History 

     In March of 2002, the Puerto Rican Cultural Center, along with college students from various universities throughout the City of Chicago, joined together to create Cafe Teatro Batey Urbano, a grassroots space dedicated to the Puerto Rican/ Latino youth of Humboldt Park and Chicago. Our work is carried out by a collective of student volunteers working in collaboration from the following universities: Northeastern Illinois University, University of Illinois at Chicago, University of Chicago. The collective is responsible for the day-to-day up keep of the space including: financial management, scheduling performers and artists, maintenance, and making consensus decisions about the overall direction of the Batey. A unique aspect of Batey Urbano is that all of our funding is raised through the nightly three to five dollar donations for events.

      The purpose of Batey Urbano is to draw college students into the community, bringing college resources and connections with them. As well, our aim is to promote participation in changing and developing a positive image of both our youth and our community, and to develop a direct tie with community artists-providing a viewing/ exhibition space for their artwork. On the notion of self-determination through cultural affirmation we are creating a space, which cultivates Puerto Rican/ Latino youth who contribute to their community as socially conscious artists, poets, and performers.

     Batey Urbano is much more then your average café. It is a café in the sense that you may order coffee and pastries, but Batey Urbano is a performance space, art gallery, and gathering place for cultural and community events. It is in Batey Urbano that discussions and dialogues are spearheaded by our youth. We feature a variety of community artists; from graffiti writers and poets, to photographers and artisans. We also invite the general public to perform at our open mic -Poetry with Purpose- on Thursdays, and our Four Elements Hip Hop Expression -open mic on Fridays, both starting at 8pm and ending with a featured act. Saturdays are dedicated to what we call Cultural Engagement Night, a time when people re-connect and expand on what it means to be Latino. Usual activities include movies, speakers, art exhibits, and Bombazos.

     The existence of Batey Urbano allows for the creation of an environment of critical thought in which our youth are challenged not only to build dialogue, but also to participate in finding solutions to the many problems our community faces. The youth of Batey Urbano have identified colonialism, racism, homophobia, gentrification, patriarchy, lack of jobs, and lack of access to higher education as some of the most urgent social problems, among many others, that we face. We have chosen to focus on and address these issues through our work.

     Because of this strategic focus, the Batey has been a featured story in various publications including; Que Ondee Sola, El Otro, El Grito and Extra. As well, the Batey was highlighted in the Chicago Tribune as one of the top "unauthorized" spots to visit while in Chicago. It was also highly covered by television news media for it's organizing of a-day-long cultural event against violence, and for providing youth with alternatives. Three hundred youth were in attendance, and the event was featured on channel NBC5, Univision 66, Telemundo 44 and ABC7.

Teatro Batey Urbano is a cultural space/youth center for action and reflection for Puerto Rican/Latino youth. We seek to create meaningful linkages between universities and the community, based on grassroots activism. Premised on the notion that our memories (our history)is the source of our imagination, Batey Urbano is a space for creative critical expression.

The Café Teatro Batey Urbano is an affiliate program of the Puerto Rican Cultural Center (PRCC), which is founded on the philosophical premises of the self-determination, self-actualization, and self-sufficiency of the Puerto Rican/Latino community.

The motto of the PRCC is to "live and help to live." It is with in that context that a collective of young people, from the community, as well as various universities have come together to create the Café Teatro Batey Urbano.

The name has its roots in the historical process of the Puerto Rican people. The Batey was the cultural definition that the Taino people of Puerto Rico gave to the ceremonial grounds in the midst of their villages (yucayeques). At the Batey all community events were held. The concept of the Batey later on applied to the front yard of the homes of Puerto Rican country folk (the jibaros). The Batey thus became the space where all the cultural functions of the family were undertaken.

The Urbano part of the name refers to the urban space in which the contemporary barrio is set. So here, in the midst of Paseo Boricua, youth of the diaspora established Batey Urbano.

The Café Teatro Batey Urbano has three objectives. 1) To provide a space for meaningful and purposeful presentation of young Latinos' cultural experiences; 2) To promote the skilled development of young Latino artists and cultural workers through forums, workshops, video presentations, etc. 3) To build a bridge between the Latino youth at the universities and in the community through the enhancement and/or development of campus newsletters (i.e. Que Ondee Sola, El Grito Borincano, 100 X 35, etc.). 4) To support the organizing efforts of our community through a cultural and youth activist dimension.