Feel in the Room

In case you didn't know, Norah, Taqwa, and Yannina are Millennials and they've had the privileges' of growing up knowing a world before the internet. The nostalgia of less viral times brings many fun memories and insights to their relationships with social media. They are faced with the question of whether we can embrace social media and the internet while still maintaining since connections among community?

After channeling their spirit animal, Norah and Yannina unleash on the gatekeepers. Even after this 15 year shameful fiasco of protecting a male harasser in the community, more gatekeeping arises in other areas of community that are rooted in contradictions within the lifestyles and purposes of individuals as well as organizations.

The group grapples with the reality that an anonymous sexual predator from their college years has struck again, and finally, folks had the courage to identify what turned out to be a popular community leader. The realization leaves Taqwa, Yannina, and Norah stunned and questioning whether any woman is really safe, what other secret injustices exist, and most importantly, why do so many so called "brothers" standby while women suffer from predators and abusers?

RESOURCES BELOW:

inclusivetherapists.com

facetogether.org

2020 hit us hard and took us away from you, the listener. We are back, but also scratching our heads. Why do we minimize the tough moments? So much has happened in a year. Yannina, Taqwa, and Norah reflect on not only what has transpired, but our tendencies around coping through tough or traumatic events and how we come to understand them.

When people think of relationships they mainly focus on romantic or familial ones. In this episode Yannina and her friend Hai talk about the importance of building connections with others and ultimately, ourselves.

As the new decade is in full swing Norah and Yannina check-in and discuss what big steps they hope to take. Join them as they discuss New Year's resolutions, self reflections, and aspirations for the second half of season one.

Dana Saifan, founder of Woman While Muslim and PhD candidate in clinical psychology at UCLA, answers Norah's questions by guiding her through the culture surrounding new years resolutions. She also delves into the underlying tones of colonialism and oppression that frame well being while also exploring the importance of your own individual mental health to ensure communal well being.

Norah and Yannina fire a series of questions that force them to reflect on the past ten years of their lives, and with some pause, realize how far they have come and what they plan to take with them into the next decade

Finding a space that makes you feel safe is important, but it’s not enough. Taqwa and Yannina explore ways to find grounding and establish healthy boundaries for yourself to create a true safe room for yourself. Taking time for yourself to check-in should always be a priority and we discuss the various ways you can do that.

The crew starts to open doors and close others as they explore the meaning of a safe space for the intersectional identities they carry with them into different environments

Description: Not everyone in society has the freedom that others toute to be themselves regardless of settings. Taqwa, Yannina, and Norah delve into the different spaces they find safe and explore what makes them friendly, while also examining those places they felt they were in the company of dangerous elephants. Finally they take on the phrase “room for growth” literally as they explore how safe spaces can be framed and collectively shared.