Indigenous Mindfulness w/ Dr. Michael Yellow Bird ; Francesca Maximé – ReRooted – Ep. 40

Dr. Michael Yellow Bird rejoins Francesca to discuss Indigenous mindfulness, anti-racism, and the neuroscience of healing through dance. Michael Yellow Bird, MSW, PhD is Dean and Professor, Faculty of Social Work, University of Manitoba and is a citizen of the Three Affiliated Tribes, the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nations. He works with Tribal and Indigenous Peoples to bring mindfulness and neurodecolonization approaches to communities for the purposes of healing and improving wellness. He uses neuroscience research to examine how mindfulness approaches and traditional Indigenous contemplative practices can train the mind and positively change the structure and function of the brain. Links From This Episode: NEURODECOLONIZATION AND INDIGENOUS MINDFULNESS | Meet the Dean of Social Work Indigenous Peoples in 2020 In this time of pandemic and protest, when issues of racial violence and discrimination are being actively debated in our media, how can one be more effective in working with Indigenous Peoples? Dr. Yellowbird shares the sordid settler-colonial history of genocide, rape, torture, dispossession, and theft against America’s Indigenous Peoples, pointing that the best path to reparation is through acknowledgment and understanding. “That’s what settler-colonialism is all about; it’s about the elimination of the Natives. So, it really hasn’t had it’s reckoning. There really hasn’t been truth and reconciliation commissions in the United States with Indigenous People.” – Dr. Michael Yellow Bird Learn how the deep wisdom of indigenous communities can save the world by helping us dissolve the barrier between self and other on Ep. 341 of Mindrolling Anti-Racism & Examining White Supremacy (8:28) Francesca and Dr. Yellowbird discuss the difference between being anti-racism versus truly examining one’s own white supremacy bias and privilege. Anti-racism is about speaking out against something wrong externally. It’s not about you. It’s about someone over there with a confederate flag. That’s how we see racism; as