Peer-Reviewed Work

Authors: Evan Auguste, Tania Lodge, Niara Carrenard,

Jana Robina Onwong’a, Ashley Zollicoffer,

Dana Collins, and Laneay London

In 2020, the Association of Black Psychologists (ABPsi) drew attention to the

history of racism in the United States on the creation and exacerbation of

extant medical racial inequities to the detriment of Black individuals. Recognizing

that solutions based solely in Western frameworks cannot fully

address the mental health needs of Black individuals, ABPsi devoted collaborative

efforts to develop culturally grounding healing responses for the

unique experiences of race-based invisibility and trauma. Additionally, amid

the pandemic, individuals of African-descent experienced various mass racial

traumas, including a wave of widely publicized police violence. Beginning with

COVID-19, these intersecting pandemics of racism elucidated the need for

healing, particularly culturally grounding healing. In consultation with the Black

Family Summit, ABPsi developed a pilot investigation, the Sawubona Healing

Circle (SHC) initiative, which are culturally grounding healing circles to support Black first responders. Using an African-centered worldview, the

circles recognize and validate the specific constellation of anti-Black traumas

and stressors, equipping them with African-centered healing methods. This

paper outlines the theory, development, implementation, and initial evaluation

of the SHC intervention.