WE GOT US
ART AS HEALING
Young people do not always process pain through traditional conversations. Sometimes healing begins with a poem. Sometimes it begins with a song, a painting, a journal entry, a dance, or a story someone has been afraid to tell.
CREATIVITY CAN BECOME A PATHWAY TO HEALING
We Got Us: Art as Healing provides young people with culturally relevant tools to explore mental wellness through creative expression.
Poetry and spoken word
Music
Writing and storytelling
Theater
Visual art
Film and digital media
Dance and movement
Photography
THEIR VOICES BELONG IN CULTURAL SPACES
In April 2026, East Orange students attended John Legend’s An Evening of Songs and Stories at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. Before the concert, students participated in a private meeting where they shared the We Got Us story and discussed how creative expression can support emotional wellness, peer leadership, and advocacy.
THEIR VOICES BELONG IN CLASSROOMS, CULTURAL SPACES, COMMUNITY FORUMS, AND PUBLIC POLICY.
The experience helped young people see that their voices belong in classrooms, cultural spaces, community forums, and public policy.