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white fragility

Words Matter: Naming, Inspiring, Truth-telling, Revealing, and Reckoning with This Moment

Filed Under: Everyday Feminism, Racial Justice By Beth Godbee January 7, 2021 Leave a Comment

This tweet from adrienne maree brown reads: “words matter. Coup: a sudden, violent, and illegal seizure of power from a government. Terrorism: the unlawful use of force and violence vs persons or property to intimidate or coerce a gvmt, civilian population, or segment thereof. today was not anarchy, not protest. (sedition. insurrection. there's lots of precise options.)”

Words That Matter and Inspire Me Now There are so many words to say today (in the midst of insurrection in the United States), but I want to share some words from adrienne maree brown. brown’s blog post this morning—what is unveiled? the founding wound. (poem/directive)—speaks to my soul. It speaks to festering wounds and the need to name violence and to break white supremacy: “denial will not disappear a wound.” I hope you’ll read this blog post in full. Along with this ... Read more ...

Invitation to Join Upcoming Theatre of the Oppressed Workshops

Filed Under: Contemplative Practices, Emotional Literacies, Everyday Feminism, Racial Justice By Beth Godbee October 13, 2020 Leave a Comment

This screenshot shows the online article “Forum Theatre: Using Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed to Build Receptive Competence by Rasha Diab, Ph.D. and Beth Godbee, Ph.D.,” part of the website Contemplative Practices for Anti-Oppression Pedagogy. It shows a paragraph of text against a blue background and the black, red, and white book cover of Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed.

This fall, as part of the 40-Day Practice: Strengthening Emotional Stamina to Counter White Fragility, I’m facilitating two workshops using theatre of the oppressed. I invite you to join one or both of these workshops, if you’d like to experience Augusto Boal’s powerful approach, rehearse interventions into everyday racism, and connect with others engaged in this work. Here are the workshop dates and description: Friday, October 16th 2-5pm EasternFriday, November 6th ... Read more ...

What Is White Fragility?

Filed Under: Emotional Literacies, Everyday Feminism, Racial Justice By Beth Godbee September 30, 2020 Leave a Comment

Against a dark orange background appears the following quote: “It’s important to name that white fragility can manifest in aggression. Or, when not outright aggression, then as defensiveness, which peace studies scholars describe as the first step of offensiveness.”

How can those of us who identify as white, who are conditioned into whiteness, and who have internalized white supremacy recognize and respond to emotions before they do harm? How can we take accountability when they do? And how can we recognize complicity with the long-standing harm and systems that prevent taking accountability? These questions motivate the “40-Day Practice: Strengthening Emotional Stamina to Counter White Fragility”: a daily practice of ... Read more ...

Unraveling Whiteness: A Call for More Courage

Filed Under: Emotional Literacies, Everyday Feminism, Racial Justice By Beth Godbee May 28, 2020 2 Comments

This image shares the quote: “It’s lifelong work to unlearn whiteness … And as lifelong work, this is everyday work: work in the moment and work over time”—in black font against a light orange textbox and white border.

I’m thinking about whiteness—the structure, ideology, and everyday enactments—as I try to process (yet again) how white people weaponize whiteness. My heart is hurting with rage and grief from recent events, explained in these articles from The Root: “‘There’s an African-American Man Threatening My Life’: Karen Calls Police on Black Man for Asking Her to Leash Her Dog” “Outrage in Minneapolis after Black Man Dies in Custody Following Brutal Police Arrest: ‘I Cannot ... Read more ...

When Speaking Up at the Holidays Means “Complaining” and Being the Killjoy

Filed Under: Emotional Literacies, Everyday Feminism, Racial Justice By Beth Godbee December 29, 2019 1 Comment

This image shows a stack of books with Thich Nhat Hanh’s How to Fight on the top, a blue bookmark sticking out—all against a blue background. These books teach about “complaining” and speaking up as a killjoy.

