New Britain’s New Life II Ministries, in partnership with Wildflower Alliance from Western Massachusetts, are presenting an exhibit, “Black Movement History Leaders: Past and Present”, at the New Life II’s downtown Recovery Community Center. The organizations held a reception for the exhibit Thursday.
In addition to being on view at New Life II, the exhibit is also online at blackmovementleaders.info. The website says that,
There have been and continue to be many powerful Black leaders within this movement who too often are made less visible by a society that still finds it easier and more automatic to lift up white voices first. This exhibit is intended as only one of many small steps to counter that trend, and to help us avoid losing more stories from our history than have already been lost. We consider this not just an exhibit, but a call to action to lift up more black voices, to at least sometimes take a step back to make space for those who’ve had less access to these platforms, to share or pass along invitations to step forward, and to make intentional efforts to mentor and grow emerging Black voices, too.
The Project Statement for, “A Call to Action: Black Movement Leaders: Past & Present,” by Dana Smith, Executive Director of New Life II, Chacku Mathai and Sera Davidow, Director of Wildflower Alliance, says,
There is a movement made up of people with psychiatric histories who have been significantly impacted by trauma (both within and beyond the psychiatric system) and other life hardships. This movement goes by many names: Psychiatric survivor, consumer/survivor/ex-patient, and more, and is perhaps best described as several overlapping movements. It is a movement that fights for humanity, dignity, justice, alternative supports, and centering the wisdom of those who’ve ‘been there’ at the same time that societal norms continue to include silencing, devaluing, and unnecessary medicalization of distress in the name of psychiatric oppression.
However, the faces and voices of this movement has consistently skewed white, while the faces and voices of people most deeply and negatively impacted by the psychiatric and other intersecting systems are black and brown. The fact of the matter is that there have been and continue to be many powerful Black leaders within this movement who are too often made less visible by a society that continues to find it easier and more automatic to lift up white voices first.
This ongoing trend causes great harm. Not only in its most obvious inequities, but also by perpetuating a gap for people who are currently struggling and unable to find anyone who looks like them. We need people to identify with, including those who has moved through struggles and beyond to a full life that they are living on their own terms. This gap contributes to more black and brown people becoming stuck in these systems, and fewer emerging as leaders themselves for lack of support and visibility of that potential.
This exhibit is intended as only one of many small steps to counter that trend. We consider it not just an exhibit, but a call to action to lift up more black voices, to at least sometimes take a step back to make space for those who’ve had less access to these platforms, to share or pass along invitations to step forward, and to make intentional efforts to mentor and grow emerging Black voices, too.
All this said, we need to acknowledge that this process is deeply imperfect. Even the existence of this exhibit is itself a product of white supremacy. In some ways, it is complicit by acting as if “Black leader” is something different and set apart from “leader” overall. The accomplishments of Black people in this movement would simply and routinely be acknowledged alongside everyone else without needing to differentiate were we where we should be. And yet, these voices are not recognized enough, and we hope this exhibit can serve as a step along the way, not just to equity but to inclusion for all.
Thank you for taking the time to share in this exhibit with us. We hope you will learn these names and stories, and integrate their words and accomplishments into your work as you move through your days.
