<div><strong>Celebrating the Life, Love, and Legacy of Eric Butler</strong>
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<div>DONATE To Support Family and Cover End of Life Expenses of
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<div>Honored Restorative Justice Practitioner, Eric Butler
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<div>August 7, 1974 – August 4, 2024
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<div><em>“If you are in the know, be contagious.” — Eric Butler</em>
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<div>On August 4, 2024, we lost a truth teller, a justice-loving soul. Eric’s legacy spans
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<div>generations, and we honor every moment he lived out loud. As a community of family,
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<div>friends, and collective healers, we will continue to find comfort in Eric’s humor, his
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<div>antics, and the work he tirelessly and effortlessly pursued.
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<div>To know Eric was to experience revolutionary love. He lived with an unwavering
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<div>commitment to justice. Eric often stated, “We must use our values to penetrate our
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<div>needs; this requires us to be in deep relationship with each other.” A passionate bridge-
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<div>builder and truth-seeker, Eric taught us to connect across our differences and to lean
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<div>into the discomfort of conflict. His passion filled rooms and hearts and his love inspired
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<div>transformation and healing. Eric always showed up as his authentic self — this meant
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<div>he told the truth, he challenged dominant narratives, and asked questions to disrupt the
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<div>status quo. He often said, “We’ll never get there in our lifetimes, but we have to try; and
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<div>that is what makes it restorative justice, the effort you put in to getting to something you
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<div>might not ever know.”
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<div>Restorative justice is not simply a practice, it is a way of life, Eric often said. A way of
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<div>life that we commit to not just for ourselves, but for the future generations who will
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<div>inherit our society. And Eric practiced and lived in this way all while making you laugh
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<div>the hardest you’d ever laugh in your life. Eric was hilarious and generous with his joy.
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<div>When he wasn’t spitting about justice, he was singing Stevie Wonder or Luther
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<div>Vandross. Always dancing or cooking or putting you on game, Eric uplifted everyone he
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<div>encountered with his beautiful spirit. He loved you, and there was nothing you could do
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<div>about it.
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<div>All GoFundMe donations will go to support Eric’s family, celebration of life services,
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<div>outstanding end of life expenses, and more. We deeply appreciate your support.
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<div><strong>In Memoriam</strong>
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<div><em>You used to tell me u feared u wouldn’t have nothing to show</em>
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<div><em>When it was your time to go</em>
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<div><em>U left a hell of a mark</em>
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<div><em>The kind that never fades or heals</em>
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<div><em>You’ve created communities and gardens</em>
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<div><em>That will go on to become rainforests and villages</em>
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<div>---Taylor Thomas, Eric’s daughter
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<div><strong>This fundraiser is being organized by Eric's Family, Talking Peace, Restorative Justice on the Rise and Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth (RJOY)</strong>. Eric was an early RJOY staff member and was instrumental in RJOY's initiative of bringing Restorative Justice to the Oakland Unified School District. Eric went on to co-found Talking Peace and was a regular collaborator with <a href="https://www.facebook.com/RJOnTheRise" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Restorative Justice on the Rise</a>. You can see the breadth of Eric's work at <a href="https://www.talking-peace.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><a href="https://www.talking-peace.org/" target="_blank" class="" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">https://www.talking-peace.org/</a></a>.
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<div><strong>Below is a glimpse into Eric's impactful healing work at Ralph Bunche Continuation School in West Oakland...</strong>
</div><iframe media_type="0" media_id="HiLtFVHR8Q0" class="youtube-replace" title="YouTube video player" style="margin-bottom:20px;width:560px;height:315px;" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/HiLtFVHR8Q0/?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="1"></iframe>
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Celebrating the Life, Love, and Legacy of Eric Butler

Celebrating the Life, Love, and Legacy of Eric Butler

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