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Community Organizer & VeterAn Advocate

Advocacy in Action

 

Advocating for forgotten communities since 1989.

Growing up in a middle class home, I was first conscious of a class divide and disparities in my own family at an early age. When I visited extended family in Louisiana, I was introduced to poverty, illiteracy and violence. I didn’t have a way to express what I saw, I just knew that when I returned home, my home was clean, we had plenty to eat and it was filled with bookcases of encyclopedias, dictionaries and books. This was my awakening. As a teenager, I vowed to find a way to do my part to reduce the impact of poverty on marginalized families.

Today, I advocate for the right to:

  • 100% bodily autonomy

  • stigma free cannabis use

  • women veterans’ access to disability compensation, benefits and appropriate health care

  • a safe, pollution free environment to live a peaceful and productive life

  • access to the therapeutic benefits of being outdoors and pleasure producing activities

My passion is for helping women, particularly women veterans, live healthy and whole lives in a manner that suits them and that gives them pleasure and joy.

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☎ CONTACT

VISITME@vediabarnett.com


Areas of Expertise

Social Justice

I have been a community organizer since high school (VP & Pres. of SADD). I possess the knowledge and skills to garner public support for pressing matters as well as how to gain support from elected officials. I work with various organizations to maximize community connections to produce positive experiences for marginalized people.

Women Veterans

Today’s women veterans face extreme challenges such as mental health concerns, navigating disability compensation and benefits, homelessness, low income, and lack of or access to adequate health care. I help my fellow sisters find the proper resources that fit their needs and teach them to advocate for themselves.

BLack Women’s Health

As a Black woman, I do not subscribe to nor believe in the “strong Black woman” stereotype that almost killed me via a minor stroke. I advocate for culturally competent mental health care and innovative therapy(ex., outdoor recreation) as well as cannabis use for Black women, especially those living with PTSD. I also advocate for women to engage in things that give them pleasure.

 

 
 
My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.
— Dr. Maya Angelou
One of the greatest gifts of Black feminism to ourselves has been to make it a little easier simply to be Black and female.
— Barbara Smith