misc-joy

Category: Justice

  • Nonviolence and Beloved Community

    As a long-time student of nonviolence, I was excited to pickup the book Healing Resistance by Kazu Haga. Not only was it published by Parallax Press, founded by Thich Nhat Hanh, but the jacket quotes from Michelle Alexander, Joanna Macy, and Larry Yang said this was a book for me to read.  Kazu writes in…

  • Whiteness and Healing Racism

    Recently I have been engaged in a conversation with a dharma friend who is questioning the idea of white people talking to each other about white supremacy and if it’s possibly doing more harm than good. What you will read below are my thoughts in response to my friend. It felt important to share some…

  • “All Lives Matter” says Santa Barbara City College Trustee

    When a Board Resolution called “Affirming our Commitment for Black and African American Students, Faculty and Staff” doesn’t pass unanimously (5-2), you know the college has a problem. And this is exactly what happened at my place of employment on June 25, 2020. I am angry that the continued racism and white supremacy is allowed…

  • Being an Antiracist Means Diligence, Persistence, and Fearlessness

    The protests must continue. It is clear they do create change. For those of us maintaining our quarantine, we may feel like we’re missing out. But we need to remember that protest is just one vehicle for change, especially for White Americans. There is a lot we can do to support antiracist work in all…

  • Defund the Police and End Carceral System

    I finished the book Biased by Dr. Jennifer L. Eberhardt on the same day that George Floyd was murdered by Minneapolis police. The book contains page after page of research, over a period of decades, demonstrating how bias plays out in our lives. And more importantly, how it plays out in law enforcement. The book…

  • Racial Divide and a Buddhist Response

    This is a repost of an article I wrote in December 2014 on Medium. It seems relevant to post today as the same issues remain. Thich Nhat Hanh said, “Man is not the enemy. Our enemy is our anger, hatred, greed, fanaticism and discrimination.” We live in a small town—Ojai, CA. It can be somewhat…

  • Angry Buddhist

    There is anger in me today, and I am not pushing it away. I’m so torn between staying abreast to what’s occurring in our society and crawling under a rock. Every time I see a headline or hop onto Twitter, it surges my anger. And maybe this is something that’s okay, especially if it drives…