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I’ve noticed that a lot of the material covered in the modules is often information that isn’t easily accessible to a larger audience or that people don’t know enough about how to support black youth. One way to make this language more accessible is to have it discussed in schools from a young age so that children learn a lot about Black history.
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I really enjoyed all the amazing information shared in the critical practice reflexivity module. I think the speaker shared excellent reflective practice tips and options. One of the options that stood out that I plan to take with me into the field when I start working with you is the chart she shared and discussed to help us work from a place being mindful of our own assumptions and biases.
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Hello community,
My life experiences have taught me that one method to promote the welfare of black youth is to engage with them and educate ourselves while also applying what we learn to real-world situations. I frequently discover that the job ends at the educational level, where we impart the knowledge but don’t really promote change in institutional or governmental practises. At the institutional level, where Black youth presence is essential not just as advocates but in leadership, managerial positions, policy makers, and other influential roles, I believe we need to do a better job.
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As an individual, I can center Black youth wellbeing by taking the time to educate myself on the experiences and perspectives of Black youth and making a conscious effort to incorporate this understanding into my work. This can include actively seeking out Black youth voices and perspectives in decision-making processes, and being an ally in advocating for their needs and rights. Additionally, I can also strive to create safe and inclusive spaces where Black youth feel heard and valued.
As an organization, we can center Black youth wellbeing by making a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. This can involve allocating resources towards hiring and supporting Black staff, prioritizing Black-led initiatives and programs that serve Black youth, and actively working to address systemic barriers and biases that negatively impact Black youth. By taking these steps, we can create a culture and environment where Black youth feel supported, valued, and empowered to reach their full potential.
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Thank you for this thoughtful, and action-oriented thread! I have been reflecting on the concept of leveraging space, access, and wisdom. I am going to start being more mindful of extending access and resources to Black youth that I work with.
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I think research is crucial when we need to start to plan and implement interventions as research gives us precious information on how the phenomena is developing within the society. The picture we received by research data is a valuable way to start a clinical work but it
s also we need to take as a valis tool but not the only one. We need to put research into perspective and taking into consideration also many other factors that are not measurable and we can validate through research which are represented by the emotional world of individuals. For example, research helped me in the past to understand the disproportionality of black children in the Child Welfare System. However, the work I need to do with the emotional outcome of this disproportionality has something deeper and more "intimate" that cant be measurable by data. -
Collaboration and teamwork are always good elements when we need to accomplish a goal. the combination of expertise that Black youth can provide, and the clinical framework/lenses through which we analyze issue represent the key factors to design pathways of inclusion. We need to listen to the experience of Black individuals that experience oppression and/or discrimination in their lives. However, this knowledge needs to be processed through clinical lenses that allow us to develop an effective way to work for the Black population. I believe that looking into gaps and service need means looking closer to the matter and having open and authentic conversations that allow us to think out of the box and reaching or discover ways to include Black youth at different levels.
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I think that the first simple thing that I could do is listening to the youth in front of me, as I can understand and gain more knowledge on the Black people
s universe and, at the same time, being empathetic with the uniqueness of the individuals life. I think that cultural humility and cultural competency come from simply listening who is the real expert. Being effective as ally means observing and listening without judging whats observed or listened. think that organizations should encourage this practice more, to try to understand how to be more effective in something we havent experience and we will never experience personally. -
My one simply thing is being more structured and intentional about incorporating race and it’s impacts on wellbeing into my practice with Black youth.
My organization has been connecting to more refugees of late. A more intentional practice of cultural humility might help us to create more culturally sensitive spaces and programming.
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It so important to self-reflect. To understand where we stand with our emotions and taking in the information that we are learning and how impactful it has on one-person, other people, are community, our work. It’s powerful. I am a person that debriefs and took the time to do this with my coworkers/supervisor to help me process the information. Emotions are powerful and i think it speaks volumes when one feels challenged to feel them during this process in learning and how important it is to continue to learn and get out of our comfort zone.
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What is the one simple thing, in your personal practice, organization, or professional practice, that you will focus on implementing to improve outcomes for Black youth, starting today?
I would engage in more conversation with the youth as this is the best way to improve outcome.
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<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”> I think we can use this research to create more programs to educate people. I dont think everyone has the same knowledge about ABR and I think teaching these modules to everyone and having it more accessible will help in in ABR on youth and their families.
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Despite all the research presented in this module, I think there is still a lot of ABR issues that needs to be worked out in child welfare and hiring process for managers and upper management. So many of the time our Black youth are over-presented in the child welfare system.
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This is something I’ve been thinking a lot about lately. I believe that, similar to a decolonizing approach, the aim of creating a truly anti-oppressive program or service needs to be present from the inception of a program/service. Programs that are created with community consultation, ones that privilege community voices in the planning, implementation, hiring, and facilitation are most likely to achieve this goal. Too often community feedback is an afterthought when it should be the very foundation of how initiatives are developed. That being said, I believe this process of community input and development can happen with existing programs as well. Black youth, parents, families, community members, youth workers, all need to be included every step of the way in either the creation or reform of programs and services. To borrow from the disability movement the tenant of “nothing about us, without us” must be a core belief that creates the foundation of all work we do with any population that has been impacted by structural oppression.
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I totally agree with your perspective. It is not enough to request feedback at one stage of program design or delivery. Community consultation and collaboration is key to ensure our programs are truly designed and delivered in an anti-racist/anti-oppressive way. I also think we need to rethink how we gather feedback- it is not enough to put a call out and when we don’t get the response we want forge ahead with our plans. We need to examine why our evaluation tools/approaches may not be working in the first place and be flexible to make the necessary changes in order to hear from the communities we serve.
