The Black Healing Centre comes from my negative experience with trying to access mental health support within the Montreal community for the past 5 years. I had first met with a non-Black therapist 5 years ago, whom I had found on an “affordable therapist list in Montreal”. My experience with that therapist made me feel unsafe, and uncomfortable, not because of the material that we had explored, but because I had to stop and explain, or defend my experiences multiple times throughout the therapy session. These sessions made me realize that I needed a Black therapist who could understand my lived experiences. I reached out to an organization in Montreal that was known for offering affordable rates. The receptionist informed me that they had one Black therapist who spoke only French, and she was not taking on any more clients. The second problem with this organization is that they had a three months waiting period and most people, like myself 5 years ago, could not  afford to wait that long.

I called Black community organizations in the city to help me find a Black therapist and nothing. In desperate need, I posted on Facebook that I was looking for a Black Therapist. Someone sent me a Tumblr page with a list of Black Therapists in Montreal. I was relieved but all the therapists were out of my price range. Thus, I cut down on school and got a second job to help me pay for the therapy sessions that saved my life. After years of being in therapy and in community with other Black people on their own respective journeys to heal themselves and their families, I knew that I wanted to create a space whose first intention is to help support Black people in their healing. A space where Black people do not have to jump through hoops to have access to mental health support.

- Samanta Nyinawumuntu, Founder