Soundwaves of Belonging

with Barb Thomas, Labour Educator and Author of Dancing on Live Embers: Challenging Racism in Organizations The final episode of the Soundwaves of Belonging series takes us back to the virtual launch event of Bones of Belonging: Finding Wholeness in a White World. Listen to Annahid in conversation with Barb Thomas, Labour Educator and Author of Dancing on Live Embers: Challenging Racism in Organizations.  In this episode, I talk about why anyone in their right mind would write stories about race, why these stories are so necessary and how we can use them to move closer to a future where everyone belongs. Don't miss the close of this conversation series! For more on the stories that inspired this series, pick up your copy of Bones of Belonging today from wherever you get your books.

with Christa Couture, Author and Award-Winning Musician Christa Couture is an award-winning performing and recording artist, filmmaker and broadcaster as well as recent author of the debut memoir How To Lose Everything. She is also proudly Indigenous (mixed Cree and Scandinavian), queer, disabled, and a mom. Over the course of her acclaimed career, Christa has become known, unenviably, as an expert in loss: singing, speaking and writing about the childhood cancer that led to the amputation of her left leg and the tragic deaths of her two infant sons.  In this episode, Christa and I talk about the presence of grief in our lives, both individually as well as collectively. We discuss how we can lose ourselves in loss but also how it can open us up to more possibility of grace and gratitude, and how ultimately the way we work through loss can teach us to value life.  For more on the theme of love and loss, read the story “Ocean Intelligence” in my latest book Bones of Belonging — now available for purchase.

With Mark Shapiro, President and CEO of the Toronto Blue Jays  Mark Shapiro is currently the president and CEO of the Toronto Blue Jays . He formerly worked with the Cleveland Indians from 1991 to 2015, beginning in player development and ending as team president.  In this episode Mark and I talk about how connection underpins any form of learning, including and especially about racial and other forms of injustice.  We talk about the need to step into the uncomfortable conversations before they escalate into other forms of violence. Mark discusses his journey grappling with race as a white leader in a white dominant sports context and the steps he has taken beyond checking the box to create an open and inclusive environment where everyone can thrive. For more on the theme of learning, read the story “Ocean Intelligence” in my latest book Bones of Belonging.

Julie Diamond is an executive coach, leadership consultant, and creator of the Diamond Power Index, a Myers Briggs-type assessment on a leader’s use of power.  She’s worked with organizations around the world from Fortune 500 companies to government agencies, labour unions to NGOs. Her book, Power: A User’s Guide, is a handbook for using power effectively and ethically, no matter what role you’re in. In this episode, Julie and I talk about how power literacy is the next frontier of human development, how it’s unfair that power always gets a bad rap, and what it means to use power WELL.  For more on the theme of power, read the story “Boss Lady” in my latest book Bones of Belonging.

with Amanda Leduc, Author and Disability Rights Advocate Amanda Leduc is a disability rights advocate and author of Disfigured: On Fairy Tales, Disability, and Making Space, which was shortlisted for the Governor General’s Award in Non-Fiction.  In this episode we discuss perceptions of disability all the way back to Darwin, and how fairy tales—our basic origin stories—offer fertile ground for re-imagining disability and "disfigured" bodies. We talk about writing for our seven-year-old selves, and how to create belonging even when the world may not be ready for our differences.  For more on the theme of story, read the story “Foreign Object” in my upcoming book Bones of Belonging — now available for purchase.

Jerry Colonna is previous chair of the Naropa Institute in Colorado and CEO and co-founder of Reboot.io, an executive coaching and leadership development firm.  He is the author of the ‘Reboot: Leadership and the Art of Growing Up’  and the upcoming ‘Reunion: Leadership and the Longing to Belong’. Prior to his career as a coach, he was a partner with JPMorgan Partners (JPMP) and co-founded New York City-based Flatiron Partners, one of America’s most successful, early-stage investment programs. In this episode Jerry and I have an honest conversation about his journey grappling with racism post-George Floyd, and his own relationship to whiteness. You can listen to me go into Brown woman perfectionist mode and then catch this disconnection setting to reshift to move into more real and vulnerable relationship: a micro-reparation in action! Jerry offers his suggestions for other white leaders to start working toward generational justice—how we make room for everyone in the promise of the American Dream. For more on the theme of whiteness, read the story “Bad Immigrant” in Bones of Belonging — now available for purchase.

with Jo Vannicola, Emmy-Award Winning Actor and LGBTQ2S+ Activist Jo Vannicola is an Emmy award-winning actor, writer, and advocate. They are the founding chair of the LGBTQ2S+ committee at ACTRA Toronto, and sit on the sexual assault ad-hoc committee for women and gender-diverse people in film and television. Jo is also the author of also just penned an award-winning memoir All We Knew but Couldn’t Say describing a lifelong journey growing up in a home with physical violence, sexual abuse and a mother who was a pedophile.   In this episode, we go deep into what healing is all about: what the practice of forgiveness can release us from, but also the limits of forgiveness. We discuss how systems of abuse thrive on our silences, and how truth-speaking—or finding the story that is ours to tell—can ultimately set us free.  For more on the theme of healing, read the story “Rebel Body” in my upcoming book Bones of Belonging — now available for purchase.

