According to the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA), Black adults are 20% more likely to experience severe mental health issues. The 2016 National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report stated, “Those who are from racial and ethnic minority groups are less likely to receive behavioral health services.”
Economic factors, such as the increase in the cost of living, lack of insurance, transportation, and much more all play a major role in reducing the chances of Blacks receiving affordable, quality healthcare.
With the health discrepancies affecting the Black community in big numbers, it is refreshing to know that there are resources that can help mitigate the stress of not having access to affordable healthcare.
One resource is Being Black, a nonprofit wellbeing studio in downtown Inglewood. Formally founded in 2019 as South LA Wellness, Black Being encourages physical, mental and emotional wellbeing, through practices and programs anchored in culture and ancestral wisdoms. Founder and Executive Director Allison “Alli” Simon is a certified yoga and meditation facilitator and a fifth generation Angeleno from South Central L.A.
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Alli grew up near 124th and San Pedro. Her family hails from Watts, California. In the 1990s, her stepfather was killed due to gun violence, so her mother moved her family out of Los Angeles to the Central Valley until she graduated high school.
Alli’s older sister unfortunately passed away causing Alli to become incredibly numb. She felt sensations in her chest that she described as “clouded.” At that moment, she only wanted to be alone because everything around her felt so chaotic.
She would visit the park often and lie down with nature; this was her meditation for a while. She started attending yoga after that. She recalls what she describes as her chest sinking into her mat and she started sobbing after. She said that yoga started showing up in a way she did not expect it to. For that moment, it would take her mind off of what she was feeling. It brought her into the “reality of life.”
After her many years of practicing yoga, she pondered what it would look like for people to have access to a consistent space, find silence, connect to their breath, and be in the present moment. As an L.A. native, she knows what it feels like to live in a city where there is constant noise, sirens, helicopters, and many other distractions. Over time, this can contribute to an immense amount of stress.
“Where do you find a moment of silence?” she asked. She says that initially in South Central L.A., yoga and meditation was not something that was transpiring.
“This community has so much trauma that’s not just an individual like creating that for themselves, but there are structures that are in place that are keeping things the way that they are. It’s not that folks don’t want healing or don’t want to be better or don’t want to find other options, but there aren’t very many places or opportunities for people to really find those things,” she emphasized.
“Think about my mom who talks about the community growing up in South Central was such a vibrant beautiful way of living where people came together, and they supported one another. It just stuck with me. It reminded me like, you’ve got to do something. You’ve got to be a part of something.”
The goal is to remedy the lack of representation and reflection of the Black experience in the wellbeing community. Alli has created a space that is accessible to the local community where people can prioritize their health and wellness. Those who utilize their services can also surround themselves with people who believe that wellness is a right for all of us.
“In more affluent communities, we see an abundance of wellness resources and studios,” she emphasized.
“In Black and Brown communities we see far less, which communicates that wellness is a luxury rather than a necessity.”
When you walk into Black Being, you may see familiar faces or you may not know anyone, but once you complete a class, you will feel like it is a second home. The owner chose the Inglewood area as “home” because it is a central part of the Black community. Alli hopes that the studio will touch various parts of the South L.A. area.
Black Being offers free and sliding scale classes, workshops, and events led by local teachers. It provides community care programs for parents, the LGBTQ community, older adults, and people with limited mobility, and offers a variety of daily and monthly classes and workshops. Classes include Energetic Yoga Flow (Movement), Balance + Mobility (Movement), Rest + Restore Yoga (Movement), Candlelit Yin Yoga (Movement), Virtual Meditations, and much more.
The studio consists of a group of dedicated and passionate individuals who ensure that things flow smoothly for guests, including Alli, Director of Strategic Development London Jones, Studio Coordinator,Jade Smith, and front desk Administrator Parrish Justin.
The amazing teachers who provide a memorable experience and create a safe space are yoga instructors RC, Sasha Jones, Dionne McDowell, and Christine Wherry. Meditation practitioners consist of JoAnna Hardy, Dora Kamau, and Sydney Reece.
There are also Hakim Tafari, tai chi meditation instructor, and Love More, movement instructor. The board of directors are Nicole Cardozo, Shane Epps, Zami Tinashe Hyemingway, and Dhaujee Rose.
For more information, visit blackbeingla.org. Follow them on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blackbeingla/.
