Weeksville Heritage Center in Brooklyn is showcasing the Rikers Public Memory Project’s exhibition, “Torture Island: Past, Present, Future,” on view through March 1, 2025.
The Rikers Public Memory Project (RPMP) was founded in 2018 to illuminate the lived experiences of individuals most impacted by Rikers Island, mobilize efforts to repair generational harm, and challenge dehumanizing narratives surrounding incarceration.
The exhibition features creative works by the 2024 Narrative Change Community Fellows alongside historical context and personal stories about Rikers Island, the active New York City jail complex located in the East River.
The 2024 Narrative Change Community Fellows are Anisah Sabur Mumin (documentary), Michele Evans (sculpture), Ofia Begum Ali (photography), and Helen “Skip” Skipper (theater).
The Rikers Timeline is written by Shana Russell and designed by Isaac Scott. The Portraits of Rikers series is illustrated by Medar de la Cruz in close collaboration with the featured narrators.
By using collective memory as a strategic tool, the exhibition seeks to advance the movement to close Rikers, mobilize efforts to address its generational harms, and counter the dehumanizing narratives about those affected by its existence.
Public programming will include panel discussions, workshops, screenings, and docent-led tours, including:
- February 1: Exhibition Opening and 2024 Narrative Change Community Fellows presentations
- February 4: Screening of Closing the Last Penal Colony and Panel Discussion with Freedom Agenda & Tuff Art Media
- February 12: Youth Day: Understanding the History of Incarceration in NYC
- February 19: Panel Discussion: Growing up on Rikers with Confined Arts
- February 28: Oral History Collection Day
- March 1: A Festival of Healing and Community Care with Beyond Rosies and WCJA
The Weeksville Heritage Center is a historic site on Buffalo Avenue between St. Marks Avenue and Bergen Street in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York City. It is dedicated to the preservation of Weeksville, one of America’s first free black communities during the 19th century.
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