Kirstin Garriss: Black In America: Generational Healing

In this episode of CAN+DID, Hosts Rikki Harris and Will Voss are back and they’re flipping the tables on one of the most impactful interviewers in broadcast media. Kirstin Garriss is an award-winning journalist whose series Black in America earned her an Emmy Nomination. In the series, Garriss interviews 4 generations of Black men, including Host Will Voss. This impactful interview is sure to give insight to anyone listening on the long lasting, generational effects of racism on mental health. Join us as we get CAN+DID with Kirstin Garriss.

To watch Kirstin Garriss’ Emmy Nominated series Black in America: https://www.fox13memphis.com/news/local/black-america-generational-healing/H6QZWUBVLVEH5B435KSLBBDRCM/

About Kirstin Garriss:

Kirstin Garriss is an Emmy Nominated journalist. She joined the Cox Media Group Washington, D.C Bureau in August 2021. Previously, Kirstin was an investigative reporter at FOX13 Memphis (WHBQ). During her time in Memphis, Kirstin walked miles with protesters following the death of George Floyd, and covered the police reform changes that followed. She won a 2021 Regional Murrow Award for her two-part series, "Black in America: Generational Pain and Healing" highlighting the experiences of four generations of Memphis men about racial inequity. Before coming to Memphis, Kirstin was the Government Reporter for Spectrum News in Charlotte, NC, a statewide hyperlocal cable station. During her time in Charlotte, she covered the 2016 Republican National Convention and Democratic National Convention and Charlotte's bid for the 2020 Republican National Convention. Kirstin also worked in Hagerstown, MD at WDVM (formerly WHAG-TV), where she covered the Maryland General Assembly and at NPR and NBC News in Washington, D.C. Kirstin is also a 2021 Gracies Award winner, a nationwide honor from the Alliance for Women in Media Foundation recognizing women in the media industry. She’s also a member of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) and Investigative Reporters & Editors (IRE). Kirstin grew up in Raleigh, NC and graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Follow Kirstin Garriss:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ReporterGarrissFOX13Memphis

Twitter: @ReporterGarriss

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kirstin-garriss-71008419/

Instagram: @Report

Transcript

Rikki Harris: 0:05

CAN+DID is a podcast of TN Voices about mental health, featuring stories of people who have overcome mental health challenges, as well as those who have helped people overcome mental health challenges. This podcast is about authenticity. And it's intended to give a voice to those who are passionate about mental well being. We hope that by sharing stories, listeners understand mental health and just how important it is in our day to day lives, and they will help us reduce stigma. We want you to know that so many who have struggled with mental health can and did overcome their challenges. And if you are struggling, you can too. I'm your host, Ricky Harris, CEO of Tennessee voices, and with me as my favorite co host will Voss CEO of Tennessee voices. Welcome to our podcast. Let's get candid. Welcome to the candid podcast. We are super excited. My co hosts will last here with me and we have an interview that I think you're gonna love. Will you got to participate in what is now an Emmy nominated piece called black in America generational pain and healing that aired on Fox 13 in Memphis, in 2020. Yeah, give us your little quick, down and dirty behind the scenes. What were you thinking? What were you feeling? What's this piece? I want you to have a chance to talk about the piece? Yeah,

Will Voss: 1:47

so I will say, you know, first thing that came to mind was how nervous I was going into that piece of it. Yeah, I'm not even gonna lie. So you know, you mentioned we're going to be talking with Kiersten here in a little bit. award winning journalist reporter. She used to report down in Memphis with Fox 13. And she's still being able to have that connection after we first met during May, I believe, for today's Mental Health Awareness Month. When she reached out to me regarding this black in America generational pain and healing segment two part two segment that she did not be able to have a mental health perspective on it. I was I was excited and nervous. That's where I was wanting to make sure that I was saying the right things and of course, representing Tennessee voices and been able to stay true to who I was. Because a lot of it was around, you know, what is it like being black in America, and then to be able to talk about a bit the generational pain and healing with a mental health perspective. I want to make sure I say the right things. I want to make sure that I said something that I hopefully would stick with someone to be able to get the help that they need and be able to start processing and dealing with the trauma in payments still exists. Yeah. Oh, so I know we've got a lot to

Rikki Harris: 3:13

unpack that in five minutes or less. First thing I'll put on packs, you said you were nervous going into it. You told me that before when it comes to talking on the subject of race racism. It we've talked about it's it's still sensitive topic. How do you get through the nerves? How do you push past? Getting it even you still participated? Didn't back out. So what did the nerves do to you? And how did you get through it? push past it. And how did you reconcile in your mind?

Will Voss: 3:50

Well, what the nerves do to me, I think a lot of people who have it feeling you start, you get butterflies in your stomach where it's like, oh, boy, okay, am I gonna say the right thing and not push past it? I think I've said that before. A lot of times before I go in and do news interviews or big speeches or presentations, just whisper prayer. It was something that I learned from my daddy, you know, x Lord to be able to, you know, give you the right words to say. It makes sure that it's something that can impact somebody. And it was so funny. I'll tell you this. I did a live interview a couple weeks ago, and he gave me a countdown and I had started praying late. I was like, Lord, I apologize. I'm not going to finish this prayer. But I went in with confidence and hope that you know what? I may not be able to reach the whole world but hope someone watches this thing. Yes, race is still a sensitive topic to talk about. And as I continue to mature and get older, I'm realizing that, you know, I've got to use my voice. I use my voice in the mental health field. To make a difference and talk about the need for mental health services and seeking support, and I'm going to be able to use my voice and my experiences when it comes to race things that I've dealt with and how we can grow. You know, I mentioned to you before, that we've got to be able to love better in this world. And you know what I can, I think I may have some input at 31 years old how we can love each other better in this world?

