Karamo Brown Joins NBJC as National Health & Wellness Ambassador
Washington, DC – The National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC), the nation’s leading civil rights organization dedicated to the empowerment of Black lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people, is enthused to announce television host and reality TV star Karamo Brown as its new National Health and Wellness Ambassador. Karamo will also serve as a national spokesperson for the organization’s upcoming Historically Black Colleges And Universities (HBCU) Health and Wellness (H&W) Tour. As a HBCU alum of Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, Karamo will be the chief messenger for the tour, which will travel to select HBCUs in five states—Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Texas and Maryland—and the District of Columbia to engage students, faculty, administrators and campus health care providers on quality of life issues impacting Black LGBT, queer and same gender loving (LGBTQ/SGL) people, including the HIV/AIDS epidemic and other health-related disparities. The HBCU Health and Wellness Tour is part of NBJC’s Black LGBT Health and Wellness Initiative purposed with improving the overall health and wellness of the Black LGBTQ/SGL population in our nation.
“I am excited and inspired to partner with NBJC to promote and advance an inclusive agenda for our nation’s HBCUs,” said Karamo Brown. “As a product of an HBCU and a proud Black gay man, I take this opportunity as more than an honor, but a vital responsibility. Too many people in the Black LGBTQ/SGL community are suffering in silence and lack the support to live their most authentic and healthiest lives, especially on the campuses of our HBCUs. Key to improving the health and wellness of the collective Black population, we must address the issues impacting Black LGBTQ/SGL people in our nation, including building a strategy to end the spread of HIV/AIDS that disproportionately impacts Black people.”
Karamo was first introduced to the world in 2005 on MTV’s hit reality series, The Real World, where he was a breakout star and became the first openly gay African American cast member in the history of reality TV. Today, as a television host and single parent with two teenage boys, Karamo employs his image and experiences to entertain and educate audiences. Karamo is currently starring in the new TVOne’s docu-series #TheNext15 and is one of the new contributing correspondents for Access Hollywood Live.
Karamo recently started his own social campaign for his organization, 6in10.org, which provides tailored mental health support to black gay and bisexual men in order to eradicate the 6 in 10 HIV statistic plaguing this demographic. Karamo’s ongoing mission is to share his life experiences and dynamic point of view on current and noteworthy pop culture topics in order to inspire audiences to live more stimulating and accomplished lives. This role as NBJC’s Health and Wellness Ambassador will provide a platform for Karamo to travel to HBCUs and engage in wellness conversations with the grassroots, while messaging critical information to the masses via social media.
“The empowerment of HBCUs and their continual push to be the best institutions for all who attend, including LGBT students and faculty, is at the foundation of our mission as an organization,” said Sharon J. Lettman-Hicks, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer. “NBJC is delighted to have Karamo Brown join us in this endeavor as we travel across the country to HBCUs with a mission to have real, sustainable impact on these campuses.”
With the support of the Elton John AIDS Foundation, NBJC created the Black LGBT Health and Wellness Initiative in December of 2014 to address current health crises and disparities in culturally competent wellness programs that target Black LGBTQ/SGL people and families. This often overlooked community represents multiple populations that demonstrate higher health disparities and a need for swift and strategic action. As a key pillar of the Initiative, NBJC’s HBCU H&W Tour will provide opportunities for outreach and education, access to PreP and other prevention methods resources, testing, and treatment to improve the overall health outcomes for Black and LGBTQ/SGL people. The first stop of the tour will take place in March at Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA.