I’m sure a lot of you have seen this by now, especially since our Psychopathic homies, Insane Clown Posse, shared the original news article (and within twenty-four hours received over 12,000 Facebook likes and 3,000 shares)! For the past seven years I’ve been working on establishing and revamping Buffalo Juggalos here in western New York as a non-profit, and I am especially proud to announce that I, along with a few officers from the Buffalo Juggalos organization, Grimm and Juggalette Joker, have established a new chapter called the “Juggalo Outreach Program.” For our first official act of business, yesterday (November 8th), we held a volunteer community clean-up project on the east side of Buffalo, NY.

Starting at 11am on a cold windy day, we had over thirty people turn out to help pick up trash, tidy vacant lots, manage yard waste and anything else that could be done to help improve the visual appeal of the area. A good handful of the group weren’t even Juggalos, they were just neighbors that were down to help the cause! We worked hard until 4pm (when it began to rain), covering a total of four streets and removing more than a full pickup truck of trash. We also raked excessive leaves, picked up large branches and swept along the curbs. Being that winter is almost here up in Buffalo, this will probably be the only clean-up until snow melts, but then after we plan to do these once a month, along with other charitable activities as well.

One of our Buffalo Juggalos, Kurty Vlo, helped hook up a spot for us on the local Time Warner Cable News broadcast (video below), and even interviewed me to speak about the project, as well as about Juggalos and the meaning of Family. Unfortunately due to time restraints, that cut didn’t make the final clip, but I did receive word that the entire newsroom was very intrigued by the story and may be interested in a future follow-up.

Here’s what the news article on TWC News said (and what the anchor reads during the story..):

BUFFALO, N.Y. — A group of Insane Clown Posse fans grabbed some brooms, shovels and some trash bags and hit the streets of Buffalo to help clean up.

The fans, also known as Juggalos, took part in the Buffalo Juggalos’ Juggalo Outreach Program’s first community clean-up program on Buffalo’s East Side.

Some area residents even joined in to help beautify the area.

Organizers said they love lending a helping hand to those who need it.

It is a pretty rough area, it needs the improvement, needs the help. There’s a lot of vacant lots. Our home base hatchet house is nearby so we figured we’d start at home and expand outwards.

The Buffalo Juggalos said they hope to hold more community clean-ups in the future.

For those that may still be wondering what exactly the Juggalo Outreach Program is, we actually serve three main functions:

• We assist local ninjas who may be facing a temporary hardship or displacement, or point them in the direction of someone who can help.
• We help out and give back to our community through means such as volunteer and charity work.
• We offer a 24/7 helpline, if anyone is ever faced with a harmful decision, or depression, addiction, etc. and doesn’t feel comfortable talking to authorities, you can message us and one of our J.O.P. team members will respond quickly to chat with you or even call you.

The Buffalo Juggalos’ and Juggalo Outreach Program’s mission statement reads:

Our ultimate goal is to create a fun and enjoyable sanctuary for all Juggalos and Juggalo- friendly peoples and to put a positive face on the Juggalo sub-culture. It’s a common theme for many Juggalos to feel uncomfortable or out of place in everyday society, and we offer a friendly alternative with a close family-like atmosphere. By working together, we can help to build a strong supportive community in these times where Juggalos face constant scrutiny and alleged “gang” affiliation by the FBI. We place high value in morals and ethics, and believe that only through honesty, communication and open-mindedness can true teamwork be achieved.

Overall, our goal is to help put Juggalos back in the good light. It’s not just a front though, we do actually enjoy helping out and giving back to our community and Juggalo family. Already we’ve received interest from ninjas in other parts of the country wanting to get a branch of the J.O.P. open in their area, and we’re totally down to expand and strengthen this network! By working together, we can help change society’s view on us. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, we can not sit around and rely on ICP and the ACLU to clear our names for us, they’re doing everything they can, put ultimately it lies on us as a culture, as a family, to make that effort and show the world we’re not the evil, criminal, psychotic axe-murderers the rest of the world perceives us to be.

Below is the video clip from Time Warner Cable News, uploaded to YouTube (in order to view it on TWC’s page you must be a subscriber). Take a moment to peep it out, read the news story and scope out the pics. And don’t forget to visit the Juggalo Outreach Program on Facebook!

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWN35kZzZLg[/youtube]

Websites:

• Juggalos Clean Up Buffalo's East Side @ TWC News
• Juggalo Outreach Program on Facebook