#WhenYouSeeUs: Elevating the Experiences of Women of Color in the Breast Cancer Community

Women of color are underrepresented in the breast cancer community. This organization is changing that.

When Jasmine Souers and Marissa Thomas were diagnosed with breast cancer, it was nearly impossible to find women who looked like them represented in educational materials.

Scrolling past dozens of images of white women with breast cancer was frustrating, and it made them feel alone.

That’s why, in 2019, Souers and Thomas teamed up to launch For the Breast of Us, an organization empowering women of color affected by breast cancer to connect with other women who look like them, feel like them, and are navigating the same challenges.

Yet despite building a thriving community, there was still a lack of representation in the images of what breast cancer looks like. So, Souers and Thomas decided it was time to do something about it themselves.

For its new photography and storytelling campaign, #WhenYouSeeUs, For the Breast of Us recruited members of its Breast Cancer Baddie Ambassador team to participate in a photo shoot and share what they want people to remember when they see them out in the world.

“Being part of this photo shoot gave us the opportunity to be the women we were once searching for,” Thomas says. “It’s an amazing feeling to create something that screams, ‘You’re not alone!’ It’s a big deal for our community.”

Souers and Thomas say their hope is that women who are often overlooked finally feel seen in the faces of the women brave enough to become the people they once searched for themselves.

“This photo shoot is our way of saying, ‘We’re here, we matter, and we’re done dying in the dark and suffering in silence,’” Souers says.

“We are living boldly and loudly. And as long as we’re alive, we’ll be fighting to make the journeys easier for the women diagnosed after us.”

Source: For the Breast of Us. Photography by Ride the Wave Photography and Studios

(Left to right) April Finley, Ginny Shudlick, Marissa Thomas, and Terlisa Sheppard. Source: For the Breast of Us. Photography by Ride the Wave Photography and Studios

(Left to right) Deltra Kroemer, Miranda Gonzales, Jasmine Souers, Shoni Brown, and LaToya Williams. Source: For the Breast of Us. Photography by Ride the Wave Photography and Studios

(Left to right) Ginny Shudlick, Christina Simmons, Jamelle Singleton, and Veronica Laurel. Source: For the Breast of Us. Photography by Ride the Wave Photography and Studios

Article originally appeared on July 15, 2021 on Bezzy’s sister site, Healthline. Last medically reviewed on July 19, 2021.