Black White Woodson Reconciliation (BWWR)
Over the past several years we have been focusing on a project that began 1984 with Dr. Craig Woodson, President of Drums of Humanity. That year he saw a U.S. stamp celebrating the legendary
Father of Black History Month, Dr. Carter G. Woodson. This began his over-30-year
journey to discover more about his family’s history and relation to African Americans enslavement in 1619. In 1998 he held a Black White Reconciliation meeting within the Woodson family. We present this story and a new reconciliation protocol through drumming events and educational lectures.
Alfred Benjamin Documentary Video
In 2014, Craig Woodson completed a documentary video, Alfred Benjamin: Life, Loss and Recovery, a 43-minute documentary video of Craig’s father-in-law from his first marriage. As a Jew in 1936 Germany, Alfred (1916-2014), was forced out of Germany, but many of his family members did not make it. His life became a journey to recover from this Holocaust tragedy through creative art and photography. We present this video at fundraising events along with his original paintings and other examples of his artwork.
Celebrating Military Veterans
Beginning in 2011, Dr. Woodson has been inviting U.S. Military Veterans who are struggling with homelessness to participate in an annual event sponsored by the Cleveland Museum of Art called ‘Parade the Circle.’ Along with hundreds of other parade participants in this two-hour event, our group of Vets play drums to an audience of over 75,000 each year, celebrating the service of men and women who have experienced firsthand the horrors of war and post-war trauma — these people are some of the best proponents of peace.
Past Projects: Overview
Peace building, conflict resolution, community building and empowerment among different cultures and individuals through drumming and other music education activities.
Projects have included work in Kurdistan, Iraq, Java, Indonesia, Honduras, Ecuador, Tijuana, Mexico, the Lost Boys of Sudan Center in Phoenix, Arizona and Cleveland, Ohio.
Health Benefits
For more information on the health benefits of drumming go to this link.