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Diagnosed With Breast Cancer at Age 27, Raquel Smith Now an Advocate for Disease Awareness

By Sym Posey The Birmingham Times When she was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 27, Raquel Smith, a Minor High School and Tuskegee University alum never dreamed she would become an advocate for breast cancer education and awareness. “Being so young … I never had a mammogram. I never did a self-check mammogram. I […]
The post Diagnosed With Breast Cancer at Age 27, Raquel Smith Now an Advocate for Disease Awareness first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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1 year ago

December 5, 2023

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Raquel Smith, Founder/Executive Director of Pinktopps, a Bessemer-based non-profit, that advocates for breast cancer awareness during the 2023 Sistah Strut walk outside Birmingham’s Legion Field. (Amarr Croskey, For The Birmingham Times)

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By Sym Posey

The Birmingham Times

When she was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 27, Raquel Smith, a Minor High School and Tuskegee University alum never dreamed she would become an advocate for breast cancer education and awareness.

“Being so young … I never had a mammogram. I never did a self-check mammogram. I didn’t think about a mammogram because I was in my 20’s.”

Smith, now 40, is Founder/Executive Director of Pinktopps, a Bessemer-based non-profit organization founded in 2014, that advocates for breast cancer awareness with a focus on young men and women between ages 16 and 35. The group promotes early detection, support during treatment, and higher self-esteem for breast cancer patients and survivors, while bringing attention to how the disease affects younger adults.

When Smith received her diagnosis in 2011, she was younger than the age recommended by the American Cancer Society (ACS) to begin breast cancer screening. According to the ACS, women between 40 and 44 have the option to start screening with a mammogram every year.

‘My mom and I went into the doctor’s office, and they said it was nothing, you’re to young for breast cancer and you never had a mammogram, so they did a lumpectomy. I still didn’t think I had breast cancer. “

After testing, doctors called Smith back into their office. “They said, you have a what they call triple negative breast cancer, and you are going into stage three. If we don’t get to moving within the next six months, the cancer will spread to your brain. “

Smith received a full treatment plan that started with a double mastectomy that went to her breast wall to remove the mass as quickly as possible. Afterwards, she had expanders put in, something normally used in breast reconstruction.

“I wasn’t thinking I was about to get my breast cut off. That wasn’t on my mind. I never knew what a double mastectomy was,” she said. “I never experienced that vocabulary. So, I didn’t know what to expect.”

She would then endure six months of chemotherapy and three months of radiation. As a result of the chemotherapy effecting her hormones and good cells, doctors told Smith that it would be unlikely she would have any more children. She now has three Rose,15, Robert 11, Roclyn, 2.

“When the doctor told me that I wasn’t having any more children, I said, ‘God showed me more children.’ And the doctor said, I could start early-stage menopause and that they didn’t even know when I would get my cycle back.”

In her second month of radiation Smith discovered that she was pregnant. Despite the toll the cancer had taken on her body, she survived the high-risk pregnancy and in 2012 gave birth to her middle son Rob. She would defy the odds again in 2020, she would be surprised with another pregnancy and in 2021 she gave birth to her youngest, Roclyn.

“I always say that ‘impossible is possible with God.’ That is a quote I live by. I even have it on the back of our Pinktopp t-shirts. I feel like I’ve been faced a lot of challenges because God has something shining on me so bright. I just keep pushing. My kids keep me pushing. “

Smith would still face much adversity, including a second battle with breast cancer but her journey of survival has led her on a mission to educate young people about breast cancer and empowering them through their own cancer journeys.

Pinktopps

Founded in 2014, Pinktopps began with a plastic bottle recycling program in downtown Birmingham that helped women pay for mammograms.

“The name Pinktopps originally came from when we started the recycling. I wanted to name it something that relates to us. Our initial catalyst was water bottles and recycling. We still believe in recycling for our Earth.”

At the time, the cost of one mammogram was the equivalent of recycling 1,200 pounds of plastic. From 2014-2018 Pinktopps relied on funding from the recycling until the COVID year of 2020.

In 2018 Smith opened Pinktopps Wellness Center in downtown Bessemer. “By me being a breast cancer survivor, I wanted to do something to help women. Our wellness center is a place where people can come at the beginning of their journey to get information.”

Fast forward to today, Pinktopps is still helping the community by collaborating with other organizations.

On Saturday, Sept. 30 Pinktopps was at Birmingham’s Legion Field for the annual Sistah Strut Breast Cancer Awareness Walk. Other partnerships include Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham, Sisters CANcervive, and most recently One Step Automotive Group.

One Step Automotive Group has partnered with Pinktopps for their One Step’s 4th annual Drive Out Breast Cancer Campaign where One-Step donates $1 to Pinktopps throughout the month of October when supporters and survivors provide signatures at various functions around the Birmingham area. Black signatures represent supporters, gold signatures will represent those loss, and silver represents survivors.

Other collaborations include AIDS Alabama Inc. “We just recently did a grant partnership with AIDS Alabama because women 40 and under are not getting tested and the rates are rising. By us dealing with young women, we need to let women know that we have testing facilities in the Birmingham area that you can go get tested. Just because you get Breast Cancer doesn’t mean you won’t have aids. Just because you have AIDS, doesn’t mean you can’t get Breast Cancer. I’m excited about this partnership because I feel like we share something in common.”

Asked about the future for Pinktopps, Smith said, “Getting a home for survivors. I feel like we need a haven. After going through some things with survivors, I see that we need more of a shelter, where women can come during treatment in Alabama. Stay for free, bring your family, go through your treatment, and get back to life. So, when you ask what does the future hold, it’s a shelter for women.”