Rikki Harris: 5:27

Yeah, yeah, two things that come to mind when you said, you worry about saying the right things. And I just think about how so much of how we're trying to get through all of this together is worrying about what we're saying. And if it's the right thing, and that means different things for different people for different reasons, for sure. But I think all of us can relate to finding ourselves there. But, but to touch on the lack of love, or, you know, trying to increase the love I reference in the interview with KEARSON that I had watched, Will Smith do a read table talk with Kevin Hart. And Kevin kind of alluded to that too. He was actually talking about his children when he when he said it, but he was talking about what fatherhood meant to him, and how different his experience as a child was going to be than the experience that his own children have, because he vowed to change the way that he was parented, and the way he would parent. And he said that the, that his children were little representations of the love that he gave them. And I thought that, that's so true, but it's so true of everyone as a thought about as a leader, as a CEO. And, and I'm sure you can relate as a CEO, there's so many people, looking at you waiting for how you're going to handle a situation, how you're going to respond to something, what the words that come out of your mouth, my mouth are going to be. And if my goal is to always try and say what needs to be said out of love, that is going to be felt not just heard. And I know that's something you've talked about is how you make people feel.

Will Voss: 7:31

Oh, yeah. You know, something I think about it. You mentioned, making sure that I say the right thing. A lot of it, Ricky, for me stems from, I've got a platform. Can I use it for something? And you know, as well as I do, when we're doing these interviews, these news interviews that we've only got a certain amount of time to get our point across. So can we take that time to make sure that we've said the right thing, as far as making sure that we've got our intent across our point across and the purpose of what we do and why we do it, and how people can seek help. That's really, really the core of why we want to make sure we say the right things. I'll never forget, in high school, I had a teacher who taught me the real meaning behind why you shouldn't say she would dock us each time we did a speech presentation. And we'd get points out if we said I'm in the midst of a presentation. As we're speaking, we don't want to waste their time saying I want to make sure we do say the right thing.

Rikki Harris: 8:37

Yeah, I love that. And and no matter if one person's listening, or 1 million, your words are going to mean something to someone, they're either going to help or they're going to hurt. We have a choice about that. And utilizing that wisely. I think that really comes through in the interview with with Kiersten is he used her words to try to move the needle forward and helping us understand what the experience was of for generations of black men who really needed some time to talk about pain and healing around the time of the George Floyd incident. And I think it was an important and timely piece and you're going to hear her talk about it. And I think it's going to be worth listening to so yeah,

Will Voss: 9:27

I would say is definitely worthy. She has been nominated for an Emmy. So I think everybody should definitely tune into it after you guys hear her. Is that next guest?

Rikki Harris: 9:37

Absolutely. All right. Here we go. Awesome. Welcome. Welcome to the candid podcast. I'm your host, Ricky Harris. We have my co hosts the awesome amazing little boss and our guest today. Super excited here. So I mean, we've got a lot to get packed. into this next three minutes because this has been a big year for you and let me start with a big congratulations on the Emmy nomination for your piece black in America generational pain in healing. Wow. So excited. I have chills just just knowing that like, will be part of that. But what you did with that it's the perfect place to start and tell us why what what why do that piece why was that important to you? Obviously, we want to hear all about your, your why behind that piece and what you do as a journalist?

Kirstin Garriss: 10:32

Yeah, no, that piece was really a man just taking what we saw last year with a different protests. I mean, from the death of George floored a George Floyd but even the the deaths of others at the hands of police. And it was actually a converse of story came about because it was a conversation I had with the pastor. And he was just like, you know, as African Americans, we deal with this generational pain like this doesn't lead this has been happening for generations, we kind of pass it down. And I was like, Oh, my gosh, we really do. And it's not intentional. It's not something that like, you know, families, you know, want to sit down and have this conversation. You know, no, one's parent wants to say, hey, because of your skin color, someone may treat you differently. So when they look at you differently, society may view you differently. But it happens. And so I wanted to, to have this conversation. I wanted to find four generations of black men to show people like yes, this is a generational conversation. But also, what I think is interesting, I literally asked one question, I said, Well, what does healing look like? And it wasn't part of my notes. I was just like, You know what, let me just ask it turn into another 20 minutes of these four gentlemen, explaining what healing looks like. And I was like, Okay, this is no longer one story. This is a two part series, I knew will have been so helpful with just talking about mental health in the black community, which is another stigma that we're working to overcome. And with black men in particular, you know, black men are taught, they can't cry, they can't show emotion, a lot of these things, you have to be strong with the family. And it's like, no, it's okay. Like, last year was rough for a lot of people emotionally, mentally. And just, I feel like I wanted to have that mental health piece to show people like it's okay to feel these things. How do we how do we have generational healing? Like how do one day we are healing from this, you know, from all these different tragedies, all these different moments, and even just the microaggressions that we deal with every day? I think that's what I want to also highlight in the piece. It's not just these the George Floyd's of the of the world, it's like minor things that a lot of people experience. I've experienced anything I've noticed when people have ignored me in the store, or the opposite. I feel like someone's following me because, you know, they might think I might take something like, and that's something that those are the small things, people don't realize that really last with you. So yeah, hope that answered your question.

