THURSDAY, AUGUST 13 · 8AM – 5PM PDT
The California Endowment, 1000 Alameda St., Los Angeles CA
This year’s conference, From Harm to Healing: Dismantling Barriers to Reproductive Justice for Black Women and Girls, seeks to confront the continuum of reproductive harm endured by Black women and girls.
It is both a remembrance and a call to action acknowledging that Black women’s bodies have historically been used for extraction, experimentation, and control–from forced reproduction of our ancestors to the surgical experiments of J. Marion Sims and the non-consensual use of Henrietta Lacks’ cells. These harms continue today in maternal disparities, dismissal of Black women’s pain, and systemic barriers to reproductive autonomy.
At this year’s conference, we will hold space for truth-telling and collective healing. Together, we will exchange ideas, support one another, and develop practical steps to resist the very systems that exploit our bodies and reclaim time for joy and healing.
Agenda
Host
Jasolyn Marlisa Cynthia Harris, LCSW, M.Div. is a mother, partner, friend, root worker and multi-disciplinary healing artist.
As a Black queer femme, Jasolyn is dedicated to healing intergenerational familial wounds, specifically our maternal ancestral lineages.
Jasolyn is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker currently working part-time in private practice, specializing in the somatic psychotherapy modality, EMDR (Eye Movement, Desensitization, Reprocessing) and has been in the mental health field for 15 years.
Jasolyn has recently joined the illustrious Black Women For Wellness team in Los Angeles as one of the project evaluators. In addition to her multifaceted work in the mental health field, Jasolyn is a syncretic spiritualist, ceremonialist and clergy member rooted in Black American and African religious traditions of both Hoodoo and decolonized Christianity.
Jasolyn is an academically trained theologian who graduated with her 2nd masters degree in Divinity from Duke University and is a published contributing author of the book, Liberating Church: A 21st Century Hush Harbor Manifesto.
Jasolyn is the former Pastor of a radical Black and POC-centered, queer and trans-affirming Christian interdenominational church community, rooted in the Black Pentecostal Tradition.
Based in Los Angeles, Jasolyn is a newly passionate student and emerging vocal performer, learning the Italian Opera tradition, Bel Canto (translates to “beautiful singing”).
When she’s not co-parenting with her loving partner, she’s somewhere singing, line dancing, laughing hysterically, enjoying all of her daily beauty rituals and making quality memories with her dearest loved ones.
DJ
DJ Kemyuh is an LA Based, multi-hyphenate artist known in LA’s black and queer underground spaces as a member of Black Bass Collective.
They are a rising star in the overall club and art scenes and intertwine different sonic textures of Black led dance music from club, techno, experimental sounds, footwork breaks & more.
You’ll find their sound and creative expression transcends formats & mediums, as they’re establishing their place in the world of Visual Arts.
Their work includes an emphasis on curating and coordinating emerging and established talent through the means of their joint venture, BBC Uncut, a media platform under Black Bass Collective.
The root of their work looks to educate, platform, and fundamentally shift the way we see multi-disciplinary artist and their capacity to be such. To them, dreams have no limits.
Registration, Breakfast, Opening Remarks
8:00 AM – 8:30 AM
Registration and Breakfast
8:30 AM – 9:00 AM
Welcome and Opening Remarks
9:00 AM – 9:25 AM
Keynote Speaker: Paris Hatcher
Paris Hatcher is the founder and director of Black Feminist Future, a national Black feminist organization that amplifies and builds the power of Black feminist leaders, organizations and movements. In this capacity, she also serves on the leadership team of the Movement for Black Lives.
Prior to her work with Black Feminist Future, Paris managed network strategies at Race Forward: The Center for Racial Justice Innovation, and worked as Principal at Rhombus Consulting Group, working to advance intersectional strategy toward queer liberation and racial, gender, and reproductive justice.
She provided technical assistance, group facilitation, and designed innovative cultural and policy campaigns that centered the power and expertise of Black women.