with Judy Rebick, Award-Winning Author, Feminist and Public Commentator Judy Rebick is a seasoned feminist who was a leader in the pro-choice struggle here in Canada. She was President of the National Action Committee on the Status of Women from 1990-1993. She’s hosted her own political debate show with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation as well as continuing as a regular media commentor on feminist and social justice issues. Judy is the subject of the award-winning documentary Judy vs. Capitalism and author of no fewer than six books, including the seminal book of the Canadian Women’s movement: Ten Thousand Roses: The Making of a Feminist Revolution.   My good friend, mentor, and inspiration, Judy and I spend this episode reflecting on her remarkable history and the necessary ability to work across differences to bring about political change. We talk anger and activism, where anger is helpful and where it’s not, and where we can find the silver lining as we look to the future. For more on the theme of inclusive change, read the story “Ocean Intelligence” in my upcoming book Bones of Belonging — now available

with Jenna Butler, Award-Winning Author Jenna Butler is a mixed-race (South-Asian/British) Canadian writer whose latest Book Revery: A Life of Bees was shortlisted for the Governor General’s Award. Jenna lives on a farm outside of Edmonton, Alberta and just came out of a long bout of fighting cancer—in the middle of a pandemic.   In this episode, Jenna and I talk about what it means to find a sense of belonging to the land we inhabit as first generation immigrants AND as settlers on stolen Indigenous territory. We also talk about what bees have to teach us humans, what being mixed-race means in a time where racism is such a charged topic…. and the lost power of reverence.  For more on the theme of reverence, read the story “Silver Birch” in my bestselling book Bones of Belonging — now available for purchase.

On Purpose: Learning to Listen to Life: with Parker J. Palmer, Educator, Author and Founder of the Centre for Courage and Renewal. Parker Palmer is a spiritual giant in the leadership and education field, founder of the Centre for Courage and Renewal and authors of ten books that have sold over 2 million copies, including one of my absolute all time favourites: Let your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation. He holds a PhD from the University of California, Berkely and 13 honorary doctorates, among many other awards. Often called a visionary and one of the most influential leaders of the past decades,  Parker joined this episode from his home in Wisconsin for a chat about how to make activism and social change efforts stick. We talk about whether consciousness is housed in the brain or in the field between us, the transformative power of listening, and why learning is a form of liberation.  For more on the theme of purpose, read the story “Lion’s Den” in my upcoming book Bones of Belonging (now available for pre-order).

Hollay Ghadery is the author of Fuse, a memoir of mixed-race identity and mental health. Her fiction, non-fiction, and poetry have been published in various literary journals, and she is currently the Reviews Editor of Minola Review. In this episode, Hollay and I talk about what it means to grow up mixed-race and mixed-culture, the fastest growing demographic group in society. We discuss the connection between mixed race and mental health, a theme that both of our memoirs address. We also touch on how creativity can foster a sense of belonging, how much our families actually read what we wrote and whether recovery is really ever possible… or even desirable. For more on the theme of mixed identity, read the story “Racial Imposter” in my upcoming book Bones of Belonging (now available for pre-order).

with Farzana Doctor, Author and Psychotherapist Farzana Doctor is a psychotherapist and author of four critically acclaimed novels, including Seven, a groundbreaking novel partially based on her own experience with female genital mutilation. In this episode, Farzana and I speak about the journey to belong in bodies rejected by the society around us, and why Farzana chose to speak publicly about her experience with female genital mutilation—still a taboo topic in many parts of the world. We discuss how learning to love our bodies is the most revolutionary act because the body doesn’t lie, but perhaps instead holds the keys to personal liberation. For more on the theme of body, read the story “Rebel Body” in my upcoming book Bones of Belonging (now available for pre-order).

with Loretta J. Ross, Reproductive Justice Activist, Author and McArthur Fellow The incomparable Loretta J. Ross is an activist, public intellectual, scholar, and author of the upcoming book Calling In the Calling Out Culture. She is also one of the founders of the Reproductive Justice movement in the USA, Associate Professor at Smith College and recipient of the 2022 MacArthur Foundation “genius” award. As the third director of the first rape crisis center in the country in the 1970s, she helped launch the movement to end violence against women that has evolved into today's #MeToo. Tune into this episode for the MOST fascinating conversation about the fuzzy line between trauma and activism, between calling someone out versus dehumanizing them, and the ways in which we sacrifice potential justice allies in our need to be right. Loretta shares her early foray in activism, how she went from working with rape survivors to rape perpetrators, and ultimately how belonging can only be found in community—the ones we come from or the ones we make. For more on the theme of ancestry, read the story “Sky Dancing”in my upcoming book Bones of Belonging (now available for pre-order).

with Deepa Purushothaman, Author Deepa Purushothaman is the author of The First, The Few, The Only: How Women of Color can Redifine Power in Corporate America and the first woman of colour to make partner in the Deloitte’s history. Her 2022 book describes the paradox of women of colour at work: often the highest qualified yet most underestimated and underutilised of any workplace demographic. In this episode, Deepa and I talk openly about race and power in the workplace. We swap stories about growing up in immigrant brown families in small white towns and the subtle and overt forms of rejection we both faced. We also enter taboo territory in talking white women, and why this group is often named as the biggest barrier to women of colour succeeding at work. For more on the theme of power, read the story “Boss Lady” in my upcoming book Bones of Belonging (now available for pre-order).

Kwame Scott Fraser is a former commissioned military officer, once deployed as a United Nations peacekeeper. He’s now President and CEO of Dundurn Press, one of the largest independent publishers in North America publisher of my upcoming book Bones of Belonging. He’s also one of a very small minority of Black publishers in the industry. You might wonder what the military and publishing have in common? We get to that in this episode. We also talk about why Scott offered to pick up my book without reading a word, our common struggles with racial discrimination, why language and stories matter and what’s dangerous about publishing someone like Jordan Peterson. For more on the theme of purpose, read the story “Foreign Object”in my upcoming book Bones of Belonging (now available for pre-order).