Ahmaud Arbery.
Breonna Taylor.
George Floyd.
Three people we have recently witnessed dying violently, people who died solely because as African Americans, their lives are not valued in this country.
Tragically, this horror is not new. Arbery, Taylor and Floyd are now part of a sickeningly long chain of Black people in the United States to lose their lives to systemic racism, brutality and hate.
A recent article in USA Today titled “George Floyd Video Adds to Trauma: ‘When Is The Last Time You Saw a White Person Killed Online?'” addresses what those who have been experiencing it already know: African Americans are suffering greatly from constantly watching these acts of racial violence play out month after month year after year.
To quote:
“African Americans face harmful mental health effects every time high-profile incidents of racism and police brutality go viral, especially when little changes in the aftermath.”
Combined with a global pandemic, healthcare disparities and a financial crisis, African Americans are currently coping with exponential levels of trauma that will likely not dissipate any time soon.
So what can we do to protect ourselves as we bear these trying times, especially when community and family gatherings are so severely limited?
Last week, in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month, Tedx speaker, performance coach and GBN’s “This Way Forward” contributor Dena Crowder offered a three-minute video as an aide for mental health and wellness.
Today, Dena offers a six-minute “Power Shot” with guiding words and an exercise to help release and transform trauma into energy to fuel us forward. Watch:
(Dena Crowder: DenaCrowder.com; IG: dena.crowder)