In 2005, Paris co-founded and was the Executive Director of SPARK Reproductive Justice NOW, a leading reproductive health, queer and trans* justice organization in the Southeast where she was born and has built her life. Her expertise and commitment is undeniable.
Featured Panel Discussion
9:30 AM – 10:15 AM
From Harm to Healing: Black Women, Reproductive Justice, and Medical Bondage
For generations, Black women’s bodies have been sites of experimentation, control, neglect, and systemic violence within the American healthcare system.
From forced reproduction during slavery to present-day maternal health disparities, Black women continue to navigate a healthcare system shaped by racism, bias, and unequal treatment.
Inspired by the work of Deirdre Cooper Owens and her groundbreaking book Medical Bondage, this panel will explore the historical and ongoing impact of medical racism on Black women’s reproductive health and bodily autonomy.
Bringing together a mother, physician, therapist, and community voices, this conversation will examine maternal health disparities, medical mistrust, reproductive trauma, informed consent, advocacy, abortion and the continued fight for dignity and equitable healthcare for Black women.
Grounded in the framework of reproductive justice, this discussion will connect historical harm to present-day realities while exploring how to shift the narrative beyond survival to center joy, liberation, wellness, and healing for Black women.
The panel will uplift community accountability, transformative care, and collective pathways toward justice, restoration, and equitable healthcare.
- Moderators: Lori Rodriguez, Education and Advocacy Coordinator, Sister Song
- Panelists:
-
- Danielle Toyou, Community Mother/ Advocate
- Jessica Knott, LMFT
- Joy Bradley, Alabama Women’s Health Center
10:15 AM – 10:30 AM
Refreshment Break
Morning Breakout Sessions
10:15 AM – 11:45 AM
Environmental Justice | Beauty Justice Session: All About Love: Celebrating Black Beauty
In alignment with this year’s conference theme: Harm to Healing: Dismantling Barriers to Reproductive Health for Black Women and Girls, this workshop will challenge the Eurocentric beauty standards and harmful social norms that Black women and girls have been subjected to from generation to generation. This workshop will cover: What is Beauty Justice, the way it’s been marketed to us, how it has influenced our beauty rituals, and how we love and express our beauty unapologetically. We will take inspiration from bell hooks’ legendary book “All About Love,” with a panel discussion.
- Moderators: Arnedra Jordan and Dr. Wendy Greene
- Panelist: TBA
Grown and Sexy | Housing Opportunities Mean Everything: Domestic Violence, Housing, and the Cost of Inaction Film Screening
This session will begin with the showing of Housing Opportunities Mean Everything: Domestic Violence, Housing, and the Cost of Inaction, a documentary. After the documentary showing, we will have a panel discussion and end with an audience discussion.
The documentary shares the stories of survivors who became homeless after leaving their homes in search of safety for themselves and their families, and a true look at what that decision, and those to follow, were like.
Participants will learn about what it really takes for survivors of domestic violence to leave an unsafe situation, the systemic challenges they face in pursuing safety, and the programs that make a life-changing difference.
This documentary and community discussion addresses not only the deep connection between the state’s homelessness crisis and domestic violence, but also what is needed to support and address this unique intersection.
This workshop will connect personal stories to systems: housing policy, survivor safety, economic violence, and institutional failure.
- Moderators: Candace Reece
- Panelists: TBA
Maternal Health
This session provides a practical, empowering overview of maternal health, focusing on what women need to know across the prenatal, postpartum, and long-term health journey.
Participants will learn about the most common and preventable risks impacting maternal health, including hormonal changes, chronic conditions, mental health, stress, sleep, and postpartum recovery. The session will highlight key warning signs women should never ignore, along with daily habits and preventive strategies that improve outcomes for both mother and child.
In addition, the session will briefly examine how disparities in access to care, bias, and social factors can impact maternal outcomes, equipping attendees with a broader understanding of how to advocate for themselves and support healthier communities.
