The Mental Health of our Young People

This week we have to talk about Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility). This Kwanzaa principle is simply "To build and maintain our community together and make our brothers' and sisters' problems our problems and to solve them together." 

The conversation of mental health has been quietly ongoing for some time, but just two days ago on June 7th, Taraji P. Henson, used her celebrity to give this topic voice and momentum. Our beloved sister used her very personal and emotional testimony before the Congressional Black Caucus Emergency Taskforce on Black Youth Suicide and Mental Health to throw the topic of mental health in the Black / African-American community into the spotlight.

We applaud and support the efforts of Henson's Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation. It will positively impact our Black / African-American community to have access and resources for mental health.

In the spirit of Ujima, we make our brothers' and sisters' problems our own. Thank you to those who have loved or supported someone through mental health challenges. Let's solve this problem together, and in so doing, clear a path for our future.

Taraji P. Henson on Mental Health (C-SPAN)