The Race Conversation: An essential guide to creating life-changing dialogue

Description

"This book has been written to help us take an honest look at who we really are. It is here to help us dig deep. It is here to heal the nation. I'm no psychotherapist, but I get it." Benjamin Zephaniah Is it possible not to be confused about race? Is it possible to respond authentically to the hurt and discomfort of racism? The construct of race is an integral part of Western society's DNA and if we are to address the social injustice of racism, we need to have the race conversation. Yet all too often, attempts at such a dialogue are met with silence, denial, anger or hate. The Race Conversation explores how the damage and distress caused by racism lives not just in our minds, but principally in the body. As well as helping us to develop a cognitive understanding by exploring the history and development of the race construct, the book focuses specifically on the non-verbal communication of race, both as a means of social control and as an essential part of navigating oppressive patterns. This guide supports black, white and mixed heritage people to emerge from the tight grip of race discomfort to a trauma-informed, neurophysiological approach that emphasises resourcing, body awareness, mindfulness and healing.

Eugene Ellis is the founder and director of The Black, African and Asian Therapy Network (BAATN), a network of therapists committed, passionate and actively engaged in addressing the psychological needs of Black, African and South Asian people in the UK. He is an activist, writer, psychotherapist and public speaker on issues of race, difference and intersectionality. He trained as an Integrative Arts Psychotherapist and has a special interest in body-orientated therapies and mindfulness. Eugene's book, The Race Conversation: An essential guide to creating life-changing dialogue published in 2021 by Confer Books. It explores the intersection of race and trauma and the non-verbal communication of race.

It would be impossible to exaggerate how important this book is for our times. Eugene Ellis brings both personal experience and psychotherapeutic insight into this, often fraught area, with compassion, thoughtfulness and rigor. - Judy Ryde