Last year, during the holidays, I blew up (yelling, cursing, and storming off), and the experience highlighted for me the need to embrace criticisms that I’m “too sensitive,” “too critical,” and “too complaining.” On the day I blew up, I was so overwhelmed, disconnected, and worn down by systemic oppression that my body couldn’t take it. I held myself together until I couldn’t hold it in anymore: then, I released a tidal wave of rage. I’m still processing, but I’m ... Read more ...

3 Reasons to Participate in the 40-Day Practice on Strengthening Emotional Literacies to Counter White Fragility

Filed Under: Emotional Literacies, Racial Justice By Beth Godbee November 20, 2019 Leave a Comment

Referral from Mel (participant from Pennsylvania): “The experience taught me a lot about what it takes to actively practice anti-racism.”

Starting on November 22nd and running for the final 40 days of 2019, I’m offering the “40-Day Practice: Strengthening Emotional Literacies to Counter White Fragility.” Every time I offer this practice (this will be my third and second online), I get a lot of questions, including what this work involves, why it asks for a commitment of 40 days, and why it focuses on emotions. Though I hope the course description answers many of these questions—and I’m happy to answer ... Read more ...

From Fear to Love: Working with Emotional Overload

Filed Under: Emotional Literacies By Beth Godbee October 11, 2019 Leave a Comment

Here Beth is holding the older phone and showing an intense sad emotion, near tears (fear or love?).

Emotional Overload Is Rooted in Fear Last week I said goodbye to the phone I’d had for more than 3 years, a phone I was attached to more than I’d like to admit. I entered a state of complete overwhelm, spiraling between questions and frustrations, between crying and raging: How could I possibly learn a new phone? Why aren’t there any small phones? How will one of the new—BIG—phones fit in my pocket? It’s not fair that all the phones are large, while women’s pants ... Read more ...

Responding to Injustice: Why Settling the Nervous System and Slowing Response Times Matter

Filed Under: Contemplative Practices, Emotional Literacies, Racial Justice By Beth Godbee March 31, 2019 Leave a Comment

Book cover for My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies by Resmaa Menakem (2017, Central Recovery Press).

Recently, I’ve had several moments of witnessing first-hand the links between settling the body (that is, settling the nervous system) and showing up more mindfully, more open, and more like the “best self” that’s needed when striving for social and racial justice. In contrast, moments when my nervous system is “keyed up” (from exhaustion, from unresolved tension, from disappointment, and more), I find myself having knee-jerk reactions and being short with ... Read more ...

Lessons from a Poinsettia: Growing Resilience in 40 Days and Beyond

Filed Under: Contemplative Practices, Emotional Literacies, Racial Justice By Beth Godbee February 24, 2019 Leave a Comment

This poinsettia with pink and fuchsia blooms and green leaves sits against a white wall and white counter-top.

This poinsettia is amazing me—still blooming in these last days of February and reminding me that resilience (emotional elasticity, stamina, and strength) is something we don't often recognize until it’s already present and in place. When I googled how long poinsettias bloom, I was (and wasn’t) surprised to see that 40 days are a common period. The information not only confirms this poinsettia’s resilience (blooming for 3+ months), but it also feels like the ... Read more ...

Why I Don’t Believe the #CovingtonCatholic Student’s Statement

Filed Under: Racial Justice By Beth Godbee January 23, 2019 9 Comments

The question "Who's blocked, dismissed, and disbelieved by these white solidarity moves?" appears in white text against a black background.

I woke up today (the day after MLK Day in the U.S.) to a Facebook friend who presents as a white woman asking if I’d seen the #CovingtonCatholic student’s statement because she’s not sure what to believe. Later in the day, a white family member also sent me the statement, presumably to vindicate the white students. These messages come in response to me speaking out over the past few days about the incident, asking for white folks to break patterns of niceness and to ... Read more ...

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bethgodbee

#Repost @thebodyisnotanapology with @make_repost
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✨Happy Birthday, Angela Davis✨Posted @withregram • @culturestrike Happy 77th birthday to Dr. Angela Y. Davis, one of the most consequential revolutionaries and communists of our time. Davis’ legacy as an abolitionist, Black feminist, philosopher, academic and author has been critical in shaping our conversations around racism, class, and, perhaps most notably, the prison system in the United States.