Rikki Harris: 12:51

It did. It did. And I know Will's got some things he wants to say in regards to the peace because I know it was such a huge honor for him. Before he makes those comments, let me just say that I am grateful to you for doing this story. I learned a lot from it, I needed to hear what you had to share through the people that share. And I'm so grateful for well for being courageous enough to step in that role and publicly speak and help educate the community. So well.

Will Voss: 13:24

Appreciate that. I really do. It was very, very exciting to be able to be a part of that piece. And here's just forever grateful for you for even thinking of me for doing it. When you present me with opportunity, all I could say was yes, yes. Yes. And when and, you know, there was so much that came out of that piece and you talked about the why behind why you chose it. But for those who don't know, who cares, who cares is why journalism what you know, tell us tell us how would you describe Houston Gary's the person who's got into journalism and covering such important stories and impacting the world.

Kirstin Garriss: 14:02

It's funny, I really wanted to be a vet when I was growing up, like literally like kindergarten everyone in kindergarten wouldn't be Oh, yeah. It was like Dr. Singer, gymnasts, whatever here said, I want to be a veterinarian, save animals. Like that was me at five years

Will Voss: 14:15

old. And we love the animals, you know. So but no, it's

Kirstin Garriss: 14:19

really interesting because I was actually really quiet kid did not really talk much in school. But I was really curious and also have to credit just influences in my life. My late father was really just into just consuming news. For ratios reader, I mean, he his library is still massive in our house. And just my grandmother also was big on watching Oprah everyday like when I got home from school, four o'clock on the.we. Were watching Oprah. So I felt like I had these different influences that were part of my life. And then in high school, I took the class broadcast one on one, I was like, You know what? This is pretty cool. But I always liked talking to people. I've always liked getting to People stories. And as I've progressed in my career progressed in my career, there we go, I can talk, I promise. Sometimes words are hard, though. But I will say, as I progressed, this is actually my 10th year in journalism. And it's really, it's amazing to see just have grown, but also just my love for journalism has grown as well. But also even my, I would say, my willingness to stand up for stories that I feel like are important, like when I pitched that story about talking to for black men for generations, I wasn't sure what my boss was gonna say, I was like, Hey, here's the story, I want to do it. I want it to be raw, I want it to be, you know, impactful. And it was great to have, you know, a manager and said, Oh, let's take it to the next level. And let's film it inside the National Civil Rights Museum. Like if we're gonna do a story of this magnitude, let's do it at a place with magnitude as well. So it was really nice to have that sense of like, okay, I'm, I'm, I'm suggesting this big story that's important to me. It's personal to me. And, you know, my team really supported it. And it was great that when we were trying to cut down the story, it was like, holy, I bet it's like, and you're like, Okay, this is, you know, it really was helpful. And I even when I was trying to put the story together, I reached out to other black men I admire in my circle, who are journalists and leaned on them, because I will always admit, you know, I'm not a black man. I'm a black woman. So my experiences are similar, but also different. So I'm always big on wanting to make sure any story I do, I can represent it as best as possible. And if I can't do it, I find voices that can. So I'm big on trying to find voices that are diverse, that represent the people impacted by the story directly.

Rikki Harris: 16:39

Wow. That's awesome. There's so many, there's so many questions I have for you. The first, the first one I want to ask you is what was it like, being a journalist through the last 20 months in this world,

