Podcast Name: Speaking of Kids…[Apple Podcasts] [Spotify] [Website]
Podcast Hosts: Bruce Lesley [Twitter] and Messellech “Selley” Looby [Twitter]
Organization Name: First Focus On Children [Website] [Twitter] [Instagram] [Facebook]
Episode Title: Centering Cultural Competence within Black Child Mental Health with Taraji P. Henson and Tracie Jade
Release Date: 5/22/2024
Episode Link: https://firstfocus.org/henson_pod
In this episode, co-host Messellech Looby chats with Academy Award-nominated actor Taraji P. Henson about the complexities and opportunities around supporting Black youth in the midst of the country’s current mental health crisis. Henson created The Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation in memory of her late father, who struggled with mental health challenges after returning from the Vietnam War. The foundation promotes mental health awareness and destigmatizes mental illness within the Black community by uplifting culturally relevant mental health support. The foundation’s Executive Director, Tracie Jade, joins the conversation to discuss its efforts to promote mental health awareness and support within marginalized communities.