Justine is starting her psychotherapy practice as a pre-licensed professional under supervision this year. She looks forward to integrating bottom-up and top-down modalities within an anti-oppressive, anti-racist, trauma-informed, and relational framework.

“My experience as a second-generation Jamaican-Canadian woman gave me an awareness of interlocking systems of oppression growing up. Additionally, my degree in Political Science and Women’s Studies enhanced my understanding of feminist, anti-oppression, post-colonial and critical race theories. My position as a volunteer and intern at a constituency office gave me the opportunity to assist with a wide range of concerns including, but not limited to mental health, (dis)ability, housing discrimination, and incidents of racism at school. More importantly, I have learned that community and support are vital pieces to health and wellbeing. And, representation for BIPOC girls, in particular, is so important. For myself, growing up in spaces that lacked healthy representation deeply impacted my self-esteem and self-worth. There is so much power in feeling seen, understood, and supported in a safe space. Having the opportunity to be part of this program as a mentee would have been so meaningful to me as a young girl through early adulthood”.