Kirstin Garriss: 16:55

you will need some more time in this podcast. It was it was interesting, because I think like a lot of people, I definitely thought I was going back to the newsroom in like, two months, I was like, Alright, let me check a few things. I'm gonna see my desk back. And like I had files, there, open records request, I was like, I'll get to it in two weeks, maybe a month. Um, what was interesting was seeing, we were covering something that everybody was trying to figure out, including scientists. And that was very unique at times, because you know, we do stories about how to stay, you know, how to stay calm during a pandemic, or what can you do to kind of relieve stress, and one of them was like, Don't watch as much news. And you're like, what happens? If you are the news? How can I? How do I not do my job and also relieve stress? And then also have a loved one in healthcare. So I had personal things going on where like that loved one is sending me photos of them and their, you know, protective equipment, which I'm glad they were in it. But it was weird being like, Well, I'm glad you're fighting the good fight. But also, can you not, can you go, can you please stay home. But of course, I didn't say that, because you know, they're doing their job. My job was to, you know, talk about what we were learning. And then things took another turn when we saw again, the protests, and just a different I'll say this actually, just being a journalist, in general, covering any kind of police involved incident, it is something that can be long lasting, because there are incidents that I've covered that you may not know about, you may not know, Keith Lamont Scott, you may not know Wayne Jones, those are all stories I've covered in their incidents, the police footage, all that still engraved in my head. So when it came to this one, it was like, it was different, cuz I've never seen protests explode like that across the country and across the world, quite frankly. Because normally, when we see these incidents happen, it's very much localized to that city. But it was for me as a journalist, it was it was different seeing my friends who covered who are also journalists covering similar things in their cities. And so for me, when I was off the clock, I had to do a really big job of tuning out everything, because it was, you know, check Twitter and it'd be like, my friends tweeting about this protest and other friends tweeting about that protest, and they're doing their jobs. Then I'll go to Instagram, same thing. So I know, one weekend after covering I think it was I think I did five or six days straight of protests in Memphis. I had to delete Twitter from both phones. I was like, look, it's getting deleted this the app, you know, I didn't delete Twitter forever. But I was like, You know what, delete, work phone, went into the bag, went to the closet and closed the closet up. I just had to do my best to kind of just reset and really just protect my peace. That's something that's come out of the last 20 months. I've told people protect your feasts. You know, find a way to find moments to turn things off, quite literally and figuratively. And I remember even that weekend, I sent out a corrective note to the newsroom and I'll say look respectfully. I'm off this weekend. Here's who's protesting. Here's a number. Don't call me. I need to just Take a break. And I've never done that before. I never explicitly said please don't call me. Because I'm usually I'm still a team player. I'm big on hey, if you need anything, let me know. Like, even today, one of my co workers was finishing up a story I started, I was like, Hey, here's some more information we would like. I'm off the clock. And I'm like, still sending stuff in. And I'm, I've always been that way. But I remember that story distinctly. Last year, I was like, Guys, I just need 48 hours to just not to literally binge watch the most ridiculous fun thing on Netflix like I just needed that time. And then even last year, covering more COVID things, I was more honest with managers about needing a day off for mental health. And that's something I tell people, you have to be very comfortable with how much you want to share. Because obviously, when you call out sick, you don't have to explain why you're calling out sick. That's your, you know, if your we have sick days for a reason. But I know there were a couple of times, I was straight up and honest and said, Look, this story was a lot. I needed it. And one story was I got a chance to tour a COVID wing in December. So it's at the height of a lot of cases hitting the MidSouth. Seeing people that looked like me seeing people to look like, you know, my grandparents like that was tough to see those individuals on ventilators. And I was like, You know what? Yeah, this was a lot. And that was new for me to speak up and say this story. While I'm glad I covered it, I'm glad I was able to write it, I'm glad that I was able to produce something. But I can also recognize that story took a lot out of me mentally, I needed a break. And ironically, I had a therapy session that day. But it was more I just I needed to step back because that was a big, that was a lot to take on. So that's kind of was covering 2020 was learning how to just speak up for my mental health and also learning how to put up barriers that I needed to put up either at work or just personally because again, no one at work said you must delete Twitter. I was like, No, I mean, delete Twitter immediately for at least two days, you know, just take a break. And that's tough as a journalist, like we're used to just being on all the time. Like, I'm like shaving off notifications as we do this podcast, like stop popping up. I'm like, that's part of our life. So little things like that. I just, that's, that's how I managed covering. Point 2020 21.8. Now we got Omicron. So you know, what's gonna happen next? So I think yeah, I think that's kind of protect your peace. That's like, my hashtag. That's my mantra that's come out of this pandemic, that I've been definitely gonna preach to the journalists and just other people, but really, other journalists, because we're often putting our mental health on the backburner. And not intentionally, I feel like it's just something that has happened and somewhere to like the stigma of mental health in the black community, there's almost a stigma of like mental health and journalism in a sense, and that we don't, we're up Morocco was told, Hey, it's okay to take a break. You know, burnout is real. I think we saw that a lot last year, like, I purposely took staycations. Like, we couldn't go anywhere last year, I was still at home. But you know, for four days, again, I didn't leave the house, I just, you know, played with the dog, I watch whatever I wanted, I ate food, you know, like, but like, staycations. I've never really done that before. So I think that's the kind of thing I feel like 2020 did give us in terms of like, being a journalist was like, where do we put boundaries? Where do we put just places to rest? And being honest about we need a break? I think that's something that for me personally, I'm big on saying, Look, yeah, this story was a lot. And it's okay to say that, like, it's not, I'm no less of a journalist by saying, this story really took a lot out of me mentally.

Will Voss: 23:38

I will tell you this as it's powerful, what we were able to learn through these past 1820 months. And I really appreciate you for sharing that with us, especially being vulnerable and open, letting us know, there are moments where you had to yourself say, I need a mental health day, because mental health affects us all. That's what we continue to tell people time after time again, and there are so many people who don't understand the importance because of the stigma around it. You mentioned something as far as you know, the stigma with mental health and journalism, you are able to utilize your voice today and tell people what you've done and give those tips and tools. And that's exactly what we want listeners to be able to hear and understand something to take away and say, You know what, this is someone I can relate to have been there. I feel that how would you encourage others to access mental health resources or understand the importance of utilizing their voice to say, You know what, I'm not okay. Especially in the journalism field, because it is so go go go beyond it. How would you encourage other journalists,

Kirstin Garriss: 24:47

I would say, first, find ways just to rest. I feel like that's the biggest thing, and rest looks different. Everybody. Rest, like I said can be deleting the social media apps. For a little bit or deleted them off your personal phone, a lot of us in journalism have two phones, like the work phone, the personal phone, you know, delete some stuff off your personal phone. Another thing, run, not walk to therapy and not because something's wrong. I think that's the big stigma is that people think, Oh, you're in therapy. Something's wrong with you. No, I'm, I'm okay. But I also have days where I'm not okay. And I think that's, to me, therapy is proactive. And I heard someone say, actually, Jasmine Soloway. Um, I've been loving her new album. But that's another story. That's another podcast one other day.

