Melanated (Aug 2021)

Melanated THE COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY ACTION FOR BLACK LIVES INITIATIVE NEWSLETTER AUGUST 2021

August Musings

BY TOINETTE POWERS

Welcome back, beautiful Black and Brown

For the month of August, we encourage

people, and a special welcome to our first-year

you to set new goals, a new mindset, and

students! We are FINALLY all back on the scene!

most importantly, boundaries. Between being an overachiever in the classroom,

This last year and a half have been nothing short

working at your job, trying to have a

of a roller coaster ride. From the vaccines to the

social life, and all the other things, don't

masks to the change in presidency, to our own

forget to make time for YOU.

personal unexpected life events and changes we have been through it. Yet, here you are attending Columbia University, showing up and

Because YOU deserve affirmations, quality time, gifts, physical touch, and

showing out!

acts of service. So, give yourself that hug.

We are proud of you! Yes, you! Celebrate yourself

beautiful and powerful you are. Because

and the small wins because, at the end of the day, every step you take contributes to your

Take yourself out to eat. Tell yourself how once you learn how to love yourself internally, you'll know how to express

future growth, and let me remind you - you've

and accept love externally.

been stepping, honey!

Sending you love & light ✨

Spotlight: David Robertson (He/Him)

BY SEYI SEGUN

overwhelming with many people asking for my contact information so that I could be their therapist. I wasn't a therapist then, but I realized that is something that I could be impactful in.

Can you speak more about your education trajectory? I would describe

myself as a non-traditional student. I dropped out of undergraduate in 2006 and didn't go back until 2013. From there, I went on to earn a BA in Global Health and then a MA in Education and Curriculum Development. This, alongside my years in management, allows me to bring a unique perspective into the MSSW program.

Where do you see yourself Post Columbia? For now, I am not sure. But, I am

sure that I will meet myself where I am, always focused on purpose and joy.

PHOTO CREDIT: DAVID D. ROBERTSON

David Robertson is a second-year Master of Social Work student. A community leader and a fierce advocate for wellness and hope, David is the founder of H.O.P.E. IS: a non-profit that specializes in empowering local communities’ capacity to respond to the health, educational, and economic needs of their community.

Why Columbia? I came to Columbia due to

the clinical approach of the social work program, community, and the school's

Any advice for a Black incoming student?

Lean into community. Take up space often.

Release joy because it’s inside each of us.

Also, learn your boundaries.

FUN FACTS Hometown: Chicago, IL Favorite Food: Arepas Favorite Vacation Spot: Italy Favorite Pasttimes: Driving up the coast in

the bay; Walking around Paris; Eating

Emerging Media, Society, and Technology

amazing food in Chicago; Boat parties

minor. I wanted to be in a space where I could

Favorite Movie: Harlem Nights

fuse these items for my intended work with families and children.

Favorite Artist: Jupiter: Painter from

Sacramento, CA

When did you know you wanted to be a

Favorite Author: Maya Angelou

social worker? I always wanted to be in the

Currently Reading: The Body Keeps Score

wellness world. But it wasn't until I was doing a professional training on trauma-informed care that social work came on my radar. The feedback I received from that training was

by Bessel van der Kolk Focus for the next month: Meditating and

focusing on the greater me

What's Happening in the Lab

BY CHANTEL PLUMMER

What is the Action Lab?

The Action Lab stands for justice, leadership, community, and student activism. The founding members, Dr. Desmond Patton, Dr. Susan Witte; and student leaders Natosha Dobbins and Caitlin Yee came together to create a COVID-19 resource hub. Then the dual pandemic of racism hit heavily, highlighted by the brutal murder of George Floyd. This initiative stimulated the longoverdue conversation around police brutality against Black and Brown bodies and the persistent and pervasive anti-Blackness in the U.S. and abroad. From there, the Lab has blossomed into the following initiatives, which are all student-led:

Action Lab Initiatives:

Civic Engagement | COVID-19 Initiative | Disability Justice Initiative | Ebony Towers (racial justice podcast) | Environmental Justice | Oral History (student activism archive) | Reimagining Safety & Care | Reproductive Justice | Research & Writing | Social Media | Umoja Circles (emotional support groups for the Black community of NYC).

Onboarding:

The Action Lab is seeking students for field placement, volunteer, and work study positions.

To learn more about the Action Lab and ways to support some of our initiatives, please email us at actionlab@columbia.edu.

Action Lab Highlight: ABL X Social Media

On Juneteenth 2021, the Action for Black Lives (ABL) Initiative led a CSSW IG live takeover highlighting Juneteenth, PRIDE and Black-led LGBTQ+ organizations. During the takeover, ABL shared information and resources focusing on

the intersection of Juneteenth and PRIDE which can be found on Action Lab’s Instagram page @csswaction.

