Radical Imagination & Practices for Collective Liberation with Hala Khouri and Tessa Hicks Peterson
Hala Khouri and Tessa Hicks Peterson talk about the anthology they edited, Practicing Liberation: Transformative Strategies for Collective Healing and Liberation, Reflections on Burnout, Trauma, and Building Communities of Care in Social Justice work.
We explore radical imagination, healing from trauma, and collective care in the work of individuals, communities, and organizations.
Hala Khouri
Hala Khouri, M.A., SEP, E-RYT (she/her), is a sought-after speaker and trainer on the topic of trauma informed care, embodied social justice, trauma informed education and resilience. She has been teaching yoga and movement for over 25 years and has been doing clinical work and trainings for 15 years. Originally from Beirut, Lebanon, Hala has dedicated her life to the study of trauma, justice and building resilience. She earned her B.A. in Psychology from Columbia University and an M.A. in Counseling Psychology and an M.A. in Community Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. Hala is also trained in Somatic Experiencing, a body-based psychotherapy that helps resolve trauma and its symptoms.
Hala is a co-founder of Off the Mat, Into the World, a training organization that bridges yoga and activism within a social justice framework and an Adjunct Professor at Pitzer College. She leads Collective Resilience trauma informed yoga and somatics trainings nationally. Hala also trains direct service providers and educators to be trauma informed and culturally responsive. She leads a monthly, online membership program called Radical Wellbeing which supports people through embodied practices and community building. She is the author of Peace from Anxiety: Get Grounded, Build Resilience and Stay Connected Amidst the Chaos (Shambhala) and editor/ author of Practicing Liberation: Transformative Strategies for Collective Healing and Systems Change (North Atlantic Books, 2024)
Tessa Hicks Peterson
Tessa Hicks Peterson is a scholar activist, teacher, facilitator, mother, wife, daughter, friend, dancer, and community-builder. She is the Assistant Vice President of Community Engagement and Associate Professor of Urban Studies at Pitzer College. Her duties since she arrived at Pitzer in 2006 have included teaching and administration, including directing the Community Engagement Center (CEC), Critical Action + Social Advocacy (CASA), Office for Consortial Academic Collaboration (OCAC) and Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program. From 1998-2005, Tessa worked with communities throughout Los Angeles on human relations and civil rights issues, ranging from the Associate Director at the Anti-Defamation League, Youth Programs Director at the National Conference for Community and Justice, and Health and Life Skills Director at the Boys and Girls Club. She has a Masters and PhD in Cultural Studies from Claremont Graduate University and a BA in Psychology, Sociology and Spanish from UC Santa Cruz. Tessa teaches classes and facilitates trainings on issues ranging from anti-bias education and social justice to empowerment through movement, mindfulness, and art. Her scholarship centers on transformative movement organizing and healing justice, community-based education and research, social change theories and movements, decolonization and indigenous knowledge and prison education and abolition. Tessa spends most of her work advancing community-campus partnerships for social change and is a board member of Bringing Theory to Practice and Starting Over, Inc. Tessa is blessed to be firmly grounded in dance, community, and a beautiful family. Her ultimate work in the world is to engage with, teach about, learn from and better connect healing*arts*education*justice
Resources from the Episode
Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds, adrenne Maree Brown
Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination, Robin D. G. Kelley
Tessa’s new book: Liberating the Classroom: Healing and Justice in Higher Education.
Interview with Tessa about her new book on Against the Grain on Berkeley-based KPFA (Pacifica) Radio (broadcast worldwide via kpfa.org and archived here).
Hala’s last book, Peace from Anxiety: Get Grounded, Build Resilience, and Stay Connected Amidst the Chaos.
