White advantage. Racialized trauma. Paths forward

The reality of systematic racism is under a spotlight these days. Many people around the United States and the world are making an effort to come to terms with its legacy. On some level, many white people do not or cannot feel that reality. For people of color, the wounds and the trauma are deep and enduring.

For white allies, standing up to dismantle racist systems takes developing empathy and doing work to understand and make change. In this episode, we hear from two men who share their experience of confronting the traumatic heritage of racism.

Dr. Benjamin Danielson is a pediatrician, health care leader, and clinical professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington. Late last year, Danielson resigned as medical director of the Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic, a branch of Seattle Children’s Hospital. He cited issues of institutional racism, which he addresses here. The subject of Danielson’s talk was Generations of Trauma and Child Well-Being Today.

Resmaa Menakem is a trauma therapist and the author of My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies. He was interviewed by Victoria Helm, the Executive Director of NW Children’s Foundation.

Dr. Danielson and Mr. Menakem spoke on February 4 as part of the 14th NW Children’s Foundation Forum event Racialized Trauma and Child Well-Being: Powerful Insights and Practical Tools for Healing.

Video link to the full NWCF event