Advocate Spotlight: Charmeka Newton, PhD

I wish I had understood earlier that advocacy does not require having all the answers or waiting for permission to speak. Effective advocacy begins with listening to the people most affected, building authentic relationships, and being willing to use your position and access to create space for others. I have also learned that advocacy is sustained through collaboration. Meaningful change rarely comes from one person; it develops through partnerships with communities, professionals, businesses, and organizations that share a commitment to equity.

My advocacy efforts promote equity, diversity, and inclusion by challenging systems that silence, exclude, or invalidate historically marginalized communities. Through my leadership with the Michigan Board of Psychology, the APA Advocacy Coordinating Committee, and APA Division 45, I work to promote ethical and culturally responsive practices, protect the public, and amplify the voices of psychologists and scholars of color whose contributions have often been overlooked or erased. My research, teaching, and community programming also prepare mental health professionals to address race, culture, identity, and systemic inequities directly rather than avoiding these important conversations.

My advocacy addresses inequity by identifying where people experience barriers to representation, resources, psychological services, and decision-making—and then developing practical ways to reduce those barriers. This includes advocating through professional policy and leadership, conducting research on racialized trauma and culturally responsive care, training clinicians to recognize systemic harm, and creating programs that bring psychological resources directly into underserved communities. I strive to move advocacy beyond discussion by building initiatives that place information, support, and professional expertise where they are most needed.

My advocacy supports underserved communities by bringing culturally responsive psychological information and resources beyond traditional clinical and academic settings. Through APA Division 45, I have helped develop convention programming that places psychologists directly within host communities to serve underserved youth, families, and populations of color who may experience barriers to care or may not yet seek traditional mental health services.

I also created Psychology on the Block, a community-based initiative that partners with local businesses serving Black and Brown communities. QR codes placed inside these trusted businesses allow patrons to access brief, research-informed mental health education, culturally responsive coping strategies, reflection activities, and connections to supportive services. My advocacy seeks to bring the science of psychology to communities who need it the most.