Actor, Writer, to Speak About Mental Health
Actor, author, and advocate Terry Crews is scheduled to speak at Farmingdale State College, Thursday, April 28, at 4 p.m. in Nold Athletic Complex. The doors open at 3:30 p.m.
The presentation is one of a series of mental health awareness initiatives being offered to students and employees of the College this semester in response to the increased stress and anxiety people are experiencing due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We are proud to welcome actor, athlete, and advocate Terry Crews to campus for a special Sexual Assault Awareness Month presentation,” said Frank Rampello, acting dean of students and Title IX coordinator. “Understanding how to identify unhealthy relationship behaviors - and our role in speaking out against them - helps build a safer, more inclusive campus.”
Crews’ career as an actor, artist and author took off after a six-year career in the NFL. He recently illustrated a children’s book titled Come Find Me, and his second memoir, Tough, is due for release April 26. He and his wife Rebecca also released an audible book, Stronger Together. He is a vocal defender of women’s rights and has spoken publicly about abuse he suffered as a child, as well as sexual assault, and his one-time pornography addiction. In 2017, TIME Magazine named him a “Person of the Year” for being one of the “Silence Breakers,” who raised his voice against sexual harassment.
“Terry Crews has been a leader as a public advocate in this era of equality and activism against abuse and sexism,” noted a college official. “He has opened the eyes of many that men are able to also speak about the pain they may have suffered at the hands of an abuser.”
Crews also expresses himself through his extraordinary artistic ability, that includes painting and sketching, and more recently, furniture design. He is involved with several non-profit organizations including Safe Horizon, Peace Over Violence, and the Polaris Project.
He has professed that “whatever is meant to destroy you can be your salvation.” With a combination of radical honesty, effortless charisma, and infectious enthusiasm, Crews inspires audiences to overcome fear and shame, be honest, do the work, and live life to its highest potential.
“I think his message is so important because April is Sexual Assault Awareness month and we know many survivors of sexual assault suffer in silence,” said Shaun Fean, director of campus recreation. “This event helps shine a light on this issue and lets survivors know that they are not alone and that there are resources available to help them.”
