A community forum called a "Black Family Reunion" is hosted in Minneapolis.
(FOX 9) - An initiative to help create a more equitable future in Minnesota is promoting healing, listening and action.
Wednesday afternoon, dozens in the Black community met online and in-person for a community-led forum following the one-year anniversary of the death of George Floyd.
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Time of Reckoning seeks more equitable future for Minnesota
Time of Reckoning hosted the last of a series of community meetings Wednesday to promote its initiative to create a more equitable future in Minnesota.
Time of Reckoning is a series of community meetings as the group works to show the nation what community-centered policy change can look like.
The space, created last year, provides an outlet for reflection and healing for Black families.
"This is the last forum and we call it the Black Family Reunion," said Dr. Brittany Lewis of the Healing Justice Foundation. "It’s around the remembrance of George Floyd’s murder. It’s also an opportunity for us to get reconnected to one another."
Working to sustain the momentum of the social justice movement, there’s also a push for change in the criminal justice system.
Author and professor Dr. Brittany Lewis and speaker and author Dr. Joi Lewis are taking the lead.
"You’re talking about infrastructure change, cultural change within your organization," said Lewis. "You have to take a hard look at yourself and it’s going to be really uncomfortable. If you’re not uncomfortable, you’re not changing."
"We have figured out that, we have to make sure that healing and justice is here and we have to strategize on our own behalf," said Lewis.
A town hall and policy action roundtable are planned for the months ahead as calls for action grow louder.
"The work that we’re doing is not only looking at the criminal justice system, but the collateral consequences," said Lewis. "You know what are the things that affect housing, schools."
"We are very much about centering what Black people have been telling this city and the nation and we’re going to do it unapologetically," said Lewis.