Moderators: TBA
Panelists: TBA
Mens Workshop | Black Men’s Reproductive & Health Justice: From Harm to Healing
This track highlights the health realities of Black men as a critical part of reproductive justice and community wellbeing. It explores the impact of systemic inequities, cultural expectations, and barriers to care on Black men’s physical, sexual, reproductive, and mental health.
Participants will engage in dialogue on stigma, prevention, healing, and access to care, while examining how supporting Black men’s wellness strengthens families, relationships, and communities.
This is a space to name harm, normalize care, and advance collective healing.
- Moderators: TBA
- Panelists: TBA
Youth and Young Adults | My Body, My Rights: Understanding Reproductive Health & Access AM
This session is designed to help Black girls understand their reproductive health, rights and the systemic barriers that impact access while building confidence to advocate for themselves.
- Moderators: TBA
- Panelists: TBA
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM
Lunch and Community Networking
Public Policy Session
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM
Reproductive Justice and the State of Black Women’s Health Abortion, Policy, and the Fight for Bodily Autonomy
The reproductive justice movement was created by Black women who understood that true reproductive freedom extends beyond the right to abortion. Reproductive justice encompasses the right to have children, the right not to have children, and the right to raise children in safe, healthy, and sustainable communities.
Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, Black women have faced increasing barriers to reproductive healthcare, including abortion access, maternal healthcare, contraception, fertility services, and comprehensive reproductive health education.
These barriers exist within a broader landscape of racial health disparities, economic inequality, criminalization, and policy decisions that disproportionately impact Black communities.
This panel will explore the current state of Black women’s reproductive health and examine how federal, state, and local policies are shaping access to care. Panelists will discuss the intersection of abortion rights, maternal mortality, healthcare access, reproductive decision-making, and the political forces influencing reproductive freedom in America.
- Moderators: TBA
- Panelists: Dr. DeShawn Taylor, MD
2:00 PM – 2:15 PM
Break
Breakout Sessions
2:15 PM – 3:15 PM
Civic Engagement
- Beyond the Vote: Civic Engagement as Collective Resistance and Restoration
- Our Bodies, Our Ballots: Civic Participation as a Tool for Reproductive Justice
- Civic Participation as Resistance: Reclaiming Our Power Through Our Vote
This session centers on the electoral process as a critical site of resistance and transformation in the fight for reproductive justice for Black women and girls. In alignment with the conference theme, Harm to Healing, we recognize that the same systems responsible for historic and ongoing reproductive harm are reinforced through policy decisions shaped by who votes, who organizes, and who holds power.
Moderators: TBA
Panelists: TBA
Global Health | Expanding Reproductive Justice Through Menstrual Regulation: Global Applications, Autonomy, and Patient-Centered Care
Historically and across cultures, people at risk of unwanted pregnancy have used a range of methods to bring on a late period without confirming pregnancy. These methods have been described using a range of terms, including menstrual regulation, menstrual extraction, and more recently in the United States, “period pills.” Menstrual regulation aligns with reproductive justice principles by enabling individuals to make decisions early in a potential pregnancy, on their own terms, and with the level of information they choose. This panel will highlight global practices with menstrual regulation, featuring examples from Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Panelists will also discuss successes in integrating menstrual regulation with pills into formal healthcare systems in.
- Moderator: TBA
- Panelist: TBA
Breaking the Silence | Culture, Stigma & Healing Around Reproductive Health
Panel Description: To unpack cultural stigma, generational silence and emotional barriers around reproductive health and create space for healing and open dialogue.
- Moderators: TBA
- Panelists: TBA
Environmental Justice | No Drilling Where We're Living: Envisioning the Future of the Inglewood Oil Field
There are over 7,000 active and idle oil wells across LA, and the Inglewood Oil Field in South LA is the largest urban oil field in the nation. These wells are mostly located in Black and Brown communities, and operations at these sites release toxic chemicals that cause negative health impacts, including reproductive harm. This session will offer health education and information about the history of oil drilling in LA, as well as create space for collective healing through storytelling and community visioning.
