BiKé Ojomo

07/27/2025

Sometimes, those you approach with humility, who are meant to protect and guide you, can be the very ones you need to be most cautious of.
Always remember to let God. 🙏🏼

Have a nice weekend everyone.

07/12/2025

Had to share this.

In many Sub-Saharan African countries, there is still a profound lack of understanding and awareness about autism. Children living with autism are often misunderstood, misjudged, and mistreated simply because they cannot speak, hear, or behave like other children. Instead of seeking help, therapy, or support, some families and communities may label these children as cursed, abnormal, or a source of shame.

As a result, many children with autism face heartbreaking realities, they are beaten, tortured, hidden away, or emotionally and physically abused. In the most extreme cases, they are seen as not fit to live, denied their basic rights, dignity, and the opportunity to thrive.

This stigma and neglect reflect a deeper need for education, compassion, and cultural change. Every child, regardless of ability, deserves to be seen, heard, and supported.
It’s time to raise our voices, change the narrative, and advocate for inclusion, understanding, and justice for children with autism across Africa.

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1F2iryz31P/?mibextid=wwXIfr

06/20/2025

Coordinating the 𝐌𝐍𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐃 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦 has been nothing short of a 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞-𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 for me, both personally and professionally. It has been a true honor to interact with and get to know each of the fellows throughout the year. Their diverse professional backgrounds, lived experiences with disability, and the unique perspectives they each bring have deeply enriched the program and inspired me in countless ways.

This outgoing cohort was especially 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞, 𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬-𝐨𝐧 with their projects. I took the time to carefully review each of their final research project posters, and it was incredible to witness the 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 from their very first day to the last. Their dedication, passion, and thoughtful work reminded me exactly why I chose to be part of this program. It reaffirmed my belief in the power of learning and collaboration, especially when you're surrounded by the 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐞𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭.

As we close out this cohort, I’m filled with gratitude and excitement. I eagerly look forward to welcoming the next group of fellows and seeing the talent, insight, and professional knowledge they will bring to the 𝐌𝐍𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐃 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲.

Institute on Community Integration

06/18/2025

Institute on Community Integration

06/14/2025

WhatsApp channel

05/28/2025

Laughter reduces stress hormones and boosts mood-enhancing chemicals. Find something funny to laugh about and give yourself permission to enjoy it.
Laughter is healing.

05/15/2025

𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝟏𝟓: 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞

Name 3 things you’re grateful for today. Gratitude helps rewire your brain toward positivity.

05/14/2025

𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝟏𝟒: 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐲 𝐈𝐬 𝐍𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐥
Going to therapy is a strong and healthy choice. Let’s normalize getting help. Therapy is not a stigma.

05/13/2025

𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝟏𝟑: 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐎𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬
Humans are wired for connection. Positive relationships enhance emotional support and resilience. Don’t isolate yourself; reach out.

05/12/2025

𝗗𝗮𝘆 𝟭𝟮: - 𝗣𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝘁
Rest isn’t laziness. Your mind and body need time to recharge.
Take a break today. Give yourself permission to pause and reboot.

04/28/2025

Attending the 𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐅𝐮𝐧 𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐇𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬, organized by 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐇𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬, yesterday was such a heartwarming experience. It was fun connecting with the 𝐇𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲, sharing stories, laughter, and celebration; the theme of the event, "𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬," stood out powerfully.

The theme beautifully reflected the event’s purpose: 𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐟𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, and 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐬 for 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭. It reminds us that true inclusion embraces every part of a person's identity and experiences.

I was honored to table on behalf of my department, the 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐭𝐚, 𝐚𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐍𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐃 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦, sharing our work and learning from the lived experiences of the Hmong families present.

One of the key lessons I took away from the day is that 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭; 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞. Ensuring that individuals with disabilities receive the 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐬, 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞, 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 as everyone. True inclusion creates a society where everyone can engage 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐲, 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐩𝐡𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐬𝐨 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲, 𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲, 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝.

As a 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐧, this hits close to home for me. In Nigeria, 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐝, 𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐝, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐠𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝. As of 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟖, 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝟗.𝟔% 𝐨𝐟 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲, yet 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝟏% 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬. Many face systemic barriers that leave them excluded and unseen.

The 𝐟𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 is so important and needs 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐯𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬, 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. Events like this remind me that 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞, but it requires all of us to be committed to building a truly inclusive society where 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞, 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐢𝐬 𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝.

04/24/2025

On April 19th, 2025, I had the honor of attending the 𝐈𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐫 𝐂𝐢𝐫𝐜𝐥𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐚𝐲 in collaboration with the 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝘀𝗼𝘁𝗮 𝗗𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗻 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗙𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀. I was invited as one of the expert speakers to share on the topic: "𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡."

The goal of this impactful event was threefold:
1. To highlight the importance of 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬.
2. To provide the audience with 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐦𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐞𝐬 for navigating life’s challenges.
3. To offer 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐬 to make meaningful contributions to their families and society.

As I spoke and connected with attendees, one thing became clear to me. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡. There is a deep need to bridge the gap between parents and children, to better understand each other’s mental and emotional needs, and to normalize taking time off simply for 𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠.

We must begin to 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐲𝐜𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐠𝐦𝐚 that has long surrounded mental health in our communities. African parents must be willing to 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐮𝐧𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧, to recognize that coping in today’s world looks different, and that supporting our children's mental health requires empathy, awareness, and willingness to grow alongside them.

It was truly heartwarming to meet so many passionate individuals and engage with various African communities who are ready for change. I'm grateful for the opportunity and remain hopeful for a future where 𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝, 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞.