A message from The Women’s Center CEO & Executive Director, Rachna Singal Krishnan; June 12, 2020

Once again our nation finds itself in a painful yet familiar place. The murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and many others force us to acknowledge that racism continues to exist in our country. America’s history includes far too many incidents of legalized violence against Black and Brown people. The legal system adds insult to injury when it often determines these violent acts are not punishable crimes. The video of George Floyd’s murder sent shockwaves through the country creating fear and anger as history repeated itself once again.

I was inspired by a letter I received from a therapist at The Center that said, “As a mental health agency, we owe it to our clients and employees to stand up against this traumatic experience and to stand up for the generational trauma that exists within and through the racism so prevalent in our country still today.” The Women’s Center’s mission to significantly improve the mental health of all members of our community means that we work to address the barriers that stand in the way of mental wellness. It is only when a moment is backed by action that it can become a movement of positive change, and so The Center has developed a plan to better promote racial equity in mental health.

The Women’s Center is committed to:

1. Uphold a constant practice of addressing systematic bias in our programs or employment practices.
2. Better serving people of color who are disproportionately affected by mental health issues.
3. Establishing a task force to evaluate our operations and programs for bias and to correct any deficiencies.
4. Providing resources on our website of organizations and foundations that are already doing great work for Black and Brown mental health.

We hope the work we have set out ahead of us will strengthen our mission and help us better serve our community because The Women’s Center believes that Black Lives Matter and Black Mental Health Matters.