Embodied Activism
As social conditions galvanize us to do the work of dismantling oppression, it can sometimes be difficult to know where to start and how to sustain ourselves through the long, complex journey towards freedom and connection. For those who bring a somatic perspective to our work in the world, it can be helpful to understand how the body is rooted in liberation work, and how to engage our bodies in the process of activism. This experiential, participatory session explores how the body is political, how politics are (or can be) embodied in and through our everyday experience, and how to bring the body into our social and environmental justice work. Drawing on traumatology, somatic praxis, and anti-oppressive education, participants will learn practical strategies for reclaiming, resisting, and interrogating the political realities of their everyday lives using the felt experience of their bodies as the ground of their activism.

As part of our C-DaRE invites… series we are delighted to invite you to a talk on Embodied Social Justice by Rae Johnson. The talk will be followed by a discussion and lunch. Please RSVP to cdare.fah@coventry.ac.ukif you would like to join us. Please share with your colleagues the event is free and open to all.

The Talk

Embodied Social Justice introduces a body-centered approach to working with oppression, designed for social workers, counsellors, educators, and other human service professionals. Grounded in current research, this integrative approach to social justice works directly with the implicit knowledge of our bodies to address imbalances in social power. Embodied Social Justice integrates key findings from education, psychology, traumatology, and somatic studies while addressing critical gaps in how these fields have understood and responded to everyday issues of social justice.

An Invitation to explore how social justice can be embodied

Biography
Rae Johnson, PhD, RSMT, RSW, BCC is a queer somatic scholar/activist whose teaching and research focus on the embodied experience of oppression. Chair of the Somatic Studies in Depth Psychology doctoral program at Pacifica Graduate Institute and the author of Embodied Social Justice, Rae teaches internationally on embodied micro-aggressions, embodied activism, and the poetic body.