Since 2014, a unique community initiative has been meeting women where they are – inside trusted neighborhood spaces like salons, bookstores and local businesses – to talk openly about breast health and lifesaving screenings.
Led in partnership with Sisters’ Journey and Yale New Haven Health (YNHHS), these informal “beauty salon chats” aim to reduce long-standing health disparities affecting African American women by making education and access to care more approachable and accessible.
“At Sisters’ Journey, our goal has always been to meet the community where they are,” said Dawn White-Bracey, president of Sisters’ Journey. “By bringing these conversations into familiar, trusted spaces, we are helping to diminish the health disparities that continue to exist among African American women.”
Creating Comfortable Conversations
Each session typically lasts two hours, invites salon clients, community members and anyone interested in learning more about breast health. While salons were the original setting, organizers have expanded to other community locations, including recent events at a local bookstore and floral shop.
“We try to host each event in a different space,” added White-Bracey. “The goal is to make these conversations feel natural and accessible, wherever women already feel comfortable.”
Though there is no fixed schedule, the program currently collaborates with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) across the state several times each year – approximately four to five events - with plans to expand in the future.
Education That Empowers
At the heart of each session is education. Conversations focus on the importance of early detection, understanding family health history and encouraging women to advocate for their own care.
“These discussions are about empowerment,” added White-Bracey. “We want women to walk away feeling informed, confident and ready to take charge of their health.”
Connecting Women to Screenings
While a mobile mammography van is not present at every event, some sessions offer on-site screenings. Women who meet financial eligibility requirements and have a physician can receive a free mammogram through the program. For those without a provider, support is available to connect them with physicians at the Yale New Haven Health Women’s Center.
The events themselves are free and open to the public. Once a location is selected, community members can sign up to attend and participate.
Staying Connected
Information about upcoming events is shared through Sisters’ Journey’s social media platforms, including Instagram and Facebook, helping to keep the community informed and engaged.
Through this initiative, organizers continue to break down barriers – bringing critical health conversations out of clinical settings and into the every day spaces where trust, connection and community already exist.
For more information about their initiative, email [email protected] or call (203)-288-3556.
