The opportunity to work for the ACLU of Colorado over this past year has allowed me to observe the way that activists everywhere have successfully combatted systemic oppression with imaginative problem solving.

Activism has always been daunting work. It has always felt as though I must ask permission to fight for social justice, prove why liberation is important, or seek out the support of capitalist entities to help propel the movement. To an extent this is true, what helps to propel non-profits forward are the same things that often keep people's voices unheard; privileged investors, systems of approval, etc.

When I first began at the ACLU in June of 2022, most of our efforts were pointed towards encouraging young people to vote. Civic life has for centuries centered straight white men. During elections, we continuously see glaring corporate-style ads for different candidates that often only speak to the concerns of the privileged few.  Historically disenfranchised communities have had to face barriers to civic engagement. The issues with voting across the country seem daunting and nearly impossible to overcome, but by means of imagination, the ACLU and other non-profits alike structured creative campaigns to counteract deeply-rooted systemic oppression.

The foundation of creative problem solving is community, providing space where communities can exist safely and partake in ideation. We have seen this premise in countless activist movements throughout history. During my internship, I was given the opportunity to develop something similar: Art the Vote.

As an artist in Denver, I am constantly looking for opportunities where activism and creativity can intersect. Artists have always pushed boundaries and asked audiences to contemplate real life scenarios that may be uncomfortable. We ask people to investigate their own privileges, to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. This same notion is what creative problem solving in activist spaces asks us to examine.

Art the Vote was a project on behalf of the ACLU’s We Are the Vote campaign. It launched to bring in young artists and encourage them to use their visual talents to explore the intricacies of the voting system. Denver, much like many other cities, has a large circle of artists actively engaged in the community. I realized quickly that in targeting young voters we had to develop imaginative ways for engagement.

This event allowed young artists to come together for an evening of boundary-pushing conversation and celebration of local artists involved in activism. The evening was hosted by Chloe Duplessis, a speaker and artist who focuses on people navigating disability and the voices of people of color. We also highlighted several artists who submitted to an artist call, and young people displayed and sold their artwork.

The ACLU has taught me the critical importance of imaginative problem solving. This and community-oriented structures keep our fuel burning when we are all exhausted. When we can bring in creative outlets such as artwork, speeches, and videos, we are not only fighting for social justice change, but we are also reimagining what work and productivity can look like. My time at the ACLU allowed me to not only partake in imaginative community building, but also to organize and lead my very own event. I now understand even further the importance of cultivating an environment of active imagination in the motivation to dismantle existing power structures.

On Wednesday, April 5, 2023, a peaceful student was physically carried out by officers from the legislative viewing area of the Colorado State Capitol. The group of students, many from North High School in Denver, gathered to protest gun violence and demanded action from legislators.  

The following statement may be attributed to Deborah Richardson, ACLU of Colorado Executive Director, and Tim Macdonald, ACLU of Colorado Legal Director. 

“We are disappointed and disturbed that officers physically removed a student sitting peacefully in the legislative viewing area of the Colorado State Capitol on April 5, 2023. It is essential that we protect and respect the right of every person — especially young people — to speak out on matters of critical importance. That right is even more important when young people are engaged in speech in the very place where our laws are made. Students do not shed their constitutional right to freedom of speech or expression at the Capitol doors.  

The ACLU of Colorado hopes the recent interaction will be an opportunity for the Colorado Legislature and State Patrol to work together to identify solutions that will avoid a similar removal in the future. The State Capitol is where students may interact with our government to build a foundation for participation in a democratic society. When adults in the halls of power stifle the enthusiasm and passion of our youth, we lose out on the possibility of a better and more just future.” 

The events of April 4, 1968, hold an indelible memory for me. Just after 6 p.m. Eastern Time, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee. 

Throughout my childhood, I was raised in a segregated Black community in Atlanta. Because Atlanta has six Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) it is known as the Black Mecca, the one place in this world, where Black people can and do succeed. My neighborhood, Collier Heights, was wonderfully unique in that it was designed and built by Blacks for Blacks. 

As children, we never had to face overt racism and segregation. On my street alone, there were many notables. Among them NAACP Attorney Donald Hollowell, the first Black State Senator Leroy Johnson, and Dr. King’s parents.  

The first week of April was spring break and me and my siblings were outside playing a game when we heard our mother let out a piercing scream. We ran into the house and saw her kneeling in front of the television, sobbing uncontrollably. About 15 minutes later, there were sirens blasting as dozens of police cars came speeding down our street. It was then blocked off on both ends for the next week. About an hour later, a second set of police cars appeared escorting Coretta Scott King and her children to their grandparents’ home.  

Two days later, as a family, we went to Spelman College and stood in line to view Dr. King lying in state in their Chapel on campus. Until the day after the funeral, there were dozens of limousines pulling up at the checkpoint at the top of our street to be allowed to proceed to Dr. King’s parents’ home. On the morning of the funeral, the streets leading out of our community were lined with neighbors standing in silence as the funeral procession went by. 

Shortly thereafter, we went to Morehouse College to find a spot on the lawn where the public funeral was held. It was easily a five hour wait as we sat on the lawn waiting for the private funeral at Ebenezer Church to end, and the march from the Church to reach the campus. The fact that my three siblings and I never complained about the wait and the heat was an indication of the deep loss that we were feeling as a community, city, country, and world. 

Dr. King preached his last sermon on Sunday, March 31, 1968. The title: Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution, is often quoted: 

“We are tied together in the single garment of destiny, caught in an inescapable network of mutuality. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly. For some strange reason, I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. And you can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be.” 

In my work at the ACLU of Colorado, and throughout the years leading up to being the Executive Director, I am always aware of how both my social location and life experiences formed my life’s tapestry that reinforces what and how I show up, or step back, to further the work. This is just one reason I am honored to be in this fight for and to protect civil rights and liberties for all.