Will Voss: 25:34

But she'll be coming here next year in concert in March is when I heard

Kirstin Garriss: 25:37

listen, I'm trying to get tickets. So you got the hook up. But that's another story again. Um, but no, it was interesting. She had an interview recently, for another podcast I listened to and she said, someone asked her, like, how do you celebrate yourself? She said, I celebrate myself, I go into therapy. And I was like, gentlemen, if you don't stop with this gym, I mean, I literally pause the podcast, and I was just like, wow, she really just says she celebrates herself by going to therapy. And to me, that's my new, like, take on it is that, you know, me going to therapy is celebrating myself, but also investing in myself and saying, Hey, self, like, you need a break. It's okay to like, take a look. And also, you know, talking to someone who isn't, who isn't in journalism, who isn't a family member who isn't a bestie, someone who can really kind of help you unpack, you know, was it a story that maybe made you feel a certain way? Was it, you know, working 10 days straight, that made you feel a certain way? I mean, those are things that I've done, I've worked like 12 days straight in journalism. You know, I've worked 1215 16 hour days. And again, in was happy to do it, but like, looking at how did that affect me? You know, do I need to take breaks and just putting up barriers that work for you, you know, again, is it speaking up and saying, hey, you know, what, I need help with assignment or, you know, what I, you know, I can I get a break before I do this other, you know, assignment here, like, I know, thing was last year, too, I got the chance to fill in anchor, which was great. I was like, super excited. But that meant working a six day and having one day off. And again, totally didn't mind doing it. But I know there are a couple of weeks where it's like, man, there's a few times in a row, I need a break. And I just literally spoke up and said, Hey, can I just have a day off randomly? Like, I don't care what day it is. It can be Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Addison another day to kind of, you know, reset, you know, regroup. I need two days off somewhere in the week. My manager was like, oh, yeah, sure. You know, like, I think sometimes people just forget to ask you sometimes, because it's just like, oh, yeah, you're, you're going going going? No one has spoken up. And you know, at the time, it was like overtime. So like, it's like, oh, yeah, go for it. Like, I was like, No, I'm good with overtime, like, just give me a day off. I don't need extra OT. But again, if you don't speak up, sometimes people don't realize you need a break or want a break. So I think for me, I would just say learn what rest looks like for you. Speak up for breaks. Again, whatever that looks like, is it a break in the league? Is it you know, taking that staycation? Or like, asking for the break slash asking for, you know, speaking up about burnout, and then therapy, I guess those are like my Three Things for fellow journalists. And doing it earlier. Like I literally hit like 910 years in business, and I'm just now getting therapy I wish I'd done this years ago. And I feel like the younger you are one it feels like access to therapy is just impossible. But to you just feel like you can't afford to take a break. And I definitely want younger journalists to know you can take a break. Because if you don't take a break, he may not be in the business, you know, 1015 years because you're burnt out by your two. So I definitely want younger journalists to like find breaks find time to like address burnout, because they have more pressure than I did. When I was first getting started in the business. Twitter was like, was a tweet. You know, like, we were not really using it to break news. We weren't there was no live, there was no threads. There was no Twitter live, there was no Facebook Live, like there was none of this extra stuff that younger journalists are expected to know and to do. And so I just really want everyone to just, you know, protect your piece. And I think part of that was just with risk. So yeah, like rest speaking about burnout in therapy, therapy, therapy therapy. like I am, I was late to the team. I had a lot of good friends who were really instrumental in like helping me get to that final step. Because something was on my list. I never was like no therapy. It was like, I'll get there and some were just on the list and just never got checked off. And then one day it was one day in 2020 I was like you know what? Again, it was like the COVID news was like hitting a lot the personal. I had some personal things I was going dealing with and one of my friends was like so about a therapy though. Did you get it? I was like about that. So that day I called and made an appointment. me putting wasn't for another month later but it was like I needed someone to push me to say okay, like, because I made the call. I had like a list of their I was like, oh, okay, I did my job. Got a list. I figured it out. And she was like, okay, but that list is no good. If you don't call, like, if you don't make an appointment with somebody, you know, and just start the process. So that's that was like, again, therapy. It takes time. You know, I'm not gonna rush anyone's journey, but it's like, if it's on your list, go ahead and like, get it done in some way.

Rikki Harris: 30:22

That is, I think that is so common, that little piece of your story about getting the list of therapists but not making the appointment. That is a very common moment where the pursuit of therapy stops, I got the list. I intend to call. I know who I want to see. But that next step doesn't happen. So thank you for that encouragement. First of all, I think that's a really important thing. It also reminded me of something that Will Smith said, so I want I wanted to bring this up today, because I watched the red table talk interview between Will Smith and Kevin Hart. And it so it had such a flavor of your story, black in America, generational pain and healing, the I mean, they should have been in your story. Because,

Kirstin Garriss: 31:16

you know, for like, people, I got you.

Rikki Harris: 31:19

Like, there was a little on the website, there was a little page at the front, like, if you want to be on the red table talk, I'm like, maybe, maybe KEARSON should be like on the red. But, um, no, he Will Smith said something, he was identifying that black men sometimes, in his opinion, and Kevin agreed, they have a hard time getting to the space of finding the importance in addressing your feelings. And he said, I couldn't find the space where feelings were more important than accomplishments. And you were kind of saying that when you were talking about young journalists, they're, you know, they're afraid to stop, they've got to get it done, you know, there's too much and they want to be in the mix. Where's the space where their feelings, their own needs, their own thoughts, their own struggles are more important than the accomplishments because that's not what society tells them, especially as young people, and layer on top of that people of color, what a society tell them that needs to be important, and what they need to look like and how they need to act in order to be accomplished. And that just that resonated with me. And then Kevin said, in regards to having children, for particularly girls, he said, I had to learn to be okay with softening, because I was softening. My daughter softened me. And that didn't feel manly, to be softened. But I had to learn to be okay with it. Because it was important to be to be a good father. It so much of the things that came out of that really am hearing just the the interviews back that the two part series that you did, I was hearing it back and thinking, you know, what Kiersten did there, and that story in Memphis that resonated with a lot of people. And now you have two huge celebrities that are saying the same things. And they're saying this is how hard it is for us to let go and be okay. With failing something. Because that's not what we were taught to do. Yeah.

