Today we’d like to introduce you to Lul Osman. She and her team share their story with us below:
Lul Osman, a Somali American woman who grew up in Saint Paul then moved to Minneapolis to pursue post-secondary education, then back to Saint Paul to peruse her career. As a young girl, Lul recalls countless examples of the ways she and her peers were excluded from mainstream activities. As a child, she had interests in many afterschool activities, camps, and sports. However Lul was unable to participate because her mom was still learning to navigate this foreign country and did not have capacity to engage with the boarder American community.
Those were not the only limitations, there were also no spaces to join that was culturally appropriate for young Somali American women or organizations that were led by women who understand them or look like them.
As Lul grew older, she began to see the difficulties and injustice of what her mom experienced trying to raise children in an unfamiliar environment. Despite the barriers, Lul has experienced professional success and is motivated to create a community where Somali girls and young adults do not have to struggle like she did and devotes her time and energy to ensure there will always be a culturally sensitive space moving forward.
In Lul’s early adult years she started to witness some friends develop habits of drinking, smoking and partying which culturally isn’t a norm. Lul started to feel that many of her peers didn’t fit in with the Somali culture nor the dominant American culture rather stuck in between. This resulted in a form identity crisis and the lack of activates to engage in and no sense of belonging within the community. This inspired Lul to volunteer and coordinate activities for Somali women and girls in her community in hopes to bridge the gap. Shortly after a friend recommended she form a nonprofit to further this cause and from that B.R.A.V.E (Brilliant Resilient Ambitious Vibrant Elite) Foundation Inc. was born in 2017.
Lul is part of a 4-member, board of director team consisting of like-minded Somali American women who serve in a volunteer capacity. They bring technical expertise in medicine, law, executive leadership, public health, and management. The mission at B.R.A.V.E is to assist young women of all ages in the underserved communities in areas of education, health, employment and empowerment. B.R.A.V.E has five main missions which facilitate our goals and objectives as a women’s empowerment organization:
1) to create cultural awareness and encourage self-identity and self-actualization through the learnings of heritage and traditions as well as self-growth.
2) Encouraging women’s empowerment and independence through career building and mentorship.
3) Establishing support and counseling as it concerns drug awareness and dependency.
4) Promoting a women’s health initiative in which healthy ways of living are encouraged in the area of physical, reproductive and sexual health.
5) Reducing the stigma around mental health through education of mechanisms of coping and dealing with mental health issues.
These five core missions guide B.R.A.V.E’s goal of cultivating strong-minded independent women. Through cultural awareness, B.R.A.V.E hopes to keep Somali heritage strong within the youth by teaching forgotten traditions, cultural rituals and reinforcing the Somali language. A huge part of self-actualization is to understand where one originates in terms of culture and community belonging; this allows one to have a sense of community while also encouraging their own independent identity. Women’s empowerment is the backbone of B.R.A.V.E’s ultimate goal; through mentorship and group counseling young women are able to share concerns as well as obtain advice through peer and adult mentorship. In addition to mentorship, young women are aided in college applications and career exploring and building.
The drug epidemic has become a major health concern affecting the Somali community. Lul noticed a gap and lack of education. Understanding this health crisis and dealing with dependency as well as finding culturally competent resources was a beast on its own. By reaching out to other Somalis who work in mental health and addiction recovery Lul set out to provide resources for her community by bringing together experts in the field who are members of the community. Educating and overcoming drug dependency has become a vital mission of B.R.A.V.E Foundation. The organization has set forth to help the Somali community understand that addiction is a disease that needs treatment. Also addressing mental and emotional impact it has on families as a whole. Providing actual tools of dealing with and coping with mental health issues as well as dealing with family members experiencing mental health illnesses are facilitated through learning sessions, in which group therapy is organized.
Lul also understands the importance of sexual health and understanding healthy boundaries. Young Somali women face cultural shame as it relates to their sexual and reproductive health which leads to isolation and lack of knowledge on basic sexual health information. B.R.A.V.E hopes to reduce the misunderstandings and shame cultural around sexual health concerns by empowering open and honest dialogue.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It has not been a smooth ride, but definitely a rewarding ride. This is my passion, I love planning activities for the young girls and women in my community. I love the sense of community, the sisterhood, the understanding we all share. I love being able to speak with a hooyo “mom” telling her all details of our programming, I never had someone my mom could understand when it came to permissions. I love the sense of trust I have developed with mothers, especially. But starting a nonprofit organization takes a lot of time., money and dedication. I never gave up my full time job, that’s my source of income, but B.R.A.V.E is where my creative happy side shines. Empowering young women, empowers me. We currently do this work as volunteers, we aim to be fully staffed one day. We have big dreams for B.R.A.V.E in the future.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I have worked in the public sector for the past 7 years. I worked for Ramsey County from 2015-2019 as a Financial Worker. I am now a full time employee at the State of Minnesota, Department of Administration in the Office of Grants Management from 2019-current.
I am best known as the, B.R.A.V.E lady from the youth. I love it and am so proud of it. Some of the amazing East African students at the University of MN tell me how my work has inspired them. I always them that’s why we’re called B.R.A.V.E. And that is the most empowering compliment I have ever received, especially coming from the age group that I serve.
What sets me apart from others is that I have lived experiences around the issues I address in the community. I am trying to be for the girls and young women in my community what I didn’t have. In essence I am serving the young Lul in everything I do, and that is the most rewarding thing.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
My advice in finding a mentor is to ensure it’s someone within a field you’re interested in. A great mentor will hold you accountable, do regular check-ins and be helpful in helping you navigate throughout the process. Make sure you create a foundation of the network. I have been able to create a very diverse but powerful network. There isn’t anything, in particular, I can say I did to create my network, but surround myself with like-minded people who are all passionate and driven by what they do.
The most amazing mentor I ever had was my high school nurse/ peer mediation instructor who selected me to attend the 10- year anniversary conference of PeaceJam in Denver, Colorado. I had the honor of meeting amazing world leaders of peace such as the Dalai Lama, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and other notable Nobel Peace Laureates. This experience highlighted the social conflict communities face and inspired me to become a catalyst for change. I am now driven to give back to my community through real positive work.
A great mentor can set you up for life just as mine did.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://bebravemn.
org/ - Instagram: @be.brave.mn
- Facebook: BRAVE Foundation Inc.
Image Credits
Dymah Chhoun
