Monnica Williams

University of Ottawa

Dr. Monnica T. Williams is a board-certified licensed clinical psychologist and Professor at the University of Ottawa, in the School of Psychology, where she is the Canada Research Chair in Mental Health Disparities. She is also the Clinical Director of the Behavioral Wellness Clinic in Connecticut, where she provides supervision and training to clinicians for empirically-supported treatments. Prior to her move to Canada, Dr. Williams was on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania (2007-2011), the University of Louisville (2011-2016), and the University of Connecticut (2016-2019). Dr. Williams' research focuses on the mental health of communities of colour, culture, and psychopathology; she has published over 200 scientific articles on these topics. In the area of psychedelics, she served as a PI in a multisite study of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD for people of colour. She is currently conducting research on epigenetics and ketamine-assisted therapy for MDD. She serves on the editorial board of several journals, including the Journal of Psychedelic Studies. She also served as Chair of the Board of Chacruna Institute for Psychedelic Plant Medicines. Her work has been featured in all major US and Canadian media outlets, including NPR, CTV, CBC, Huffington Post, and the New York Times.

Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies and Racial Justice

Thursday, August 8

2:00-2:50 p.m. PDT

Seattle Convention Center, Arch Building,

Ballroom 6BC

Psychedelics have been studied for the treatment of numerous mental health conditions, such as PTSD, major depressive disorder, and end-of-life distress. However, psychedelic research studies have been slow to include people of color, leaving important questions unaddressed for these populations. Additionally, the War on Drugs has created racial barriers to access and estrangement from many psychedelic communities, even as decriminalization is expanding. Dr. Williams will discuss the impact of first-wave drug research abuses, social policies, and stereotypes on communities of colour. She will discuss mental health in communities of colour, and how psychedelic therapies may help or hinder healing for racialized individuals. Also discussed are next steps in ensuring that access to culturally-informed psychedelic care is prioritized, including the importance of culturally-informed approaches, experiences of psychedelic therapists of colour, and training models as psychedelics move into expanded access.