Personal Challenges
struggles. She says these models are an integral part of her work because mental illness, in addition to adverse childhood experiences and substance use, are risk factors for homelessness. Serving Overlooked Communities As an advocacy group, AYA is positioned to serve the communities that are overlooked in traditional systems designed to provide assistance. “My responsibility is to show up and teach freely. If I have information, I’m going to make sure individuals from marginalized communities are aware of the information I have. Advocacy is important to me because I have experienced discrimination, implicit
Christian launched AYA in 2019 after years of learning to thrive in the midst of mental health challenges. In 2015, she was diagnosed with severe anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. “Something happened around that time that triggered me and made me relive a traumatic event from my childhood. I suppressed my experience and learned to operate within the mental constraints systems put me in.” She says she had distrust in the healthcare system due to a lack of minority medical workers. “During my hospitalization, I learned what it felt like to be dehumanized for being Black and a woman with mental illness.”
She refers to that dehumanization as an effect of the extensive history of Black patients not receiving equal medical care. She says it also stemmed from these patients being prescribed medication by a doctor inexperienced in listening to or addressing
“If I have information, I’m going to make sure individuals from marginalized communities are aware of the information I have.” - DOMINIQUE CHRISTIAN
bias, and racism, even as a working professional. So I know I have to fight for those who are homeless, experiencing mental health struggles, or incarcerated. I believe it is my duty to
educate Black people on helpful services that are available to them and advocate for policy changes that address constraints that have been intentionally embedded into this community to become oppressive practices.” From her work, Christian hopes others can recognize that they, too, can use their voices to advocate for changes they feel are necessary. She is also working on creating a magazine that highlights local youth who are overcoming stigmas that exist in marginalized communities. She hopes the magazine will gain recognition
their concerns. “I felt like they didn’t hear me and didn’t acknowledge what I was saying or some of the concerns I had about my mental health or the medications they wanted to put me on.” Christian says these experiences drove her to start the work she now does through AYA Advocacy. “The core of the AYA organization is not just to recognize and identify what we already know to be true when it comes to mental health and substance abuse struggles in marginalized communities. It is also to foster an environment that allows for someone to be okay and not embarrassed with who they are and to work with their available resources to live the life they see fit.” Christian also serves as a housing program manager for the Road Home Dane County. Much of her work focuses on trauma-informed and individual practices because of her lived experience with homelessness and mental health
to offer exposure to younger audiences about career fields lacking representation from the Black community.
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