Community Healing Network (CHN) proudly presents a virtual presentation with Dr. Joseph McGill, Jr., Founder of the Slave Dwelling Project, to kick-off the Soul Sovereignty Series.

Dr. McGill is a historic preservationist and Civil War reenactor, and founded the Slave Dwelling Project in 2010 based on an idea that was sparked and first developed in 1999. Since founding the project, McGill has been touring the country, spending the night in former slave dwellings—throughout the South, but also the North and the West, where people are often surprised to learn that such structures exist. Events and gatherings are arranged around these overnight stays, and it provides a unique way to understand the often otherwise obscured and distorted history of slavery. The project has inspired difficult conversations about race in communities from South Carolina to Alabama to Texas to Minnesota to New York, and all over the United States.

Just this past June, Dr. McGill published, "Sleeping with the Ancestors," an enlightening personal account telling the story of his groundbreaking project.

Jessica Ann Mitchell (J.A.M.) Aiwuyor is a reparationist and cultural communications specialist based in the Washington, DC area. Aiwuyor is the founder of the National Black Cultural Information Trust. She is a descendant of enslaved Africans and maroons in Georgia and South Carolina. In her past role as the Associate Director of Communications at the National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA), Aiwuyor spearheaded strategic communications for federal housing discrimination lawsuits against Bank of America, Deutsche Bank, and Facebook Inc. She also led communications efforts in NFHA’s federal lawsuit against the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) concerning the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule. Additionally, Aiwuyor led communications for state lawsuits concerning race, color, familial status, and source of income housing discrimination.

The National Black Cultural Information Trust (NBCI Trust) is a Pan-African initiative that uses communications, media, and cultural storytelling to share information and resources that correct and challenge cultural misinformation and disinformation surrounding racial/ethnic identity, anti-Blackness, and other false narratives that harm our communities.

In addition to her work with national organizations and firms, J.A.M. Aiwuyor serves as the Communications Chair for the Pan African Congress, North American Delegation. She’s also a member of the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America and a member of the Case For Reparations Advisory Committee, an initiative of Liberated Capital’s Decolonizing Wealth Fund.

As an author and cultural storyteller, her writings about African American cultural heritage and ethnicity have been published and cited across a wide range of publications including Huffington Post, the Business Insider, MSNBC, LA Progressive, and TV One’s “News One Now.” She publishes books celebrating Black life and culture with her publishing company, Our Legaci Press.

Join us for the main event of this year's Soul Sovereignty Series, a first-ever Live Q:A with Emotional Emancipation Circle graduates from Pendleton Correctional Facility in Pendleton, Indiana.

We welcome our distinguished panelists to discuss mental health and the vitality of emotional emancipation within the carceral system, as we continue to build solidarity with our kin behind the walls and those on the frontlines supporting their healing.

Stacey Borden is the Founder and Executive Director of New Beginnings Reentry Services, Inc. Since 1982, for almost 30 years, Borden had been in and out of prison. From her personal experiences and understanding of the system, Stacey became an abolitionist and advocate for women suffering from domestic & sexual violence. Stacey created her organization in response to the lack of resources for these women suffering from past traumas and injustices within prison. The mission of her organization is to reduce recidivism by advocating for and providing services to women reentering local communities. With a Master’s Degree in Mental Health Counseling with a concentration in Addictions and Trauma, Borden is a strong advocate for Drama Therapy for the women she cares for in the organization. In addition to her NBRS work, Borden is an author, performance artist, motivational speaker and an activist.

