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I've done a lot of work surrounding mental health over the last four years that includes all races, but I've also noticed the mental health stigma in my own community was still increasingly getting worse.

The black community has a great deal of something called \"generational trauma.\"

Throughout history, horrific tragedies have happened in the black community such as slavery, Jim Crow laws, the Civil Rights movement, beatings, lynchings, police brutality and more. My people were just expected to deal with all of this trauma and tragedy and simply just be strong.

They were so focused on survival and civil rights that they didn't feel they had time to take care of their mental health, which is why we have the ultimate \"be strong and just pray\" mentality. My community had way too many other things to worry about, so taking care of their mental health wasn't even a serious thought.

Today, gun violence, microaggressions toward black people on their jobs and everyday life, racial profiling, racism and police brutality also play a part in our generational trauma and lack of [focus on] mental health.

Unfortunately, suppressing all of the things that impact our mental health, has finally taken a serious toll in the newer generations of our community.

I created a minority mental health app [The Safe Place] to save lives in my community, the black community, where mental health is extremely taboo, and still not even considered an illness to many black people.

\"PHOTO:
The Safe Place
PHOTO: The Safe Place is an app created by mental health activist Jasmin Pierre.
>

The app is filled with things such as black mental health statistics, self-care tips, information about how mental health has had a stigmatized impact within the black church, information on how police brutality and racism has impacted the mental health of the black community, videos, articles, mental illness descriptions, self-assessment questions and more.

With more funding, I'm hoping to add more features to it within the near future.

I genuinely just want to see a change in my community when it comes to mental health issues, and I plan to continue to work hard to help be the change that I wish to see.

Anyone in crisis, or who knows someone in crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741-741.

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