A Texas community left neglected and exposedIn a Houston, Texas, community overshadowed by industrial pollution, families like Cristina Lazo's face daily health concerns due to their proximity to a petrochemical complex emitting chemical odors and pollutants. Lazo, a mother of six, tells palabra. she applies Vicks VapoRub to her daughter's chest at night, knowing she'll still wake up congested with "itchy spider webs” in her eyes. This isn't unique; many in the predominantly Spanish-speaking community say they face similar struggles. Just blocks away, Deysy Canales and her family also grapple with health issues attributed to their environment. She shares, "In my country [of Honduras], I never got anything. But now that I live here in Cloverleaf, I get sick more often and have asthma attacks.Read more to understand the challenges faced by these families, including the lack of accessible air quality data in Spanish and more →
All Minn. public school students can access free mental health care. Here’s how to do it, and how it’s saving lives: In recent years, the landscape of mental health support in Minnesota's public schools has seen significant progress. Today, more than half of the state's public school students have access to free mental health therapy directly within their school premises — an achievement that stands in contrast to the limited availability in 2000, when only a few schools offered these services. "We try to reach those students and families who typically would not have access to these services. We work with school counselors and social workers; they are teasing out families who are extra-resourced vs. families who are not able to access services,” said Farah Hussein, a high school counselor. Sahan Journal also spoke to researchers who shared that a new study confirms Black and Brown youth showed the greatest increase in using school-based mental health services.
🚀
You can now find our partners' essential intersectional reporting and perspectives at our new URL Media website updated daily. Dive into the stories that matter. Check us out here!
What is the "Marea Verde" reproductive rights movement sweeping Latin America?In 2018, more than a million activists filled the streets of Argentina with green handkerchiefs to call for legalizing abortion in the country. Their message was clear: women's lives matter and they will not be silenced. As Luz Media writes, the U.S., which is experiencing significant rollbacks of reproductive rights, can learn from the Marea Verde movement and its relentless campaigning across Latin America that has helped increase abortion access in several Catholic-majority countries throughout the region.
Meet the Game Changers
Highlighting the innovators transforming health outcomes in our communities
Farah Hussein is a dedicated mental health therapist at South High School in Minneapolis. She plays an important role in providing equitable access to therapy services for students from marginalized communities