Somali Independence Day

July 2016, 2017

The Somali Independence Day Festival is the largest of its kind in North America and is organized by the Somali youth organization Ka Joog In 2017, the Walker Art Center began more intentional relationship-building with the Somali community and built a number of programs to engage youth in the arts. This included a number of hands-on activities during the summer Somali Independence Day festival.

Focusing on the intersection of identity and the arts, this program provided a button-making station that allowed visitors to see and design wearable images that represent their community. The program also focused on encouraging art-making play between children and caretakers and further developing a relationship with families by inviting them to additional youth programming at the center.