Arts festival gifts wellness day of yoga, massage and more to Black women - SaportaReport

[Adrianne Murchison]

After seeing Black women under stress during election season, Tarece Johnson-Morgan, and husband Andy Morgan decided to create an afternoon of healing and wellness.

Last Sunday, the Morgans, who are leaders of the African American Culture and Arts Festival, gathered 30 women for yoga meditation, massage, sound bath healing, journaling, catered food and fellowship at The Wellness Spot in College Park.

Most of the women had not met before, yet many shed tears during the AACAF’s three-hour invitation-only Health, Harmony, Healing and Hope event.

“There were a lot of long hugs,” said Le’Dor Milteer, who hosted the wellness day. “People [showed] their vulnerability like a badge of honor. Different problems, different people, from different spaces in life, but all were in unity.”

Milteer, founder of the nonprofit Empowerment Workshop, was a contributing sponsor and helped to organize the event.

Johnson-Morgan, who is a member of the Gwinnett County School Board, said she was inspired to offer the wellness day after winning reelection in November. She and other Black women in campaign races this year tripled their efforts by working on each other’s election bids, as well as on Kamala Harris’ presidential race, she said.

“It’s just been a whirlwind,” Johnson-Morgan said. “Women just worked so hard and they are disappointed mentally and emotionally, and they’re physically tired. We need a place to heal — a space to just physically unwind and open our bodies and stretch.”

Mental health motivation from Astrid Ross of the National Alliance for Mental Illness was also included in the day of wellness.

Most of the 30 women in attendance had not met before yet many shed tears during the three-hour invitation-only Health, Harmony, Healing and Hope event. (Photo courtesy of the African American Culture and Arts Festival.)

The AACAF spent approximately $5,000 on the event using funds that had been reserved for the 2025 Black History Month celebration, Johnson-Morgan said, adding that she is “hyper-conscious about self-care” for Black women. Her sister died by suicide 20 years ago.

“Black women are at the bottom of the list when it comes to us being impacted and marginalized [in society],” she said.

Research from the National Institutes of Health has found that Black women take on a superwoman mindset to try to “preserve themselves, their families, and their communities amidst the myriad of inequities” which can create stress and compromise health.

“Compared with women of other racial groups, African American women in the USA have a higher cardiovascular disease burden and are at higher risk of maternal mortality from preventable cardiovascular health outcomes,” a November report states.

Johnson-Morgan works as the chief belonging, culture, and equity officer at Friends of the Children, a national nonprofit that provides long-term mentoring to children facing systemic obstacles from age 4 through high school.

More offerings like Sunday’s Health, Harmony, Healing and Hope event are needed, she said. “Everything was done with intentionality and love.”

Women were given journals to write in during the event. One woman wrote a poem. Another wrote an inspirational message inside her journal and set it aside for anyone to randomly pick up and read, Milteer said.

A similar event for people of all races, cultures, and genders is being brainstormed for next spring.

In addition, Johnson-Morgan wants to continue to offer a free wellness day dedicated to Black women during each quarter of the year.

RELATED POSTS​