Erika Lathon: 33:33

We'll be right back after this short break. Tn voices is now hiring qualified applicants to build positions all across the state, you can be part of a growing team that puts the mental health of Tennesseans first and thrive in a compassionate work environment to apply to join our team log on to tn voices.org/employment. Welcome back,

Kirstin Garriss: 34:19

yeah, no another. I feel like belief that's out there is having to be like strong like there's the strong black woman like we've talked a lot about black men. But being a black woman, there's a sense of having to be like the strong one. And one of my friends who's actually a therapist in Charlotte, he has shirts that say check on your strong friend but strongest crossed out. So just check on your friend. And I love that concept. Because again, I feel like the same way Kevin Hart was talking about wow, you know, it's not manly to be soft. You know, it's okay to say like today I'm not strong today. I just want to, I just need to, to melt you know, but I know that's something else that I've I've talked to others about to my other friends, like, you know, it's okay to feel like today, I just need to feel my feelings. But there is this sense of having to having to push sometimes, you know, even when you don't feel like it pushing way beyond. So that's another thing, just you know, it's crossing out the strong and just checking on your friend. And just also it's okay just to you don't have to be strong every day. I think that's something else I would say for journalists or any profession, honestly, like, some days, you got to feel your feelings. So I'm glad that yeah, Kevin Hart. And Will Smith had that conversation. But I knew that's another dynamic too, that a lot of people, you know, try to balances. Being a strong person, strong for others, but also being strong for yourself. And sometimes that looks like acknowledging, okay, I need to break any take a moment for myself. That's the other thing like saying you need rest saying, Hey, I'm dealing with burnout that's helping you. At the end of the day, and I think being journalists, a lot of us are you so used to we do stories, they sometimes do help people, but a big part of our we're just used to being a part of the community and giving a lot. So I think sometimes it's hard for us take a step back and say, Oh, let me get to myself and take a moment. And recognize when I need the break, and I need, you know, to ask for help. That's the other thing I know, I didn't ask for help a lot. Sometimes it helps to step back and say, You know what, I do need help with this, like the therapy thing, looking at the list, like, I needed help from friends to, to push me to that next step. And so I think it's okay to ask for help and say, okay, you know, what, why am I what is holding me back. And for me, I was holding back like, I was like, I don't like any of these people, I don't like their bio data. And then one of my friends was like, well, therapy is like dating, like, you got to go on a first date. So first appointment to figure out. But she was like, you can't even get the therapy if you don't make the first date. And I was like, Okay, let's go. I'll do it. But you know, that's the kind of thing is like, having friends in your corner you can be honest with. And that helped for me. And these matches to two of my good friends who had been in therapy for years before I started, who were saying these things like, hey, like, I'm on my second therapist, you know, like, it's okay to switch things up. You know, sometimes you work with someone for a few years, and then you need to switch to someone else, because your needs have changed, your growth has changed, like, that's okay. And I'm recognizing that point in myself, I don't have I'm looking for a new therapist now. Because I realized when I had a mentor, she helped me through what I needed, help with and 2020 and then to 2021. But now I'm looking for someone new, because I also want someone in my city so that when it is safer to, you know, do things in person, again, I want to be able to show up because for me that tells with my accountability, I want to be accountable for Okay, I have an hour with this person, if I have to meet them somewhere. That's going to add more emphasis to me to make that appointment. And as a personal thing, I know myself enough to say, Okay, this helps I need to have a physical appointment.

Will Voss: 37:52

Just in black in America, generational pain and healing. What stood out so much to me was the generational piece. Because I coming from my background, you know, Cargill is home right outside of Memphis. But it hasn't always been that small, beautiful town that it is now. You know, my great grandfather was a sharecropper. So there's land out there that used to be cotton that was picked and a little shack. It's torn down now. And we think about what he went through, you know, someone who didn't get a chance to go to school and hear my mother talk often about how he pushed education. You know, he was so proud of them to be able to graduate high school at that time and going to college. And to be someone who was called on in that interview with a master's degree. It was something that I was so proud about, like there's so much pain that have been carried all these years. And I stand proud on his shoulders, you know, of what has been built, because I can't even imagine what he may have went through during that time. And we have to be aware of you know what, in this day and age, when we talk about race, a lot of what younger generations are experiencing on is that history that they learned, things that they have heard, you know, secondary trauma, you know, even growing up and thinking about what we've seen on TV. So it's important for, you know, listeners to understand that when we are trying to educate ourselves or be educated on race, there's a lot that that person may be holding on to. So you you, we appreciate every interview that you call the wholeness to include us and I will tell you that curious because to be able to tap mental health back into a lot of things that we don't normally tie it into is so crucial, so important, especially within the African American community. You know, we talk a lot about how mental health doesn't discriminate. There is still a great stigma in the African American community. And we have to talk about it. You know, Ricky and I both come from faith based backgrounds, and we've had those conversations as far as you can Pray and go to therapy. It is possible it is.

