Kenny Leon’s True Colors Theatre presents the community conversation “Combating Mental Health Stigmas in the African American Community,” moderated by Dr. Glenda Wrenn of Morehouse School of Medicine, including expert panelists journalist David A Love, and mental health professional Jasmine Banks. This conversation takes place on October 15, 2016 at the theatre of Fulton County’s Southwest Arts Center from 12pm- 2pm. The 2 hour conversation will include a 30 minute Q&A with the community to create a dialogue about this important topic in the African American Community.
This conversation is the springboard for our season opening production of the Pulitzer Prize and Tony award winning family drama “Proof” by David Auburn, which deals with mental illness and the family bond. We encourage you to attend the community conversation and our production of “Proof.” More info about the theatrical production of “Proof” can be found here.
This is event is free and open to the public. Click HERE to RSVP for Free.
MEET THE MODERATOR:
Dr. Glenda Wrenn is a psychiatrist and health policy/mental health services researcher at Morehouse School of Medicine where she directs the Division of Behavioral Health in the Satcher Health Leadership Institute (SHLI)) and serves as Interim Co-Director of the Kennedy Center for Mental Health Policy and Research. Although much of her research focuses on systems of care improvements related to the culturally-centered integration of behavioral health and primary care, Dr. Wrenn’s passion and overall research aim is to help create environments where individuals adversely impacted by trauma will face a path forward that makes it easier for them to recover and build a good life. As there are many paths to the trans-theoretical construct of resilience, Dr. Wrenn’s work has examined diverse health conditions and approaches to fostering individual and community resource development and recovery. Dr. Wrenn has helped to advance integration in several large health systems and individual practices of all sizes. She is a community engaged researcher, with frequent knowledge exchanges in the community through speaking and events; and also serves as an advisor for several local, regional, and national health-related organizations.
MEET THE PANELISTS:
Jasmine Banks is a Mental Health Professional and activist who works in the intersections of race, queer identity, and mental health. She is a program manager with Postpartum Progress Inc. and a Licensed Associate Counselor in the state of Arkansas.Through Postpartum Progress published a new tool for screening Black women may be suffering from undiagnosed perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. Jasmine’s work centers around building mental health awareness, particularly for communities of color, eradicating stigma, and establishing new pathways to healing and well-being through individual and collective strides in justice. Visit Jasmine’s blog here: www.justjasmineblog.com/
David A. Love is a journalist and commentator who writes investigative stories and op-eds on a variety of issues, including politics, social justice, human rights, race, criminal justice and inequality. He is a writer for theGrio, CNN, Atlanta Black Star, The Progressive, The Philadelphia Citizen, Morpheus, NewsWorks and Tribune News Service. In addition, Love’s work has appeared in The Nation, The Guardian and The Huffington Post, and he has been quoted by The New York Times, The Washington Post, Time, Newsweek, The Atlantic and The New Republic.
Love has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, Al Jazeera, BBC, SiriusXM and CBC News. He was a producer for Democracy Now! and a contributor to the books, States of Confinement: Policing, Detention and Prisons (2000), A Reader for College Writers, 6th Ed. (2004), At the Tea Party (2010) and Current Controversies: The Death Penalty (2015). Love is also an adjunct instructor at the Rutgers School of Communication and Information, where he trains students in a social justice journalism lab.
In addition to his journalism career, Love has worked as an advocate and leader in the nonprofit sector, served as a senior legislative aide, and as a law clerk to two federal judges. He holds a B.A. in East Asian Studies from Harvard University, and a J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School. He also completed the Joint Programme in International Human Rights Law at the University of Oxford.
For more info on David visit: www.davidalove.com
Dr. LeRoy Reese is an associate professor at Morehouse School of Medicine in the Department of Community Health and Preventive Medicine. He co-directs the Pediatric Clinical and Translational Research Unit within MSM’s Clinical Research Center and currently directs the NIMHD funded Smart and Secure Children program within the Satcher Health Leadership Institute. Prior to joining MSM, he was a senior scientist and team leader at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Division of Violence Prevention. He was a member of the Task Force of the American Psychological Association that produced the report Resilience and Strength in African American Children and Adolescents as well as previously serving on the White House Council on Youth Violence. He has worked with the Annie E. Casey Foundation in their efforts to reform juvenile justice policy and practice in Georgia and nationally. Of particular importance to Dr. Reese is his community service. Presently he serves Board Chair for Men Stopping Violence, a national training and advocacy organization dedicated to eliminating men’s violence against women and girls. He also serves on the Board of Directors for the Dekalb County Mental Health Court and the Alumni Board of his undergraduate institution. Dr. Reese received his bachelor of arts from the College of Wooster and his doctorate from The Ohio State University. He completed his internship and fellowship at the University of Illinois Medical School’s Institute for Juvenile Research in the department of psychiatry.
