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Often, we are confronted with dehumanizing practices in education setting—practices that cause trauma, induce shame, and contribute to the adversity that many children and adults already face. Practices that push us away from our better selves, and strip others of their dignity and humanity. Practices and institutions that punish, harm, exclude, degrade, dismiss, disrespect, and disregard. Educators and students alike have experienced being dehumanized in their school environments at some...

When articles on self-harm are posted, I recommend we understand that diagnoses are merely labels for symptom clusters, almost always resulting from early trauma. Professionals use labels primarily for billing. They are also used widely as derogatory terms, at least when I was working as a mental health professional. "Borderline personality," "dissociative disorders," etc. are shorthand descriptions of desperate coping measures that survivors use to manage the pain from early extreme abuse.

By Andrea Stanley, The Washington Post Magazine, October 27, 2021 J ess Mercer received a call from her stepmom, Annette, that morning, a little after 8 a.m. “We’re coming,” Annette said, her voice so unrecognizable it sounded foreign. Jess was at her apartment in Chico, Calif., a slightly overgrown university town that sits in a valley below the hilltop community of Paradise, about 20 minutes away. She was confused. It was early, on a weekday: Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. She wasn’t expecting a...

Register Today Friday, November 5, 2021 At California Protective Parents Association, we are so grateful to be co-hosting this special day on Friday, November 5 starting at 9 am PT with UCI Initiative to End Family Violence. This full-day virtual conference will offer multidisciplinary perspectives on protecting children from family violence in the context of child custody or divorce cases. National experts, leading legislators, survivors and courageous kids will address policy reforms,...

The state’s unprecedented investment in children and youth , which will roll out over the next few years , represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reimagine our mental health system centered on equity and justice. California's bold action acknowledges a growing national consensus that the mental health crisis among children has become a national emergency. Key to achieving the state's vision is creating a workforce that engages people with lived experience as peer providers,...

The Dibble Institute is pleased to present an introductory webinar by Rev. Dr. Bryant T. Marks Sr. of the National Training Institute on Race and Equity , which will provide foundational information on implicit bias. It will focus at the individual level and discuss how implicit bias affects everyone. Strategies to reduce or manage implicit bias will be discussed. Broadly speaking, group-based bias involves varying degrees of stereotyping (exaggerated beliefs about others), prejudice...

By Eden Stiffman, The Chronicle of Philanthropy, October 18, 2021 Alan Kwok began his job as director of climate and disaster resilience at Northern California Grantmakers in November of 2018. Barely a week later, sparks from a faulty electric transmission line ignited the Camp Fire, which began its devastating spread through Northern California’s Butte County. The blaze became the most destructive and deadly wildfire in the state’s history, burning an area nearly the size of Chicago. “There...

By Jenny Gold, California Healthline, October 21, 2021 For parents living in poverty, “diaper math” is a familiar and distressingly pressing daily calculation. Babies in the U.S. go through six to 10 disposable diapers a day, at an average cost of $70 to $80 a month. Name-brand diapers with high-end absorption sell for as much as a half a dollar each, and can result in upwards of $120 a month in expenses. One in every three American families cannot afford enough diapers to keep their infants...

By Xenia Shih Bion, California Health Care Foundation, October 15, 2021 To support CHCF’s vision of health equity for all Californians, the foundation has launched the Health Equity Fellows program to identify, develop, and support emerging leaders who are Black, Indigenous, or other people of color. The program’s mission is to help fellows become local and regional catalysts for health equity across the state. After an extremely competitive application process, CHCF selected the first...

After educators’ experience with the COVID-19 pandemic, a 2014 approach to school health has gained even greater urgency. Under this model, a student's physical health is considered to be inseparable from their mental and social health. Moreover, it assumes that school climate, family engagement, community involvement, and, importantly, the health of school staff are all integral to the health of students. Researchers with ChildTrends recently released a report using metrics based on this...

He is sprawled out on the sidewalk, motionless, flushed cheeks framed by high cheekbones. He’s slender, probably in his mid-20s, his straight, coal black hair pulled back, and his orange t-shirt twisted up over his stomach. “He’s OD’ing on fentanyl!” shouts a guy holding a skateboard.

By Madison Pauly, Mother Jones, October 14, 2021 Early on a Saturday morning in June 2015, a passerby notices a silver BMW stopped at an off-ramp in Oakland, California. The car’s turn signal is on, and the motor is running, but it doesn’t move as the traffic light cycles. Through the tinted windows, the driver appears passed out in the front seat. So the bystander calls 911 to report a medical emergency. Soon, armed police officers swarm the scene. If they are concerned the driver might...