FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASECONTACT:
Tri Nguyen: 415-608-6237
tnguyen@glide.org Older Black Men Make Up 12% of SF Overdose Deaths—Now a Barbershop Is Fighting Back Media is invited to the March 5 ribbon cutting of “The Shop,” offering FREE grooming, mental health care, and addiction treatment in partnership with SFDPH. WHAT: GLIDE is cutting the ribbon for The Shop, which will offer free haircuts and shaves alongside mental health and substance use treatment services, case management, and community support. Developed in partnership with the San Francisco Department of Public Health, this one-of-a-kind barbershop is a culturally responsive intervention for older Black men, a population disproportionately impacted by overdoses in San Francisco. The Shop draws inspiration from the historic role of barbershops in Black communities as trusted, social, and therapeutic spaces. At The Shop, licensed barbers are also trained health care advocates, turning everyday conversations into opportunities for wellness and awareness. “At GLIDE, radical inclusion and unconditional love are not abstract values — they are practices. The Shop is what those values look like in action. We are creating a space where community can be built with dignity, trust, and belonging. Community can save a life. “ — Dr. Gina Fromer, President & CEO, GLIDE “Barbers are often de facto therapists to people in their chairs. The Shop takes that dynamic a step further. By combining free grooming services with meaningful conservations about health and focused and intentional efforts to help people into treatment and support, this innovative program has the potential to change the lives of individuals in need of addiction and mental health care.” — Daniel Tsai, Director of the San Francisco Department of Public Health Anyone in need will be welcomed through The Shop’s doors. The ribbon-cutting celebration will include live music, a barbershop tour, and a haircut for a very special guest supportive of the cause. WHO: Besides our very special guest receiving a haircut (whose name we cannot reveal) the event will feature: - Honored Guests: Daniel Tsai: Department of Public Health Director, Bilal Mahmood: District Five Supervisor, Dr. Hillary Kunins: Director of Behavioral Health Services and Mental Health SF, Rev. Jabari Jackson: speaking from lived experience.
- Speakers from GLIDE: Dr. Gina Fromer: President & CEO and Jason Finau: Senior Director of Health and Clinical Services.
WHEN: Thursday, March 5th, 2-3pm WHERE: GLIDE, 330 Ellis Street, San Francisco (parklet outside building on Ellis St. entrance). WHY: Overdose disparity is greater in San Francisco than in all other major cities: older Black men have represented 12% of San Francisco overdose deaths in recent years, despite making up less than 1% of the population. Culturally rooted solutions can have tremendous power to save lives and strengthen neighborhoods. GLIDE and SFDPH created The Shop as a specific intervention to address the underlying causes of substance use and overdose such as social isolation, mistrust in health care systems, trauma and economic distress– thereby reaching towards greater equity in health outcomes. Resources About GLIDEGLIDE is a nationally recognized center for social justice dedicated to fighting systemic injustice, creating pathways out of poverty and crisis, and transforming lives. GLIDE’s integrated comprehensive services, advocacy initiatives, and inclusive community empower individuals, families, and children to achieve stability and thrive. GLIDE is at the forefront of addressing some of the most pressing issues including poverty, housing shortages and homelessness, and racial and social injustice. | 
