Oct 9, 2021
Signal Boost – The Afiya Center
Hey-yo! It’s the Cult of Personality™ Saturday Signal Boost, where I pick an awesome BIPOC Instagram account to showcase so you can go follow them, too. 🎉
I’ll be doing this roughly once a month, and I’ll be featuring one account in each post. I’m also inviting you to share YOUR favorite IG accounts in the comments, so you’ll want to save this post.
This month’s feature is The Afiya Center, “the only Reproductive Justice (RJ) organization in North Texas founded and directed by Black womxn.”
They are doing, and HAVE been doing, the important work of decriminalizing the Black female body—through HIV Programming that addresses the socioeconomic disparities among Black women who are at risk or living with HIV; maternal mortality research & funding; and reproductive health (including abortion access).
Did you know… Texas has the highest rates of maternal and infant mortality? (This was already true before the recent bans went into effect.) And lawmakers continually refuse to provide comprehensive sexual health education in schools, or full Medicaid expansion beyond 6 months.
If you are wh.te and of a certain socioeconomic status, the reality is that the new law isn’t really going to affect you as much as it will affect Black & brown women. It’s one of those situations where our privilege really blinds us to what’s it’s like to live in a body that is literally in danger all day, every day, 24/7/365. No matter how empathetic and/or woke you feel, there are just some things we’ll never fully understand.
There are plenty of causes & organizations to donate one’s time & money to; I chose The Afiya Center because of who runs it, the communities it serves, and the integrity of their donation process. And I recommend you do the same.
About Sam
Samantha Pollack is a Copywriter & Creative Director who works with ethically minded, mission driven businesses who are actively trying to reshape our culture (and possibly tear down the patriarchy). She’s also the founder of The Highly Sensitive Business Owner, a 12-week online program that helps HSPs & neurodivergent business owners create healthier, more sustainable systems in their work.
Sam also writes about feminism, privilege, pop culture, entrepreneurship, the creative process, and whatever else is on her mind. She currently lives in Asheville, NC.
Emails for cult thought leaders.
(Personality included.)
Want to learn how to craft emails that inspire action and engagement WITHOUT the “tried and true” (cough: patriarchal) norms we’ve all been taught?
I’m doing it, and I can show you how to do it, too.
(But sometimes, I also like to write about the books I’m reading, or the creative process, or the entrepreneurial experience, or why I hate Steve Jobs, or how I met my BFF. I’ll send you emails like that, too.)
*Just kidding. It’s only an email list.
Books. Cats. Rants. Drawrings.
(and every couple months or so, an unexplained absence 🤷🏻)
