How I’m Redefining Breast Cancer Awareness Through AfroPink

When I founded AfroPink in 2020, I wasn’t trying to become an entrepreneur — I was trying to survive. After a benign biopsy in April 2019, I underwent a lumpectomy in May. I didn’t get my results until June; no one contacted me after surgery, and the results weren’t released to my patient portal. I had to call myself to obtain the diagnosis, and what I learned stunned me: carcinoma.

I was shaken not just by the diagnosis but by the lack of urgency in telling me. That experience showed me how easily someone could fall through the cracks. Then, just six months later, in January 2020, I was diagnosed again.

I never set out to “build a brand.” I created AfroPink because I didn’t want other women — or men — to have to go through what I went through.

My back-to-back diagnoses forced me to navigate a fragmented healthcare system, advocate for my own care, and confront the deep disparities facing Black patients. Out of that adversity, AfroPink was born — a nonprofit dedicated to transforming breast cancer awareness and early detection into a movement rooted in Black communities.

AfroPink isn’t just about education; it’s about access, trust, and empowerment. My goal is to bring resources directly to the people who need them, in spaces where they feel safe and seen.

At the heart of AfroPink is our Pink Pop-Up program — mobile breast cancer awareness events held year-round in both in-person and virtual formats. We bring life-saving information and resources into trusted spaces including ERG groups, PTA meetings, brunches, fashion shows, jewelry pop-ups, day parties, conferences, and more.

Each Pop-Up is led by a mix of lived-experience advocates, community partners, and health professionals (where available). Together, we create an approachable environment where people can learn how to perform self-exams, discover culturally relevant resources, and access information about screening options and follow-up care.

By embedding health education in everyday and culturally resonant spaces, we normalize breast health conversations and ensure access for people who might otherwise be overlooked.

Every October, we host our flagship event, the Pink Party on the Plaza, in partnership with SurviveHer and the Metro New York Chapter of the National Black MBA Association.

The Pink Party blends health and joy — panels on survivorship and mental health, demonstrations on self-care, music, food, and on-site screenings — showing that awareness can be both life-saving and community-building. With dozens of organizational partners participating, the event underscores how collaboration drives impact.

As AfroPink approaches its fifth anniversary in October 2025, my focus is on strengthening our core programs and reaching more people with education, empowerment, and community support. This ongoing commitment drives us to expand our Pink Pop-Ups to more spaces, integrate survivor support more deeply, and develop pathways that make early detection more accessible and less intimidating.

And at the center of it all is a simple, powerful belief: early detection saves lives, and every person deserves support through the fight.

Even with limited resources, AfroPink has:

- Hosted Pink Pop-Ups year-round in in-person and virtual formats.
- Reached thousands of participants with culturally relevant education and screenings.
- Partnered with SurviveHer, the Metro New York Chapter of the National Black MBA Association, and a wide range of community and healthcare organizations to amplify our annual events.
- Laid the groundwork for broader programming and partnerships to strengthen our mission.

By adopting a social enterprise mindset, I’ve positioned AfroPink not just as a nonprofit but as a model for health equity innovation.

I see myself as a social entrepreneur: someone who identifies a problem, builds a solution, and scales it to reach as many people as possible.

AfroPink is more than an organization; it’s a movement. We’re solving for access, trust, and representation. We’re showing that community-led health interventions work — and can be replicated nationwide.

AfroPink is the nonprofit I founded to empower Black communities with breast cancer awareness, education, and support. Through programs like the Pink Pop-Up — held year-round in in-person and virtual formats — and annual events like the Pink Party on the Plaza, AfroPink brings screenings, resources, and conversations directly into neighborhoods — because early detection saves lives, and every person deserves support through the fight.

Follow AfroPink on Instagram at @afropinkorg, visit www.afropink.org, and join us in building a future where breast cancer is not a death sentence, but a call to action and a source of collective strength.

Vina Morris - President & Founder

AfroPink

Tel: 212- 603 - 9851 Fax: 347 - 402 - 2057

Email: [email protected]