#DramaTherapistsAgainstWhiteSupremacy

This campaign addresses the far reaching, all encompassing system of white supremacy and racism that exists in our governments, corporate and public workplaces, health systems and social services, prisons, schools, universities, therapy spaces, and public institutions. Racism exists in all social aspects of life, internalized within our communities, families, and within ourselves.

Where are the places you can push back against prejudice and discrimination?

Below, you will find an incomplete list of ideas and actions intended to fight the system of white supremacy. Because oppressions are intersectional, some of these actions address cultural oppressions faced by other minority groups, including gender diverse and gender non-conforming people, LGBTQIA communities, religious minorities, as well as people who are targeted for their size, age, ability, socio-economic reality,and other forms of cultural oppression. This incomplete list requires your ideas, resources, and creativity.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:
This campaign will be carried out in 3 phases. We have included a table of contents for your convenience.
PHASE 1:
1- Campaign Actions; 2- Cultural Humility & Clinical Work; 3- Intrapersonal Commitments; 4- Interpersonal Commitment
PHASE 2:
5- Art; 6- NADTA Actions; 7- Advocacy; 8- Holding Power Accountable; 9- Financial Actions; 10- Legal Action.
PHASE 3:
11- Research; 12- For Professors/Educators & Supervisors; 13- For Parents/Caregivers

DIRECTIONS:
1- Fill in the demographic information below. All questions are optional.
2- Select actions that you are willing to commit to (you may already be engaging in these actions).
3- Identify actions that are not on this list to which you would like to commit.
4- Share additional resources to be posted on the NADTA Diversity Website.
5- Access resources to support your commitments on the NADTA Diversity Website www.nadta.org/about-nadta/diversity.html
6- Optional, join a #DramaTherapistsAgainstWhiteSupremacy Support/Accountability Group to support and learn from each others' experiences.

The NADTA Diversity Committee will share the aggregate results from this campaign with members.

Disclaimer:

We acknowledge that for many reasons depending on who we are, and our current and past experiences of discrimination, exclusion, and/or other forms of trauma, we hold different privileges and are exposed to different risks when we do this work. Please participate in this campaign in a way that makes sense to you.

Research shows that talking about cultural oppression can cause discomfort, fear, and defensiveness in dominant social groups (Sue & Constantine, 2007).

We acknowledge that these difficult feelings can make it challenging to remain connected to the material (Frederick, 1995, p. 89) and we invite everyone to try to notice what is happening in your body as you read through this campaign. We also acknowledge, that people of colour and racialized minorities contend with racial oppression everyday. Research shows that racism causes chronic stress (Carter, 2007) and racial trauma (Bryant-Davis & Ocampo, 2006), and negatively impacts both physical and mental health (Sue, 2010). Police brutality, disproportionate incarceration rates, and other violence make racism a matter of life and death. Unjustly, people of colour are often expected to engage in a disproportionate amount of emotional labour around equity issues related to race and ethnicity.

Let's work together to create change in our work, our communities, and our organization.

Please note that this data will not be used for publication.

DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION:
This information will be kept on a confidential NADTA server and it will help the Diversity Committee learn more about the cultural composition of the people participating in this campaign. It may also be used to support programming and outreach in the future.

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* Where do you currently live?

North America

Africa

Asia

Europe

South America

Other (please specify)

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* What is your professional status?

Professional Drama Therapist (with RDT)

Using Drama Therapy (without RDT)

Other Creative Arts Therapy Professional

Allied Mental Health Professional

Drama Therapy Student

Other

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* What is your age?

18-24 years old

25-34 years old

35-44 years old

45-54 years old

55-64 years old

65-74 years old

75+

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* How do you identify racially and ethnically?

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* Do you identify as a person of colour or racialized minority?

Yes

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* Do you identify as a religious minority?

Yes

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* How would you describe your gender identity?

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* How would you describe your sexual orientation?

Section 1: CAMPAIGN ACTIONS

“When it comes to fighting against white supremacy, it’s not just what you stand for, it’s who you sit with. Conversations need to be happening in homes, at work, in schools, and in churches on equity, liberation, and how important it is to fight against hatred and bigotry when it shows itself.” - Janaya Khan, co-founder of Black Lives Matter Toronto

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* I commit to (select all that apply)...

A) Tell 3 drama therapists about this campaign and my reasons for joining, encourage them to do the same.

B) Create a 15-30 second video sharing my reasons for joining this campaign, post on Facebook and other forms of social media with #DramaTherapistsAgainstWhiteSupremacy.

C) Join a #DramaTherapistsAgainstWhiteSupremacy support/accountability group that will meet monthly to support each other to engage in actions, self-care, and validation. The Diversity Committee will announce a racial justice dialogue event where people interested in this idea can meet and begin or join an accountability group. Stay tuned...

