Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ+) youth encounter unique mental health concerns due to the intersectionality of their race and sexual identity. Specifically, they are members of multiple groups (i.e., racial and sexual/gender identity groups) that have experienced significant discrimination, prejudice, and bias. This increases their risk of further oppression and creates additional barriers to mental health care. These youth are less likely to receive professional care and more likely to report suicide and depression than cisgender youth. This webinar will identify barriers to care, risks factors associated with heightened mental health concerns, including the intersection of race and sexual/gender identity, and identify strategies for creating change to improve the lived experiences of this under-supported population.
Danielle Busby, Ph.D. was born in Detroit, MI and raised in the Detroit metropolitan area. She received her B.A. in Psychology from the University of Michigan, and her master’s and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from The George Washington University. Currently, Dr. Busby is an Assistant Professor at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB). In this role, she primarily serves youth and families experiencing a range of mental health concerns through the Texas Child Health Access Through Telemedicine (TCHATT) program. Dr. Busby’s expertise is in trauma-informed assessment and intervention; evidence-based clinical practices; and suicide risk assessment and intervention. She is passionate about decreasing barriers to mental health service use for underserved patient populations and is committed to continuously bridging the gap between research and clinical practice.
Jessica Henry, PhD, is a licensed clinical psychologist in Washington, DC, Maryland, and Georgia. She is the co-founder and vice president of program development and evaluation for the Black Mental Wellness Corp., and founder and CEO of Community Impact: Consultation & Psychological Services—a trauma-informed organization whose mission is to provide trauma-informed services to individuals and organizations affected by traumatic events. Henry is the current senior director of behavioral health for one of Washington, DC’s largest Federally Qualified Health Centers, and previous clinical director of a level-5 close security male prison and Georgia’s largest youth homeless shelter. Overall, Henry is passionate about the mental health of individuals in Black and under resourced communities and has specialized in increasing access to treatment and providing the highest quality of evidence-based mental health treatment services to underserved youth, families, and adults exposed to traumatic events (e.g., community violence, abuse, neglect). She received her B.S. from Howard University, M.A. from Columbia University, and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from The George Washington University. She is from the greater Washington, DC metropolitan area. For more information about Henry, please visit BlackMentalWellness.com or ImpactTheCommunity.com. She can also be found on Instagram @BlackMentalWellness or @CommunityImpact_CP.
Health and behavioral health professionals, school staff, community members and advocates, and family members of Black youth