Main fundraiser photo

The Mural Project

The Mural Project
Our goal is to use the southern façade of our fair-trade store, "El Buen Amigo", to create a mural. To bring dramatic impact on our neighborhood and our city, to attract attention to social justice issues, and inspire our citizens. These values that we hope you share with us are the foundation for uniting our "city of good neighbors".

A community mural has been the dream of our founders Santiago & Eugenia Masferrer since they purchased the building in 1989. Santiago Masferrer was a political prisoner of the Pinochet Dictatorship of Chile. His "dissident" crimes were a fair distribution of food and feeding the children first. In 1975 Santiago was released from the infamous Carcel de Santiago through the intervention of Senator Ted Kennedy. He chose Buffalo for political asylum. In all this time, his dream to create meaningful change in his community has stayed constant. Now, El Buen Amigo is hoping to offer the community more in the form of an artistic mural.

What is LACA?
Here at LACA (Latin America Cultural Association), we use the arts as a vehicle to inspire cross-cultural understanding and to make the rich cultural heritage of the indigenous people of Latin America accessible to everyone. We do this through community education, cultural programs, and our fair-trade store "El Buen Amigo". Our profits are reinvested in the artist collectives of Central and South America and into the local arts and cultural community.

In July of 2018, we received a "Certificate of Appropriateness" from the City of Buffalo Preservation Board to build a mural on the south side of our building at 114 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo NY. Our mural will address the abuses of human rights and environmental battles that have been a part of human history. From the indigenous colonization by the conquistadors to today's oppressed poor and marginalized people who are still fighting racism, discrimination, and the abuses of Mother Earth, this mural is meant to be a gift to our community. It is a way to inspire conversation about unity, peace, tolerance, and interpersonal understanding among other essential values.

As a dear friend, we need your help to make our dream come true. Here at our organization, we do not have the necessary resources to cover the projected $36,000 that it costs to build and design our mural. We are asking community businesses, colleges, organizations, churches, and individuals to donate and help us raise that amount through volunteering and monetary donations. In a time when demonstrating one's values are as important as ever, please consider helping us in our effort to use a wall to unite, not to separate or divide. Any financial contribution, supply donations, or volunteer assistance would be much appreciated as we are in need of individuals experienced in carpentry, masonry, and basic electrical work.

If you would like to know more about how you can help us make this project come true, please contact us by email at [email redacted]

Organizer

Santiago Masferrer
Organizer
Buffalo, NY

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