The League has a new mural, designed and painted by Nikki Barber. The mural honors Charleena Lyles, a 30-year-old Black, pregnant woman who was fatally shot in North Seattle by two white Seattle police officers on June 18, 2017.
Painting the mural, there were occasional, unpleasant jeers, and a couple of uncomfortable situations. They were overshadowed by an overwhelming number of positive and supportive interactions with the Aurora/ Greenwood community. A number of people honked their car horn and shouted words of encouragement from their cars as they drove by. Some went out of their way to pull over right behind the scissor lift and shout up to me “Thank you, it’s really beautiful” or “Represent”. Most people who did this were Black or Brown. A Black woman, a sex worker, raised her fist in the air and looked me directly in the eye with a smile and shouted with pride, ”That’s Charleena Lyles! Hell yeah!” as she walked by.
More reactions to the mural:
A Black young man walked by with his fist raised, saying “Represent.”
A Black little boy in the backseat of his mom‘s SUV asked his mom to pull over to watch the artist work and told me he liked it with a full smile.
A Black woman walked by, snapped a picture and said, “You did a good job. I know her family. Thanks.”
A Black man struck up a conversation with me and a friend about his experiences in the Kitsap prison and with SPD in King County.
All these reactions struck me. I have helped to coordinate several public events on this exact neighborhood block without any interaction from Black or Brown people. Painting this mural opened up those interactions.
Intersectionality is often overlooked when talking about racial and social justice. It should not be.” Nikki continued, “Black lives matter. Black trans lives and Black women’s lives fit into this as well. Women often get spoken over, looked over, or forgotten about.”
The mural took me three days. Charlena has been ignored in our Seattle community and has been pushed to the back of priorities. I wanted to make sure I honored her with my detail and attention to her face. She is important. Her life is important. I want to make sure the lives of Black womxn and people of the Black community who are living are honored, too. At several of the protests and teach-ins I have attended, I have heard the phrase “Mourn the dead. Fight like Hell for the living.”
I believe printmakers have an obligation to deliver information and agency to the people – especially to those who cannot access or give it to themselves. I feel responsible to stand up for my friends who are Black and my friends who are Brown, since I white-pass so easily, but am not white.
The mural of Charleena Lyles will be on our building through August 2020.
Here are direct actions to take to support justice for Charleena Lyles, pulled from the Seattle Indivisible group:
Demand King County cities allow inquest into Charleena Lyles’ murder
Charleena Lyles was murdered on June 18th, 2017 by Officers Jason Anderson and Steven McNew from the Seattle Police Department. She was 30 years old and pregnant when she was shot. The cities of Kent, Renton, Federal Way, and Auburn have filed lawsuits against King County which prevent an inquest into what actually happened when Lyles was killed.
ACTION
Today’s action is to email the cities of Kent, Renton, Federal Way, and Auburn to demand they withdraw the lawsuit that destroys King County’s inquest process. Please also share with friends who live in these cities and ask them to contact their city government
Auburn Mayor Nancy Backus nbackus@auburnwa.gov
King County Executive Dow Constantine kcexec@kingcounty.gov
Federal Way Mayor Jim Ferrell Jim.Ferrell@cityoffederalway.com
Kent Mayor Dana Ralph Mayor@KentWa.gov
King County Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht Mitzi.Johanknecht@kingcounty.gov
Renton Mayor Armando Pavone apavone@rentonwa.gov
SCRIPT
“To Mayor Backus, Mayor Ferrell, Mayor Ralph, Mayor Pavone, Sheriff Johanknecht, and Executive Constantine,
I am emailing to voice my support for the following community requests:
Withdraw your lawsuit that seeks to destroy King County’s inquest process which is our community’s best tool for public assessment of police use of deadly force;
Cease your attempts to shield officers who have killed community members from testifying under oath; and
Cease your attempts to block the inquest jury from determining whether an officers use of deadly force may have been criminal conduct.
I hope you will join the community on the right side of history.”
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The League’s New Mural
The League has a new mural, designed and painted by Nikki Barber. The mural honors Charleena Lyles, a 30-year-old Black, pregnant woman who was fatally shot in North Seattle by two white Seattle police officers on June 18, 2017.
This post was written by Nikki Barber.
Painting the mural, there were occasional, unpleasant jeers, and a couple of uncomfortable situations. They were overshadowed by an overwhelming number of positive and supportive interactions with the Aurora/ Greenwood community. A number of people honked their car horn and shouted words of encouragement from their cars as they drove by. Some went out of their way to pull over right behind the scissor lift and shout up to me “Thank you, it’s really beautiful” or “Represent”. Most people who did this were Black or Brown. A Black woman, a sex worker, raised her fist in the air and looked me directly in the eye with a smile and shouted with pride, ”That’s Charleena Lyles! Hell yeah!” as she walked by.
More reactions to the mural:
A Black young man walked by with his fist raised, saying “Represent.”
A Black little boy in the backseat of his mom‘s SUV asked his mom to pull over to watch the artist work and told me he liked it with a full smile.
A Black woman walked by, snapped a picture and said, “You did a good job. I know her family. Thanks.”
A Black man struck up a conversation with me and a friend about his experiences in the Kitsap prison and with SPD in King County.
All these reactions struck me. I have helped to coordinate several public events on this exact neighborhood block without any interaction from Black or Brown people. Painting this mural opened up those interactions.
Intersectionality is often overlooked when talking about racial and social justice. It should not be.” Nikki continued, “Black lives matter. Black trans lives and Black women’s lives fit into this as well. Women often get spoken over, looked over, or forgotten about.”
The mural took me three days. Charlena has been ignored in our Seattle community and has been pushed to the back of priorities. I wanted to make sure I honored her with my detail and attention to her face. She is important. Her life is important. I want to make sure the lives of Black womxn and people of the Black community who are living are honored, too. At several of the protests and teach-ins I have attended, I have heard the phrase “Mourn the dead. Fight like Hell for the living.”
I believe printmakers have an obligation to deliver information and agency to the people – especially to those who cannot access or give it to themselves. I feel responsible to stand up for my friends who are Black and my friends who are Brown, since I white-pass so easily, but am not white.
V. Note: Printarts and Activism
The mural of Charleena Lyles will be on our building through August 2020.
Here are direct actions to take to support justice for Charleena Lyles, pulled from the Seattle Indivisible group:
Demand King County cities allow inquest into Charleena Lyles’ murder
Charleena Lyles was murdered on June 18th, 2017 by Officers Jason Anderson and Steven McNew from the Seattle Police Department. She was 30 years old and pregnant when she was shot. The cities of Kent, Renton, Federal Way, and Auburn have filed lawsuits against King County which prevent an inquest into what actually happened when Lyles was killed.
ACTION
Today’s action is to email the cities of Kent, Renton, Federal Way, and Auburn to demand they withdraw the lawsuit that destroys King County’s inquest process. Please also share with friends who live in these cities and ask them to contact their city government
SCRIPT
“To Mayor Backus, Mayor Ferrell, Mayor Ralph, Mayor Pavone, Sheriff Johanknecht, and Executive Constantine,
I am emailing to voice my support for the following community requests:
I hope you will join the community on the right side of history.”
BACKGROUND
List of demands from the family of Charleena Lyles:
https://www.facebook.com/events/256243055440977/
Seattle Times report on the Charleena Lyles Remembrance Vigil:
https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/hundreds-gather-to-remember-charleena-lyles-a-black-woman-killed-by-seattle-police-in-2017-amid-growing-movement-against-police-violence/
Seattle Weekly report on Kent, Renton, Federal Way, and Auburn’s legal opposition to officer-involved deaths:
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