Ep020: #GoodAncestors Michelle Johnson & Kerri Kelly on Race and Resilience

03/12/20 • 73 min

In this episode, I speak with social change activists and co-founders of Race and Resilience, Michelle Johnson and Kerri Kelly.

Michelle Cassandra Johnson is an author, yoga teacher, social justice activist, licensed clinical social worker and Dismantling Racism trainer. She approaches her life and work from a place of empowerment, embodiment and integration. She has been leading anti-racism trainings for 22 years. Michelle has experience working to dismantle systems of oppression inside corporations, mid-size organizations and small non-profits including Google, Lululemon, the ACLU-WA and many more. With a deep understanding of trauma and the impact that it has on the mind, body, spirit and heart, much of her work focuses on helping people better understand how power and privilege operate in their life. Michelle explores how privilege, power and oppression affects the physical, emotional, mental, spiritual and energy body.

Kerri is the founder of CTZNWELL, an emerging movement to mobilize people into a powerful force for the wellbeing for all. Kerri is recognized across communities for her inspired work to bridge transformational practice with social change and politics. She’s been instrumental in translating the tools of wellbeing into practical application and social action in the public and private sector, working in collaboration with community organizers, spiritual leaders, policy makers and corporate executives including William Morris Entertainment, Congressman Tim Ryan, Lululemon, Marianne Williamson, People's Action Group and more.

In this episode, I speak with social change activists and co-founders of Race and Resilience, Michelle Johnson and Kerri Kelly.

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Ep019: #GoodAncestor Mona Haydar on Music, Spirituality & the Power of Music

Mona Haydar is a Syrian-American rapper, chaplain, poet, and MA in Christian Ethics. Billboard Magazine named Mona's breakout hit "Hijabi" one of 2017's best protest songs and one of the top feminist anthems of all time. Her "Ask A Muslim" project, created in the wake of the Paris and San Bernardino terrorist attacks, garnered international attention and extensive press. The project was featured on the series "The Secret Life of Muslims" and remains the most-watched episode of the series. As an MA student, she worked as a chaplain at NYU and studied post colonial theology.

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Ep021: #GoodAncestor Blair Imani on Making Our Way Home

In this episode, I speak with author, mental health advocate and historian, Blair Imani.

Blair Imani is a writer, mental health advocate, and historian living at the intersections of Black, Queer, and Muslim identity. In addition to being a public speaker, Blair is the author of Modern HERstory: Stories of Women and Nonbinary People Rewriting History (2018) and Making Our Way Home: The Great Migration and The Black American Dream (2020). She is also the official ambassador of Muslims for Progressive Values, one of the oldest progressive Muslim organizations to support the LGBTQ+ community. Blair has been featured in Essence, Out Magazine, THEM, Broadly, and more.