ABOUT US

The Black Wellness Cooperative is a collective of Health, Wellness and Fitness professionals who believe passionately that health is of utmost importance and every individual should be afforded this right.

We seek to provide the Black community an opportunity to learn and grow through their peers and representation and are committed to providing our expertise, knowledge and training to marginalized, or otherwise underserved communities and groups of all ages.

The issues we see within the health and fitness industry that we want to address stem from the fact that it (like many others) has long catered to a predominantly white, middle and upper-middle class audience.

Issues that arise from that narrow focus are: 

• A lack of diverse representation that ranges from coaches, instructors, health care practitioners, participants to fitness influencers

• A lack of access to gyms, classes and coaches

• A lack of inclusivity: Black and POC feeling out of place or unwelcome in white dominated spaces

• A lack of understanding of gender, sexual orientation, ability status, body diversity, etc.

We have seen how the COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted communities of color, and the reasons given are the so-called comorbidity factors, such as obesity, hypertension, lack of physical condition sufficient to withstand an attack by the virus. We see those issues as a representation of Systemic Racism, specifically in the Health Care Provider and Fitness Industry.

Now more than ever, there is a clear and direct correlation to the fact that healthier lifestyles afford us better survival chances if and when such pandemics occur. It is therefore imperative that we make the commitments necessary to serve our communities of colour.