San Rafael, CA – Dr. Joy DeGruy, author of Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome – America’s Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing, will speak about how to build an anti-racist community in a special public online session from 5-6 p.m. Friday, May 21.
The Marin County Office of Equity is hosting the second installment of its new Community at the Table: Leading with Anti-Racism Speaker Series. The first installment, on January 25, was with Dr. Ibram X. Kendi. Register for the free event with DeGruy before all 1,000 Zoom invitations are booked. Because of contractual obligations, the session will not be recorded for public viewing later. Closed captions, ASL/CDI, and Spanish interpreting will be provided.
The County’s Equity Equal Employment Director, Roger Crawford, will engage in a one-on-one conversation with DeGruy as they take a critical look at Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome and what is necessary to build a foundation to ensure the well-being and sustained health of future generations. The book provides a rare glimpse into the evolution of society’s beliefs, feelings, attitudes and behavior concerning race in America. It addresses the residual impacts of generations of slavery and opens up the discussion of how the black community can use the strengths gained in the past to heal in the present.
From the beginning of African enslavement in the Americas in the 16th century until the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment and emancipation in 1865, enslaved Africans experienced severe psychological, emotional, and physical abuse. Given such history, isn’t it likely that many of the enslaved were severely traumatized? Did the trauma and the effects of such horrific abuse end with the abolition of slavery? No. Today the violations continue, and when combined with the crimes of the past, they result in yet unmeasured injury. What do repeated traumas, endured generation after generation by a people produce?
DeGruy plans to answer those questions and more. With over 30 years of practical experience as a professional in the mental health field, DeGruy encourages people to view their attitudes, assumptions, and behaviors through the lens of history and gain a greater understanding of how centuries of slavery and oppression have impacted people of African descent in America. The session promises to dig deeply into DeGruy’s work and provide strategies Marin can use to create an anti-racist environment.
For more data about equity measures in Marin, check the County’s Equity Dashboard.
For disability accommodations, please contact Maureen De Nieva-Marsh at (415) 473-6166, CA Relay 711, in advance of the event and the County will do its best to fulfill requests. Copies of documents are available in an alternative format on request.