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GREENWOOD Dist.–The Terence Crutcher Foundation, an organization that permeates Black power in the North Tulsa community, is gearing up for its seventh annual commemoration event in honor of Terence Crutcher, a beloved, unarmed community member who was gunned down by a Tulsa Police Department officer in 2016.
The Terence Crutcher Foundation (TCF), a nonprofit birthed out of tragedy by Terence’s twin sister Dr. Tiffany Crutcher, is calling on the community to show up and show out at their seventh annual Memorial Gala on Saturday, September 16, 2023 at the Cox Business Convention Center.
“This in-person gathering promises to be a night filled with love, remembrance, and unity,” TCF stated in a press release. A pre-gala reception begins at 6 p.m., and the dinner and special programming begins at 7 p.m. To purchase tickets, visit Eventbrite.
“During the gala, we will pay tribute to Terence Crutcher’s life through various activities, including heartfelt speeches, musical performances, and engaging conversations,” TCF stated.
7th annual Terence Crutcher Foundation Memorial Gala
On September 16, 2016, 40-year-old Terence Crutcher, a college student, was stranded in the middle of the road in North Tulsa when his car broke down. Passing by the scene on her way to a call, former TPD officer Betty Shelby stopped. Yet instead of offering aid, she racially profiled him and eventually shot him even though he had his hands in the air.
In the air, a police helicopter operator radioed in from above, calling Terence a “bad dude.”
Despite a weak case brought by Tulsa District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler, who seemingly reluctantly filed charges, a jury aquitted Shelby of wrongdoing. She was fired from TPD and gained a job just one county over as a sheriff’s deputy.
The mission of the Terence Crutcher Foundation is to create just and liberated communities free from racial violence and harm. “We work to shift the narrative that Black men are “bad dudes” and that Black people more broadly are inherently bad. Our vision stems from this ambition,” their website reads.
At the seventh annual Memorial Gala, the Terence Crutcher Foundation seeks to inspire the community to continue fighting for justice, with a little entertainment thrown in as well, as the family continues to seek justice for Terence at the federal level.
A pre-gala reception begins at 6 p.m., and the dinner and special programming begins at 7 p.m. To purchase tickets, visit Eventbrite.