Celebrating Black History Month by Highlighting Team Members + Partners: Jamaal Thomas, Co-Founder of Black on Black Education
At Goodness Growth Holdings, we pride ourselves on the diversity of our team, and on our ongoing commitment to social equity initiatives including expungement clinics, fundraising for Last Prisoner Project, and creating educational programming for our team members and communities. Diversity has been a cornerstone of our culture since our earliest days (for example we were the first cannabis company to sign the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion pledge), and we believe celebrating the diversity among our team members and our communities makes us a stronger company and a better community partner.
When Carter G. Woodson first recognized Black history in 1926, establishing Nego History Week with the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History announced Negro History Week, he also recognized the importance of including a theme each year with an area of additional focus.
This year’s Black History Month theme is Black Health and Wellness, which the ASALH notes “acknowledges the legacy of not only Black scholars and medical practitioners in Western medicine, but also other ways of knowing (e.g., birthworkers, doulas, midwives, naturopaths, herbalists, etc.) throughout the African Diaspora.”
Many of the medical advancements that our modern healthcare is based on would not have happened without Black people. Dr. Daniel Hale Williams III was one of the first physicians to perform heart surgery in the US. Today, many American women utilize the services of midwives during pregnancy and childbirth. Experienced midwives were among the enslaved people who survived the middle passage, according to the National Museum of African American History & Culture. These midwives continued to practice and train others, and for centuries, Black women provided midwifery services for women during pregnancy and childbirth.
In some instances, medical knowledge and practices used today are possible because of mistreatment and medical malpractice against Black people. Many modern medical practices and treatments – including the polio vaccine, in vitro fertilization, cloning, and even the COVID-19 vaccine – exist because of Henrietta Lacks, a Black woman who was treated for cervical cancer in 1951. Without obtaining consent, the doctor treating Henrietta Lacks took a sample of cancer cells from a tumor on her body; that doctor shared the cells with other doctors, who used them for research studying immunology and the human genome and which led to the development of vaccines and procedures used today. Henrietta Lacks was never told that her cells had been taken and used in this way, and her children were not informed until decades after her death.
As we recognize Black History Month past and present, we also want to take this time to celebrate the culture, history and contributions of our Black team members and partners. As part of that effort, Goodness Growth’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council is highlighting several of our Black team members, partners, and community representatives.
Next up is Jamaal Thomas, Co-Founder of one of our partner organizations, Black on Black Education.
The DEI Council was excited to catch up with Jamaal and talk about the challenges facing Black students and the education system, what Black on Black Education is doing to address them, and why we should all learn – and unlearn – about each other.
Tell us a little about yourself. Where are you from? Do you have family you want to mention?
I’m from Greenburgh, NY, and would like to shout out my amazing daughter and business partner, Evalaurene, who introduced me to you all!
Tell us about Black on Black Education. Why did you start the company? What is your mission? What have you learned since starting the company?
Black on Black Education is a stand for the revolution of education in underserved Black & Brown communities. We started the company after thinking about how Black on Black Education has a much richer tradition and a much longer history than the false trope of Black on Black crime.
Our mission is to inspire BIPOC high school students in urban areas to become change agents in the fight to revolutionize education by advocating for student-centered approaches to teaching and learning.
After talking to hundreds of educators, we’ve learned that the solutions to the challenges the system faces exist. We know what to do and need to work toward developing a critical mass of students, parents, and educators to demand change from the bottom up instead of continuing a system ruled from the top down.
What are some challenges you see people of color facing in the business world?
Access is the biggest challenge. The reality is that when we are given a chance, we prove over and over again that we are beyond capable. We just don’t get access to the same opportunities.
What does Black History Month mean for you?
Black History Month reminds me that we stand on the shoulders of giants and that we owe it to them to make history ourselves. To do so, a focus on our Black Future is imperative!
What is something you wish non-Black people would do or know to be better allies?
I wish ALL people would find ways to learn about one another while also unlearning about one another. Let’s try to be much more open-minded about the future we can create together if we can find new and better ways to work together.
What are some books, documentaries, movies you would recommend to folks that honor Black History?
Movies: Malcolm X, Hidden Figures, John Lewis: Good Trouble, I am Not Your Negro, Selma, Birth of a Nation, Judas and the Black Messiah
Books: Black History for Beginners, The Autobiography of Malcolm X, Invisible Man, The Fire Next Time
How can people connect with you on social media, etc.?
People can reach Black on Black Education on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, or reach me on Instagram. People can also donate to Black on Black Education at our website.
Thank you, Jamaal, for taking the time to share your story with us! Look out for more profiles of our Black team members and partners throughout Black History Month!