Events | Black Anxiety

BUILDING

Resilience

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Redefining the Way
We Move

Exploring and intervening for anxiety among Black families with children in the criminal justice and child welfare systems in Ontario (EIA) is a pilot action study of Black families’ experiences of anxiety induced by encounters with the criminal justice system (CJS) and the child welfare system (CWS), that has become a pivotal research stream Dr. Boateng is pursuing with Dr. Dlamini Nombuso of York University, with community partners (e.g., Ghana Union of Canada and Gashanti Unity).

In this project, anxiety is used as an emotion characterized by feelings of tension, worried thoughts, and physical changes (1) likely to affect the health and mental well-being of families interacting with the CJS or CWS. Thus, this EIA aims to work with Black families to (a) identify the relationship between the family identity status/ and dealing with anxiety; (b) identify family needs and resources to cope with anxiety (physical and virtual); (c) implement an intervention to help families deal with anxiety; and (d) develop resources and resource space for use by Black families experiencing anxiety.

CENTRAL QUESTIONS TO BLACK ANXIETY PROJECT

Dr. Boateng and his team are currently addressing three central questions with Black Anxiety project:

What strategies and tools do Black families need to address the mental well-being of their children who have gone through the ‘prison pipeline’ or who have been part of the welfare system?

How can parents and children work together to address the challenges of family community integration and acceptance?

How can parents manage the anxieties associated with having their children in or becoming potential residents of Canada’s CJS and CWS?

Re-tooling Black Anxiety which also is a study project will unearth a new research area that examines the effects/stories of anxiety, the strategies that families use to deal with anxiety and pilots an intervention that will use tools created with families alongside standard anxiety tools.

The findings of this study will have intellectual and broader significance in improving the mental health of Blacks and Black Families in the Greater Toronto Area.

PROJECT

OUTCOME

Individuals helped to identify and manage their anxiety levels through various activities

Emotional well-being promoted, and overall mental health improved

Put a smile on the face of every black youth in Canada