Horizon Therapeutics plc (Nasdaq: HZNP) announced today it has made a $100,000 seed donation to promote community engagement around the renovation of Emmett Till’s childhood home in Chicago’s West Woodlawn neighborhood.
The Till-Mobley Great Migration House Museum, Theatre & Garden will focus on educating patrons about the movement of seven million Blacks from the Jim Crow south to northern cities, which they transformed through hard work and enriched with heritage traditions. One such tradition was sending their children back to the south to visit family for the summer. Till, a 14-year old Black child from Chicago on a summer visit to Mississippi, was murdered after being accused of offending a white woman in her family’s grocery store. His mother, Mamie Till-Mobley laid his body to rest in an open-casket funeral to broadcast the horrors of race hate, and America’s civil rights movement was born.
“Living the values of diversity, equity and inclusion begins with dialogue and understanding,” said Irina Konstantinovsky, chief human resources office and chief diversity officer, Horizon. “Horizon became involved with the restoration of the Emmett Till House through a group of our Black employees who were looking for ways the company could support the Black community and create an authentic space where historically marginalized voices could be amplified. We are proud to lend support to an institution that will help teach current and future generations about a pivotal time in American history while simultaneously helping to eradicate racism.”
The renovation will be led by Blacks In Green (BIG™), a Chicago-based organization dedicated to reinventing the African American “walk-to-work, walk-to-shop, walk-to-learn, walk-to-play” village made common during the Great Migration. Blacks In Green purchased the two-flat home last year and the Chicago City Council granted the home historical landmark status in January 2021. The non-profit is actively seeking additional supporters and sponsors for development of the Till-Mobley home, and just received City of Chicago Adopt-a-Landmark funding to begin exterior restoration.
“The restoration of Emmett Till's home is essential to our efforts to preserve his memory and legacy here in Chicago and the Woodlawn community,” said Chicago Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot. “I want to thank Horizon Therapeutics and Blacks In Green for working together to turn this landmark into a space for learning, listening and addressing racism and other inequities.”
“We aim to transform the Emmett and Mamie Till-Mobley home into an international heritage destination that celebrates America’s Great Migration Story of courage, fortitude, creativity, labor and love that built our great American cities,” said Naomi Davis, founder, Blacks In Green. “With Horizon’s support, the Emmett Till House will become a vital source of pride for West Woodlawn and Chicago.”
About Blacks In Green
Blacks In Green, a Chicago-based nonprofit focused on connecting communities and their stakeholders in the design and development of green, self-sustaining, mixed-income, walkable-villages in communities owned and populated by African Americans. The preservation of The Emmett Till House will serve the community and as a place of pilgrimage of social and racial justice. For more information, visit Home | Glrbig (blacksingreen.org)
About Horizon
Horizon is focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of medicines that address critical needs for people impacted by rare, autoimmune and severe inflammatory diseases. Our pipeline is purposeful: we apply scientific expertise and courage to bring clinically meaningful therapies to patients. We believe science and compassion must work together to transform lives. For more information on how we go to incredible lengths to impact lives, please visit www.horizontherapeutics.com and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.
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Contacts
Geoff Curtis
Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs & Chief Communications Officer
media@horizontherapeutics.com
