Black Grief and Healing

An insightful exploration of systemic inequality, grief, and trauma in Black communities. This book offers poignant essays, including powerful narratives on the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower Fire, that disproportionately impacted global majority families. It sheds light on the complexities of loss and the resilience of marginalised communities amidst devastating grief and finding ways to heal, juxtaposed to an ongoing fight for Justice. – Yvette Williams MBE, Justice 4 Grenfell campaignThese voices from the black community emanate compassion, authenticity, outrage and a new vision. We must all heed this drumbeat and review our practice and experience in the light of these truths. Grief is not colour blind. – Liz Rothschild – Outside the Box – Everyday Experiences of Death, Bereavement and Life. PCCS

Blackness and grief have always seemed to go hand in hand, as if by design. Through this timely and important body of work, we can see the shades and textures of grief. This is necessary if we are to know liberation in this lifetime. Incredible explorations and a book everybody should read whether they’re Black or not.

– Kelechi Okafor, Author and social commentatorGrief is a strange thing. There is no true way to heal from the shock of losing a loved one, and the grieving process cannot be done linearly. However, the importance of sharing those experiences cannot be underestimated, especially as a Black person in the diaspora, to feel less alone. Black Grief and Healing does exactly that. An anthology of stories and poems, it delves deeper into the experiences of people from all walks of life, who have lost loved ones and how that has impacted them and their families. All this against the backdrop of systematic racism, the onslaught of COVID and more. Definitely a book to read if you are interested in any of these themes. – Eloise Rees, NetgalleyBlack Grief and Healing is a compelling collection of reflections on the complexities of bereavement and loss in the presence of systemically racist and oppressive systems. Through bringing together a beautiful anthology of poems, stories and essays the authors provide a deeply moving reminder that there is no one way to tell the story of grief. It is important reading for anyone working to support people affected by bereavement. – Dr Sam Royston - Research and Policy Director, Marie Curie

A timely and important book that centers Black grief. Powerful, informative, sensitively written - highly recommended reading for everyone.

– Eila Hale, NetgalleyI genuinely feel this is one of the most important books that will come out this year. The grief as talked about here is overlooked in our society and racism impacts grief a lot. The essays offer many perspectives and talk about many types of grief and how they overlap for the Black community. I recommended white people to read this too but to reflect on this respectfully, bearing in mind that we are here to learn but this is not written for us, and this space is not ours. * Jax Davis, Netgalley *A powerful and painful reflection of Black Grief, with the collective wisdom that offers hope and a way of understanding the experience that for too long has been misunderstood and ignored. Healing is and should be possible, this book gives us the way. – Sarah Hughes, MIND CEO

Dr Yansie Rolston FRSA - Facilitator/Trainer Yansie works in Europe, Africa, America and the Caribbean designing, implementing and evaluating actionable strategies on health equality and community cohesion and setting up culturally appropriate health and social care projects for marginalised communities.

Patrick Vernon OBE - Social Commentator and Mental Health Campaigner Patrick is associate Director for Connected Communities for the Centre for Ageing Better. He is also Independent Adviser on Equality and Diversity for Lambeth and Harrow Council, and was the first director of Black Thrive, a mental-health multi-agency tackling mental health in Lambeth. He is currently chair of Citizenship Partnership for HSIB and Non-Executive Director for Hertfordshire NHS Trust. Patrick was awarded an OBE in 2012 for his work on tackling health inequalities and ethnic minority communities.