Today we offer you a quote to meditate on when thinking of Davis’ legacy: “You have to act as if it were possible to radically transform the world. And you have to do it all the time.”

Art by @emilys_list 
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[image description: the above quote by Angela Davis is written in black on the left-hand side of the image against a yellow-orange background. On the right-hand side is a digital illustration of Angela Davis. She has brown skin and a dark brown Afro hairstyle and is wearing peach lipstick, bold gold hoops, and a green top. She is pictured mid-speech, her mouth open as she speaks truth to power.]
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#TheBodyIsNotAnApology #TBINAA #RadicalSelfLove #AngelaDavis
Writing groups are just a week away! A common cha Writing groups are just a week away!

A common challenge facing writers is showing up on a regular basis, and a writing group can help with showing up—for yourself and others.

If you’re seeking accountability and support for a current writing project, consider joining this weekly writing group.

There are options to meet Tuesdays or Fridays or both days through February and March. Link in bio. <3

#writing #writers #WritingGroups #WritingCommunity #WritingSupport #WritingAccountability #SupportForWriters #WritersSupportingWriters #writer #WritersOfInstagram #AcademicLife #Academics #Written #HigherEd #WritingInspiration #WritingRetreat #WritingRetreats #OnlineWriting #OnlineWritingRetreats #OnlineWritingGroups 

This image shows writing tools (phone, keyboard, journal, pencil, and pen) along with the event information: “Online Writing Groups. Tues & Fri mornings. 9 weeks: Feb-Mar. 10am EST  9am CST  8am MST  7am PST. Come Write Together: Heart-Head-Hands.com.”
Exactly. Everyday learning. 🧡 Striving with foo Exactly. Everyday learning. 🧡 Striving with food is all about striving through anti-oppression and for justice ... 

#Repost @sanctuary_publishers with @make_repost
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"True, veganism is neither cruelty-free nor perfect; however, to reject nonhuman animal exploitation and thus, human supremacy, is to begin to also chip away at the oppression of marginalized people. "
-Julia Feliz Brueck

in "Food Justice: A Primer" 

Edited by Saryta Rodríguez
#FoodSovereignty #Community #SanctuaryPublishers #Food #Undocumented #MarginalizedPeoples #ConsistantAntiOppression #Justice
I'm grateful that my partner Jonathan and I decide I'm grateful that my partner Jonathan and I decided to leave DC last week. (It was a complicated decision during the pandemic, but we’re grateful for car camping supplies, including a portable toilet and the capacity to plan + pack food for the week.) 

Time near the ocean and in marshlands provided a real respite. Here are a few of my favorite photos -- with deep gratitude again (and always) for the earth.

Photo 3: Here I am teetering (what life feels like these days): holding onto ropes, balancing on tree logs, and crossing a swampy area of marshlands.

#Nature #Hiking #Swamp #LearningFromNature #Respite #Restore #Refuel #Recommit
I'm grateful that my partner Jonathan and I decide I'm grateful that my partner Jonathan and I decided to leave DC last week. (It was a complicated decision during the pandemic, but we’re grateful for car camping supplies, including a portable toilet and the capacity to plan + pack food for the week.) 

Time near the ocean and in marshlands provided a real respite. Here are a few of my favorite photos -- with deep gratitude again (and always) for the earth.

Photo 2: Tree trunks branching in multiple directions -- horizontal and vertical -- in a brown and green forest setting.

#Nature #Hiking #Trees #LearningFromNature #Respite #Restore #Refuel #Recommit
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About Beth Godbee

I'm an educator and former college professor who believes our fully embodied selves matter in the world. We can’t just think our way out of the incredible injustices, dehumanization, violence, and wrongdoing that characterize everyday life. We must feel and act, too. [Pronouns: she/her.] Read more ...

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