HHCF Awarded Safe Summer Initiative Grant by City of San Jose for FREE Summer Camp for Teens

City of San Jose Awards Hip-Hop Chess Federation Grant for Chess and Life Strategies Summer Camp

HHCF Opens FREE Summer Camp to Keep Kids Focused on School and Off the Streets     

May 20th, 2015 San Jose, CA - The Hip-Hop Chess Federation (HHCF) is happy to announce they will be hosting a FREE Chess and Life Strategies summer camp starting June 15th to August 15th 2015 at the Seven Trees Community Center in San Jose, CA. This powerful, innovative education program is brought to you in part by the city of San Jose awarding the HHCF the Safe Summer Initiative Grant (SSIG). The purpose of the SSIG is to give funds to organizations that strive to help teens in underserved areas. “It is a deep honor for the HHCF to be awarded the SSIG.” stated VP of Outreach Meek Gaborski. “Our commitment to inspire and enable young minds to higher heights, is rapidly getting more recognition. Everyone in HHCF is excited.”

The HHCF Chess and Life Strategies program teaches more than chess. In the HHCF chess positions on the board are matched with lessons that teach teens the power of patience, planning and independent thinking methods. “We make the game more culturally relevant to young people by showing them rappers, business leaders and politicians who play chess.” stated HHCF Founder, Adisa Banjoko. “This gets their  attention and allows them to see themselves in the game. Sadly in the summer,  many kids get into gangs, drugs and bad behavior because they don’t have anyone to work with them. HHCF is here for the kids of San Jose. We have a lot of gang activity out here. ”

Adisa Banjoko recently served as the education and history consultant to the World Chess Hall of Fame (WCHOF) exhibit Living Like Kings  in St. Louis, Missouri. The Living Like Kings  grand opening broke all previous attendance records for WCHOF grand openings.  RZA from Wu-Tang Clan (HHCF’s Director of Ourtreach) and Adisa spent time in St. Louis last year after the police killing of Mike Brown. They spoke to more than 1000  at-risk teens, including incarcerated youth. Their lectures centered on the impact of chess and martial arts can have on their  discipline and decision making. In 2015, Adisa Banjoko gave powerful lectures at Lehigh, Oberlin College and University of Connecticut among others.

HHCF also released a mixtape promoting their ideals of chess and peace at www.soundcloud.com/hiphopchess .

For more on HHCF and their Chess and Life Strategies  programs visit www.hiphopchess.com

About HHCF: The Hip-Hop Chess Federation is the world's first nonprofit (501c3) to fuse music, chess and martial arts to promote unity, strategy and nonviolence. They host lectures, panels, and celebrity chess events to help at-risk, gang-impacted and gang intentional youth make better decisions in life. The HHCF has been featured on Good Morning America, Forbes, Chess Life, VIBE and Rolling Stone.  

 

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HHCF SUMMER CAMP SIGN UPS!!! Get in now, they get packed up fast!!

Every Summer kids and parents from across The Bay Area are thrilled to join HHCF Summer Camps. We provide chess instruction as well as innovative ways to boost self esteem, and creative expression. JOIN TODAY: http://hiphopchessfederation.org/index.html

NEW MUSIC: One Big Chess Game feat. Adisa The Bishop, Ramen Jamaal & Asheru

LISTEN NOW: One Big Chess Game by Adisa The Bishop feat. Rahman Jamaal & Asheru Production by: DJ Rob Flow

Adisa Banjoko to Keynote: 6th Annual Citywide Youth Conference in San Jose!

What: The Department of Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services’ (PRNS) 
Youth Commission hosts the 6th Annual Citywide Youth Conference. 

When: Friday, June 14, 2013 
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. 
Where: San José City Hall Rotunda 
 200 East Santa Clara Street 
 San José, CA 95113 
Who: 300 high school students throughout San José 
Norberto Duenas, Deputy City Manager, City of San José 
Kansen Chu, Councilmember, District 4 
Ash Kalra, Councilmember, District 5 
Donald Rocha, Councilmember, District 9 
Johnny Khamis, Councilmember, District 10 

Background: The 2013 Youth Conference theme of “Dream It, Live It”, will focus on the
unbridled spirit of entrepreneurship, with a goal to educate, empower and
inspire youth to pursue future endeavors of building a successful business.
 The conference connects our future generation with some of San José’s
prominent leaders and successful business owners.

By choosing the topic of entrepreneurship, the Youth Commission hopes to
motivate the next generation to actively pursue opportunities in business, in
order to create a robust economy for their city, state and nation.
 The conference is fully developed and implemented by the Youth
Commissioners and is centered on empowering our future generation to be
leader of our local communities and beyond. Teens from all different walks of
life actively participate in workshops, discussions, debates and hands-on
learning that have a direct impact on their daily lives. In addition to workshops
correlating to the annual theme, the conference is attended by elected
 Citywide Youth Conference  officials, local leaders and business owners who fully support the
 Commission’s vision of playing a vital role in shaping the future of San José
and our nation.

The Department of Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services’ Youth
Commission is an appointed body of eleven youth, 14 - 21 years of age, and
is modeled after the San José City Council. They are recognized as the
official youth advisory group to the City Council and the Department of Parks,
Recreation and Neighborhood Services. Youth Commissioners are involved
with policy recommendatiions concerning youth and support the development
of youth who desire to serve their community through active civic participation
and constructive decision-making.

*** MEDIA INTERVIEWS ***
Local media is invited to attend the conference to interview Youth
Commissioners and available speakers immediately following opening
remarks on Friday, June 14, 2013 from 9:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.

HHCF Feat. in St. Louis American!

                             Photo Credit: Shannon Bailey 

Adisa Banjoko, journalist and founder of the Hip-Hop Chess Federation, visited St. Louis recently to highlight the powerful fusion of chess, hip-hop and activism.

He convened experts including James Braxton Peterson, founder of Hip-Hop Scholars, LLC; and Asheru (born Gabriel Benn), a Peabody award-winning journalist and youth activist. Asheru is also a hip-hop artist who created The Boondocks theme song.

Banjoko led panel discussions for at-risk youth at Innovative Concept Academy, Confluence Academy and for detained youth at the Juvenile Detention Center.

Banjoko is a self-proclaimed nonviolent revolutionary. This ideology is at the core of his organization, based in the San Francisco area, which aims to curb youth violence by teaching youth the game of chess. He stated that St. Louis has a lot of violent crime; the city consistently ranks as one of the nation’s most dangerous cities. READ THE FULL STORY HERE 

For Hip-Hop Chess Federation HIV/AIDS is Not a Game

Its time to checkmate HIV/AIDS round the word- together.

End of Watch : The Streets Can Be Cold

This is trailer is action packed...KIDS GET YOUR PARENTS PERMISSION....All I can say is that living the game on the streets is mandatory for those trapped in poverty...

The 3 C's: College, Career or Crime?

One of the REALEST things I ever taught....so pay attention....

HHCF Founder with a video with WeTheWest.com!

HHCF Philosophy: Sacrifice to Success Ratio

A new life strategy video I did with my good friends at www.WeTheWest.com (kids get your parents permission to view anything other than MY VIDEO!!).