Hip-hop activists push winter gear and book drive

[GIDEONS ARMY]

www.onmilwaukee.com/seasonal/holidays/articles/gorillapro.html

[GIDEONS ARMY]

[GIDEONS ARMY]

Hip-hop activists push winter gear and book drive
By Tanya Cromartie-Twaddle

Charitable giving and coat drives are nothing new to Milwaukee's winter landscape. Major drives like Toys for Tots and Round Up for the Hungry are seasonal fixtures, but you usually don't hear about hip-hop heads on the grind, collecting winter gear and books for the needy families that live in their own neighborhoods.

As hundreds of low-income residents cling to the hope of energy assistance to combat overwhelming heating costs and struggle to keep their kids in warm clothes, the Gorilla Promotions team is hitting the streets and pushing its message of sharing.

"We don't have much, and we're scraping off of nothing to make change happen. It ain't about feeling good because we're giving to the less fortunate. Hell, we are the less fortunate. It's simple. We've gotta take care of our community," says Fidel, a member of the local hip-hop group, Taste Emcees and lead spokesperson for Gorilla Promotions, a multi-dimensional company with services that include street promotion, entertainment event coordination and graphic design.

The drive, called "Don't Be Greedy, Give To The Needy," is seeking donations of new or gently used winter coats, mittens and hats. Gorilla Promotions is also asking Milwaukeeans to donate books instead of toys this season. "That speaks for itself. We know how important the gift of reading is to our community," he says.

Fidel says, "Gorilla Promotions is more than a company. Call it a grass roots movement if you want, but we're on a mission to empower our community through our own actions."

Hip-hop is the vehicle they use to get the message to the people. Their community work history includes the annual Summer of Peace Youth Rally, inner city youth development workshops, food drives and organizing political and cultural forums.

Armagideon, a rap artist and filmmaker, adds, "We want the young people to see us giving back. It's about being that example. You get a lot of people talking, talking and talking (about change). It's not that hard to actually do something."

The activists make it clear that the mission is bigger than this season's drive and that with the challenges facing the community, they are looking to do more than create fuzzy-feel-good-cause-I-gave-at Christmas moments for the "haves." According to the crew, they speak out for the "have-nots," speak to the "have-nots" and cry out on behalf of the "have-nots."

It is a two-fold message of cooperation from city leaders and self-reliance on the part of citizens.

And a closed mouth doesn't eat. A to-the-point Fidel says, "We have other initiatives in the works. We're looking for community partners, fiscal agents and sponsors to cooperate with our efforts. We know what our community needs."

Most definitely, changing the plight of Milwaukee's disenfranchised will take more than a coat drive. But for Gorilla Promotions, the drive is a simple way to show people the little ways they can be part of the larger movement for constructive change.

The drive runs through the end of January. Donation Drop Sites include The OIC Building, 3030 N. MLK Jr. Dr. and Latino Community Center, 807 S. 14th St.

Drive coordinators can be reached at [phone].