%20logo.png){kind=small}
A statement from our CEO and founder, Shanequa Moore
In Response to Kyonna Robinson
As a mother of a 10-year-old girl, I am speechless at the assault on teen girl Kyonna Robinson, who was pounded on the head by a white male officer during an afterschool fight in Staten Island, NY with her 12-year-old sister. This kind of attack reminds us that our teen girls are not seen as kids and worst, that they are seen as animals. Our Black kids are not permitted to make mistakes, in fact, they are beaten and killed for what neuroscience tells us is normal teen behavior. Our Black youth are expected to have executive functioning skills, which do not fully develop until their adult years.
These kinds of attacks are traumatizing to the entire Black community; they dehumanize our Black girls and place immense fear in the hearts of Black moms and dads. They send messages that Black girls are not allowed to make mistakes or they will be next. So many of our Black girls are wondering whether they will be next. The attack and violence on our Black girls and Black women is a pandemic and it is pivotal that we need to respond as such.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) named racism as one of the leading causes of the mental health concerns that Black youth face. Another study reported that Black youth experience discrimination on a daily basis an average of 5 times per day. This has serious implications for youth mental health leading to depression, and suicidal thoughts.
As a mother, I am afraid not only for my 10-year-old daughter but for every Black girl, if we don’t take this seriously and do something. I am urging non-profits, government officials, schools, and churches to come together to help and have real authentic conversations about the state of our Black girls and co-create real, culturally humble, ethnically responsible programs to eliminate the socio-political, systemic, structural, institutional, trauma and oppression imposed on our Black girls.
My organization has been dedicated to combating empowering Black girls and dealing with the unique issues and challenges they face. The See Her be Her Program is a coaching program that is designed to dismantle microaggression and stereotypes that have been imposed on Black girls by society.
If you are a female of color interested in coaching a Black girl, please sign up to support our Black girls…we have to got to stand up for our Black girls. If you know a Black girl, please send her parents the information on receiving coaching, The coaching program helps to promote positive self-identity, self-esteem, and self-mastery skills in Black girls and deals uniquely with the trauma faced by Black girls!
To sign up to be a coach here is the link
To share this program with a Black girl/girl of color, here is the link
For the story on Keyonna Robinson, please see below https://www.revolt.tv/article/2023-01-05/265491/officer-suspended-after-video-of-him-punching-a-teen-girl-goes-viral/?amp
ABOUT THE SEE HER BE HER COACHING PROGRAM
The See Her Be Her Coaching Program
The See Her be Her Program is a coaching program that is designed to dismantle microaggression and stereotypes that have been imposed on girls of color by society. The coaching program matches girls of color with Black female coaches and youth engage in a hybrid coaching model for 6 months. For more information, visit my agency website page at www.iraiseinc.org