Section 2: CULTURAL HUMILITY & CLINICAL WORK

Cultural humility is “a lifelong process of self-reflection, self-critique, continual assessment of power imbalances, and the development of mutually respectful relationships and partnerships” (Tervalon & Murray-Garcia, as cited in Gallardo, 2014). Here are some commitments to cultural humility which you may choose to engage in your own practice.

Resources to support you with each of these actions can be found on the NADTA Diversity homepage.

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* I commit to and/or have already committed to the following:

A) Read the NADTA Guideline on Cultural Response/Ability in Training, Research, Practice, Supervision, Advocacy & Organizational Change and identify areas of strength in my practice, and areas that require further learning, time and commitment.

B) Read the American Psychological Association (2017) Multicultural Guidelines: An Ecological Approach to Context, Identity, and Intersectionality.

C) Reflect upon my own cultural biases, and how these may be similar or different from those of my clients’. Because culture underlies and shapes all human thought, emotion, and behaviour (Pederson, 1990), I will think about how the multiple cultures to which I belong influence the ways I understand the world. How did my experiences of race, ethnicity, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, size, and other important identities influence how I understand:

-Distress
-Help seeking behaviour
-Education
-Intimate relationships
-Work/school
-Caregiving
-Bereavement
-Physical contact
-Money
-Having children
-Sexuality

Current socio-political realities for example:
-Quebec’s provincial government plan to ban religious symbols in the public service, forcing certain religious minority employees to choose between their use of Hijabs, Kippahs, Turbans, and other religious symbols and their jobs.
-Kavanaugh’s appointment to Supreme Court judge.
-And other topics brought up by my clients in session.

D) Learn about the negative impacts of cultural insensitivity (on mental health, the therapeutic alliance and therapeutic outcome).

E) Read the NADTA Position Statements about diverse social equity issues on the NADTA website. Reflect upon how clients who have read these statements may feel supported by drama therapists who belong to an organization that takes a stance against issues of inequity that impact mental health and wellbeing.

F) Think about how both therapist and clients' membership in dominant (majority) and targeted (minority) groups influence the power dynamics in any given therapy session. We all belong to a different combination of dominant and targeted social groups. Check in with myself about the privilege I experience as a result of my membership in dominant groups. For example, being white, educated, able-bodied, male, cisgendered, heterosexual, average weight, Christian, and having citizenship in the country where I reside are dominant identities which benefit from unearned privilege.
(Privilege operates on personal, interpersonal, cultural, and institutional levels, and gives advantages, favors, and benefits to members of dominant groups at the expense of members of target groups).

G) Acknowledge and learn about the cultures of Indigenous people where I currently live.

H) Learn about clients’ racial and ethnic identities through intake, and create opportunities to explore race and ethnicity in the clinical space when relevant.

I) Learn about my clients’ religious and spiritual practices through intake, acknowledge clients’ religious holidays, and create opportunities to explore religious identity in the clinical space when relevant.

J) Learn more about migration and its impact on mental health and resilience. Inquire about your clients’ experience with migration during intake and throughout therapy when relevant.

K) Learn about gender diversity, learn about my clients’ gender identity and expression, and create opportunities for exploration when relevant.

L) Learn about sexual orientation diversity, and learn about my clients' sexual orientation, create opportunities for exploration when relevant.

M) Learn to make my practice more accessible and inclusive for clients with visible and invisible disabilities, and take the time to learn about their experiences and create opportunities to explore disabilities when relevant.

N) Learn more about how cultural oppression impacts Indigenous people and numerous racialized groups in North America. Pay attention to how cultural oppression impacts mental health.

O) Learn about and address sociopolitical traumas that may impact my clients, and create space where clients can explore these in sessions should they choose. For example, when relevant, create space for clients to express how Kavanaugh’s appointment to the Supreme Court, Trump’s multiple anti-LGBT2SIQ laws, and Quebec’s recent religious neutrality law has affected them. * Please note due to our different membership in dominant (majority) and targeted (minority) groups as well as other factors, not everyone will define socio-political traumas in the same way.

P) Learn more about adding or enhancing an intersectional lense in my clinical work.
The APA (2017) explains that intersectionality is “a paradigm that addresses the multiple dimensions of identity and social systems as they intersect with one another and relate to inequality, such as racism, genderism, heterosexism, ageism, and classism, among other variables. Intersectionality is organized around the location of self within a set of co-constructed social identities (e.g., Black/African American/Black American, gay, older adult, male)”.

Q) Learn more about the above topics by visiting the NADTA Diversity Website, through books, documentaries, podcasts, blogs…

I also commit to (add my own idea/s here). Please feel free to share resources to be considered for the campaign resource list on the NADTA website:

Section 3: INTRAPERSONAL COMMITMENTS

Resources to support you with each of these actions can be found on the NADTA Diversity homepage.

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* 3.1) As someone who identifies as a person of colour or a racialized minority my healing process may include but is not limited to (select all that apply)...