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Thanks for your reply. I absolutely agree! Too often I’ve seen organizations (especially well-established ones) perform allyship and ABR even as they hand-wave away a lack of community feedback as “oh well, we tried”. As you said, it’s critical to look at why we’re not receiving feedback or why folks don’t want to engage. Are there barriers? A history of or ongoing harm from the organization/program? A pattern of feedback-seeking followed by inaction? What needs to be done to ensure reparations are made and Black community members’ voices are actually heard?
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Designing youth centred programs and services requires youth involvement from conception to inception to evaluation. Too often youth input is gathered in things like focus groups, they get some token of thanks, then the “adults” run with the information.
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The way to use research is to apply it. Apply it in a way that challenges some stereotype based in ABR. Take some significant finding, translate it into relatable language for the community its meant to serve, and take it to the people to collaborate on solutions. This collaboration has to be done intentionally…with actionable goals and clear objectives, indicators. As the solutions are rolled out (also a collaborative effort) use the same measures from the initial study to gauge whether the solution is making an impact – reducing the Black kids referred to CAS, reducing the expulsions, increasing graduation rates…whatever. if the results are trending in the right direction…keep going. If not, go back to the solution ideas and try another one.
This also makes me think that research proposals should include intentions to take action on the findings. That way, there is some accountability for follow through, instead of the report sitting on a shelf somewhere.
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Unfortunately ABR is still invisible and unacknowledged by many people. Some people are just in denial that it could happen in Canada. Some people have blind spots as a result of their privilege. Sometimes it’s not the people at all. ABR is baked into so many of our systems that it can be difficult to identify… and then the political will isn’t there to uproot established systems and rebuild in an equitable way.
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When applying for funding for community programs, research is very helpful to demonstrate the gaps experienced by a community, for example, decreased access to health care. Research demonstrating statistics but also stories from the community members themselves can support funding applications as they tell the story of what they need and can drive a program to meet those needs.
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One simple thing to do is work with a trauma-informed lens, to believe Black youth, ask them how to support them, learn more about any barriers they might have, facilitate access to supports, be constant and dependable.
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Anti-Black racism still exists in Ontario today because the dominant (white) society does, not see it. If they don’t see it, they can’t address it. Even when it is brought up, there is so much denial that it gets pushed aside. For change to happen, the people in power have to give up some of that power, and for many this is hard to do. We need systemic change to come from leadership, where there is a lack of Black people. We need change to happen everywhere, education, health care, financial sectors and others.
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One simple thing I can do to center Black youth wellbeing in my work is to make sure that I always include the knowledge, the vision and the experiences of Black youth in every step of delivering a program, from planning to implantation and evaluation. And in order to do that, I need to make sure that my organization nurtures relationships with other organizations that are youth-led and Black-led. I don’t think this process is necessarily simple. However, making sure that we keep that in mind in all our work is the essential.
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This is beautifully written Gary. I could not agree more that we need to communicate beyond words. That using different modes of expression (pictures, songs, stories etc.) can make complex information much more accessible. It also challenges what is seen as “acceptable” communication as so often art is devalued in comparison to written work. Art can teach so much and communicate ideas that cannot be put into words.
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Hi Tim – I hear what you’re saying, I was talking about the same thing. I think that you might have been talking about ways to teach the words to a broader audience, whereas I was thinking more about making oneself to people who don’t fully understand the words. Although, these are not mutually exclusive goals – in fact I think they can go hand-in-hand – and maybe you were talking about both. Anyway, I’ve been reflecting on how I’ve tried to do it. When I’m trying to hone in on one part of something (as in those circumstances where the entire nuance of a word is not necessary for conveying something), I take the time to expand on it by focusing on the part that’s most relevant. Usually, I think, that involves talking about the social / structural issues surrounding whatever we’re talking about – raising awareness of the social structures that uphold inequities. Or, when I’m trying to talk about what a word means, I’ll explain them though the example of my own experiences (or sometimes the other person’s, depending on how well I know them). I think that giving people something concrete helps them compare it to their own experience and the experiences of others. Story and metaphor sound like great ideas, those are great tools for teaching and reaching people.
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Well said!!
Representation matters, so having Black involvement in all roles, at all levels, is crucial. I might add, having Black youth participation at all levels would be especially impactful. It would bring accountability to the organization to implement the identified measures, and it would be inspiring to other youth who see their peers making a difference that directly affects them.
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Emboldened is definitely the word to describe the increased displays of racism these days. It’s unfortunate bc this reflects societies decreased ability to sit with discomfort long enough to explore the opinions and lived experiences of others who may not share their world view.
There’s a Black man in the American south who befriends open KKK members based on a shared love for music. Over time, many of the Klansmen quit the Klan. I’m so sorry I can’t remember specific details. Suffice it to say, relationship brought about those choices to change. The rhetoric that emboldens people to act in racist ways works because it devalues relationships.
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I work in mental health and our program/organization does a great job of including various non-blood relatives under the banner of “family” if that’s what makes sense for youth. Where we’re not so good is integrating family into the care provision …beyond offering separate supports and pulling them in to provide collateral information.
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I agree…hearing about Black youth experiences directly from them would be the best way for me to ensure I am centering their well-being. I would use tools like the ACEs and CFI to ensure that I am inquiring about all areas and not missing anything due to my unconscious bias.
As for what my organization could do…simply put – hire more Black staff/clinicians. While a Black face isn’t the only thing needed for Black youth to feel heard and supported, representation matters. If they come into a space and don’t see anyone who looks like them, the expectation that their needs will be met in meaningful ways will be very low. The potential lack of engagement and follow through on recommendations would be a natural result of poor representation as a barrier to care.
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Yes! The thought that came to mind is, “nothing for us, without us”. The stories and experiences of Black voices in research are foundational in the change making process.
