In this three-part workshop, we will practice grief work to reject the erasure of our collective losses at the hands of white supremacy, capitalism, and the police state.

In Part 1 of the workshop, we will process grief through guided meditation and discuss the suppression of grief in our movement spaces by working with texts such as Grief Belongs in Social Movements. Can We Embrace It? by Malkia Devich-Cyril and Embracing Grief by Sobonfu Some.

Part 2 dives into somatic grief processing tools from the GEN Grief Toolkit. We will practice grief medicine making (creating tea blends and tinctures) to learn how to use herbs to support grief journeys and nervous system healing. This section will conclude with engagement of practices used to support and build grief networks in our local communities.

In Part 3 of the workshop, we will draw on and build our imaginations of a free world (one without prisons, hospitals, police, etc.) and read texts by Akwake Emezi and Rashedah Phillips to ground our work towards these visions. The workshop will conclude with a facilitated group Reiki meditation rooted in ancestral connection and the liberation of our lands and communities.