My Grandmother's Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies [B1850]

2017 PB with extensive notes/underlining in 3 of its 24 chapters. "My Grandmother's Hands will change the direction of the movement for racial justice."- Robin DiAngelo. In this groundbreaking book, therapist Resmaa Menakem examines the damage caused by racism in America from the perspective of trauma and body-centered psychology.

The body is where our instincts reside and where we fight, flee, or freeze, and it endures the trauma inflicted by the ills that plague society. Menakem argues this destruction will continue until Americans learn to heal the generational anguish of white supremacy, which is deeply embedded in all our bodies. Our collective agony doesn't just affect African Americans. White Americans suffer their own secondary trauma as well. So do blue Americans-our police. My Grandmother's Hands is a call to action for all of us to recognize that racism is not only about the head, but about the body, and introduces an alternative view of what we can do to grow beyond our entrenched racialized divide. Paves the way for a new, body-centered understanding of white supremacy-how it is literally in our blood and our nervous system. Offers a step-by-step healing process based on the latest neuroscience and somatic healing methods, in addition to incisive social commentary.

From recent Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "I think Menakem is clear that this work is meant as a starting point focused on internal healing as a prerequisite to broader societal change. From that lens, the book is thoughtful, provocative, and worth engaging with."; "An important read for all humans."; "This is an important book to read, especially as our country becomes even more polarized surrounding issues like race, racism, and we see the impacts of generational trauma and systemic racism every day."; "This book explored familiar subject matter from a different angle. I found the focus on secondary trauma and "police bodies" particularly interesting, as it offered a perspective I had not encountered much in other writing. This is important subject matter, and this approach felt like an effective way to convey the message, especially for readers who might otherwise be less open to it."