- Moderators: Stephany
- Panelists: Bhavana, Lisa, Deja McCullum
LGBTQIA+
Panel Description: This panel centers Black queer lived experiences as essential to understanding what reproductive freedom looks like, calling us toward a more holistic, inclusive, and transformative approach to advocacy. Historically, Black queer women and gender-expansive people have been at the forefront of advocating for bodily autonomy, access to healthcare, and the right to choose. As we reflect on the harm inflicted on our most vulnerable communities, panelists will discuss what it means to heal. The conversation will also uplift Black queer joy as a radical act of healing, resistance, and community care, honoring the ways joy, pleasure, creativity, and connection sustain our communities in the face of systemic harm. By centering joy alongside justice, this panel affirms the power of collective care and visibility as essential parts of reproductive freedom.
Moderators: TBA
Panelists: Luckie Alexander, Mallery Johnson
Maternal Health
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Eboni January, MD FACOG
The Weight We Carry: How Stress Lands in a Black Woman's Body — and How We Heal
Speaking truth to power Black Voices
Exploring how chronic stress impacts hormonal balance, reproductive health, and womb-related conditions, while highlighting pathways to prevention and healing.
- Moderators: TBA
- Panelists: TBA
Youth Track
Breaking the Silence | Culture, Stigma & Healing Around Reproductive Health
Panel Description: To unpack cultural stigma, generational silence and emotional barriers around reproductive health and create space for healing and open dialogue.
Moderators: TBA
Panelists: TBA
Men’s Track
Black Men’s Health | Prevention, Care & Long-Term Wellness
The health of Black men is deeply connected to the well-being of Black families and communities. This session moves from awareness to action, bringing together medical professionals and health experts to discuss prevention, early intervention, and long-term wellness.
Participants will learn about the health conditions that disproportionately impact Black men—including hypertension, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, prostate health, mental health, and sexual health—and explore screenings, lifestyle strategies, and resources that support healthier outcomes. Grounded in reproductive justice, this conversation highlights how investing in Black men’s health strengthens families, communities, and future generations.
- Moderators: TBA
- Panelists: TBA
3:15 PM – 3:30 PM
Break
Power Talks
3:30 PM – 4:00 PM
Lauren Johnson
Tori Mitchenor & Charles White (All for Kids) – Mental Health and Black Women
4:00 PM – 4:15 PM
Closing Remarks
4:15 PM – 4:30 PM
Community Networking and Departure
Sponsors
Thank you to the organizations making this year’s reproductive justice conference possible.
Our Team
Jan Robinson Flint - Executive Director
Black Women for Wellness, a woman-centered community-based organization that educates Black women and girls about reproductive justice issues, is led by Executive Director Janette Robinson Flint.
She is also a member of the Los Angeles Coalition for Reproductive Justice, the California Coalition for Reproductive Freedom, and In Our Own Voice, a national coalition of Black women advocating for reproductive justice.
Arnedra Jordan - Director
Arnedra Jordan is the Project Manager at Black Women for Wellness, overseeing the Beauty Justice Initiative.
With over fifteen years of experience in the breast health field, Arnedra has dedicated her career to advocating for the health and well-being of Black women and girls.
Her work involves providing education on environmental health, beauty justice, and breast health education, where she focuses on addressing harmful ingredients in beauty products and promoting comprehensive breast cancer awareness and prevention strategies.
Erika Gist, MPH - Program Analyst
Ms. Gist serves as the Program Analyst at Black Women for Wellness, where she plays a key role in developing and executing comprehensive program analysis reports that support improved curricula, effective program management, and adherence to grant deliverables.
With a deep commitment to reproductive justice, she also co-chairs BWW’s annual Reproductive Justice Conference–a yearly convening that brings together community members, educators, advocates, health professionals and doulas to discuss the state of reproductive rights, reproductive health, reproductive justice and the overall well being of Black women and girls.
With over 20 years of dedicated service to BWW, Ms. Gist brings a wealth of knowledge and a passionate commitment to advocating for the well-being of Black women and girls.
