Healing Work Through Understanding Our True History: In Community With Dr. Cory Greene

The Carma Chronicles Podcast focuses on healing. The guest speaker on the podcast, Dr. Corey Greene is the co-founder, co-director, and organizer of  How Our Lives Linked All Together ( HOLLA) organization. This non-profit developed work in political strategizing, the people who serve sentences in the New York State Correctional facilities. Dr. Corey Greene shares his healing journey, story, and the organization he co-founded. 

Before listening to this podcast, I read the word "healing" in the title, and my assumption led straight to mental health healing. This podcast goes deeper than that. Healing can look different in many ways. In this case, we look at healing through a social justice lens. The focus of this podcast; healing justice, transformative justice, and restorative justice. Being able to join an organization, and speaking about the history of Indigenous and black folks is the process of healing justice. Using the knowledge of our ancestors and their experiences can help create a space where folks can begin healing justice and advocacy. 

I was intrigued by the topic of healing justice. This is the first time I have heard of this term. Dr. Corey Greene states that three program components are focused on the 5 Rs of resurrection. These three programs are the foundation of healing justice. Teaching black history, sharing stories, studying, and being connected with our ancestors can keep the healing justice going. 

Ginwright and Cammarota share, how critical consciousness fits into social justice youth development. They state Critical consciousness can be described as an awareness of how institutional, historical, and systematic forces limit and promote the life of opportunities for particular groups.” (Ginwright and Cammarota, 2002) Healing justice opens the opportunity to have critical consciousness in youth spaces. Creating social and political challenges can construct advocacy in youth work.