YouNited Festival is an annual event. Born in the summer of 2008, there were many involved in its start including Jacek Otreba, Kyle Ali, Norman Alconcel, Syeda Hareeba Masood and many more. Partnerships and support are now given from agencies such as Action for Neighborhood Change, Black Woman and Child, Youthlink, Toronto Arts Council, Artreach Toronto, Goodboy Clothing, MSCI and West Hill Community Services.

When the group came across Scarborough Village Summer Festival in 2005 it was influenced by the power it had to motivate, entertain and educate the community. So after two years of volunteering at the Scarborough Village Summer Festival and a proposal to Artreach the group founded YouNited. YouNited paired with Scarborough Village and dedicated itself to organizing the type of events residents love seeing in their neighborhood. Once successful, they did outreach in Scarborough for a youth mentorship program which would train and hire youth to co-ordinate the Younited Festivals. The YouNited Festival runs across three neighborhoods: Kingston and Galloway, Eglinton East and Kennedy Park and Scarborough Village.

Here we are in the present: July 19, 2009 at Gilder Park. Due to the strike here in the GTA the performances are being held in the school but the surrounding area is overflowing with children and toddlers. Enthusiastic volunteers invite them all to the games.

Also here is the East Scarborough Boys and Girls Club with its famous Mobilizer. The Mobilizer is a vehicle that carries recreational activities to various events, things like an Xbox 360 with videogames, laptops, a basketball net and a skateboard ramp. Coordinator Andrew Gillette says they're all tools to encourage the youth to check out their employment services.

Speakers and signs serve as guides and fill the block with a raw energy that lets the people know where the party's at. My time here was spent talking to the folks present. "We need to get stuff like this on the west end," says one Parkdale resident.

The Canadian Federation of Students was there in support of lowering school tuition fees and had postcards waiting to be signed that would be sent to Premier Dalton McGuinty's office. There were books on cultural education and the young people interested were conversing with shopkeepers who nurtured their young minds with knowledge.

The positive flow of energy pumping from the artists on stage had the audience waving their hands side to side. The crowd repeated lyrics to Rochester "Pull Up" and powerful emotions surfaced when Brassmunk's own Chemical Voyage performed genre bending songs that left a lot of people needing more. Budding celebrities kept all doubts out of the air when asked about appearing at a grassroots festival. "This is home," says up-and-coming artist Gee Wunder.

YouNited. This is home indeed.

Words by. Sanjay Misra
Photo Courtesy of YouNited Neighbourhood Festivals