Dr. Monique Swift, proprietor of Swift Solutions Consultant Services, LLC, is a psychologist, a NJ Licensed Professional Counselor, and a NY Licensed Mental Health Counselor. She has over 20 years of clinical experience in the field of mental health and operates a private practice in Rahway, NJ where she specializes in couple's therapy and trauma. In addition to her clinical work, Dr. Swift also offers keynote talks, curriculum design, personal development workshops, and professional training. She consults with religious, community-based, and non-profit organizations, public and private schools, as well as with private groups. As a trauma expert, she offers consultation to organizations that want to become trauma-informed. She furthermore specializes in issues that form at the intersection of trauma and race. Dr. Swift is actively involved in racial social justice efforts and initiatives. Her extensive volunteer work typically benefits the Black community specifically, and oppressed and under-served populations, in general. Her volunteer activity often involves grassroots and civic organizing, personal and community empowerment building, and addressing issues of racial inequality, and racial trauma.

Dr. Larry Turner is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Registered Nurse (ER/ Psych), Substance Abuse and Certified Yoga Therapist. He has worked with survivors of a variety of traumatic experiences in Chicago and the world wide community. While working in Chicago, he has developed programs for traumatized children and adolescents in hospitals, schools and churches. In his clinical practice, he incorporates yoga techniques that are easily assessable to his clients. On the global scale, Dr. Turner provided medical and psychological services to victims of Hurricane Katrina / Rita in 2005. He was in Haiti after the Haitian earthquake in 2010 and most recently in Sierra Leone as part of the world wide Ebola response, 2014-2015. He is the CEO of The Therapeutic Inventory Institute (TTII), a 501c3 that is dedicated to treating traumatic experiences and developing trauma / stress management programs for schools and institutions.

Roxane Blanchard Johnson, LCPC was born and raised in Washington, D.C. She completed her early education in the D.C. public schools before going on to complete a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Systems Management from the University of Maryland University College. Rev. Johnson Has a Master of Arts degree in Christian Counseling and Discipleship from Capital Bible Seminary. She has also completed post-graduate studies in Counseling Psychology at Bowie State University. She is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor who has a private practice; Hope and Healing Counseling Services and Life Coaching. Ms. Johnson loves Black people and specializes in trauma-informed therapy including racialized trauma. She is committed to providing personalized care that focuses on the whole person (Mind, Body, and Spirit). Her focus is to help clients to lead healthier, happy, whole lives.

Meet Jacqui Johnson, the visionary force behind Sankofa Healing Studio, who is reshaping the landscape of mental health access and dismantling oppression within therapeutic spaces. With a passion for bridging the Black mental health gap, Jacqui's holistic approach combines art, play, storytelling, hip-hop, and evidence-based modalities to create a transformative healing experience. As an educator, Jacqui's influence extends far beyond the therapy room. She lectures widely, provides supervision and consultation, and leads international initiatives that increase training accessibility for Therapists of Color. Her expertise in trauma-responsive care and gender considerations informs her work, confronting the complex intersections of adverse childhood experiences, race, community violence, and the justice system. Jacqui's commitment to justice is exemplified in her groundbreaking work with individuals within the criminal justice system. At the Philadelphia county jail, she facilitates trauma-responsive art therapy groups for women and incarcerated youth, addressing the unique challenges they face. By reclaiming the past, she empowers individuals to protect their future and transform their present circumstances. But Jacqui's expertise doesn't stop there. She is a certified Kemetic Yoga instructor, an Adjunct Professor, and an Emotional Emancipation Circle Leader. Her skill set spans a wide range of therapeutic modalities, including intensive sessions, perinatal mental health, child trauma, play therapy, Hip-Hop therapy, advanced EMDR interventions, brainspotting, use of healing crystals, sound and energy healing, and Reiki.

Join us for the final event of the first-ever Soul Sovereignty Series, Dope is Death, a film screening with Babajay Dr. Onaje Muid. Dope is Death is the story of how Dr. Mutulu Shakur, stepfather of Tupac Shakur, along with fellow Black Panthers and the Young Lords, combined community health with radical politics to create the first acupuncture detoxification program in America in 1973 – a visionary project eventually deemed too dangerous to exist.

Check out the Dope is Death Podcast by clicking the icon below.