The cost: increased violence against others and themselves. Men are 4 times more likely to successfully commit suicide than women, 90% of which are related to mental illness. And as they struggle silently, we all feel the consequences, especially the bodies of difference (women, minorities, and the LGBTQIA+ community.
But hope and help can be found in an unlikely bedfellow, pun intended.
With 250+ blog posts and interviews, The Pillow Talk Project (TPTP) is a quickly building social movement sharing the vulnerable stories of men–and those who love them–from all over the country in an effort to rethink masculinity and level the playing field for men and their emotions.
It’s a really bold statement, but I believe we can help lower male suicide rates, violence, and the number of men–and those who love them–who suffer with depression and related mental health issues by attacking the root cause of not only the hateful -isms plaguing us, but the reason men are buckling in the first place: toxic, dangerous, and archaic traditional notions of masculinity that require domination, oppression, and violence to feel whole.
Instead, through fearless examples and stories of men redefining masculinity on their own terms, we can usher in progressive masculinities rooted in fearless empathy, intimacy, and radical acceptance. And in order to do that we need the power of everyday intimate conversations.
We need a fundamental shift in how we see men and how men see themselves. We are hurting. But no one’s talking. And it’s not because we don’t want to. We aren’t allowed to.
To change this and heal our nation, it’s time to reclaim the kitchen counters, living rooms, patios, and bedrooms, and birth a revolution of intimacy creating safe(r) places for heartfelt conversations and healing between men and those who love them. Only then can we make progress. The kind that positively affects us now and generations of men to come.
With your help, we can create more stories, campaigns, and events that heal men–and those who love them
With these funds, The Pillow Talk Project will be able to support a national movement where each year:
1,000+ lives changed. With 30+ Pillow Talkers being trained in our arts-based, culturally responsive FEEL (Fearless Empathy and Experiential Learning) curriculum, they will be able to host over 100 events around the country, touching the lives of over 1,000 people in the 3-month Pillow Talk Event Series focused on healing through trauma using creative writing, performance, and art-making.
250+ fearless articles and interviews published in multimedia formats, including research, community features, and the Pillow Talk podcast sharing best practices and resources developed with nonprofit organizations, cultural workers, influencers, celebrity experts in trauma work, sexuality, psychology, men’s/women’s/queer studies, gender theory, sociology, etc.
3-5 national marketing campaigns are launched by our Pillow Talk think tank comprised of leading marketers, writers, designers, photographers, and videographers behind to spread awareness and spark critical discussions around key topics The Pillow Talk Project and its movement-builders care about.
Building a movement is far from easy. But with your help, the impossible can become possible.Support us and together, we can prove that everyday intimate conversations can not only help us to redefine masculinity but prove it can heal our men, and heal our world.
In 2019, Keith F. Miller, Jr., observed something remarkable while running creative writing after school programs in Savannah, GA: Students from all backgrounds didn’t just step outside their comfort zones—they learned, led, and thrived with unmistakable joy. Despite this, Keith heard from students and families that school, even for the high-achievers, was a place they survived, not thrived. This led Keith, through his studies in Educational Psychology, to explore why young people felt empowered to learn, lead, and heal in some spaces but not in others.
Through a qualitative research study involving interviews with high schoolers, fellow teaching artists over a year, in addition to examining creative works from youth journals and performances, Keith found that when young people engage in arts-based healing practices with trusted others (peers and adults), they don’t just cope with their struggles—they transform them, becoming vibrant leaders in the process.
Drawing inspiration from the process of rainbow formation—reflection, refraction, and dispersion—and building off of groundbreaking research from scholars like David Kirkland, Gholdy Muhammad, Bettina Love, Bianca Baldridge, and Shawn Ginwright, Keith developed the Healing Literacy Framework, illustrating how arts-based, community programs are vital in supporting young people as they overcome educational trauma, and, in doing so, can result in transformative partnerships in school and beyond that prove healing is possible for everyone.
Enter, HEALIT
In 2019, Keith F. Miller, Jr., observed something remarkable while running creative writing after school programs in Savannah, GA: Students from all backgrounds didn’t just step outside their comfort zones—they learned, led, and thrived with unmistakable joy. Despite this, Keith heard from students and families that school, even for the high-achievers, was a place they survived, not thrived. This led Keith, through his studies in Educational Psychology, to explore why young people felt empowered to learn, lead, and heal in some spaces but not in others.
Through a qualitative research study involving interviews with high schoolers, fellow teaching artists over a year, in addition to examining creative works from youth journals and performances, Keith found that when young people engage in arts-based healing practices with trusted others (peers and adults), they don’t just cope with their struggles—they transform them, becoming vibrant leaders in the process.
Drawing inspiration from the process of rainbow formation—reflection, refraction, and dispersion—and building off of groundbreaking research from scholars like David Kirkland, Gholdy Muhammad, Bettina Love, Bianca Baldridge, and Shawn Ginwright, Keith developed the Healing Literacy Framework, illustrating how arts-based, community programs are vital in supporting young people as they overcome educational trauma, and, in doing so, can result in transformative partnerships in school and beyond that prove healing is possible for everyone.
Keith F. Miller, Jr.