Kirstin Garriss: 40:03

God made therapists. All right. He did it.

Will Voss: 40:07

So so for you. Yes, yes. So for you to tie that into those segments and offer our resources that we're able to provide now will forever be greatly greatly appreciated. Appreciate to have you with it.

Kirstin Garriss: 40:21

Well, it's interesting, because when you were touching on the generational aspect of my piece, I was struck by the connections the men were making, as we were having the conversation because the oldest gentleman he talked about seeing a picture of immaterial, it was one photo. Versus he said, I can't imagine being the younger, the teenager we had on the panel who saw George Floyd on repeat, because it was on our phones, it was, you know, just, you'd watch it over and over again if you want it to. And then another, like, just connection was, again, Roby. That was the same Robbie Williams, he talked about how again, because until he never thought about dating interracially because he was like, and I remember distinctly, he was like, I don't want my mother to be burying me, because I'd love someone who look different. And then one of the other Patrick, who was also on part of my story, he is a product of a biracial relationship, in love, like his mother is white, and his dad is black. And he is proud of that. And he talked about how he walked in this space being both but also how to, sometimes he had to choose. And in the part of the story that I thought was just it blew my mind was a standardized test. Like, that's how he found not not found out about race. But really, he had to choose a racial race on a standardized test and fifth grade. Because the test said, you have to choose white or black, and he was like one vote, and the teacher was like, but the test says you have to choose one. So it's just interesting how there were so many generational connections. And again, all these men were actually basically strangers before the interview. Two had known each other a little bit through other organizations. But for the most part, all four men were didn't know each other's backstory. So to me that was also powerful is that you could see the connections that was part of the reason why I wanted the story to show for generations for strangers, because I wanted to highlight how these four men have so much in common, even though they've never met before this moment. And so that was a big part of wanting to make sure we had those connections. But then the fact that we do see things on repeat, and knowing that, you know, the youngest of them, everyone agreed we don't want him 50 years later, to be having this conversation with another reporter, you know, talking about how things have, you know, haven't changed, but hopefully how things have changed. So maybe, you know, who knows, 3040 50 years from now, it's it is only generational healing, we aren't talking about pain, or if we talk about pain, it's okay, this pain spurred this healing. Because as you said, Well, you know, you're walking in your you are your ancestors, you know, wildest dreams, you are now living proof that what they were fighting for? You're living it. And same thing with me. You know, I'm grateful that barriers my parents, grandparents faced are not barriers I face. I think that's, you know, that's part of our story, too. I think it's powerful. It's like, with each generation, how can we continue to grow? How can we continue to, you know, advance in different ways, and that looks different for every family to like, for you is like having that master's being able to represent your family in this way. For me, it's the fact that I am no reporter for me. That's a whole nother trade. But I feel like I'm touching on everything my parents did, I'm touching on you know, I get to touch on all these different things that my, my family my ancestors have done, because with journalism, we are talking about some different topics. So for me, that's that's big to me representation. I mean, just so many levels, but that's another TED talk. Let me I get termination on MTV. Gonna be like it is 630 Why are we still? So but no, I think there's just yeah, there's there's a lot of levels to that. And it is interesting, I didn't dissect it my piece like this, but it's it is I'm grateful that it meant so much to different people, and that it left people with different things. And it's heartwarming. I mean, the day we found out about the nomination, I was like, crying tears of joy, happiness saddened, like that sadness, but it was just like, Oh, my God, like this really happened. Like it was just like, oh, like, what? Um, so it's just because it meant so much to me. And it was like, you're putting, like your firstborn out to the world? And you're like, will you like them? I don't know. And so that's what it is when you work on a piece so much, because there was, I mean, several weeks of preparation for the interviews, and then trying to put it together hours writing hours from I mean, there's a lot of people a lot of there's a lot of things people didn't see. And it's not to like this is not to To my own horn, I think it's just to show people like you see the full finished piece. But there's so much behind the scenes that people don't see. That literally is like blood, sweat and tears trying to get something together. And it starts with just, you know, hoping that again, your team says, okay, yes, we want to move forward with this project. So yeah, that was definitely so many things.

Will Voss: 45:27

I will say this, I know we're getting close to wrapping up. I want to tell you that she you said something earlier or asked you this. You said something earlier about, you know, celebrating, celebrating yourself. You got a lot to celebrate in this moment. You have been nominated for an Emmy. And yes, I'm going to keep doing a shameless plug black in America, generational pain and healing, because I want listeners and viewers to go out there and watch it in really, really understanding, you know, the impact that it has, and that it had on a lot of us, especially those of us that were participants in it.

