Community, connection, and empowerment for Black Chicagoans seeking mental health and wellness services on Chicago’s Southside.
CHICAGO—(ENEWSPF)—June 23, 2017. The Black Women & Youth Mental Wellness Expo (BMWE) is a community event that will be the first of its kind in Chicago. The Black Women & Youth Mental Wellness Expo seeks to address the need of connecting Black women and youth to quality providers and empowering them to take charge of their mental health. The Expo will showcase a wide range of mental health & wellness resources in Chicago that provide quality services to Black women and youth. We will have inspirational speakers, engaging workshops, resources, food, giveaways, and much more!
Black Women & Youth Mental Wellness Expo will take place on Saturday, July 8th from 1:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the AKArama Community Service Center, 6220 S. Ingleside Avenue in Chicago. The event is free and open to the public.
Event co-hosts, Kenya Atwater, Chanell Hill, and Camesha Jones all struggle with mental health and were able to become mentally well because of access to quality services. Atwater, Hill, and Jones have partnered together to create the BMWE to support other Black Chicagoans with getting connected to quality providers and feeling empowered to take charge of their mental health.
The Black Women & Youth Mental Wellness Expo is desperately needed because:
- The Chicago Defender reports that six mental health clinics in predominantly Black communities on Chicago’s south side have closed since 2009.
- The Chicago Tribune reports that between 2009-2012 $113.7 million dollars were cut from mental health services by the State of Illinois.
- Black people are 20% more likely to report having serious psychological distress than non-Hispanic whites, according to the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health.
- A Princeton University study found that therapists discriminate against prospective patients who are Black or working-class, regardless of insurance standing.
Since registration opened 2 weeks ago, over 100 Black women and youth have registered for the Black Women & Youth Mental Wellness Expo.
Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/1916864228561155/
Eventbrite Page: http://bit.ly/BlkMWE
Event Sponsors, Contributors and Vendors Include: Illinicare Health, Family First: Domestic & Family Counseling Clinic, Emages Inc., NextLevel Health, Touch of Wholeness Psychological Services, Chicago Women’s AIDS Project, Haji Healing Salon, Empowering Wellness 360, Chicago Association of Black Social Workers, DJ Skoli, Brittney Carter Music, Chipotle Mexican Grill- Englewood.
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The Black Women & Youth Mental Wellness Expo brings mental health and wellness services, education, and empowerment to Chicago’s South Side community. http://bit.ly/BlkMWE
Source: http://bit.ly/BlkMWE
