Black Wellness Hubs are temporary pop-ups located in neighbourhoods with high Black populations. Organized by various service providers that serve the Black community, the goal of these hubs is to promote health and wellness to Black community members through an inclusive, ethno-racial and welcoming lens.
The hubs provide an opportunity to eat good food, listen to great music and visit health focused information desks. They are also places where you can get your blood sugar and blood pressure checked and talk directly to various health professionals. If that wasn’t enough, Black Community Wellness Hubs are also an opportunity for community members to get COVID-19 vaccinations.
Several Black Community Wellness Hubs have been held in the St. James Town and Regent Park communities in the past few months. These hubs were organized by a collective of organizations operating under the Downtown East Vaccine Engagement Partnership Network. These groups include The 519, the St. James Town Community Corner, Sherbourne Health, the Regent Park Community Centre, Fred Victor, Women’s Health in Women’s Hand, Black Cap and more.
The importance of having these pop-ups is to remind all of us that every community is important . Everyone needs to make sure they are healthy no matter what their situation.
To see a video of a Black Community Wellness Hub, visit: https://youtu.be/cSvuExXWQkc
Nea Maaty is a journalist with the Focus Media Arts Centre ~ a partner of The Corner.