Asia Bryant-Wilkerson
As a chef with more than seven years of experience, she has developed a passion for assisting African Americans in overcoming the barriers that prevent them from living a healthy lifestyle.
She seeks to remove all barriers to wellness by working with the Kitchen Divas and National Diabetes Prevention programs, increasing nutritional awareness, providing demonstrations of flavorful cooking, encouraging physical activity, and providing various healing modalities along the way.
Ari Grant - Comms Coordinator
Hailing from Washington D.C., Ariel Grant is a marketing maven that produces dynamic results. A graduate of The University of Oklahoma, Ariel currently serves as the Communication Coordinator for Black Women for Wellness.
Ariel’s experience working in various industries equips her with a rich perspective that is unmatched.
She has worked directly on marketing and communications teams with established organizations including INROADS, Women In Film, UNCF, The National Academies Press, and the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) Oklahoma City Thunder to name a few.
A. Ja'Nea James - Environmental & Beauty Justice Support Specialist
Adia “Ja’Nea” James is a third year medical student and a PRIME LEAD-ABC Scholar at the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine.
She was born and raised in Sweet Home Alabama, where her grandmother, a retired nurse, played a significant role in her upbringing and passion for community-based healthcare.
Ja’Nea graduated from Pomona College with a B.A. in Gender and Women’s Studies on the pre-medical track. After college, she dedicated two years to Black Women for Wellness as the lead program coordinator for the Sisters in Motion Program.
Her research interests include Black women’s health, gender dynamics in the Black community, and Black healing traditions and rituals. Outside of her studies and advocacy work, Ja’Nea loves to read, bike, kayak, longboard, skate, crochet, and FaceTime her baby cousins down South.
Jasolyn Harris, LCSW - Host
Jasolyn Marlisa Cynthia Harris, LCSW, M.Div. is a mother, partner, friend, root worker and multi-disciplinary healing artist.
As a Black queer femme, Jasolyn is dedicated to healing intergenerational familial wounds, specifically our maternal ancestral lineages.
Jasolyn is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker currently working part-time in private practice, specializing in the somatic psychotherapy modality, EMDR (Eye Movement, Desensitization, Reprocessing) and has been in the mental health field for 15 years.
Jasolyn has recently joined the illustrious Black Women For Wellness team in Los Angeles as one of the project evaluators. In addition to her multifaceted work in the mental health field, Jasolyn is a syncretic spiritualist, ceremonialist and clergy member rooted in Black American and African religious traditions of both Hoodoo and decolonized Christianity.
Jasolyn is an academically trained theologian who graduated with her 2nd masters degree in Divinity from Duke University and is a published contributing author of the book, Liberating Church: A 21st Century Hush Harbor Manifesto.
Jasolyn is the former Pastor of a radical Black and POC-centered, queer and trans-affirming Christian interdenominational church community, rooted in the Black Pentecostal Tradition.
Based in Los Angeles, Jasolyn is a newly passionate student and emerging vocal performer, learning the Italian Opera tradition, Bel Canto (translates to “beautiful singing”).
When she’s not co-parenting with her loving partner, she’s somewhere singing, line dancing, laughing hysterically, enjoying all of her daily beauty rituals and making quality memories with her dearest loved ones.
Kemyuh - DJ
Kemyuh is an LA Based, multi-hyphenate artist and DJ known in LA’s black and queer underground spaces as a member of Black Bass Collective. They are a rising star in the overall club and art scenes and intertwine different sonic textures of Black led dance music from club, techno, experimental sounds, footwork breaks & more. You’ll find their sound and creative expression transcends formats & mediums, as they’re establishing their place in the world of Visual Arts.
Their work includes an emphasis on curating and coordinating emerging and established talent through the means of their joint venture, BBC Uncut, a media platform under Black Bass Collective. The root of their work looks to educate, platform, and fundamentally shift the way we see multi-disciplinary artist and their capacity to be such. To them, dreams have no limits.
