‘Health’ Archives
Making Connections in Community
By Diane Long, for Out in the Backyard CHAT On Tuesday, June 16, 2011, a little over 30 people gathered at the Cultural Wellness Center to share dinner and watch the film “Bullied.” It told the story of a young man named Jamie Nabozny, who was bullied in middle school and high school for being gay. The event was sponsored by Out in the Backyard, the LGBT Queer and Allied (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) CHAT. People are bullied for all kinds of reasons ”“ because of sexuality, race, ethnicity, gender, religion, physical ability, size, etc. This film addressed bullying based on sexual orientation and showed how prejudice and stereotypes are used to justify discrimination. Young LGBT people are especially at-risk for bullying, harassment, physical assault, and suicide. In 2009, the National School Climate Survey found that: ”¢ 80% of LGBT students had been verbally harassed at school ”¢ 40% had been physically harassed at [...]
Somali Women”'s Proposal Approved by Commission on Health
By Janice Barbee, Cultural Wellness Center The Backyard Initiative”'s Community Commission on Health approved a proposal of the Somali Women”'s Health Support CHAT (Citizen Health Action Team) on June 2, 2011 to promote communication, understanding, and support among women of the Somali community who have children in the justice system. Their project will educate Somali families about how the justice system works, help to connect women together who have children in the system in order to reduce isolation and social stigma, and help to prevent other children in the community from entering the justice system. The Somali women who presented at the Commission meeting spoke of the difficulty of supporting their children throughout the trial process and incarceration. They also spoke of how their cultural systems of authority, personal accountability, and discipline have been undermined and displaced in the move to the U.S. Understanding the justice system is a [...]
Focus on Mental Health in the Backyard
By Janice Barbee, Cultural Wellness Center Community residents participating in the Backyard Initiative have identified “mental health” as one focus for their work to improve the health of all residents. At their past few monthly meetings, members of the Community Commission on Health and Citizen Health Action Teams (CHATs) of the Backyard Initiative (BYI) have been discussing which health condition all the CHATs would work on together. Community members have named many different aspects of mental health, such as stress, depression, and chemical dependency as having a significant impact on overall health. In the community health assessment conducted in 2009, the top health conditions that residents reported experiencing in the last five years were stress (51%), depression (21%), and high blood pressure (21%). The BYI is a partnership between Allina Health Systems and the community surrounding Allina headquarters (the four neighborhoods of Phillips, Central, [...]
