The Preservation League of New York State’s Response to Recent Protests

Our country has a long history of protest. It was founded on revolution and upheaval marks important moments throughout our shared history. We are living through such a moment. Our mission is to champion historic preservation, but we cannot ignore what is happening in the present. The murder of George Floyd and the protests that have broken out in Minneapolis and across the country will be looked back on as a defining moment of our time. It reflects deeply rooted racism and inequality that affects all of us, as well as our built environment – racially motivated policies and redlining have shaped communities from coast to coast.

We stand with our Black colleagues and collaborators, and people everywhere who speak out against racism. We believe that our work as preservationists means telling complete stories even when those stories are difficult or painful.

We invest in people and projects that preserve the full history of important places around New York State. Our headquarters are in Albany and we feel deeply connected to our local community, but we work in communities in every corner of the state, urban, suburban, and rural. We strongly believe that historic preservation is a powerful tool that brings people together to spur community revitalization and sustainable economic growth. We strive to empower communities to tell their stories, seeking to amplify those voices, and advocate alongside communities to preserve their history. As we all try to process what has been happening over the past week and think about the centuries of history leading up to it, the League believes that as a statewide leader in historic preservation, we have a responsibility to share our commitment to equity in the places we work so hard to preserve.