In wake of the recent events in Minneapolis, Baton Rouge and Dallas, the Rubin Museum hosted a Mindfulness Meditation workshop to help people cope with tragedy in the modern day, allowing them to disconnect. Kate Johnson of the Interdependence Project, a secular Buddhist center that focuses on engaging people with their communities, led a 45 minute meditation session on the topic. The session was called “Healing Ourselves, Healing Our World,” with two discussion circles on how to dismantle structural racism.
There are plenty of wellness apps, but in an uncertain time it can be beneficial to band together. “Many people do begin learning to meditate as a way to cope during times of grief or loss. Meditation is a wonderful way to make space for healing, and it’s fine to practice on your own–but I’ve found that in times of collective suffering, it is really very helpful to seek out community connections,” Johnson told the Observer after the event. The session explored “how to use mindfulness as a tool for becoming aware of racial bias, and for tending to the ways in which we have harmed others or been harmed as a result of bias of any kind,” Johnson said.
You can still watch the talk and meditation on Facebook Live now. Or, seek out one of the many meditation studios in the city. While meditation can sometimes receive a bad reputation, especially for people who haven’t tried it yet, it’s been proven that it helps people de-stress. And in times of strife, everyone could use a little bit of contemplation on a difficult subject.
