Tiffany Crutcher
Founder of the Terence Crutcher Foundation Tulsa, OK Award Year: 2020Physical therapist turned criminal-justice-reform activist Tiffany Crutcher’s mission in life is police reform. After her brother Terence was killed by police in 2016, she founded the Terence Crutcher Foundation, which engages the community, law enforcement, and policymakers in preventing, identifying and addressing issues of inequity pertaining to minority communities in Tulsa and across the country. Tiffany is working to change the narrative about Black men and support those who have been affected by police violence. She won a major victory on measures to improve transparency and accountability within the Tulsa Police Department, including a decision not to renew the city’s controversial A&E “Live PD” television show contract, the first in a series of changes toward ensuring that the city and police function equitably for all Tulsans. In June 2021, the Terence Crutcher Foundation and their community partners hosted an event to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Greenwood Massacre and over 50,000 people attended to support the call for justice and reparations.
Tiffany is using her BVBJ award to support 10 Black-led grassroots organizations in Tulsa that are working to strengthen their collective fight for justice. She also traveled to Washington, DC with the families of George Floyd, Eric Garner, and Botham Jean to advocate for the Justice in Policing Act and she testified before Congress (time stamp 1:16) alongside living survivors of the Greenwood Massacre.
Tiffany led efforts around a ballot initiative to prevent Oklahoma House Bill 1674 from taking effect because it penalizes citizens for exercising their right to protest and allows motorists to run over protesters without criminal or civil liability.
Tiffany was recently interviewed on NPR, which recognized her as a BVBJ awardee, and featured in the New York Times Magazine and by the NBA.