Voices on the Side

Welcome back for Part 2 of my conversation with Naley. Our conversation heads into ideas about spirituality, God, and darkness being the conduit for our collective awakening. We also talk about spiritual practices such as yoga and plant medicine and the way these practices are misused or misunderstood. Naley relays something that our mutual friend — and previous podcast guest — Laura Chung said about living in 5D that made me laugh.

Naley leaves us with the thought that while we cannot force others to awaken, when we evolve, we trigger others to question their beliefs and their silence. 

I hope our conversation feeds your own clarity and resolve.

Naley’s IG: @naleybynature 

Naley’s YouTube: @naleybynature

Leah’s IG: @leahsoojinkim

Naley is a filmmaker, producer, editor, and writer. She has been an incredible voice for collective liberation for years, amplifying global injustices and creating documentaries from within regions including Palestine, Israel, and India. She has been extremely passionate in speaking against all genocides and occupations happening throughout the world.

We talk about the way racial groups are intentionally siloed and the importance of truly understanding that none of us are free until all of us are free. Naley openly expresses her heartbreak and sense of urgency that we have but a small window of time to take collective action amidst the current crises we are witnessing. Yet through all of her labor, she maintains the greatest endurance and belief that we can all design a better world together.

Naley is thoughtful, courageous, and represents the best of humanity. We can all learn so much from her. 

Naley’s IG: @naleybynature  

Naley’s YouTube: @naleybynature

Leah’s IG: @leahsoojinkim

Daniel is a world-renowned makeup artist and Global Director of Artistry and Education at Tatcha. He is also one of the kindest human beings you will ever meet. He is the definition of multi-cultural, with a French-English-American father and a Vietnamese mother and having grown up in Central America and Seoul. 

Daniel shares with us the evolution of his career, which is rooted in such respect for those who have helped him on his path. He is an example of finding success without the hyper individualism that America tends to emphasize.

In addition to talking, of course, about makeup and skincare, we talk about the reality of this moment of global reckoning — the hard truths we need to face as well as the evolutions that deserve to be recognized and celebrated. This conversation is a much-needed reminder of what matters most in life: knowing who we are, honoring cultures, and thinking beyond ourselves. 

Please enjoy — the truly lovely Daniel Martin.

@danielmartin

@leahsoojinkim

Laura is a Reiki master, an astrologer, an author, and a podcast host. She has been an incredible voice over these last few months in educating us on colonialism, calling us to action, and demonstrating her own authenticity, clarity, and courage. 

I am so in awe of Laura and it was really inspiring to hear more of her story. With both of us being Korean American, there was a lot that we intrinsically connected on. We talk about the Korean concept of HAN, the generational trauma of Koreans, and how white supremacy extracts our humanity even in relatively innocuous ways such as through Korean beauty standards. 

Laura ultimately encourages us to know ourselves so that we can contribute to the collective in our unique ways. And of course there is a lot of astrology dusted throughout the episode.

Laura’s IG: @iamlaurachung

Laura’s website: www.laurakchung.com

Leah’s IG: @leahsoojinkim

Chrissy is an author, a speaker, and an educator. In our conversation, we talk about the many tentacles of white supremacy, including the ways in which we ourselves have clung to our proximity to privilege. Chrissy helps us understand how diet culture is inherently racist and how the body positivity movement was co-opted by the mainstream from Black women.

We also dissect the white feminism of the Barbie movie. The timing of this episode feels like kismet — both because it is the beginning of Black History Month and also because we have recently watched white feminists who have been silent on genocide get very loud about the white women in the film who did not receive Oscar nominations. 

If you’re not sure what white feminism is, how it upholds white supremacy, or why the Barbie movie is problematic in this regard, you’ll learn so much from listening to Chrissy in this episode. She has such a special ability to talk about these serious issues in a joyful and hopeful way. 

Chrissy’s IG @iamchrissyking

Chrissy’s website chrissyking.com

Leah’s IG @leahsoojinkim

Yumi is a Japanese Okinawan American interdisciplinary artist and author. In our conversation, we ground various ideologies into our lived experiences and understanding. Yumi speaks from a deeply personal place of coming from both an occupied and occupying nation and sees the echoes of her history in what we are seeing throughout the world today. We talk about the toxicity of capitalism, the interconnectedness of all oppression, and the inherent radicalism of artists. 