Kirstin Garriss: 46:03

I am definitely truly blessed. I mean, we just don't face a little bit and you know, down the south, I'm in like the south ish. We consider DC like some southern ask. But no, I mean, it's definitely, I am just truly blessed because it's ironic, one of my old co workers last year, she was like, you were like walking in your purpose, like you are really doing this. And then this year, I pick a word of the year each year to kind of like define my year. And I picked purpose. And it really has been a blessing to just see a story that meant so much to me that again, was from from beginning to end was all Kiersten and not to say, the stories I do every day aren't. It's more. This was truly like my brainchild. It was like, Okay, I want to put this together, I wouldn't want this story to be told, I haven't seen it in these be told, and you know, I'm going to try and make this happen. And then the reaction to it has been just overwhelming. Because again, I think it shows that black voices are important in stories that black male voices are important. I mean, I was very kind of going back to wanting to represent something as authentically as possible. To me, we have black men have a very different experience in this society. And I wanted to highlight their voices for that piece for that moment, and I think that was just, that was my way of connecting with what we saw with the George Floyd. Tragedy. Just I wanted to, to bring that forward. So you know, I will be celebrating for sure. But I think to me that the celebration is just people embracing the story. And I tell people all the time, I did not get into journalism to be famous. I did not get into journalism to win awards. Those are the furthest things ever. And as I mentioned, I'm now 10 years in the business and I'm getting my first awards. Like it's not something you to me, this is like, it is definitely full circle. It's like okay, you know, I've definitely been putting in the work. And I feel like yeah, these are pieces I'm truly proud of. And ironically, one of my mentors. He saw the piece last year, and I remember his email response back was like, this is your me, and I was like, What's he talking about? I was like, I don't know. We'll see. And this is someone who's known me since I was like, literally job shadow event in high school. So like truly, as seen my growth through it all. So for him to say like, this is your Emmy. I was like, is he sure? Did he watch the right story? Because I think that's the thing, it's when you're, when you have something you're just truly proud of, I don't know, you're just kind of like I did my best. I'm proud of the work whatever happens happens. So it's been a blessing that it's it's gotten some awards, and that it's up for another big one. And for me, I'm just again, I'm just lattice. The big thing. It's touching people and that's, that's why I do this job. I hope that if my story touches one person, I have accomplished something today. That's really always been my mission with getting into this business is help one person touch one person. Okay, now that one person multiplies the two, hey, even better, but that's always been my thing. But you know, I celebrate myself. I don't know. It's like, I'm a very low key person. You know, it's like, again, I'm working on this. But that's I think that's, that's, that's totally to say like, you know, it's new to once you celebrate myself to say, okay, yes, this is my moment. Because again, I'm very big on look what this other person did look at this, you know, over here. It's not to say I'm not proud of myself. I think it's just, that's I'm big on highlighting everything else, other people what they're doing. Because with this job, I'm just so blessed. I meet so many amazing people. I mean, you guys are just two of like the 1000s if not more people I've met in my journey. And to me, that's why I think this job is so amazing. It's like I meet people every day. And some of the people I've met are just doing incredible things and I'm just like, I get five minutes with you. This is great, you know, like this, this is your life. I'm just like taking 510 minutes, but there probably will be, you know, a splurging of some kind of meal. I don't know carbs, I'm on this like health journey to sound like, you know, my scores on the carbs. We'll see IV Parkins. You know, Beyonce is dropping some more stuff, trying to take more of my money. So we'll see if I'm not gonna get Beyonce anymore my coins but you know what? Came back with me in the next week and we'll find out?

Will Voss: 50:19

Well, I will, I will tell you this, when I, when I became CEO, I was ready to hit the ground running. And Ricky called me one day and she said, hey, don't forget to celebrate yourself, this is a big accomplishment. And I tell you that you are definitely walking in your purpose. You have, you've impacted so many people, but you're in DC now. You no longer Memphis when we first met you, and you're giving so many girls and so many black girls hope by seeing someone on TV like, you know, that can be me one day, I can use my voice and help others and, you know, like really make an impact across the world. So we definitely appreciate you. You know, we're giving hope from the mental health side, and you're definitely giving hope, as far as journalism goes. So thank you, thank you for everything that you are doing.

Rikki Harris: 51:13

Absolutely. And we're going to link the story in our description of this podcast so that people after they listen to it, they just have to know what the story is. So they're going to be able to just click right in and see it. But I feel like today, it's almost like a songwriter talking about the song. Like we got the behind the scenes the songwriters view the journalist, what was on your mind what was in your heart and your friend was right. Yeah, it is. I mean, I can feel it, I can sense that you are walking your purpose. And congratulations to you for doing that. I know that your family must be very proud of you. And you, you should be proud of yourself. So thanks for taking the time for us. And hopefully those who listen will, will be able to sense how I don't know. I mean, I feel it I don't know about you will. But if they can't feel this interview, then I don't know what to do, how to help anybody. But I hope they can sense just how awesome it can feel to do the work that you feel like you were called to do. And that that gives you a very, very big sense of purpose and meaning in your life. And hopefully, when these get out on video, they can see your smile about all this too, because right now they'll just hear it in your voice. But I can see your your satisfaction, your happiness and what you've accomplished. So kudos to you for that.

Kirstin Garriss: 52:36

Thank you, man whose cut that means on my balcony, bro. Man who's doing that, but no, no, thank you guys. I'm just honored that again, you guys wanted to talk to me again. It's weird to be on the other end of things. Because we're used to asking the question, so it's always weird for me to answer questions. So yes, I apologize if I rambled at all. But no, thank you guys. Really? Yeah, if I leave anyone with anything, just protect your peace. And that applies to anyone any career just protect your peace, whatever that looks like. Because I think that's just that's just so important. That's great. If you have a COVID todos anything you know time is limited. And yeah, protect your peace so that you're you're here for you can be your best self to the people that matter to you most perfect way to wrap

Rikki Harris: 53:25

Yeah,

Will Voss: 53:26

I would say that's a wrap. Thank you so much,

Erika Lathon: 53:32

yes. Thank you for joining us. If you enjoy today's program, like subscribe and review this podcast. If you or someone you know is in need of mental health support services, log on to tn voices.org or call one 806 70988 to join us next time as we get candid