We are pleased to announce that the Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation has awarded the PRADAA lab a $100,000 grant to support our Spirit of Motherhood intervention project!

Click here to learn more.

Disclaimer: The following statement reflects the position of the PRADAA lab and does not reflect the beliefs of the Kent State Department of Psychological Sciences, the Kent State College of Arts and Sciences and Kent State University.

MY SOUL IS DISQUIETED WITHIN ME

As a Black female professor who conducts intervention research with Black girls, the death of Ma’Khia Bryant disquiets my soul. She should be alive.

The adultification of Black girls begins as early as kindergarten where they are seen as less innocent and trustworthy. This is known as the “adultification bias” and is supported by research. By middle school, they are seen as troublemakers; in high school, they are perceived as needing less support, less comfort and less protection than their white counterparts. By the time they reach my age, they have been bombarded with visual, written, and spoken messages that Black femaleness/Black womanhood is not deserving of protection. These messages are NOT true.

At PRADAA, a segment of our research is focused on Black girls. Often, we are told within and outside the workplace that the research is too Black, racist, and not relevant. We know these statements to be UNTRUE and we do not listen. We continue to do the research, for we know research on Black girls is relevant. Research is a tool for advocacy, it is a tool for change. As Black girl researchers, we partner and collaborate with the community and other Black girl researchers to advocate, lobby, train, educate, and continue to develop interventions to protect the spirits and lives of Black girls.

Ma’Khia. Bryant. Should. Not. Be. Dead.

Keep rising,

Dr. Angela