Kalimah Johnson
Kalimah Johnson is a therapist and clinical social worker who specializes in cultural-specific holistic healing. She is the founder and Executive Director of the SASHA (Sexual Assault Services for Holistic Healing and Awareness) Center in Detroit, Michigan and has been influential in #MeToo movement.
Early life and education[edit]
Johnson was born in Detroit[1] and raised on the north side of Detroit by a single mother.[2] She dropped out of high school,[3] then joined Job Corps in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and later enrolled in Highland Park Community College in 1986.[2] She left community college to pursue a career in hip hop with the stage name Nikki D that was later changed to Eboni and Her Business; she signed with World One Records in 1989 and released an album titled Civilized in 1990.[2] She began performing spoken-word poetry in 1997 and created an album titled DatsWhatImaDu for distribution by Golden Rod Records in 2005.[2]
Johnson graduated from Wayne State University with a Bachelor of Social Work, and completed a MSW in 1997.[2][4] She is a member of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority.[5] In 2004, after conducting research on the migration of her family as slaves, she visited the plantation where they were enslaved.[1] In 2005, a DNA test helped trace her family to the Akan people of Ghana, and she visited Ghana in 2006.[6]
She received her Wharton School Athlete Development Professional Certification in 2016.[7]
Career and advocacy work[edit]
In 2005, she was working for the Detroit Police Department as a therapist for sexual assault survivors,[2] and worked as a therapist and social worker in the rape counseling center of the police department for ten years.[5]
In 2010, she founded the nonprofit organization SASHA (Sexual Assault Services for Holistic Healing And Awareness) Center to offer services that include culturally-specific support groups as well as prevention and education programs.[1][5][3] In 2020, Johnson told The Detroit News, "I developed the SASHA Center so Black women can come and tell us (how to heal); we use that and formalize it so Black women can use it from now on."[5] According to The Detroit News, SASHA "developed a model known as the Black Women's Triangulation of Rape, which highlights barriers Black women face when sexually assaulted, including stereotyping, oversexualizing, cultural appropriation and systemic barriers."[5] Johnson founded SASHA to address these barriers.[8][1] A final version of the Triangulation of Rape Model was released in 2018, after Johnson consulted with community members and received input from people on social media.[9][1][10]
She has worked as an Assistant Professor for the Social Work Department at Marygrove College and been a poet in residence for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.[1]
Johnson has also worked as a consultant for professional sports organizations to educate athletes about relationships, domestic violence, and sexual assault,[1] and is a consultant for the National Basketball Association.[5] As a consultant, Johnson worked with NBA commissioner Adam Silver in 2014, after Charlotte Hornets player Jeffery Taylor pleaded guilty in a domestic violence case.[11][12]
Johnson appears in the 2017 documentary I Am Evidence that followed untested rape kit investigations across the United States.[13]
Johnson was an early organizer of #MuteRKelly protests,[14][15] and in 2018, in response to a long history of sexual abuse and assault allegations against R Kelly, she co-organized a #MuteRKelly protest outside of the Detroit Little Caesars Arena to protest rape culture and sexual violence.[16] At a news conference, Johnson stated, "Black girls do matter, and black girls do have a voice and black girls need more visibility around sexual abuse and assault, and that's why we're here. We're here to have that conversation."[16]
Johnson is also a natural hair stylist.[6] She founded the natural hair care salon, PicNap, LLC, in order to provide natural hair care and wellness services.[17] In 2008, Johnson published Locs for Life: The Root to Well Being for African American Women, a guide that incorporates stories of Black women's journeys to embrace their natural hair, and the spiritual and emotional antecedents of hair locking.[18]
Honors and awards[edit]
- 2019 Activist Impact Award at the Breakthrough Inspiration Awards, Breakthrough[15]
- 2020 Michiganian of the Year by the The Detroit News, for founding the SASHA Center[5]
Published works[edit]
- Sexual Violence in the Lives of Black Women (VAWAnet. Violence Against Women Act, 2013)
- I am Detroit. The Voice of Social Workers (NASW Press, 2011)
- Get it Together Sugar! (D-Life Online Magazine, 2019–present)
- Locs for Life: The Root to Well Being for African American Women (AuthorHouse Press, 2008)
- A Decade of Change, Michigan’s Strategic Plan for Sexual Violence Prevention (2006)
- An Exploration of Gangster Rap and its Impact on the Violence Against Women Movement. (The Advocate, 2006)
- Effects of DV on Children (Detroit Police Department Domestic Violence Unit, 2005)
- Rape Counseling Center, Information Brochure (Detroit Police Department, 2004)
- RAPE Poem (Turning Point Newsletter, 2003)
- Women Who Survive (PicNap Press, 2000)
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Jordan, Jerilyn (July 25, 2018). "How Kalimah Johnson's SASHA redefines rape culture for women of color". Detroit Metro Times. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Davison, Kahn Santori (March 9, 2005). "New days bang". Detroit Metro Times. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Solomon, Akiba (November 1, 2018). "On The Ground: These Women Are On The Front Lines Combating Sexual Assault". Essence. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ "Kalimah Johnson". SASHA Center. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 Kozlowski, Kim (December 3, 2020). "Kalimah Johnson: Helping Black women feel 'sacred, safe, revered'". The Detroit News. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Claiborne, Ron (May 5, 2006). "Ron Claiborne Visits His African Heritage". ABC News. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ "Soul Healing Consulting Kalimah Johnson, LLC, Clinical Social Work/Therapist, Detroit, MI, 48207". Psychology Today. Retrieved 2021-04-26. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Stateside Staff (January 24, 2019). "Detroit advocate reflects on black women's role in #MeToo and impact of R. Kelly series". Michigan Radio. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ Harris, Ida (January 9, 2019). "This Image Expertly Breaks Down The Cycle Of Rape Black Women Face And How To Help Stop It". Blavity. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ Johnson, Kalimah (2018). "Culturally Specific Services for African-American Self-Identified Sexual Assault Survivors in Detroit" (PDF). Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Connolly, Matt (November 20, 2014). "The NBA Just Did What No Other Sports League Has Ever Done". Mic. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ Draper, Kevin (November 19, 2014). "NBA Suspends Jeffery Taylor 24 Games For Domestic Assault, Shades NFL". Deadspin. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ Marshall, Sarah (2018-04-18). "How I Am Evidence Demands Justice For Victims of Rape". The New Republic. ISSN 0028-6583. Retrieved 2021-04-26.
- ↑ Greene, Morgan (May 4, 2018). "Is R. Kelly's time up? Movement takes aim at Chicago-born R&B singer". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Adams, Char (May 21, 2019). "Meet The Unsung Heroes of the #MeToo Movement: 'It's Powerful to Be Honored'". People. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Shamus, Kristen Jordan (February 22, 2018). "Activists protest R. Kelly at Detroit's Little Caesars Arena: 'Black girls do matter'". KHOU 11. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ↑ "PicNap Salon :: About Us". www.picnap.com. Retrieved 2021-04-22.
- ↑ Johnson, Kalimah (2008). Locs for life : the root of well being for African-American women. Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse. ISBN 978-1-4343-5721-2. OCLC 427370683. Search this book on
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