Dr. J making space for the next generation of Black chiropractors

Mentorship key to supporting aspiring Black chiropractors Dr. Joel Kerr, known to his patients and colleagues as “Dr. J” (Photo description: a photo of Dr. J looking at the camera) Dr. Joel Kerr, Dr. J, has experienced the power of mentorship. His path to chiropractic began when he was introduced to his mentor at 17. “Seeing a Black chiropractor succeed gave me the power to say, ‘If this man can do it, I can do it, too,’” he says. Until that point, Dr. J had faced blatant racism from many angles. After learning about chiropractic through a summer mentorship program at the University of Toronto at 17 years old, he wanted to become a chiropractor. But after donning his best dress clothes and walking into a local chiropractor’s office, résumé in hand, he was told, “You can’t do this.” “She didn’t know I had good grades,” he says. “She didn’t know anything about me. She just decided chiropractic was too hard for me based on what I looked like.” Then he met Dr. Christopher Morgan, a chiropractor who looked liked him. After seeing his mentor make a difference in so many lives, Dr. J knew he found his calling Dr. J is now the owner…