Our Beauty for Freedom, Breaking Distance Podcast Team sat down with SASHA Center Founder and CEO, Kalimah Johnson, LMSW to discuss trauma-informed care for African-American survivors of sexual violence and domestic violence. Kalimah has transformed what trauma-informed care for African-American survivors of sexual violence looks like and has been a trailblazer in her field creating the The Sasha Center Model:Black Women's Triangulation of Rape, a paper outlining the need for Culturally Specific Services for African-American Self-Identified Sexual Assault Survivors and the needs organizations like SASHA have around Policies and Funding.

Breaking Distance continues our special series addressing the police brutality and widespread systemic racism representing historical and current sources of trauma in communities of color. We decided to go back to our communities of artists and thought leaders and have started a special #BreakingDistance Podcast series discussing Race Relations, political activism and the role of the arts and communication in healing; the second episode in this series features singer, songwriter and activist Lisa Ramey. This is our response to our current civil rights crisis, the collective trauma caused by inequality and violence, and processing our emotions throughout.

Evolution is the ongoing process of change. If we want to consciously and intentionally change our social systems, we need to talk together about it. The more inclusive, wise and productive our conversations are, the more powerful and positive the changes will be. - The Role of Conversation in Evolution (The Co-Intelligence Institute)

Our Breaking Distance Team had an opportunity to share an evening with the New Jersey Coalition Against Human Trafficking, an organization that has been a beacon of light and hope to many and an organization whose Coalition Members Paying It Forward Foundation have served as a mentor to our organization Beauty for Freedom for years. Our BD team spoke with

Ingrid Johnson, NJCAHT Board Member and Co-Chair of the NJCAHT Healthcare Committee, Wincey Terry-Bryant Founder of Nanababies, Winceyco, and Co-Chair of the NJCAHT Arts Committee and Gina Cavallo NJCAHT Boardmember, Consultant, Speaker, Advocate and Survivor of Human Trafficking. These incredible women inspired us with their passion for freedom and their generous hearts for supporting victims and survivors. We would like to use this podcast as a way to honor the NJCAHT and all they represent. Please join us in supporting their expansion by voting for a rebrand which could health them grow. Support their work to help survivors with your vote today and everyday until June 11th, 2020: https://thinkso.com/giveabrand Help give this nonprofit a $50k rebrand via “Give a Brand”.

It's been such an emotional and confusing time for our communities and Beauty for Freedom wanted to address the police brutality and widespread systemic racism representing historical and current sources of trauma in communities of color.

We decided to go back to our communities of artists and thought leaders and have started a special #BreakingDistance Podcast series discussing Race Relations, political activism and the role of the arts and communication in healing; the first episode features Miguel Carter-Fisher, Professor at Virginia State University and Artist (Narrative Painter). This is our response to our current civil rights crisis, the collective trauma caused by inequality and violence, and processing our emotions throughout.

Evolution is the ongoing process of change.

If we want to consciously and intentionally change

our social systems, we need to talk together about it.

The more inclusive, wise and productive our

conversations are, the more powerful and positive

the changes will be. - The Role of Conversation in Evolution (The Co-Intelligence Institute)

Our Breaking Distance Team sat down with Art Therapist Dawn Ippoliti LCAT, ATR-BC for Mental Health Awareness Month. We had an opportunity to delve into her practice as an art therapist and speak about mental health issues people are dealing with, particularly in regards to quarantine and the lock-down. Dawn is a licensed, board certified, art therapist and registered with the American Art Therapy Association. For almost twenty years Dawn has worked in a variety of clinical settings and institutions both in California and New York, providing art therapy and mental health services to children and families in crisis. Currently, she works as the program supervisor for New York University Art Therapy in the Schools Program providing supervision and trainings to school art therapists and their graduate level interns.

Breaking Distance – Mental Health Awareness Episode – A Candid Discussion with Loan Chabanol and Sabah Cheraiet

Our Breaking Distance team connected with Global Artists and Passionate Buddhists Loan Chabanol and Sabah Cheraiet for a candid discussion in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month and featuring topics such as Ego, Compassion for Self, Spirituality and Creating during the Pandemic. Topics all relevant to the human condition and connecting us all. Ego is who you tell yourself you are. ... Buddhist scholars agree that the ego is a mental construct we need to navigate the world. While in the Buddhist context you may more often run into the phrase “the sense of separate self,” its core meaning is very similar to the Western concept of ego. Self-compassion is extending compassion to one's self in instances of perceived inadequacy, failure, or general suffering. Kristin Neff has defined self-compassion as being composed of three main components – self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness. (Sources Wikipedia and selfawareness.blog)

This is a very special series for Breaking Distance in Honor of Mental Health Awareness Month and Memorial Day featuring Dr. Richard Kimball Watkins, Decorated Vietnam Veteran (Purple Heart and the Air Medal with Eight-Oak Leaf Clusters), Activist and Retired Educator, to all of our fallen heroes, their families, all of our active military and veterans. We thank you for your service, your sacrifice and the freedoms you afford us all. We are grateful! "In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." – Martin Luther King, Jr.

This candid discussion with Dr. Watkins is near and dear to our hearts as he is the father of our co-host Monica Watkins. They share an important conversation about the experience of African-American members of the military throughout the years and, subsequently, the treatment of many veterans coming home from Vietnam.

Our Breaking Distance team sat down with Global Artist, Writer, Singer, Songwriter, and Producer Jasmïn for a candid discussion about how she started creating, her passion for writing and becoming her own woman and artist. This Parisian artist credits her Buddhist background with inspiring her writing and music to delve deeper into her thoughts and feelings. There is a vulnerability and sincerity that permeates every aspect of her compositions. Jasmïn performs three songs from her last two EPs “Bloom” her most recent release and “Dive” her release from 2018.

Our Breaking Distance Team sat down with the Founder and Creative Director of The BMS, Brian Michael Stanziale. (words via The Chic Website) Brian Stanziale doesn’t get starstruck. After having lived in Chicago, New York, then back to Chicago, after styling, designing, and even opening a clothing store, he’s seen enough and done enough to know not to get too excited over a celebrity sighting. And while he may not get excited over seeing an A-lister walk down the street, we are certainly excited about his latest venture into the world of home décor: one-of-a-kind embellished books.

The search for the coffee table book can be very tricky, like finding that perfect pair of jeans or choosing a paint color that you can live with for years to come. It takes a certain panache, an undeniable curative eye, and good helping of style. Luckily, Stanziale pieces bring all those to the table and an extra dose of glitz and glamour.

Situated up north in Edgewater, is a tastefully decorated apartment in which Brian Stanziale creates his books, THE BMS. Their covers range, as does what is inside the book. What they do have in common as an artisanal quality that’s just as much unique as it is eye-catching. His pieces are bold and beautiful, chic and artisanal. They’re the perfect conversation starter that gives your home décor an added edge. From Iman to aliens, Stanziale’s books range in content and in character. How can you go wrong with David Bowie dripping in gold?

Our Breaking Distance Team has a really candid and sincere conversation with global musician and humanitarian Paul Beaubrun about Haitian culture and life growing up in Haiti, his newest album "Rasanbleman - Red Moon", creative energy, music and activism. We even discuss human trafficking and sexual violence throughout the world and, particularly, in Haiti. Paul blesses our team with a musical performance and showcase that took our breath away! You will not want to miss this very special episode!