This weekend, members of our community joined arms with thousands of New Yorkers in protest of George Floyd’s abhorrent murder at the hands of the Minneapolis Police Department, the too many other instances of racial injustice that have preceded that tragedy, and in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.
We are incensed that, during a time of mass mourning of lives lost to COVID-19, Brooklyn’s residents must simultaneously grieve yet another entirely preventable death and compromise their health to ensure our borough’s collective dissenting voice is heard, clearly and loudly: We must end systemic racism and violence against people of color. And we must do so immediately. As Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams has noted, “The open wound of racism cannot be ignored.”
We are proud of our neighbors who have assembled peaceably in our streets with megaphones and chants. Brooklynites are braving batons, mace, the prospect of arrest, and financial precarity to ensure our borough’s message rings loud and clear. Police brutality has no place in America – and especially not here. Systemic racism must end. Change will begin at home.
Our borough’s Black and Brown communities are key generators and stewards of art, culture, and heritage in our city. The creative force of our diverse populace helped make Brooklyn the singular city it is; without Black and Brown people, Brooklyn would not be the international capital of culture it is today.
As Brooklyn’s central organization for support and funding for artists and tradition bearers, Brooklyn Arts Council has supported Black and Brown artists for the past 54 years – and we will continue to do so well into the future.
As we continue the long journey toward peace and justice, we stand in solidarity with those who protest to express their pain and anger over the death of George Floyd and countless others.
We welcome those engaged in civil disobedience into the Brooklyn Arts Council community. Martin Luther King, Jr. famously noted that “a riot is the language of the unheard.” The same proves true for art. At this time of heightened unrest, art is a vital tool for healing, documenting, and reimagining the events that precipitated this powerful moment.
Enough is enough. Black lives matter. Brooklyn’s Black lives matter.
In solidarity,
Charlotte A. Cohen, Executive Director, Brooklyn Arts Council
The Staff of Brooklyn Arts Council
Take action today. To support those on the frontlines of the fight for racial equity, please donate your material resources and time to the following collectives, organizations, and educational projects:
Bail Funds
National Bail Out Fund | #FreeBlackMamas
Fighting Racism and Police Brutality
Black Lives Matter Global Network
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund
National Police Accountability Project
Other