What happens when today looks the same as yesterday, can we call it change?
This is the second half of my interview with Mari Corona, artist, photographer and writer from LivinginMommyWood and Visions by Mari– Do check out her work, it’s stunning!
How do we heal as a community? Healing our communities first then dealing with the oppressive systems. A novel idea? I’m not sure but I know that I love the concept, because I, too, need to heal from being ostracized and outcast from my community.
It’s not enough to simply create spaces of inclusion, because inevitably there will be some that don’t want to authentically share their stories with those that have not only benefited from the system but in many ways have used the system to oppress others.
In understanding how my need for assimilation has made it in some ways easier to navigate in white spaces. If you can’t beat them, join them? I’m sure I wouldn’t be the only one. The only one that gets home and removes the burden of their “white voice” or corporate persona for their true self- whatever that might be.
This in-between area of not belonging to neither here nor there. I found myself being too brown for some people, not brown enough for others.
Better Versions
If you don’t know better, how can you do better?
We have this opportunity in front of us, that are so much different than our parents, different than our ancestors. One of my friends like to say, “We are the dreams of our ancestors”, and I love that! There’s no way in hell that our ancestors, having lived the lives they had could have ever envisioned the lives we are now living. But what it means when we are on our own healing journeys, it is up to us to reach out and learn how to grow and heal, because that burden that was imposed upon us by our parents, grandparents, etc is seen in the ways we as a community, we as people, understand the world.
Even if you don’t know exactly what the trauma is, I know that as good-intentioned as you may be, there is something in your collective understanding of the world that makes it difficult to process or it makes it so that we are habitually pulling out a negative behavior.
Maybe it was a trauma instilled in us as a child, when we first learned something was wrong. Or maybe it was a trauma we dealt with as a youth, maybe in school or with other children in the playground, where we felt there was something wrong with me. Or maybe it was in young adulthood where our self-worth began to crumble when we began to judge ourselves by others’ standards.
However you came to be whoever you are in this world, I encourage you to explore, to rediscover who you were meant to be because at the end of the day if you are better as a person, as a leader, as whatever it is you are in this world or however you present yourself in this world you are only going to improve those around you as well.
We’re hosting a clubhouse room!
If you’re interested in learning more about the healing through trauma journey for BIPOC, Mari and I are hosting a room on Sundays at 4pm est in Clubhouse- Join us!
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