Q&A with a Brave Talks facilitator

How did Brave Talks start?

Brave Talks began as an offshoot of Community Grand Rounds (CGR) in 2018. As community members gained awareness about the impacts of trauma and racism on community health, there became a need for deeper conversations. Brave Talks started as an informal, facilitated conversation to reflect on a CGR speaker’s presentation, hear others’ thoughts, ask questions, and share personal experiences. Today, Brave Talks has maintained an informal gathering format while building upon CGR reflections to deepen awareness of how systems, structures, and policies impact the health of community members. The program also examines how inequities in health outcomes continue to occur between community members of color and their white counterparts.

What is the goal of the program?

The goal of Brave Talks is to build a space where individuals can bravely share, listen to others, and learn how racism at structural and systemic levels has negatively impacted health outcomes for all. The program aims to be a catalyst to further individual and community understanding of the impacts of racism on health and to identify how someone might help change those impacts on future generations.

What are some key takeaways?

Throughout six Brave Talks sessions, individuals have time to think deeply about CGR presentations, ask questions, share reactions, and look back through a historical lens to see how racism has been baked into systems and structures. Participants will learn how historical actions persist today and identify next steps personal and unique to them.

What feedback have you heard from participants?

The personal awareness and group relationships formed during Brave Talks is truly unique. Participants share that they have become more supportive of neighbors and friends. Others mention that they have become more open to sharing key learnings with friends and family. For the first time, some started to feel less guilt and more empowerment to grow into an ally or advocate. Brave Talks has been the catalyst for digging deeper and finding how individual spheres of influence can improve the health of our community! How can someone get involved? Individuals can join a community group, or a small group of neighbors, co-workers, or friends can form their own group. In either format, participants will be joined by two facilitators who will guide the group through all conversations. To learn more, go to spectrumhealthlakeland.org/bravetalks

Courtney Davis has a passion for building community, specifically in aligning health and race equity in public health practice and actions. Her work takes intentionality and ongoing learning, unlearning, and relearning. She enjoys participating in Brave Talks, which has deepened her personal journey and continues to keep her challenged and connected to community. She is honored to be a part of this ongoing imprint on our community.