An Interview

with BLI

In the summer of 2020, 28 Black students at Blackstone Academy created the Black Leadership Initiative (BLI). This was a space for Black-identifying students at our school to discuss and rise up against the injustice in their communities and daily lives. Each week, Black youth facilitated discussions about colorism, red lining, performative activism, and more. We split into actions groups and worked on specific projects. Our work against anti-Blackness this summer allowed us to realize and recognize our collective voice as our power.

This interview was conducted by Abi Areche.

an interview with BLI

on Mental Health in the Black Community

What do you wish the Black community did differently when talking about & dealing with mental health, especially with youth?

Ife: “I wish Black parents talked about it rather than dismissing the feelings of the youth. As a person who grew up in a Black household, I was never used to talking about my feelings and emotions with my parents because I wasn’t brought up to take things like depression seriously. Depression in my household was just feeling sad. I wish that Black parents saw mental illness for what it is rather than trying to compare their lives and their children’s lives to see who has the harder life and who is supposed to be experiencing mental illnesses.”

Marlie: “I wish the Black community would take mental health more seriously. When mental health gets brought up in the Black community, it seems like it's always brushed off like it's not a real issue.”

So much has happened from early 2020 to now in 2021. Out of everything that has happened, what’s the heaviest thing weighing your mental state down?

David: “The biggest thing weighing on my mental state between 2020 and 2021 has to be the race wars and people just pointing fingers instead of coming together. Social media has also been very draining for me.”

Ife: “My mental state has been weighed down the most by the fact that police brutality keeps happening all around the country. I fear that it is slowly but gradually becoming something normal for cops to kill black people illegally and not get the right punishment for it. I remember when Derek Chauvin got charged and I felt like there was at least a little bit of hope for the Black community only to find out about Ma’Khia Bryant’s death on the same day.

With so much of it happening around me, I feel like it is my responsibility to remember their names and their stories and what led to them being killed. So many names to keep up with and the list keeps getting longer.

It’s sad that Black people have to “keep up” with the names of people like them that are being murdered by people who are supposed to help the citizens. It’s sad to think about the fact that Black people's lives amount to a bad police officer getting fired from their job. And sometimes, I feel like I am not supposed to feel attacked or scared about what is going on because I am not being attacked personally but with every name added to the list, the more I get conscious and worried of the day it might be my name added to the list, or my sister’s name, or my mom, dad or people I love.”

What's one thing that was exhausting you before that you can now finally confidently say you've overcome?

Dijanira: “One thing our youth struggles with especially growing up is being shaped to society's expectations and ideas. The Black community specifically deals with microaggressions, stereotypes and so on. Oftentimes I felt lost in who I was and who I should be based on societal views. Purposely fighting against stereotypes to prove the negative things aren't true. Forcing yourself to fit in the stereotypes to feel like you belong somewhere. It was so stressful and frustrating. Placing so much effort on how you will present yourself to people than caring on finding who you are yourself. As of now I feel I am becoming and growing into my own person instead of trying to please others and worrying about society. It has become better with understanding we are all unique and beautiful in our own ways and don't have to do anything to please others. You shouldn't be afraid to be yourself and show the world who you are.”

Are there any stigmas about mental health that you wish weren't handed down to you by family, friends or even through the media as a Black youth?

Dijanira: “I wish mental health throughout our lives wasn't a topic we shy away from. Reaching out for help sometimes seems scary, worthless and leads to our youth believing our feelings aren't important or valid due to the lack of emotional support, fear of being denied, lack of awareness etc. The media and society had made it a notion that if we feel emotions we are weak. Our feelings aren't valid because we may not experience the same things others have. We are being sensitive. etc. If the idea that mental health is something we should hide and keep to ourselves onto an idea that mental health is something we shouldn't shy away from and taken more seriously and is valid, I feel we would have less people who are feel alone and will be more comfortable with speaking out to loved ones, reaching for help, etc.”

Marlie: “I just wish they saw that mental health is real believe it or not. A lot of times if you were to ever say you were depressed or something, you get hit with the 'you don't pay any bills- you don't know what depression is.' In media, it seems that in the Black community having mental health issues makes you a 'creepy' or 'sick and stupid"'person, when in reality it’s super common. The Black community needs to do better at listening to the concerns of young people because as we’re getting older, we deal with so much. Having no one to hear you can be very dangerous when someone feels overwhelmed."

What are some healthy habits that you’ve picked up recently for your mental health?

Promise: “One healthy habit that I have picked up is taking time for myself and taking time off of social media to focus on school and my mental health and well being. I feel like that's something I’ve grown in these past few months.”

Abi: “Lately I’ve been taking a lot of breaks from people around me. I’ve been feeling really tired and drained and whenever I feel like that, I feel like I need space from everything and everyone. It’s not that I’m annoyed or frustrated by the people around me. I just need some time to myself to think and just feel out what I’m feeling. Other times I’ll go for a walk just to get some air and a change of scenery. I’ve felt trapped indoors for a while and going outside feels very freeing.”

How have you been dealing with the police brutality being shown in the media?

Promise: “I’m really frustrated by what's going on. I’m very annoyed because these things have been happening for so long and when we feel like we’ve come to a silver lining, something happens to set us back. I just feel like it’s never going to end unless we do something about it. I feel that talking about these situations helps me cope with what's going on around the country.”

Abi: “Honestly the stuff that's been happening is scary. The videos, the names, and the news headlines are all heavy topics that are everywhere. At first everyone was glad that police brutality was being talked about and that people’s names were being remembered but after awhile it became overwhelming to see how many times these deaths were happening. The names and headlines kept stacking up and the graphic videos of these innocent Black people being murdered on camera were piling up. It just became too much for me to handle that I had to take breaks from social media throughout the day. I was so angry and tired of seeing how even with video evidence these cases didn’t seem to be taken seriously and justice wasn’t being given to the families. I hope that over time we can move forward and not have to have these same worries years from now. Black people deserve to live freely, they shouldn’t have to live with the worry of being the next Black person dead at the hands of a police officer.”

BLI is hosting the first ever RI Black Youth Conference on June 25 & 26.

This event will bring together Black youth from across the state for two days of sharing, healing, learning, and organizing.