2015 Association for Women in Psychology Conference

This workshop is for researchers, clinicians (not necessarily trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), and activists interested in how disaster response, based in EMDR Therapy, can increase community resilience by healing trauma and providing treatment to underserved populations. The Boston Area TRN (Trauma Recovery Network), a local chapter in the EMDR therapy community’s Humanitarian Assistance Programs, consists of licensed clinicians who provide pro-bono EMDR to people affected by community disasters. TRNs were born out of the EMDR community’s response to the Oklahoma City bombing, and have responded to world-wide events such as natural disasters (tornados, hurricanes, fires, earthquakes and tsunamis), and violent acts (9/11, the Newtown shooting, the Boston Marathon Bombing, ongoing conflicts in Israel and Palestine, the Syrian refugees in Turkey, and others). We will review basic concepts within disaster mental health, community psychology, and EMDR therapy, and issues with conducting research in disaster mental health (Norris et al, 2006; Pfefferbaum, et al, 2012; Weine et al 2002; Call et al, 2012). We will discuss the use of EMDR as an effective intervention for disasters, and options for Early EMDR Intervention (EEI) (Shapiro and Laub, 2008; Laidlaw-Chasse and Miller, 2013). We will explore several of the issues involved in building and launching a TRN (Gelbach, 2008; Colelli et al, 2013). Using specific experiences of the Boston Area TRN’s response to the Boston Marathon bombing and chronic community violence, we will examine strategies for providing services to traditionally underserved communities, and how concepts can be redefined in non-traditional ways in the service of community change. Throughout the presentation will be attention to principles of feminism – what we as feminists know about the costs of trauma in the personal/private and public spheres – illustrated by case examples that show how disaster response interventions can improve lives from a feminist perspective.

Confronting our areas of ignorance and making mistakes is inevitable and necessary for our growth in activism work. At the same time, many of us have witnessed the “call out culture” of social justice spaces, in which members of our communities are silenced, superficially told to “check their privilege,” or shunned when they have unknowingly enacted a microaggression. As feminist scholars and therapists, we are inspired by writer Ngọc Loan Trần’s practice of “Calling In” – a compassionate, connecting way of inviting people to reflect on the relational and community effects of their words and actions - as a transformational response to microaggressions that occur within activist spaces. Aligned with principles of restorative justice, the focus of calling in is addressing and healing the impact of hurtful acts within a community, rather than on punishing an “offender.” We propose that calling each other in, instead of simply calling out, can facilitate repair and reconnection following a microaggression, promote greater openness and creativity in activist communities, and contribute to building sustainable social justice movements. This experiential workshop will offer participants opportunities to explore ways to be effective allies, activists, and restorative justice workers when working in multiracial coalitions and restorative justice movements. Participants will critically analyze power dynamics and the impact of “call out culture” in social and restorative justice work and communities. Through our explorations, we will learn principles of Ngoc Loan Tran’s practice of “Calling In” and discover ways to create more relational and healing spaces within social change movements. Participants will be invited to apply principles of “Calling In” in pairs and small groups throughout the workshop.