is 100,000k strong and growing every day. Seen above, participants in a recent rally sharing the joy of the moment.
(Washington, D.C. – September 27 , 2018) GirlTrek, the largest national public health nonprofit and movement for Black women and girls, is bringing radical self-care and healing to the city of Baltimore as part of its yearlong, 50-stop #RoadToSelma tour, a national wellness revival complete with storytelling, sweat, self-care and sisterhood.
GirlTrek’s Baltimore #RoadToSelma teach-in is set for 6 to 9 p.m. Friday, October 5th at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture at 830 East Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD 21202. The #RoadToSelma teach-in will be led by GirlTrek cofounders T. Morgan Dixon and Vanessa Garrison and is open to Black women and girls, who seek to heal their bodies, inspire their daughters and reclaim the streets of their neighborhoods.
“Self-care is the revolution: Our lives are sacred. We stage tiny acts of rebellion to reclaim our time. GirlTrek is creating a bright and beautiful new culture of physical activity to disrupt disease in the highest-need communities in the United States. We practice shining our own lights and shining that light brightly,” said GirlTrek CEO and cofounder, T. Morgan Dixon. “Our guiding question is this: Is this nourishing me or Black women? If no, we don’t do it. If yes, we take pleasure in it. We seek pleasure because joy heals.”
Factors like chronic poverty, the stress of underemployment and unsafe streets, and cultural norms that value service above self-care have all contributed to Black women engaging in fewer leisure-time physical activities. As a result, 82% of Black women are overweight and 59% are obese. Obesity plus inactivity equals early death and higher rates of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer.
GirlTrek believes the solution to this health crisis is simple: Daily walking has been proven to reduce the risk factors of obesity. GirlTrek uses walking as that first, practical step in helping a woman begin her journey to overall improved health and wellness.
“We are not a fitness organization. We are a campaign for total healing. We are a vanguard of public health activists walking to save our own lives. We walk to live our healthiest, most fulfilled lives,” said COO and cofounder, Vanessa Garrison. “By 2020, GirlTrek’s goal is to mobilize one million Black women to walk — at lifesaving levels — to reverse the devastating impacts of chronic illness and obesity.”
To reach one million Black women, GirlTrek will organize and train 10,000 of the most committed women as a new vanguard of public health activists, the largest corps of Black public health professionals in the U.S. They will serve as healthy role models across the nation using practical skills and an unwavering sense of purpose to recruit new walkers, eliminate structural and policy barriers to health, and lead local events that set the standard for healthy communities.
The Baltimore #RoadToSelma stop follows in Houston, Texas; Charlotte, North Carolina, Jackson, MS, Detroit, New York City, Philadelphia, Newark and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. All #RoadToSelma events require advanced registration. Sneakers are required for all activities. Pop-up events and new city stops may be added. The #RoadToSelma was launched on the TED stage on April 11, 2018 as part of the Audacious Project. Visit girltrek.org for more information.
GirlTrek’s #RoadToSelma culminates with #SummerOfSelma, scheduled for May 24-27, 2019. Inspired by the teach-ins of the Civil Rights Era, “Summer of Selma” will be a three-day immersive experience divided into three parts: skills training, a “Woodstock-style” music festival and a trek that will retrace the historic 54-mile Selma to Montgomery route. Think old-school tent revival meets Wanderlust and Coachella.
WHO: GirlTrek is the largest public health movement and nonprofit for Black women and girls in the United States.
WHAT: #RoadToSelma is a national wellness revival powered by GirlTrek.
WHEN: 6 to 9 p.m., Friday, October 5th
WHERE: Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture
830 East Pratt Street
Baltimore, MD 21202
HOW: Advanced registration is required. Follow along on social media using the hashtag #RoadtoSelma.
About GirlTrek:
GirlTrek was founded by T. Morgan Dixon and Vanessa Garrison. The two friends met in Los Angeles as college students. GirlTrek encourages women to use walking as a practical first step to inspire healthy living, families, and communities. In five years, GirlTrek has mobilized more than 150,000 Black women and girls nationwide. GirlTrek’s goal is to motivate one million Black women and girls to walk for better health by 2020. Cofounders, Vanessa Garrison and T. Morgan Dixon took the GirlTrek story to the global stage at TED 2017: Walking as a revolutionary act of self-care.
Contact Jewel Bush, National Director of Communications at jewel@girltrek.org to help coordinate media interviews. Visit www.girltrek.org for more information.
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