Education and Recovery

Education has always been vital in the African-American community—not simply as a pathway to titles, but as a tool of liberation, healing, and sustainability. For generations, our ancestors were punished for learning to read, denied access to formal education, and systematically excluded from institutions of knowledge. Yet education persisted in our churches, our homes, our stories, and our survival strategies.

In peer recovery and substance use disorder work, education and lived experience must walk together. Knowledge equips us to understand trauma, addiction, mental health, and systems of oppression; lived experience equips us to meet people with empathy, credibility, and hope. When combined, education strengthens recovery outcomes, improves advocacy, and ensures our communities are no longer misdiagnosed, over-criminalized, or overlooked.

Education empowers African-American peers not only to heal themselves, but to change systems—shifting narratives from punishment to treatment, from stigma to dignity, and from survival to leadership. It allows us to sit at decision-making tables without abandoning our truth, ensuring that policies, programs, and practices reflect the realities of the people most impacted.

For us, education is not about proving worth—it is about reclaiming it. It is a continuation of a long tradition of resilience, resistance, and restoration. When African-American communities are educated and supported, recovery becomes not just possible, but sustainable and generational.