The sound of the one train roaring, loud music from car radios and the every-so-often alarms from fire trucks are evident in this Harlem community. The delicate aroma from the sprawled food vendors and the consistent chatter on every block add to its liveliness. As middle and high schoolers leave their academies, they begin their trip to a newly renovated six-story building built on history and full of new technology, appliances and free nutritious meals.
A second home to Black and Latinx youth either within the community or from other boroughs, this non-profit organization stands on fulfilling its mission to nurture future social change makers.
Created to educate and encourage young minds, co-founders and childhood friends Jason Warwin and Khary Lazarre-White founded The Brotherhood Sister Sol as the backbone of the community. Since located in the epicenter of West Harlem the recognition of great leaders and artists was introduced to the BroSis youth to commemorate their eminent efforts in brightening the community. Realizing its contributions started to show progress, they decided to create a program dedicated to fostering young minds to acknowledge the importance of the earth and its abundance for their survival. For over 15 years, the program has grown from working with nearby gardens to working alongside other organizations to sustain and develop green spaces.
Warin and Lazarre-White began their mission when they realized the lack of help young people faced growing up in underprivileged communities. As college seniors at Brown University, they founded the Brotherhood, which served to help young men overcome worldly challenges by creating a united and supportive community. Slowly expanding their teachings, the Brotherhood became a nonprofit and continued to grow as an organization that helped both young men and women. Starting in a compact brownstone, the organization garnered new and interested partners who were invested in the end goal. With its mission statement focusing on “social justice, educating, organizing and training to challenge inequity and champion opportunity for all” the nonprofit became an active contributor to the lives of countless alumni.
Succeeding in attracting more members from the start, the environmental program, also known as Gaia, created a system distinguishing the different stages each member would go through. Starting with its youngest members, Junior Gaia participants would take part in the six-week Gaia Summer Internship as the main entry point into the Gaia Renaissance Collective. After finishing high school, the members would graduate to Gaia Gurus, the final step in the program. Many alumni return to work for the organization or as Green Volunteers to help the next generation of social justice activists. Since the neighborhood lacked attention to preserving the environment, BroSis pushes their young members to insert their newfound knowledge upon their friends and families. Their accomplishments can be found on television networks or in interviews for their dedication as they continue to fight against one of the big issues the city is facing: food insecurity.
Many of their teen members are showcased through their participation in managing their youth-led farmers market at Johnny Hartman Plaza. Where various community residents can buy affordable and fresh produce and engage with the youth. Some customers even stop to converse and pass down the wisdom they learned living in the neighborhood.
As BroSis’s contribution to the community grows within West Harlem, its influence can reshape the culture since the area is well known for its artistic movement as far back as the 1920s. This era brought to light many significant Black artists and figures who contributed to various parts of the creative and cultural industries. From speakeasies to the Apollo Theater, Harlem provided spotlight opportunities for new artists, establishing the area as the heart of Black culture and art. Throughout the 70s and 80s, however, Harlem faced racial distress and low housing markets resulting in the community’s rise in crime. Many of the residents had to endure gentrification as it was the only answer to improve property value.
With some residents fearing the effects of this major change, Frank White, a community resident, decided to create a green space for the young folk to feel safe. Thus,
The Frank White Memorial Garden was founded in regard to his efforts and is now taken care of by young members from Gaia and community residents. To remember the legacies Harlem created, the Brotherhood Sistersol decided to use this garden as the prominent space for the environmental program. Since it’s adjacent to its headquarters, the garden received countless improvements from its youth as young as 8 years old. Leading Gaia, Senior manager of the environmental program Nando Rodriguez, facilitator Wendy Flores and horticulturalist Gabriel José Maldonado take responsibility for being an example to the members on how to care for the earth. As a team, Rodriguez and a group of teen members built a greenhouse to store various equipment, seeds for vacant flower beds and the aquaponic system that is managed by the members, too. With the new addition of the hydroponic system and traditional growing methods, Gaia exhibits sustainable agriculture that can be developed within the city.
For over 15 years, Gaia became the origin of many activists striving for prominent changes against pollution, global warming, and food insecurity. Its creation invoked a new wave of environmental advocates learning leadership skills, hands-on gardening, composting, landscape design, and more in an outdoor classroom dynamic. The Brotherhood SisterSol strives for excellence in all fields and like many of its programs, Gaia shows progress as most of its members use their knowledge in their daily lives.
By Carol Bautista
Carol Bautista, a first-generation queer Latina, is an aspiring journalist, activist, and junior at Hunter College. She’s an active member of the Queer Student Union and the Mexican Student Union and strives to achieve dean’s list status every semester. With her public portfolio and Instagram account, she posts articles about her community and social justice issues. Speaking with figures like the spokesperson for the 20thCouncil District, Sandra Ung, Co-founders of the Brotherhood Sister Sol, police officers, and street vendors, she has gained valuable experience in maintaining a calm composure and furthering her interviewing skills. Desiring to dedicate her life to writing the truth and exploring various countries to display what the general public can’t, she pushes herself to learn as much as possible to pursue her dreams.
