welcome to this site--a space for people in activist communities who have faced trauma in actions, people who want to learn about trauma recovery and other generally interested folks. this site was established quickly to get info out to all the people who were assaulted by the police during actions against the ftaa and has grown daily since then. we want to explore issues of mental health as they relate to activist communities--including political trauma, ptsd, dissociation, burnout and how to create healing spaces to work through trauma and sustain the important work we do.

mental trauma safe space

after experiencing an imobilizing injury in quebec and seeing (and experiencing) the need for injured activists to get a chance to debrief, i have a few ideas for a safe space for future actions.

our action medics are doing a hell of a job in war-like situations to keep people alive. they saw and experienced a lot in qc and were experiencing an amazing amout of stress. dealing with severely injured patients leaves little energy for anything else. after first aid and ems care, there seems to be a lack of care space for recovering patients without taking away from medics time. not only do injured patients become a burden on the clinic, but as a patient i can say there is a lot of aquired guilt for needing ongoing help while knowing you are an obsticle. establishing a safe space shouldn't take away from the clinic. it's kinda like moving a patient to a ward so that the er can continue to deal with emergencies.

there also seemed to be a need for those who are injured, have lost their groups, or are in emergency situations to have access to phones for logistical reasons. a quiet space for anyone experiencing emotional trauma to meditate, pray, light a candle, rest, or speak with mental health professionals, spiritualists, or clergy is definitely in order as well.

i would like to know if anyone (or if you know anyone healing inclined, but not as action medic oriented) would be interested in setting up a spiritual/logistics space for activists in need at future large-scale actions.

healing center:

1. quiet, comfortable bed space for injured. non-emergency care providers, healers? don't want to take anyone away from the street medic pool though.
2. phone bank, logistical assistance to reach family, arrange health care and travel. numbers where family, friends can call patients back.
3. vehicle available for injured patient transport to hospitals, doctors, bus stations, airport, etc. transport for patients from clinic to healing center.
4. emotional assistance/healers for anyone experiencing emotional trauma. could also be available to visit those in the hospital.
5. 'chapel' space for meditation, prayer, etc.
6. adopt-an-activist fund for those in emergency situations. medical bills, food, transport, etc. excess money from fund to go to legal support fund.

any comments, ideas, interest?

hugs for the revolution,
kinsey
superbjork@yahoo.com