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Healing points blog

Healing Points is a dynamic publication, dedicated to creating a space within the intersection of health and social justice.  So many of our mainstream headlines and stories continue to highlight discontent and polarization, often exacerbating the problem. Through our collective writing space, we strive to move past talking points, and instead offer a space to intelligently and collectively heal.

For Dr. Martin Luther King, 50 Years On


Words matter. We know that.

We founded this blog to create a dialogue that would remain steadfast; not a tweet or a talking point, but a point of healing. We didn't do our part to ensure that our work continued through the latter half of 2017, when when this blog was perhaps needed most. But our conversations continued, and we know yours did too. They are now written here, and we hope you will digest, discuss, and share them.

So once again, please join us to share in words that create a dialogue rather than a divide as we relaunch our blog in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and on his day of power found in service, knowledge, diversity, and healing. From the Founders: Why Healing Points?


We woke up on November 9, 2016 in a crisis of belief not only in our nation, but within ourselves. As two black women in our early twenties, we were unsure of what the next crucial four years of our lives would hold because of a result that we did not choose for ourselves.

We recognize that as undergraduate students attending an institution of higher education we have been afforded great privilege. The fear we express, wish to combat, and hope to alleviate stems from our immigrant relatives and friends, our socioeconomically impoverished neighbors, and our fellow minority citizens stripped of the agency or platform to speak out.

Many popular, mainstream media narratives have been promising in their investigative and honest reporting. Since January 20th, we have been inundated with headlines that have become predictable in their lack of precedence. The formerly unbelievable now stands as a regular broadcast and to be truly surprised by the latest bulletin or headline is to be naïve. The people of the United States—citizens, residents, visitors, patriots—wake up each morning and feel obligated to immediately check the breaking news and ensure that their civil and human rights are still intact.

And while that level of immediate engagement is crucial to resistance and progress, how do we utilize the constant stream of information from this administration and the action from groups they have empowered to act in hate? How do we synthesize the talking points we are given by the media? How do we grow?

Our answer: seeking out our collective healing points. This blog won’t regurgitate your Facebook posts, your Twitter feed, or your daily newscast. Our writers will provide stories from a range of perspectives and reflections on diverse subjects, but do so to provide you with tangible resources that will help you to learn more about today’s issues and to comprehend their root causes. These resources and directives are what will empower you to take action.

Consume your articles, like your think pieces, and share your latest video digest. But this President's Day, we ask you again join us at Healing Points, and jump headfirst into affecting change.


Osaremen and Fatuma



The physician is a rather complicated figure. On the one hand, the doctor is society’s epitome of respectability and expertise, with every fiber of their white lab coat seeming to shine forth light, purity, hope, and a staunch devotion to the Hippocratic Oath.


Analyzing the Determinants of Female Genital Mutilation in Somalia

I remember when I first read about female genital mutilation in a textbook in my Human Sexuality course in college, and I was surprised that the book mentioned that rates of FGM are particularly high in Somalia. I decided to look further into the effect that FGM has on female public health in Somalia, where 98% of women have reportedly undergone the practice.
