languages. There are over ninety languages spoken. Academic promise and opportunity are also less than a half a mile away, at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, a state-of-the-art, multi-million dollar campus and hospital complex. However, Old Aurora is also a city of contradictions: with all of America’s strengths and all of America’s weaknesses present in one place, from block to block and from door to door. Hope and despair live together closely here.

The City of Aurora is home to the finest medical facilities and most skilled health care providers in Colorado on the Anschutz’s Health Sciences Campus. With the richness of these resources, Aurora should be among the healthiest community in the state. Parts of Aurora may be included in this group, but on the contrary, North Central Aurora, one of most vulnerable communities in Colorado. It is a community characterized by very high rates of poverty, teen pregnancy, truancy and failure to graduate, sexually transmitted diseases, gang activity, low academic achievement, and few subsequent work opportunities.

With photography and film, Our Place, Our Future, will broadcast the teenagers’ picture of what their America looks like to them today, and their voices will tell us how they’d like it to look tomorrow.

Photovoice Documentary- Shatterd Dreams Revitalizing Hope in the Childrens Corridor

Photo Voice is a community assessment technique that allows community residents to use photographs of their community to identify problems and work for solutions. The pictures serve as catalysts for change by showing the reality of the everyday life of community residents—the conditions in which people live and work every day. Images and stories provide persuasive evidence and they become tools for residents to get involved in changing the adverse circumstances that are identified. Photo Voice invites people to reflect on the factors that are negatively affecting their quality of life through photography and to define for themselves and others, including policy makers, what works and what needs to be changed.

Photo Voice is a dynamic tool for policy advocacy and youth engagement. Through the advocacy process, young people can make positive changes in their community.

AURORA SENTINEL: AURORA STUDENT DOCUMENTARY REVEALS CITY ISN’T PICTURE PERFECT

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Shattered Dreams The Video

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Map/Data of Original Aurora Children's Corridor

Select East Colfax/ Orginal Aurora
Data Snapshots
Maps

SHATTERED DREAMS PRESENTATION

Click here to download the entire presentation. (pdf)