Leaders & Changemakers (2021)
This series was displayed at the 2021 SUNY Undergraduate Research Conference and celebrates and commemorates eight individuals in the African American community through portraiture. Four portraits include prominent individuals deserving of celebration, while the remaining four include those who have faced and lost their lives to violence and racism and deserve to be remembered.
Dr. Katherine Conway-Turner is the former president of Buffalo State College who initiated the annual service day called “Bengal’s Dare to Care Day”. This is a day in which students and faculty service the Buffalo community.
Cariol Holloman-Horne is a former Buffalo Police officer and activist. Horne created a law requiring officers to intervene when they see fellow officers using excessive force and protecting them from retaliation for doing so. In 2020, the Buffalo Common Council voted to pass Cariol’s Law, which created a local mandate. Horne's goal is to implement Cariol's Law in cities across the country to prevent police brutality.
Breonna Taylor (1993-2020) was murdered in her bedroom after officers blindly fired 23 shots into her apartment. Her death triggered national protests across the country and uncovered systemic hardship when it comes to justice for Black women.
David Driskell (1931- 2020) was a man who gave many African American artists a platform to display their work. He was known for curating the highest-profile exhibition at the time, Two Centuries of Black American Art, at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
George Floyd (1973-2020) was murdered in Minneapolis after an officer knelt on his neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. His death inspired nationwide and global protests against police brutality and was a notable inspiration for the Black Lives Matter Movement.
Daniel Prude from Rochester, NY, was shot and killed by police after having a mental health crisis. In the cold winter of 2020, officers found Prude naked, placed a mesh spit hood over his head, and pinned him face-down on the cold pavement for over two minutes. This caused Prude to stop breathing. The released body-cam footage of this incident created national outrage and contributed to the 2020 Black Lives Matter Protests.
Sgt. Isaac Woodard Jr, a 23-year-old U.S. veteran from South Carolina, was honorably discharged. In 1946, on a bus ride home, he had a brief verbal argument with the bus driver concerning a bathroom break. At the next stop, still in uniform, Woodard was met by police and was brutally attacked with a wooden nightstick in the eyes. Woodard was then jailed, and medical attention was denied, which led to permanent blindness in both eyes. The acquittal of his attacker incited the Civil Rights Movement.
Crystal D. Peoples-Stokes is Majority Leader of the New York State Assembly, who serves Buffalo’s 141st Assembly District since 2003. She was the first Black woman to be majority leader in the New York State Assembly. People-Stokes has fought for racial equality, gender equality, and diversity. She announced her retirement in 2026.