Honoring 11 Years of #SayHerName: RPJ Celebrates AAPF’s Premiere Staged Reading

RPJ congratulates our client, the African American Policy Forum (AAPF), on their first professional staged reading of the #SayHerName: The Lives that Should Have Been play, presented this past Monday at the Atlantic Theater Company in honor of #SayHerName’s 11th anniversary.

Developed from interviews with members of the #SayHerName Mothers’ Network, the play invites audiences to imagine the lives that Black women and girls might have led had they not been lost to police violence. This work grows out of AAPF’s influential #SayHerName campaign, launched in 2014 to bring national attention to the often-overlooked killings of Black women, girls, and femmes. Through this production, AAPF continues its commitment to “artivism,” using creative expression to illuminate racial and gender injustice and to honor the dignity of those lost.

Monday’s staged reading featured a talented ensemble cast, including Moses Ingram (Sunset Baby, The Queen’s Gambit), Adrienne C. Moore (The Blood Quilt, Orange is the New Black), Tonya Pinkins (Caroline, or Change, Tony Award winner for Jelly’s Last Jam), and DeWanda Wise (Furlough’s Paradise, Love, Brooklyn), among others, bringing depth and resonance to the stories at the heart of the play. The reading was led by emcee Kara Young, with opening remarks delivered by New York Attorney General Letitia James. It was a powerful milestone for the campaign and for the families whose stories give it meaning.

RPJ is proud to support AAPF and congratulates them on this important and inspiring achievement. And further, we recognize RPJ’s Deena Merlen and Daniel Ain who assisted the AAPF with the playwright’s agreement enabling this important event.

Learn more about #SayHerName and AAPF’s work here.