Serving boys and men of
color to improve health
Coming together to create a safe, healing community with open discussions, a caring brotherhood, and pathways to care. We normalize conversations about behavioral health toward whole person care.
ANXIETY | DEPRESSION
HEALTH DISPARITIES FOR BMOC
A growing body of research shows that disparities stem from a complex mix of individual, social, community, and systemic factors. For boys and men of color, these inequities are shaped by cumulative conditions such as poverty, inadequate housing and education, limited health insurance, and unequal access to care.
These social determinants of health contribute to disproportionate rates of misdiagnosed or untreated mental illness, over-medication, and heightened stress, anxiety, depression, and substance use. At the same time, the full impact of repeated and multigenerational exposure to violence, discrimination, oppression, neglect, and poverty is still not fully understood, yet it deeply affects individuals and entire communities.
In response, this program addresses Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), toxic stress, trauma, and secondary trauma, while integrating healing pathways aligned with Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Standards (CLAS). Our central goal is to engage participants in their own behavioral health care by increasing awareness and use of clinical, holistic, and individualized interventions and treatments.
Sometimes, that voice in your head is the voice of someone’s opinion of you. Shut it off and listen to you.
OUR GOALS:
- Increase anti-stigma efforts around behavioral health in an effort to end prolonged suffering.
- Eliminate barriers to behavioral health care; effective systems change.
- Reduce utilization of public and private behavioral health services for non-acute cases.
- Enlighten participants on their own behavioral health issues and how those can affect their overall health, and the health and well-being of their families, friends, and the larger community.
- Increase behavioral health support between peers, particularly in distress situations.
- Increase attention to self-care and integration of natural and holistic stress remedies for health improvement.
- Expanded partnerships to support the work.