It was such a comfort to hear Yumi’s thoughts that there is no right or wrong way to be in the liberation practice. All of our unique roles are needed because we work together in community. Yumi reminds us that it is revolutionary to rest and to trust that the work will continue through the collective. 

Please enjoy — the radical artist that is Yumi. 

Yumi’s IG @yumisakugawa

Leah’s IG @leahoojinkim

Thanks for coming back for the continuation of my conversation with psychotherapist Leah. There was too much magic and medicine in what Leah was sharing with us that I had to continue it here in Part 2. We dive deeper into the concept of identity and being in right relationship with each other and with the land. Leah emphasizes the need to have exceptionally high standards when it comes to the care and love we must all have for each other. They explain why it’s so important that we decompress our own traumas before we go in to work with others, especially when it is with people who don’t see things the same as we do.

We discuss the power of storytelling and the physiological impact that stories have. I hope that’s how you feel after being with Leah’s stories here.

Leah Manaema Avene’s IG⁠

⁠Leah's website⁠

⁠My IG⁠

Leah is — among many things — a psychotherapist, liberation collaborator, and anti-oppressive relational strategist. Our conversation was so potent and so healing that it went long and will be published in two parts. Leah speaks from an intricate understanding of human psychology, the way our bloodlines and the land shape us, and the systems of oppression that have caused harm to us all. She has a profound understanding of colonialism and the way colonialism perpetuates separation — separation from ourselves, each other, and the land. She encourages us all to find stability and strength as we engage in resistance work and emphasizes community-generated knowledge and the wisdom and truth of storytelling. 

If you already follow Leah on IG, you know how her words are medicine to the soul. These two episodes are such a gift during this heartbreaking and horrific time so that we can keep up our collective fight for the liberation of all. 

Leah Manaema Avene’s IG

Leah's website

My IG

Bing is so many things: an impact founder, an investor, and CEO and co-founder of Gold House. He was instrumental in building the global YouTube creator/influencer ecosystem and continues to work with and advise companies including Google. Beyond all of his accomplishments and accolades, Bing is incredibly full of life. I can tend towards the serious but I was bursting into laughter throughout our entire conversation. It was a much-needed reminder that joy, as ever, is our resistance.

Bing talks about growing up as a third culture kid, the early loss of his father, and the power of the API community in the US and throughout the diaspora. I walked away freshly inspired and so proud to be a part of the fast-growing global majority. 

Kicking off Season 3 with the formidable — Bing Chen. 

Please take a quick moment to subscribe, rate, and review! It really helps our growing podcast.

Bing’s IG

https://goldhouse.org/

https://auholdings.com/

Alice Sparkly Kat — aka Ace — is an astrologer and author who moved to the US from China as a young child. We talk about the power and roots of names and how our respective Chinese and Korean cultures look to create harmony through the process of naming. We talk about language systems, finding community, and of course — astrology. What I find particularly interesting about Ace’s perspective of astrology is the recognition that astrology was developed within colonialism and therefore there are many aspects and meanings to be reckoned with, even within such a mythical, magical practice. They call for a relevant use of the stars in how we show up in the world for each other, rather than the misguided self-centered indulgence that often seems to result from the American or New Age concept of spirituality or “wellness.”

This conversation was recorded in early October, and we make no mention of world events. Since then, I have loved the way Ace has used their social media platform to speak up and to write about justice and liberation and I invited them back on the podcast for an updated conversation. As I try to do my part to fight for humanity, I continue to value these connections within the Asian community and with all marginalized voices that have historically been oppressed and silenced in this country.

So stay tuned for a follow up episode and in the meantime, please enjoy a little mysticism with the very sparkly — Ace.

You can follow Ace on Instagram⁠ @alicesparklykat and visit their website alicesparklykat.com, you can also find Leah on Instagram ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@leahsoojinkim⁠

This podcast was produced by Just Breathe, find out more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠justbreatheproject.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ our intro and outro music is from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠purple-planet.com