Asthma Advocacy Day: The DAWN Program's 2023 Policy Agenda
Jazmarie LaTour (right) pictured with members of the DAWN team
Little Manila Rising’s DAWN program carries the name of our late co-founder, Dr. Dawn Mabalon, and is an acronym for Decreasing Asthma Within Neighborhoods. It aims to provide asthma mitigation services and supports residents with social justice engagement and advocacy.
Here, we get to hear from the team’s own Jazmarie LaTour!
A Little Bit About Myself
I have been employed by Little Manila Rising (LMR) since December 2021 as a Community Health Equity Specialist for the DAWN Program. In my previous roles, I have been a grassroots organizer, working in social justice, organizing youth, leading workshops, speaking at activist engagements, and creating arts events. Before joining the team at LMR, I worked with adults with developmental disabilities for about six years.
My mom and brother had asthma, so I felt an instant connection to the DAWN program, especially since it seeks to understand the complexities of asthma through a racial justice lens at the intersection of health equity and environmental justice.
What I envision for the future of DAWN’s mission
I envision the DAWN program building capacity, reaching more members of our South Stockton community, and uniting partner organizations that offer similar services through the Stockton Asthma Coalition. This would look like more Community Health Equity Specialists who can do home visits with people living with asthma, sharing education, resources, and remediation tools to reduce triggers.
We would build awareness of the great impact our environment plays on our health. I also hope to contribute to developing a platform for community members, especially those living with asthma, to share their stories and join the fight to enact positive change for health equity and environmental justice.
The importance of our current campaign and the upcoming trip to Sacramento
On Asthma Advocacy Day, March 21, 2023, we will share our stories and policy priorities with legislators and their staff so that they can hear, see, and feel the impact that asthma and related health disparities have on the lives of our community members, their constituents.
The areas in which we would like to see positive change are outdoor air quality, housing and indoor air quality, school environment, and access to health care and community health workers.
We will meet with staff from our district and legislators' staff from government committees such as health, agriculture, human services, energy, and other committees to share our data brief, which details what we have learned in three years of offering asthma home visits.
