Our Offerings
UNWINDING THE TRAUMA-CONFLICT WEB
LOVING JUSTICE SKILLS
FOR TRANSFORMING CULTURE
With Kai Cheng Thom
SEPTEMBER – DECEMBER 2022
Five Saturday Sessions
Who is this course for?
Participants of this course should be at least basically familiar with anti-racism and social justice concepts. Familiarity with Transformative Justice, Restorative Justice, and/or the prison/police abolition movement may also be helpful for students, though this is not required. Ideally, students should have an active practice of any ONE of the following: social activism, community organizing, social service provision, popular education, therapeutic work. No previous conflict mediation or facilitation is required, but students must come ready to engage with challenging topics related to conflict and trauma and be open to discussing perspectives different from their own in these areas.
This program is an intensive skill-building course on conflict analysis and de-escalation for social and racial justice changemakers, culture workers, healers, and activists.
By the end of the program, participants will leave with:
1) An embodied feeling of equanimity, confidence, and competence when it comes to addressing conflict in their lives, work, and play
2) A sharpened intellectual understanding of, and curiosity about, the nuances, ethics, and complexities of conflict work
3) The relational skills necessary to create change in the way that they and their communities respond to conflict and harm
MODULE ONE
A World Without Police or Prisons: Conflict, Transformative Justice & Abolitionism
By the end of this module, participants will be able to explain and discuss Transformative Justice, prison and police abolition, and why they are important to the racial justice movement. They will develop their own embodied understanding and perspective on these ideas, and be able to discuss the nuances, benefits, and drawbacks of Transformative Justice versus punitive justice approaches to conflict. Participants will create their own Conflict Values “Compass” to guide their practice of conflict intervention.
MODULE TWO
The Trauma-Conflict Web & the Window of Transformation: Somatics and Conflict Intervention
This module will provide students with a thorough understanding of the ways that conflict and trauma intersect and aggravate one another. Students will practice using a somatic approach to understanding their own responses to conflict and using somatic resourcing tools to create greater ease and equanimity with conflict. By the end, students should be able to use a somatic “toolkit” to analyse, discuss, and intervene in normative conflicts that emerge in the community and workplaces.
MODULE THREE
Brave Conversations & Dangerous Spaces: Conflict De-Escalation & Facilitation
The focus of this module is the practical experience of working with others to de-escalate conflict and facilitate healing conversations. Participants will gain familiarity with and practice trauma-informed somatic conflict coaching, basic mediation, and restorative practices. We will draw from frameworks including the Wheel of Consent, Deep Democracy, Circle practices, and more.
MODULE FOUR
Rethinking Harm: Unwinding Ethical Binaries in Conflict Work
Participants will be invited to explore serious ethical dilemmas and binaries that frequently emerge when working with conflicts that involve serious harms. Using a trauma-informed, experiential dialogue model, students will discuss the benefits and drawbacks of binaries such as “victim/perpetrator,” “good/evil,” and “forgiveness/punishment.” After completing this module, students will be equipped to engage in crucial conversations about how their communities should respond to conflict, harm, and violence. They will also practice using different tool for breaking down binaries and polarities in order to get entrenched ideological conflicts “unstuck.”
MODULE FIVE
Dreaming Accountability: Envisioning the New Justice
In this final module, we will explore the meaning of “accountability” from a generative lens: What is accountability beyond the dominant-culture, white supremacist notion of punishment? How can accountability be achieved through personal growth, relationship healing, and social change? We will engage with Transformative Justice concepts and practices such as the Bay Area Transformative Justice Collective’s “pod mapping” strategy, harm reduction in conflict work, and conflict transformation rituals. Participants will develop their own personal accountability map to use in their social change work.
Swipe to see all five modules >
Important Application & Payment Details
SLIDING SCALE TUITION
$425 – $1,000
(Please pay as high on the scale as possible for you, given your financial situation)
Thanks to all for your overwhelming response to Kai Cheng’s work – this offering is now FULL.
Capacity: 60 participants
Scholarships are available – please indicate if you wish to apply for a scholarship in your application. BIPOC identified individuals will be given priority.
These offerings are being offered online held over Zoom. Please come prepared to be fully present in a non-public space.
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September 202224th / 9am - 3pm PDT
Opening session: module one
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October 20228th / 9am - 12pm PDT
module two
29th / 9am - 12pm PDT
module three -
November 202212th / 9am - 12pm PST
module four
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December 202210th / 9am - 3pm PST
closing session: module five
Please let us know if you are interested in Kai cheng’s 2023 offerings…
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Refund / Dispute Policies
Cancellations requested up to 14 days prior to the event are eligible for a full refund minus a $75 administration fee.
Cancellations requested within 14 days of the event are not eligible for a refund.
Your payment will appear on your credit card statement as “EDU for Racial Equity”. If your payment is disputed with your credit card company – we will be passing the $15 service fee that Stripe charges us for that process to the registrant.
