Decolonize Your Body
Life is a Festival #85: Camille Barton
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I have wanted to have Camille Barton on this show ever since they blew my mind at the Psychedelic Seminars’ presentation of “The History of the Drug War, Colonization, & Racism.” And, perhaps as expected, they absolutely knocked it out of the park on today’s episode.
On the show, we cover a wide range of topics threaded through with the theme of understanding colonization's impact on our world, our culture, and our bodies. We start with Camille’s childhood activism and spirituality before going deep on how the legacy of colonization impacts the modern Psychedelic Renaissance. We then discuss how this global trauma exists in the bodies of all people, and find an intersection between political theory and somatic healing. We close out our conversation with an exploration of gender identity and grief work.
Camille is an artist, DJ, dancer, writer, speaker, and somatic educator who focuses their myriad talents on the intersection of drug policy, spirituality, and healing justice. They are the director of the Collective Liberation Project and creator of an approach to diversity and decolonization through trauma informed movement. They are currently creating a tool kit of grief practices with the Global Environments Network and have just release a somatic movement video called "The Grief Portal" allowing you to rebuild from “the compost of grief.” They also advise the EDGE Funders Alliance and MAPS to promote equal access to psychedelic medicine for people of color.
Camille has created a dynamic space at the intersection of all their disparate interests and the world is far better for it.
Links
“Full Body Presence: Learning to Listen to Your Body's Wisdom” by Suzanne Scurlock-Durana
“Toward Psychologies of Liberation (Critical Theory and Practice in Psychology and the Human Sciences)” by M. Watkins & H. Shulman
Dancing Wisdom: Embodied Knowledge in Haitian Vodou, Cuban Yoruba, and Bahian Candombléby Yvonne Daniel
Discourse on Colonialism by Aimé Césaire
“Dispelling Wetiko: Breaking the Curse of Evil” by Paul Levy
“Come of Age: The Case for Elderhood in a Time of Trouble” by Stephen Jenkinson
“The Healing Wisdom of Africa: Finding Life Purpose Through Nature, Ritual, and Community” by Malidoma Patrice Some
“The Smell of Rain on Dust: Grief and Praise” by Martín Prechtel
“From painkiller to empathy killer: acetaminophen (paracetamol) reduces empathy for pain”
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Timestamps
:14 - A childhood of activism and spiritual contemplation
:20 - Why Camille no longer identifies as an activist
:25 - How the history of colonization and the drug war impact the Psychedelic Renaissance
:33 - Liberation psychology and why psychedelic healing can’t be individually based — even with equal access.
:46 - Camille’s first experiences with healing movement through raving and clowning
:57 - Why white people can’t dance? Because they are traumatized
1:07 - The intersection of political theory and somatic healing
1:12 - Camille’s gender journey
1:19 - The importance of grief work
1:31 - Why Camille is feeling optimistic right now
Graphics Designed by Andy McErlean
Audio Engineering by Trevor Coulter
Theme song ““Peculiar Colors” [Manjumasi]“ by dj atish