Behavioral health researcher Dr. Sharon M. Holder writes that Black men and men of color are carrying a disproportionate share of the mental health crisis, with rising suicide rates and undiagnosed PTSD rooted in systemic racism, and calls on communities to break the silence that has cost too many lives.
Sharon M. Holder, PhD., MPhil., MSc., MSW
Dr. Sharon M. Holder lives in South Carolina. She holds a PhD/MPhil in Gerontology from the Center for Research on Aging at the University of Southampton, UK; a Master of Science in Gerontology from the Institute of Gerontology at King’s College London, UK; and a Master of Social Work from the Graduate College of Social Work at the University of Houston, Texas. Dr. Holder discovered her love of poetry at the University of Houston–Downtown, where she published in The Bayou Review and the Anthology of Poetry. Today, she writes poetry as a practice of gratitude alongside her academic research.
Posted inOpinion
The stigma we carry, the silence we must break
Dr. Sharon M. Holder writes that mental health stigma in communities of color is rooted in generational silence, systemic barriers and trauma, and calls on readers to break that silence this Mental Health Month.
Posted inOpinion
Women of color shape our past and future
Women’s History Month highlights the enduring impact of women of color leadership across history, from Harriet Tubman and Shirley Chisholm to leaders shaping the present.
Posted inArts + Culture
The fire that endures: Black legacy, power, and the unfinished work
Black history is not a chapter in America’s story, it is the story. It is the soil beneath our feet, the wind that pushes us forward, and the fire that refuses to be extinguished. It is a lineage of courage, brilliance, defiance, and hope that stretches from the stolen shores of Africa to the highest […]
Posted inArts + Culture
For Renee Nicole Good: A life extinguished too soon
A poem by Dr. Sharon M. Holder honoring Renee Nicole Good, reflecting grief, resistance, and the struggle for humanity in the aftermath of her killing.