Father Gregory Boyle, founder and executive director of Homeboy Industries, will present “Tattoos on the Heart” as part of the Katharine Howard Miller Endowed Speakers Program at Scripps College’s Balch Auditorium on Tuesday, March 29, 2011, at 7:00 p.m. The doors will open at 6:30 p.m. This event is free and open to the public.
Since 1986, “Father Greg” has been the priest of Dolores Mission in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles. The church sits between two large public housing projects known for decades as the “gang capital of the world.” Boyle, a nationally renowned expert on gangs and intervention approaches, relates his experiences working within this neighborhood in Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion. According to the Los Angeles Times, his book is “destined to become a classic of both urban reportage and contemporary spirituality.”
Homeboy Industries is a series of nonprofit economic development enterprises which include Homeboy Bakery, Homeboy Silkscreen, Homeboy Maintenance, Homeboy and Homegirl Merchandise, and Homegirl Café. Their programs assist at-risk and former gang-involved youth to become positive and contributing members of society through job placement, training, and education. Above all, Homebody Industries provides the opportunity for rival gang members to work side by side, enabling young men and women to redirect their lives. Boyle has received numerous accolades on behalf of Homeboy Industries, including the California Peace Prize granted by the California Wellness Foundation in 2000, and the 2004 Lifetime Achievement Award from MALDEF (Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund).
The talk will be followed by a book signing and reception in the Hampton Room. For more information please contact the Malott Commons Office at (909) 607-9372.
This event is generously sponsored by the Katharine Howard Miller Endowed Speakers Program, Malott Commons Office, Student Investment Fund, Scripps Associated Students, Scripps College Humanities Institute, Scripps Department of American Studies, and SCORE: Scripps Communities of Resources and Empowerment.