Author: Darrin Korte, Director of Out-of-School Time Programs, The Hip Hop Transformation Program Director

From its inception, hip hop music and culture has represented the voice of a movement. The descendant of spirituals, jazz, blues, and rock, hip hop has evolved through constant innovation to become arguably the most passionate art form in our society today. While many people only think of rap music when they think of hip hop, hip hop culture takes the form of many different genres such as dance, graffiti, DJaying, and fashion. At its core, hip hop still carries this history and message of unity with it. However, due to many outside forces and influences, hip hop has developed an image as being hyper violent, misogynistic, and anti social leading many to believe that hip hop is a negative influence on the youth who consume it.

Author: Simi George, Harvard Kennedy School of Government, MPA/ID Candidate

Hello! We are a team of Harvard graduate students hoping to contribute to the work and mission of the Cambridge Community Center through a project for a class. As part of this project, we are looking to trade up from a little red paper clip to something of value to the Community Center.

This project is inspired by the true story of a Canadian blogger, Kyle Macdonald, who traded up from a red paperclip to a… house! For further details, please visit http://oneredpaperclip.blogspot.com/. While we do not yet have a house in our cache, so far, we have traded our paperclips for a range of items including air conditioning units and an autographed copy of a book by acclaimed writer, Ian McEwan.