Support Iris Baez's Recovery from Eye Tumor Surgery

Dear Community -

A long-time movement leader is in need of your support! In March, Iris Baez, the mother of Anthony Baez (who was killed by the NYPD in 1994) under went surgery to remove a tumor from her eye. The surgery was successful and she has since received a prosthetic eye, which looks great! However, the road to full recovery and full health is a long one. Your contribution will help her cover the costs of travel to and from Miami, where her follow-up appointments are taking place and other costs of her recovery.

For those of you who don’t know: Mrs. Baez has been a leader of the movement for police accountability since her son, Anthony, was killed by the NYPD on December 22, 1994. Anthony was murdered by (now former) NYPD Officer Francis Livoti, who put him in an NYPD-banned chokehold.

 

The unjust tragedy of her son’s murder turned Mrs. Baez into a leader of New York City’s movement for police accountability and racial justice almost overnight. Mrs. Baez’s unwavering commitment to achieving justice for her son ignited a movement that brought thousands of New Yorkers into the streets.

Mrs. Baez founded the Anthony Baez Foundation in the 1980s and co-founded Parents Against Police Brutality in the 1990s. As a member and leader of the Justice Committee for decades, Mrs. Baez has worked with other families whose loved ones were killed by the police to help lead the way to historic New York movement victories including ensuring the passage of legislation to ensure a special prosecutor for all police killings, repeal the police secrecy law (50-a) and, most recently, overriding Mayor Eric Adams’ veto of the How Many Stops Act. She is the proud mother of 12 and grandmother of 17.

This year, Iris was diagnosed with an eye tumor, which was causing blindness in one eye. She had her tumor and eye removed in on March 19, 2024 and will be having more tests over the next several months to determine if the cancer has spread. Mrs. Baez is currently living with her daughter in Orlando, Florida, but needs to travel to Miami for some of her appointments. This means hotel stays, gas, tolls, and meals for multiple trips.

Please donate whatever you can to help cover these costs as well as the costs of groceries and supplies she needs to ensure her recovery is as comfortable as possible. With your help, we were able to raise over $2500 for her prior to her surgery and now are trying to get to $5k to cover recovery costs.