Let’s talk about a few of the seeds we hope to plant within the community
The Root System
Public Health Research and Publications
The wealth of a community can be directly attributed to the Health of the people within it. African Americans are the least healthy racial ethnic group in the United States. The poor health and well-being of African Americans manifests from decades of racial and social injustice and formidable challenges to equitable access to quality health care. Systemic causes of sub-optimal Black health require equally systemic solutions! Positive trends in Black health indicators are driven by culturally appropriate social developmental programs, economic investment in education and communities, policies and practices that expand access to health care for African Americans, and civic engagement of African Americans in decision making processes that directly impact their quality of life.
Firmly Rooted aims to change these narratives by providing communities with health and well-being information and access to resources which will encourage healthier, more mindful lifestyles and facilitate conscious discourse on plant therapy and the issues regarding cannabis/hemp that plague the Black community.
As it relates to Cannabis/Hemp, we will also take a focused emphasis on educating the community on the origins of the cannabis plant, the historical significance of humankind’s relationship to the plant, mindful, responsible consumption of cannabis and the potential for physical dependency, and hopefully, we can facilitate conscious, open-minded, and fruitful discourse about the detrimental impact that cannabis related arrests, convictions, and incarcerations have had on minority communities.
F.R.E.E. THiNKERS Project
We want people to be F.R.E.E. (Firmly Rooted Educated and Empowered). This initiative aims to equip members of our communities with the knowledge and tools to not only cultivate cannabis/hemp, but also their own fresh homegrown fruits, vegetables, and holistic herbs. This pushes our communities towards self-sufficiency, encourages a mindful, active lifestyle, and emphasizes the importance of a healthy, balanced nutrition.
We take an intentionally mindful approach to cultivation as we aim to demonstrate the incredibly renewing, therapeutic properties of gardening, using it as a catalyst to jumpstart the physical and emotional healing processes of participating community members. The goal is to not only teach the values of self-sufficiency and sustainable home gardening, but also to cultivate, within the cultivator, a higher, more evolved dimension of their total self. That is why we will be pairing each participant with a licensed mental health/wellness professional that will accompany them throughout the grow cycle.
At the rootzone of our plants there exists a codependency between the plant’s root systems and the microorganisms that live in the soil which assist in the plant’s growth process, a symbiotic relationship. We hope to facilitate a similar level of symbiosis between cultivators and their plants, cultivators and other growers, and cultivators and their mental health partners... This is where the healing in the community begins.
We have the unique opportunity to build a community of informed, competent, and highly capable cultivators with a greater, more intimate respect for the plant and themselves. We arm members of the community with the tools to live an overall healthier lifestyle, but we also empower them with an invaluable skill which can prepare them for employment with a local cannabis/hemp dispensary/farm/production facility.
Through education, instruction, mentorship, and communal fellowship, we can return the mind and body of those within the community to optimally functioning levels of homeostasis and harmony.
Mental Health Advocacy
Mental health is an essential part of overall physical health and satisfaction. The Black community suffers from increased rates of poor mental well-being. The high rates of poor mental health status among African Americans are due to the lack of access to appropriate and culturally responsive mental health care services, prejudice, and racism inherent in the daily environment of Black individuals, and historical trauma enacted on the Black community in the medical field. Moreover, given that the Black community exists at the intersection of racism, classism, and health inequities, their mental health needs are often exacerbated and mostly unaddressed. Issues related to economic insecurity and associated experiences, to include violence and criminal injustice compound the mental health disparities in the Black population.
Although mental health resources are components of the F.R.E.E. THiNKERS Project, we aim to partner with mental health networks to assist in providing access to mental health services for anyone who may need them, whether program participants or not
The Rootz Network
Firmly Rooted aims to construct a web-based forum that will host a nationwide community of minority Hemp-related businesses: distributors, vendors, nurseries/farms, and community organizations. We aim to stand as a model for collective thought and cooperative economics for blacks in the cannabis/hemp market.