about
about
who we are
We are a natural collaboration born out of necessity.
mission statement
We provide a mechanism for Los Angeles County Black women to advocate on behalf of their health and well-being. We inspire hope and resilience. We are dedicated to advancing health, economic, and social equity for all Los Angeles County Black women through direct action and connection to effective resources.
Our Role
Founded in 2019, our role is to facilitate and convene efforts needed to improve health and well-being outcomes for Black women, and ensure that the community feels a sense of urgency to act.
Our command center strategy will coordinate activities, including direct advocacy, managing committee meetings, and working groups; promote collaboration and communication among partners, government agencies, and researchers; develop and launch a state-of-the art multi-media Black woman outreach plan; promote agency and organizational skills development in reaching hard-to-reach Black women; engage researchers in collecting needed data; ensure the organization, establishment, and management of a comprehensive Black women data dashboard; form, nurture and manage a comprehensive coalition; and ensure racial equity institutional accountability.
Current funding includes: individual donors, sponsorships, in-kind donations, and grant funding. All Black women and their families are encouraged to donate at least one dollar ($1) to this effort. Black Women Rally for Action – Los Angeles County will neither accept foundation funding previously earmarked for other Black Women services, nor accept government grant funding.
Black Women Rally for Action -
Los Angeles County Planning Board:
A nonpartisan and diverse alliance of Black women from greater Los Angeles County united in the charge to ensure that all Black women have an optimum quality of life in Los Angeles County. The Black Woman is God’s unique creation who by grace, preservation, determination, tenacity, grit, and action have birthed and sustained generations of nations. Strong in life, Black women have an essence, style, and a spirit that is undefinable.
Black women endure a complexity of health and economic disparities, more than other women. Black women are criticized, criminalized, killed more frequently, and are incarcerated at an early age. Black women experience more evictions and live on the streets. Yet, Black women are resilient and hardworking. According to CaShawn Thompson*, we are certainly magical.
The crisis of now requires Black Women’s Unity and Action!
*#BlackGirlMagic movement popularized by CaShawn Thompson
CURRENT BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Efuru Flowers
President
Brenda Watson
Vice President
Gwendolyn Young
Vice President
Shelly Aydin
Secretary
Brenda Anderson
Treasurer
Michael Brown
Board Member
Carlin Smith-Stine
Board Member
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Anna Lucas Wright, M.Ed. Faculty, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science
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Brenda Anderson, M.B.A., Retired Assistant Chief Grant Administrator, City of LA
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Brenda Watson, Registered Nurse
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Carlin Smith, Faith Community
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Dr. Darlene Dexter, Defense Contractor
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Efuru Flowers, Founder & CEO, Flourishing Films LLC
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Gwen Posey, San Fernando Valley African American Collective
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Gwendolyn W. Young, President, CEO Young Communications Group, Inc.
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Dr. Helena Johnson, EdD, National Vice-Chair and Southern California Area President of the National Council of Negro Women, Incorporated.
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Kareemah Abdullah, Retired VP National Organization, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
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Shelly Aydin, Volunteer Relations Manager at St. Joseph Center
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Tanya Humphrey, Licensed Therapist, Co-Chair of the Coalition for Black Health and Wellness, the Riverside Community Health Foundation
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Va Lecia Adams, CEO St. Joseph Center, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Lena Kennedy, CEO LL Kennedy & Associates and National Co-Chair of the Democratic National Committee
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Yolanda Gorman M.B.A., PhD, The African American Board Leadership Institute, Senior Advisor to the Chancellor for Strategic Initiatives at the University of California, Los Angeles
Founding Members
bringing about change
We promise to:
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listen;
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engage in bi-directional reasoning, strategic planning; and
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marshal resources to provide the most efficacious response.
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black women health and well-being
12 Priorities of Focus
EMOTIONAL
Emotional well-being as an ability to cope effectively with life and build satisfying relationships with others.
SPIRITUAL
Spiritual well-being is related to your values and beliefs that help you find meaning and purpose in your life.
INTELLECTUAL
Intellectual well-being is a recognition of your unique talents to be creative and seek out ways to use your knowledge and skills. Intellectual well-being is having access to quality life-long educational resources.
PHYSICAL
Physical well-being is affected by physical activity, healthy nutrition, and adequate sleep.
ENVIRONMENTAL
Environmental well-being is related to the surroundings you occupy. This dimension of health connects your overall well-being to the health of your environment.
FINANCIAL
Financial wellness is a feeling of satisfaction about your financial situation.
OCCUPATIONAL
Occupational well-being is a sense of satisfaction with your choice of work.
SOCIAL
Social well-being is a sense of connectedness and belonging.
HOUSING
Housing well-being is the attainment of adequate, affordable, stable housing which connects to community, culture, work and other local services such as transportation and schools.
SAFETY
Safety well-being is a sense of feeling safe in the home, community, on the job, in school, and within public and private services with no exposure to any form of violence and trauma.
CIVIC/POLITICAL PARTICIPATION
Civic/political participation well-being is a sense of connectedness to voting, volunteering, participating in community and group activities that benefit the group or society.
ENSURE RACIAL EQUITY
Racial equity well-being is the systemic fair treatment of all people resulting in fair opportunities and outcomes.