On June 29th, ABL, the Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI), and Student Life Services hosted a POSE watch party event as part of CSSW PRIDE. ABL’s very own Student Advisor, Naomi Wright, moderated the discussion featuring Morticia Godiva (she/they) of POSE as she discussed being a Black womxn of trans experience and the ways in which her narrative and the accounts of so many others are anecdotally reflected in the television series. The event also included a special guest appearance from POSE’s Indya Moore (she/they).

There is more to come from ABL as we enter into this academic year. Stay tuned for details on how to connect with ABL, other students, and faculty during the upcoming virtual “Welcome Black to CSSW” event on Tuesday, September 14, 2021!

Uplifting Black Artists at Columbia: Kadence Mitchell (She/Her+) the body remembers its birthing

By Kadence Mitchell | MSW 2022 | Second Place Winner: University of Iowa National Social Work Poetry Contest '21

I do not remember what it meant to form. those memoriesthe war against my brothers to latch, the eruption of consciousness into what once was egg and tissue and not-quite flesh; the bone that grew into body, strong enough to bend and too-strong to break; my own helplessness, constant absorption, nutrition and emotion from a body at once mine and not-mine; the fight to push past cervix, to morph through canal, to choke up my own fluid, just to experience the breath, ripped from warmth and world in womb only to seek it out again those memories, the body carries in places i’ve not yet reached. i do not remember what it meant to form at times, i think i’ve just woken up into this body, familiar and unfamiliar, remembered and unremembered, as it is.

Artistic Highlight: WizKid

What We're Currently Reading: What Happened to You by Dr. Bruce Perry and Oprah Winfrey

PHOTO CREDIT:

HTTPS://ZAMBIANMUSICBLOG.COM

Music is in us. Music is a part of us. Music reminds us of where we were, where we are, and where we are going. From the beginning of time, during slavery, and afterward, music has continued to be one of the main connectors amongst African descendants. It's about the feeling that the vocals, the beats, and the instruments bring to our bodies that ignites a fire in us. That tells a story. Our stories.

Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun also known as Wizkid, Starboy, or Big Wiz is known as one of the latest Nigerian artists to exemplify this form of creativity. He is known for his hit song Essence (2020). His career started with his first single, Holla At Your Boy (2011).

From there, he has worked with prominent artists such as Drake and Wale.

If you enjoy Afrobeats, Reggae, Dancehall, R&B, or even HipHop, WizKid will definitely give you all the vibes!

PHOTO CREDIT: WWW.SECONDSCALE.COM

Aunty Oprah did not fail us on this one.

POWERFUL is not even an adequate way to describe What Happened to You. Every page brought in a new perspective and had our minds spinning as we tried to comprehend the complexities of the human brain and adverse experiences.

Almost every sentence is a quotable such as “We elicit from the world what we project into the world but what you project is based upon what happened to you as a child" (Dr. Perry).

While only 300 pages, this is a book that you will most likely need to read about 3 times due to the meatiness of the concepts. We highly recommend this work.

Photo credit: www.neoenergia.com

Job Opportunities Research Coordinator - NYU Langone

Executive Assistant, CBS News (NYC

Health (NYC Based)

Based)

(Posted 3+ days ago on Indeed; Bachelor

(Posted 3+ days ago on Indeed; College

degree + 2 years' experience) Shoot your

degree preferred + 5 years’ experience)

shot. Candidate will coordinate all data management related activities for assigned clinical research studies conducted at the Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center.

Interface directly with Principal Investigators, clinical study team members, regulatory specialists, quality assurance specialists, financial coordinators, study monitors, and service rendering departments as needed in support of the cancer clinical trials. Click here for more

Still, shoot your shot. Candidate will

information.

provide support to the CFO of CBS News.

The position involves heavy scheduling and calendar management, as well as coordinating meetings and creating/modifying travel itineraries.

Candidate will also provide general finance assistance as needed, such as invoice coding and reconciling expense statements. Click here for more information.

Community Coordinator-HPV Project

Senior Analyst, Government Affairs and

The Fund for Public Health in New York

Public Policy, State and Local-Google (NYC

City (FPHNYC)

Based)

(Posted 5 days ago. MPH preferred along

(Posted 5 days ago; BA +4 years of

with English/Spanish proficiency. Still,

experience working in operations, or

shoot your shot. Community Coordinator will be the liaison between the Office of School and all school-based implementation sites for the HPV vaccination program. He/she/they will work collaboratively with the Program Manager to ensure that day-to-day operations are being carried out according to the project timeline. Tasks will include coordinating program logistics by effectively communicating with clinic staff, school administration, students, and parents when necessary. Click here for more details.

program management within government, think tanks, public interest groups, or industry associations) Still, shoot your shot.

