FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WNCN) — It has been nearly two years since George Floyd was killed while in police custody.
“We spend every single moment since his life was taken fighting to make sure no other family has to endure the pain the Floyd family has to endure,” said Jacari Harris.
Now, Harris, the executive director of the George Floyd Memorial Foundation, said the Fayetteville-based organization is taking the fight to the mental health space.
They want to help ease the trauma from police brutality and other violence towards people of color.
“Nowadays you can just scroll hoping to see something nice and you see all these deaths and it causes trauma. Here at the foundation, we want to prevent that. We want to ensure that we are providing resources and tools,” Harris explained.
The foundation is launching a new mental health program, focusing on improving mental health outcomes for African Americans.
“[We are] ensuring that our providers are competent and have the resources needed to succeed,” Harris said.
“We are partnering with MTV, Color of Change, Black Health and so many other organizations on the training and on the education component of our mental health program. There are different phases and right now we are on the educating phase. Educating people that it is not always about the trauma, but it is about how we can also heal,” Harris added.
The foundation is also partnering with Dr. Calisha Brooks, a psychologist from Ohio, to eventually provide a series of grants to Black men and women seeking therapy.
She will train mental health providers to understand the issues people of color face.
