Our Eden
Welcome! This is a place to grow for both Black/ POC and ally youth.
We will take you on a journey, asking questions to encourage rest and reflection.
At the end, we will provide you with a collection of resources to continue your growth.
Let's begin, choose your path...
Great job!
The importance of an affirmation is to tap into your inner positivity.
It's best to do this as part of your daily routine, in the morning before you begin your day and take a few moments to reflect before bed as well!
Never too late to start now!
As you may know, affirmations are simple, positive statements intended to increase our self-worth and regulate our emotions.
Below are a few we hand-picked. Choose one and repeat the affirmation 3 times out loud. Trust me, it’s worth it.
- I possess an abundance of creativity and energy
- I radiate love and happiness
- I am thankful for the limitless, overflowing source of my abundance
You can also create your own! Keep it present, concise and active.
Great! It's a tricky habit to cultivate. Let's see if you can take it a step further and reflect on moments when you think it's necessary to show kindness to yourself.
In the words of Audre Lorde, "Caring for myself is not self-indulgence. It is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare". This was written in her essay A Burst of Light: and Other Essays.
It's important to treat yourself with the same compassion as you do to others!
Here's a video talking about 'How to be a Friend to Yourself': youtube.com
Your sense of self and identity is ever-changing and you should not stifle the way you express that!
Self-acceptance begins through balancing the flaws you have and praising your talents and skills.
Affirming your boundaries is a tricky but integral part of maintaining your integrity and individuality!
If you haven't heard of Bell Hooks, you should! In "All About Love", she has some awesome and radical ways of rethinking what love is, for ourselves and others around us: wtf.tw
This youtuber has 5 awesome tips for setting boundaries: youtube.com
Wonderful! Keep at it with being true to your self and identity.
At some point, you may feel like a fraud in certain situations, this is called imposter syndrome. Don't let this freak you out but keep in mind that no matter what, you always have unique talents and important skills to bring, wherever you may be.
Here is a video to reflect on: ted.com
We're happy to hear this, it's not an easy balance to achieve piece of mind with our lives saturated with technology.
As the world has gone into isolation, the portal to the world has become our screens. Be aware that your relationship with your phone can become unfavourable and stressful.
Here are some great techniques to reflect on how you use technology, with Headspace: youtube.com
Technology, especially our phones, are becoming an extension of ourselves. We can learn to be mindful of how this impacts ours lives, both positively and negatively.
A great way to start improving your relationship is to schedule time off the screen and silence notifications temporarily so you can focus on one thing at a time.
Here's a great video by Headspace, a mindfulness app, to help improve your relationship with your phone: youtube.com
To dissect and make sense of this bizarre paradigm, you may find it useful to read the works of a few of these canonical theorists who have discussed in length why this occurs.
Understanding is the beginning to dismantling.
"SKIN DEEP" is a short film by Yousaf Ali Khan on a mixed race teenager's struggle with his identity. A must watch: vimeo.com
Feminist writer Sarah Ahmed, in her killjoy blog, talks about 'Slammed Doors', focusing on racism and discrimination in Universities and this reflects issues within larger society: feministkilljoys.com
That's amazing. There may be a point in the future where the parasite of white supremacy and remnants of colonialism may infiltrate your relationship with your white counterparts.
We'll give you some resources at the end of this to help understand the paradox of race relations.
You have come to the end, for now. Thank you for coming! As promised here are a collection of useful resources. Before you go, we have a gift for you.
Awesome, here are some of our favourite novels and non-fiction books we've read this year, check them out:
Kiley Reid's "It's a Funny Age" is a novel about a 25 year old black babysitter in Philadelphia upon being confronted by a security guard in a grocery store while with the white daughter she is looking after, "unleashes a reckoning with issues of class, money and race"
YiYun Li's "A Thousand Years of Good Prayers" is a collection of short stories about China, with lives and characters from diverse backgrounds. One of the stories has become a movie, check out the trailer here: youtube.com
You can start off here broadening your readings with some classic texts, check them out:
Angela Davis "Women, Race & Class" is an essential read by the famous political activist, to understand race and class tensions among the women's liberation movement in the US.
Audre Lorde "Zami: A New Spelling of My Name" is the famous feminist's autobiography, eye-opening and harrowing at times.
Stuart Hall's "Familiar Strange: A Life Between Two Islands" is another autobiography by a cultural theorist. Biographies are sometimes the best way to get into understanding how and why these writers were driven to talk about the issues they bring forward
Allyship Resources
There is no how-to guide in becoming an ally for marginalised people. However there are indeed, some non negotiable requirements such as: prioritising marginalised voices in conversations, which pertain to their lived experiences, and making a conscious effort to educate yourself on prejudices. And thus, beginning to unlearn your own prejudices and unconscious bias. Due to our society upholding patriarchal, racist, fatphobic, homophobic and ableist structures, we all have internalised bigotry. It's our responsibility to un-learn it while filling the gaps in our knowledge. You will see below a list of resources we have curated to help begin your journey.
LGBTQ+ Allyship resources
An article briefly describing ways one can be an active ally of the LGBTQ+ community. Joshua Hobson compressed lists detailed practical ways one can be an useful ally to the continual fight of equality for those who identify with the LGBTQ+ community: stonewall.org.uk
Tips for allies of Transgendered people- This is a few tips from Glaad, the American media monitoring organisation, on how to be a effective ally to Trans people and those whom fall under the trans umbrella. This is a perfect entry resource for learning the appropriate way to engage with trans people.
Link: glaad.org
Black and POC Allyship resources
‘10 ways to be an ally to Black Lgbt-people’- This is a condensed guide on how to be an active ally to Black LGBT folk, by the leading LGBT charity Stonewall. This article explores what not to do, as well as suggesting ways you can show support.
Link: stonewall.org.uk
About Race- A podcast by the bestselling author of ‘Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race,’ by Reni Eddo Lodge. About Race explores, in depth, Britain’s uncomfortable relationship with race. By looking at the recent history that has led to the politics of today, Reni analyses contemporary Britain, alongside key voices from the last few decades of anti racist activism.
Link: aboutracepodcast.com
White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible backpack by Peggy McIntosh- In this Essay researcher and anti-racist activist Peggy Mchintosh, explains the tangible advantages white privilege awards people. Mcintos’s dissecting of white privilege is a crucial read as it provides us with the language to articulate how insidious White privilege is. Fortunately, it is an accessible text.
Link: racialequitytools.org
