Summer Night Lights comes back to Long Beach

In areas like Central Long Beach, youths tend to be more vulnerable to crime during the summer.  Summer Night Lights, known locally as SNL, was formed as a strategy to tackle gang crime, but it also provides healthy food to attract people to the parks, promotes health equity, and builds a context through which youth can maintain mental health.  “Some of my friends were crew members that were out painting in the streets,” said Lupita Arriaga, 17.  “SNL gave them the opportunity, as well as myself, to draw and paint on canvases instead. They showed us that we can show our artwork in different ways instead of going out ad disturbing the peace.”  More details, and youth voices, are on Voicewaves.