TEAR Programs
Miami-Dade County TEAR Initiative participates in the Equal Justice Initiative’s Community Remembrance Project through three initiatives: Monument Placement Initiative, Community Soil Collection Project, and Historical Marker Project. The purpose is to bring to light historical events, memorialize documented victims of racial violence, foster meaningful dialogue about race and justice, educate the community, and provide opportunities for healing.
Monument Placement Initiative
The TEAR Steering Committee was formed in order to bring to Miami and display publically the National Memorial for Peace and Justice’s Miami-Dade County monument to victims of racial lynching.
Soil Collection Community Project
TEAR Steering Committee members have collected soil at the sites where documented lynchings occurred in Miami-Dade County. The soil is displayed as part of powerful exhibits that connect places to historic events in tangible ways as part of the truth-telling process.
Historical Marker Project
In order to commemorate the incidents of lynching that were perpetrated in Miami-Dade County, the TEAR Initiative is raising funds to erect a narrative marker at each of the three sites where documented lynchings occurred.
Community Education
Partnering with schools, libraries, and other institutions and community organizations, the TEAR Initiative educates the public about incidents of racial violence in Miami-Dade County. Using a trauma-informed model and trained facilitators, the TEAR Initiative contributes to curriculum development and designs and facilitates experiential learning activities for multiple age groups and settings.
Community Dialogues
As part of the healing process, the TEAR Initiative provides safe, yet brave, spaces to bring stakeholders together and foster meaningful dialogue about race and justice. The dialogues not only unearth and confront the Miami-Dade community’s history of racial violence but also explore how that history continues to influence the present.
Racial Justice Essay Contest
In collaboration with the Equal Justice Initiative, this contest is designed to invite local public high school students, educators, and other community members to learn more about the history of racial injustice, and to engage in conversations about racial justice and equality.
