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On February 11, 1990, African National Congress leader and future South African President Nelson Mandela was released from Victor Verster Prison after being held for 27 years. In a speech given on the same day of his release, Mandela said “In conclusion I wish to quote my own words during my trial in 1964. They are true today as they were then: I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in...

While resources in English on ACEs, toxic stress, resilience, trauma-informed care, and related topics have proliferated in recent years, there is still a dearth of resources in other languages. Below, please find some videos in Spanish (or at least subtitled in Spanish) that explain various aspects of ACEs science. If you know of others, please share them in the comments, and we’ll add them to the list! VIDEOS IN SPANISH Estrés Tóxico y Resiliencia ( Stress and Resilience: How Toxic Stress...

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS FOR Three (3) Regional Peer to Peer Programs Region 1 – North Jersey: Essex, Middlesex, & Union Counties Region 2 – Central Jersey: Mercer, Monmouth, & Ocean Counties Region 3 – South Jersey: Atlantic, Burlington & Camden Counties https://www.nj.gov/dcf/providers/notices/requests/

Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, standing before the Old State Capitol where Abraham Lincoln began his political career, announced his candidacy for the White House.

Eleven years ago, Pennsylvania Executive Deputy Attorney General Robert Reed learned about the landmark Adverse Childhood Experiences Study , which linked childhood trauma to a higher risk of aggression, substance abuse, suicide and many life-threatening mental and physical diseases later in life. For him, it was a revelation. “The [ACE Study] gave me the language to understand what I felt, but didn’t have the language to express,” Reed said. “I had been in law enforcement for 30 years and...

Growing up with trauma inextricably linked to racism in southern Illinois, working as a state employee in Minnesota, training folks about ACEs and diversity and equity in several states—these are just a few of the life experiences Dave Ellis brings to the work he is now doing as Executive Director of the New Jersey Office of Resilience. Seven months ago Ellis took the job to head the Office of Resilience with the assurance that there would be a deep and meaningful focus on community...

Alice Walker Alice Walker is one of the most admired African American writers working today. She has written at length on issues of race and gender, and is most famous for the critically acclaimed novel The Color Purple for which she won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Born in Eatonton Georgia, on February the 9th, 1944, just before the end of World War II, Alice Malsenior Walker was the eighth of eight children to Minnie Tallulah Grant Walker and Winnie Lee Walker. Her father, who was, in...

By Star-Ledger Guest Columnist By Hamid Shaaban Black History Month is often observed by commemorating Black excellence and honoring the remarkable achievements and contributions of Black people in the United States and around the world. This month, I propose to all my colleagues in healthcare and medicine to promote and advance education about the history of medical racism. That history is Black history and it is often neglected and remains largely unacknowledged. It’s important to...

‘Winning the Heisman Trophy is something you just dream about. You never think it could happen to you’ Ernie Davis, a two-time All-American halfback at Syracuse University, lived a short life as a result of leukemia. He died at age 23 in 1963, but managed to lead his high school basketball team to a 52-game winning streak, help Syracuse win its only national football title and become the No. 1 pick in the 1961 NFL draft. On Dec. 6, 1961, he became the first African-American to win the...

On January 31st, 1988 Doug Williams made history. But before that historic day, Williams was already a history-maker. One of the greatest HBCU athletes of all time, Doug Williams career started as a Freshman at Grambling State University under legendary head coach Eddie Robinson. Williams was a four-year starter for GSU, leading the Tigers to a 36-7 record, three Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) titles and was awarded the Black College Player of the Year twice. 1977 Williams finished...

SPARK hopes to inspire people to move from simply not being a racist, which does little to dismantle racism, to actively living an anti-racist life and becoming an ally to the Black community.

Above is U.S. Coast Guard photo of Emlen Tunnell, who served in the Coast Guard during and after World War II, was the first Black player inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Before he became the first Black player inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Emlen Tunnell served in the U.S. Coast Guard during and after World War II, where he was credited with saving the lives of two shipmates. Now, a Coast Guard cutter and an athletic building on the Coast Guard Academy campus are...