For more information about Pinktopps visit https://www.pinktopps.org/ or follow them on Instagram: @pinktopps_bham.

This article originally appeared in The Birmingham Times.

The post Diagnosed With Breast Cancer at Age 27, Raquel Smith Now an Advocate for Disease Awareness first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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Remembering George Floyd

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5 days ago

May 25, 2025

Oakland Post

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OP-ED: Oregon Bill Threatens the Future of Black Owned Newspapers and Community Journalism

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Nearly half of Oregon’s media outlets are now owned by national conglomerates with no lasting investment in local communities. According to an OPB analysis, Oregon has lost more than 90 news jobs (and counting) in the past five years. These were reporters, editors and photographers covering school boards, investigating corruption and telling community stories, until their jobs were cut by out-of-state corporations.

Published

6 days ago

May 23, 2025

Oakland Post

By Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr.
President and CEO, National Newspaper Publishers Association

For decades, The Skanner newspaper in Portland, the Portland Observer, and the Portland Medium have served Portland, Oregon’s Black community and others with a vital purpose: to inform, uplift and empower. But legislation now moving through the Oregon Legislature threatens these community news institutions—and others like them.

As President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), which represents more than 255 Black-owned media outlets across the United States—including historic publications like The Skanner, Portland Observer, and the Portland Medium—l believe that some Oregon lawmakers would do more harm than good for local journalism and community-owned publications they are hoping to protect.

Oregon Senate Bill 686 would require large digital platforms such as Google and Meta to pay for linking to news content. The goal is to bring desperately needed support to local newsrooms. However, the approach, while well-intentioned, puts smaller, community-based publications at a future severe financial risk.

We need to ask – will these payments paid by tech companies benefit the journalists and outlets that need them most? Nearly half of Oregon’s media outlets are now owned by national conglomerates with no lasting investment in local communities. According to an OPB analysis, Oregon has lost more than 90 news jobs (and counting) in the past five years. These were reporters, editors, and photographers covering school boards, investigating corruption, and telling community stories, until their jobs were cut by out-of-state corporations.

Legislation that sends money to these national conglomerate owners—without the right safeguards to protect independent and community-based outlets—rewards the forces that caused this inequitable crisis in the first place. A just and inclusive policy must guarantee that support flows to the front lines of local journalism and not to the boardrooms of large national media corporations.

The Black Press exists to fill in the gaps left by larger newsrooms. Our reporters are trusted messengers. Our outlets serve as forums for civic engagement, accountability and cultural pride. We also increasingly rely on our digital platforms to reach our audiences, especially younger generations—where they are.

We are fervently asking Oregon lawmakers to take a step back and engage in meaningful dialogue with those most affected: community publishers, small and independent outlets and the readers we serve. The Skanner, The Portland Observer, and The Portland Medium do not have national corporate parents or large investors. And they, like many smaller, community-trusted outlets, rely on traffic from search engines and social media to boost advertising revenue, drive subscriptions, and raise awareness.

Let’s work together to build a better future for Black-owned newspapers and community journalism that is fair, local,l and representative of all Oregonians.

Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., President & CEO, National Newspaper Publishers Association

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Hate and Chaos Rise in Trump’s America

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Tactics ranged from local policy manipulation to threats of violence. The SPLC documented bomb threats at 60 polling places in Georgia, traced to Russian email domains.

Published

7 days ago

May 23, 2025

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

The Southern Poverty Law Center has identified 1,371 hate and antigovernment extremist groups operating across the United States in 2024. In its latest Year in Hate & Extremism report, the SPLC reveals how these groups are embedding themselves in politics and policymaking while targeting marginalized communities through intimidation, disinformation, and violence. “Extremists at all levels of government are using cruelty, chaos, and constant attacks on communities and our democracy to make us feel powerless,” said SPLC President Margaret Huang. The report outlines how hard-right groups aggressively targeted diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives throughout 2024. Figures on the far right falsely framed DEI as a threat to white Americans, with some branding it a form of “white genocide.” After the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, a former Utah legislator blamed the incident on DEI, posting “DEI = DIE.”

Tactics ranged from local policy manipulation to threats of violence. The SPLC documented bomb threats at 60 polling places in Georgia, traced to Russian email domains. Similar threats hit Jewish institutions and Planet Fitness locations after far-right social media accounts attacked them for trans-inclusive policies. Telegram, which SPLC describes as a hub for hate groups, helped extremists cross-recruit between neo-Nazi, QAnon, and white nationalist spaces. The platform’s lax moderation allowed groups like the Terrorgram Collective—designated terrorists by the U.S. State Department—to thrive. Militia movements were also reorganized, with 50 groups documented in 2024. Many, calling themselves “minutemen,” trained in paramilitary tactics while lobbying local governments for official recognition. These groups shared personnel and ideology with white nationalist organizations.

The manosphere continued to radicalize boys and young men. The Fresh & Fit podcast, now listed as a hate group, promoted misogyny while mocking and attacking Black women. Manosphere influencers used social media algorithms to drive youth toward male-supremacy content. Turning Point USA played a key role in pushing white nationalist rhetoric into mainstream politics. Its leader Charlie Kirk claimed native-born Americans are being replaced by immigrants, while the group advised on Project 2025 and organized Trump campaign events. “We know that these groups build their power by threatening violence, capturing political parties and government, and infesting the mainstream discourse with conspiracy theories,” said Rachel Carroll Rivas, interim director of the SPLC’s Intelligence Project. “By exposing the players, tactics, and code words of the hard right, we hope to dismantle their mythology and inspire people to fight back.”

Click here for the full report or visit http://www.splcenter.org/resources/guides/year-hate-extremism-2024.