Candidate will help analyze and track state legislation, conduct state, and local legislative research, manage strategic projects, edit and draft internal and publicfacing documents and presentations, and support the state and local policy team's advocacy efforts across the country. Drive and execute analysis required to form State and Local policy recommendations. You will also develop strategies and action plans to implement solutions, etc. Click here for more details.

Your Mental Health Matters

BY CHANTEL PLUMMER

July was designated as BIPOC Mental Health Month, and during the days preceding the 2021 Tokyo Olympic games, the world witnessed two of the most accomplished and PHOTO CREDIT: (from left to right) - (Naomi) PHOTO CREDIT: (left to right) - Andrew Henkelman; cbsnews.com; Behrouz Mehri/AFP via Getty Images

influential athletes of all time put their mental health first.

Despite the pressure to constantly perform as athletes, Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka have become champions of mental health as they advocated for themselves and publicly promoted normalizing self-care and seeking professional mental health treatment for BIPOC people.

Simone Biles announced that she would not be competing in the all-around final, citing the need to take care of her mental health needs. She previously opened up about seeing a psychologist for anxiety related to past sexual abuse, coupled with the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic and the continued racial injustices experienced by Black and Brown people. Naomi Osaka received backlash for refusing to participate in mandatory press conferences at the French Open. She withdrew from the French Open and Wimbledon to focus on her mental health as she reported her struggles with depression and anxiety. Osaka was later eliminated from the women’s Olympic tennis tournament. Let’s not forget Sha’Carri Richardson who was penalized by being eliminated from the Olympic races for testing positive for marijuana. Richardson expressed her experience of trauma and depression following the death of her biological mother.

Notwithstanding there being no evidence of performance enhancement as a result of utilizing marijuana, Richardson was punished for her actions.

In thinking about the intersectionality of race and gender in the cases of Biles, Osaka, and Richardson, it is necessary to eliminate the “strong Black woman trope” and shift the focus to normalizing mental health care regarding Black women. Black people have unique experiences with mental health given the history of trauma that threads through generations and the injustices that persist in myriad ways across the life course. It is time to humanize Black women athletes who, too, experience pain, burnout, and mental health concerns.

If you or anyone you know is seeking assistance with BIPOC mental health care, take a look at the resources below. And remember to take care of you, fam!

Therapy for Black Girls - https://therapyforblackgirls.com/ | Black Men Heal https://blackmenheal.org/ | The Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation https://borislhensonfoundation.org/ | Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective https://www.beam.community/

Our Letters' Series

BY THE ACTION LAB FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE

The Action Lab is proud to present our Letters Series in which readers will write about their thoughts on topics such as love, career, identity (and so on)--all from the perspective of their younger or older self. For this month's letter, we present a love note. We hope you are impacted and inspired by the prose and will consider contributing one of your own!

A Letter to my Older Self (Love)

Is it possible to be in love with someone you've never met? To imagine how they smell and what their lips feel like? This is a current thought; a current fantasy. But, this is not the first time infatuation has consumed me. That I have thought of someone and fell in love with the idea of them. That I have idolized every aspect of their person. That I have gotten so caught up in the fantasy that others took that as a green light to harm me. Never physically. But verbally and emotionally, all because I chased fantasy so that I could heal from the harm that was presented to me as love growing up.

To my older self, fantasy kills the actual sweetness of the present. The reality that you encompass. When you fantasize, you operate in the nostalgia of the unknown. You trap yourself in the limbo of wanting what is not and ignoring what is, what could be.

To my older self, there are so many splendid people you will meet. They will be deliciously funny and intoxicatingly kind. They will be warm. They will love every aspect of you and not a version of a woman they created in the ephemeral. You won't have to tolerate abuse. You will hold your head high and plant your feet firmly. You won't compromise for half love.

Before any of this can happen, you must learn yourself. Love the fantasy of who you are and bring it into your reality. Your worth is not dictated by another's smile. Their hand on the small of your back. Them introducing you as their person to their friends. You belong to no one but yourself. How splendid you are. How deliciously funny and intoxicatingly kind. To my older self, self-love takes self-work and honesty to admit that you learned harm as affection. You are too full to be half-loved, my dear. Now, go on and chase reality,

--Ella No Longer Enchanted

Production Team AUGUST 2021

Editorial & Design Team Chantel Plummer Senior Editor Seyi Segun Senior Editor Toinette Powers Senior Editor Contributors Naomi Wright What's Happening in the Action Lab David Robertson What's Happening in the Action Lab Kadence Mitchell Uplifting Black Artists at Columbia Ella No Longer Enchanted The Letters Series

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