Hello,
my name is Linda Mensah (she/her)
I’m a Ghanaian-Canadian,
Cis-het Woman, and Registered Social Worker.
My work is an extension of my lived experience navigating race, gender, class, neurodivergence, and mental health.
As a second-generation Canadian, my story encompasses themes of identity, otherness and belonging.
This experience is what underscores my passion for the mental health and well-being of racialized folx.
For me, the personal is political.
In addition to my lived experience, my qualifications include:
-
I have 10+ years of experience in community development, immigrant services, and mental health, working with organizations such as the Elizabeth Fry Society, Project GROW (Ghana Rural Opportunities for Women), Calgary Immigrant Women’s Association (CIWA), Street Haven Women’s Shelter, Mood Disorders Association of Ontario/ Hope + Me (MDAO), the City of Toronto, Nadia Saad Psychotherapy, and WoodGreen Community Services - Walk-in Counselling.
-
I am registered with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers (OCSWSSW), the Ontario Association of Social Workers (OASW), and the Canadian Association of Social Workers (CASW).
-
I have a BSW from the University of British Columbia, Okanagan where I focused on how post-secondary international community development programs perpetuate colonial violence and harm in the under-developed communities they operate within.
-
I also hold an MSW from Toronto Metropolitan University where I completed research on how Canada’s generational status classification system creates ambiguous identities for its second-generation population.
My approach is inspired by the concept of generation.
A recognition of…
Our Inherent Strengths
We each possess inherent strengths that can be nurtured.
Our Ability to Cultivate
We can create additional resources through the cultivation of our strengths.
Our Intrinsic Community
We can draw community from those of us who coexist, witness, and experience together.
Our Influence on the Future
We can invest in the well-being of future generations by disrupting generational trauma.
I subscribe to a worldview defined by liberation and decolonization.
White supremacy, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, sanism, and neoliberalism (to name few) are woven into the fabric of our society.
These systems must be abolished.
In service to this worldview, my work with you will be intersectional and affirming focused on self-determination, transparency, knowledge-sharing, and community-building.
