Creative Growth Statement on the Derek Chauvin Verdict
April 29, 2021
As last week’s guilty verdict in the trial of Derek Chauvin for the brutal murder of George Floyd continues to reverberate throughout our society, we welcome the flame of hope for justice that the jury’s decision sparked, while honoring the enduring grief of a senseless loss that can never be erased.
The verdict brings a sense of relief after almost a year of protest and outrage. The truth is, however, that Black Americans are still three times as likely as white Americans to be killed by police, and the work of dismantling the systemic racism at the root of police violence against BIPOC has only just begun. What many may not realize is that nearly 50% of all people killed by police also have disabilities. Those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, including Down syndrome and autism (both conditions marked by heightened susceptibility to seizures), are particularly vulnerable to police violence, as they may be less likely to conform to the compliance model of behavior shared by law enforcement, who are trained to react with lethal force when dealing with agitated individuals who seemingly fail to heed their commands. Add to this Black or Brown skin, and the risk of a violent and traumatic police encounter is dramatically escalated. Indeed, while much of America was reliving daily the trauma of Floyd’s murder during the trial, two more young men—Daunte Wright and Adam Toledo—were shot and killed by police; both had learning disabilities. Thirteen-year-old Adam had been classified as a special education student early in his life. He also, reportedly, “liked to draw.” And earlier this week, the Alameda Police Department released bodycam footage of an officer kneeling on the back of Mario Gonzalez just before he died in police custody, on the day before the Chauvin verdict; he was the caretaker of a younger brother who has autism.
For nearly 50 years Creative Growth has championed access and inclusion of individuals with developmental disabilities through our art studio and gallery. The work of Creative Growth artists is now included in prominent contemporary art collections, galleries, and museums worldwide. Yet the brutal deaths of George Floyd, Daunte Wright, Adam Toledo, Mario Gonzalez, and so many more like them, have reminded us of the danger that Creative Growth artists, many of whom are BIPOC as well as I/DD, continue to face each time they leave their homes. These events have also awakened us to the urgent need to reexamine and reignite our commitment, both personally and as an organization, to ending systemic racism and ableism, and to make intentional changes to ensure that we are truly living up to Creative Growth’s mission, vision and values. Silence is complicity. There is no more room for silence.
We believe this is a time for our voices to be heard collectively throughout the country and the world in opposition to white supremacy, ableism, and all systems that perpetuate injustice and unequal treatment to anyone. These recent tragedies, and the continuing hate-motivated violence against the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community, demand that we attend not only to what we are feeling, but also to what we are doing.
Over the past several months, the Creative Growth board and staff have embarked on a journey of learning, exploration, and cultural transformation, together participating in education in Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) principles, re-evaluating and revising our systems and practices through an equity lens, bringing diverse perspectives and voices onto the board and staff, forming a joint staff-board JEDI Task Force, formally documenting our collective values, and adopting a vigorous equity statement to map our path forward. We are striving to break down barriers to access within our organization, committed to holding ourselves accountable by our words, actions, and results. The work has already proved to be painful as well as revelatory, and is more critical than ever. While these efforts are a positive start, we realize that our work has barely begun and is without end.
Creative Growth is in solidarity with all those who suffer injustice, as well as those who have long been fighting to make the change the world so desperately needs. We are committed to moving forward together towards real justice and transformative change.
— The Board of Directors and Executive Director of Creative Growth Art Center
Related links:
“Black People More Than Three Times as Likely as White People To Be Killed During a Police Encounter,” Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, published June 2020.
“Media Missing the Story: Half of All Recent High Profile Police-Related Killings Are People with Disabilities,” The Ruderman Family Foundation, published March 2016.
“Black, Disabled and at Risk: The Overlooked Problem of Police Violence Against Americans with Disabilities,” TIME, published June 2020.
“Up to Half of People Killed by Police Are Disabled,” Teen Vogue, published September 2016.
“Why Police Need Training to Interact with People on the Spectrum,” Spectrum, published June 2018.
“Autistic People and Police Brutality: the Unnerving Combo that Just Won’t End,” Affinity Magazine, published September 2016.
“Police Problems Are Everywhere Problems: George Floyd and Adam Toledo Were Victims of Many Systems Including Education,” Apt. 11d, published April 2021.
Consider following: