Music Community Supports Unhoused Neighbors from LA to The Bay
For Immediate Release -- November 20, 2019
(Oakland/San Francisco/Los Angeles, CA) Homelessness in California has become a crisis of epidemic proportions, drawing attention from the United Nations for the extreme disparity between the state’s affluence and its rising levels of shelterless residents, which it called “cruel and inhuman” in a 2018 report to the Global Assembly..
This crisis calls for pro-active and collaborative efforts. Beats 4 Hope, a West Coast non-profit organization that brings people and music together to maximize social and cultural impact, has launched an online campaign supporting and amplifying the “Radical Hospitality” work being done by Lava MaeX, a San Francisco-based nonprofit that delivers showers and services to the streets.
“Radical Hospitality” aids homeless and unsheltered populations with extraordinary care and compassion. Lava MaeX’s mobile hygiene units go beyond the uninspired, basic services provided by some government agencies and NGOs, taking the extra step to rekindle human dignity, and restore positive mental health and a sense of well-being, while also addressing self-esteem -- cleansing the spirit as well as the body. Lava Mae’s other services include pop-up care villages which dramatically improve access to critical services, and recruitment, training, and partnership programs. Currently active in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Berkeley, and Oakland, Lava MaeX’s toolkit has engendered a global movement through shared resources. To date, the organization has provided services to more than 21,000 unsheltered people, hosted 40 pop-up care villages, created more than 150 new programs, and engaged 165 partner organizations.
“We were moved by the work that Lava MaeX is doing and not only wanted to help raise funds, but to bring awareness to this critical movement in our communities’ said Alex Mejia, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Beats 4 Hope. “What they are doing matters and it’s making a difference in a state which has the world’s fifth-largest economy, yet also has 130,000 homeless residents, 90,000 of which are unsheltered. We wanted to show that the music community cares about these issues and wants to be an active part of any solution to what’s happening on the streets.”
This summer, Beats 4 Hope launched an online charity shop where all proceeds are donated to various West Coast charities. For the months of November 2019 and February 2020, all charity shop proceeds and donations will be designated for Lava MaeX. These efforts coincide with a video campaign which will spread awareness through social media networks. Joining the movement will be DJs Chuy Gomez, Kevvy Kev, Nick Vidal of the Baka Boyz and music artists Suckarie and Clayton Williams. “Lava MaeX is doing a great service for the community, and by partnering with Beats 4 Hope, the movement can only grow stronger” , said Gomez. Join the movement by purchasing an item atwww.beats4hope.com or donate directly to Lava MaeX at lavamaex.org. To volunteer, contactvolunteer@lavamae.org.