A) Learn more about my cultural heritage, including my culture’s multiple successes and societal contributions.

B) Think about how racism/oppression impacts my nervous system.

C) Compassionately address the internalized racism that exists within.

D) Check in with peers who will understand and validate my experiences of racism (Sue, Capodilupo, & Holder, 2008).

E) Name the pain caused by racial microaggressions and reject any claims of being hypersensitive (Pierce, 1974).

F) Develop sanctuaries and counterspaces inside and outside educational institutions for coping with microaggressions, community building, healing, and empowerment (Grier-Reed, 2010).

G) Learn about what other people of colour do for self-care (see NADTA website).

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* 3.2) As someone who identifies as a white person, my healing process may include, but is not limited to (select all that apply)...

A) Learn more about my specific cultural heritage (whiteness being a socially constructed term, collapses multiple different cultures together).

B) Have hard conversations with myself about the racism that lives within me.

C) Learn more about how racism/oppression and racial tension impacts my nervous system.

D) Connect with other white people to share learning strategies about sitting with discomfort and managing common defense mechanisms.

E) Be mindful of my nervous system when I unintentionally microaggress.

If I notice what is happening in my body, I may create more time and thoughtfulness to respond with less defensiveness and more humility.

F) Learn how to move from white guilt to white responsibility.

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* 3.3) In addition to my personal healing journey, I commit to and/or have already committed to the following:

Acknowledge my capacity to engage in microaggressions:
-I microaggress
-You microaggress
-She/He/They/Ze/Mx (insert your gender pronoun here) microaggresses
-We microaggress
-You all microaggress
-They all microaggress.

Identify daily professional and personal rituals that will encourage/remind me of the necessity to engage in continuous anti-racist work.

Strive to be compassionate with myself and with others as I learn more culturally responsible practice.

I also commit to (add my own idea/s here). Please feel free to share resources to be considered for the campaign resource list on the NADTA website:

Section 4: INTERPERSONAL COMMITMENTS

Resources to support you with each of these actions can be found on the NADTA Diversity homepage.

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* I commit to and/or have already committed to the following: (select all that apply)...

A) Listen to, validate, and ally with people who report personal and systemic racism. “Most people of color report that whites do not take claims of racism seriously. It’s time to stop defending the idea of a post-racial society, and recognize instead that we live in a racist one. Listen to and trust those who report racism, because anti-racism begins with basic respect for all people” (Cole, 2018 ).

B) Diversify my friendship group, make an effort to get to know my neighbors and people from different cultural backgrounds.

C) Join an NADTA Racial Justice Dialogue.

D) Address racism in your family, workplace, school, community, and within yourself; create community conversations: “Step in when you see racism occurring, and disrupt it in a safe way. Have hard conversations with others when you hear or see racism, whether explicit or implicit. Challenge racist assumptions by asking about supporting facts and evidence (in general, they do not exist). Have conversations about what led you and/or others to have racist beliefs” (Cole, 2018).

E) Learn how to respond to microaggressions that occur in your presence.

F) Learn concrete ways to be an ally with people who are experiencing racism and other forms of cultural oppression.

G) Learn how to intervene when witnessing racist assaults.

H) Document & report hate crimes.

I) Support victims of hate crimes. Stand up and engage in small acts of kindness- a phone call, a letter can help.

J) Demand that your government make a quick and serious response to hate crimes.

I also commit to (add my own idea/s here). Please feel free to share resources to be considered for the campaign resource list on the NADTA website:

FOR RESOURCES TO SUPPORT YOU WITH MANY OF THESE COMMITMENTS PLEASE VISIT THE DIVERSITY PAGE ON THE NADTA WEBSITE.

Thank you for taking the time to make our world a better, safer, and more just place.

By participating in this campaign you are standing with our members, clients, and communities who experience the trauma of racism and intersecting oppressions.

STAY TUNED FOR PHASE 2 & 3 OF THE CAMPAIGN, these phases will focus on:

PHASE 2:
Political Advocacy
Holding Power Accountable
NADTA Organizational/Structure Actions
Financial Actions
Legal Actions
Using Art to Highlight Inequity & Celebrate Diversity

PHASE 3:
Research
Commitments for Professors/Educators & Supervisors;
Commitments for Parents & Caregivers

A special thank you to all the members who have shared content and editing support with this campaign. Please continue to share resources with us.

“To end racism, we must combat it everywhere it lives and thrives. We must confront it in ourselves, in our communities, and in our nation. No one person can do it all or do it alone, but we can all do things to help, and in doing so, work collectively to end racism” (Cole, 2018).

Thank you for completing the survey. Click Here to enter the raffle.

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* If you have feedback regarding Phase 1 (comments and suggestions are very welcome) please share it here. Alternatively, if you would like to reach out to the Diversity Committee directly please email diversity@nadta.org.