This statement was created by the group “Parks & Open Space Partners – NYC,” which is a group of over 20 NYC nonprofits that manage or advocate for parks. 

Statement on Racism from the Parks and Open Space Partners - NYC

As former President Barack Obama put it: "It’s natural to wish for life ‘to just get back to normal’ as a pandemic and economic crisis upend everything around us. But we have to remember that for millions of Americans being treated differently on account of race is tragically, painfully, maddeningly ‘normal’ — whether it’s while dealing with the health care system, or interacting with the criminal justice system, or jogging down the street, or just watching birds in a park.” 

As stewards of New York City’s public spaces, we will speak out and fight back against hatred and bigotry in all of its forms, because Black Lives Matter.  

Signed,

New Yorkers For Parks

A. Philip Randolph Square Neighborhood Alliance 

Broadway Mall Association

Bronx River Alliance

Brookfield Civic Association

Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy

Brooklyn Greenway Initiative

The Central Park Conservancy

City Parks Foundation

Coastal Preservation Network 

Elmhurst Supporters of Parks

Fort Greene Park Conservancy

Friends of Corlears Hook Park

Friends of Governors Island

Friends of Morningside Park

Friends of St. Andrew's Playground

Historic House Trust of New York City

Hudson River Park Friends 

Hunters Point Parks Conservancy

Jamaica Bay-Rockaway Parks Conservancy

Lewis Latimer House Museum

Madison Square Park Conservancy

Natural Areas Conservancy

New York Restoration Project

North Brooklyn Parks Alliance

Prospect Park Alliance

Randall's Island Park Alliance

Red Hook Conservancy

Riverside Park Conservancy

Rockaway Initiative for Sustainability and Equity (RISE)

Safe Zone Cross Culture Youth Group

The Trust For Public Land

Van Cortlandt Park Alliance

Washington Square Park Conservancy