The Gazebo Where Tamir Rice Was Killed Will Likely Come To A Chicago Arts Center

By Stephen Gossett in News on Aug 11, 2016 9:48PM

CLEVELAND, OH - MAY 23: Protestors sing in front of a mock casket for Tamir Rice. (Photo by Ricky Rhodes/Getty Images)

The gazebo where 12-year-old Tamir Rice was fatally shot in Cleveland will “most likely” be heading to a Chicago arts center, according to Rice family attorney Billy Joe Mills.

Although “nothing has been solidified,” Mills told Chicagoist “all signs point to" the gazebo being transported to and displayed at Theaster Gates’ Stony Island Arts Bank in Greater Grand Crossing.

Mills confirmed that the City Council of Cleveland voted to transfer ownership to the Tamir Rice Foundation, which Mills represents. And while they have discussed the option of moving the gazebo with other arts institutions, “it seems most likely that [Stony Island] would be the first location.” He said it is still being discussed as to whether the displayed gazebo would be a permanent or temporary exhibition.

Rice was killed in 2014 by a police officer after he mistook the child's toy gun for a real gun. The 911 caller who made the report told the dispatcher the gun was “probably fake.”

Mills said he hopes the gazebo can become a symbol of “peace and healing.” “Because Tamir was an innocent boy who was executed by the democracy in which he lived, that gazebo has a special quality to it. He hopes it can be “a house for mediation between factions at odds” such as police and policed communities, whether that occurs physically or symbolically.

Amy Schachman, Director of Programs and Development at Theaster Gates’ Rebuild Foundation, confirmed with Chicagoist that the foundation is in talks about acquiring the gazebo but said “no decisions have been confirmed.”

Theaster Gates’ artistic practice is known to incorporate extensive community development and has flourished over the past year in Greater Grand Crossing and South Shore. Last month the city announced Gates would partner in the renovation of the Green Line CTA Station, located just east of his Arts Incubator in Washington Park.

The Art Newspaper first reported the story on Thursday; and the Tribune also covered it today.