From radical self-care to radical self-knowledge – towards embodied, trauma-informed activism

This paper, building on the black feminist legacy (Lorde 1988; hooks 2001, 2002) and contemporary developments in social justice movements (e.g. Haines 2019; Page & Woodland 2023; Hemphill 2024), introduces embodied self-awareness as a way to support political agency and cultivate political hope. Given the high prevalence of secondary traumatisation, activist burnout, and disengagement among social justice activists (e.g. Rodgers 2010; Cox 2011; Vaccaro & Mena 2011; Gorski & Erakat 2019), there is an urgent need to cultivate healthier, more sustainable approaches to political activism. While much of the research on activist resilience focuses on individual coping strategies, a growing, embodied, trauma-informed social justice movement advocates for a radical transformation, challenging the traditional masculine idea of activism as a form of heroic fighting and self-sacrificing, and calling for embodied forms of activism. The paper draws on the empirical research material of my ongoing PhD, consisting of 26 expert interviews with people working at the intersection of social justice, trauma, and embodiment while engaging in conversation with black feminist ideas of radical self-care (Lorde 1988) and healing (hooks 2015) as well as novel research paradigms of healing justice (Pyles 2018) and embodied social justice (Johnson 2018). Aligning with earlier feminist models of self-care and healing, both highlight the connections between individual healing and social justice, departing from the individualised healing and wellness framework (see, e.g., Haines 2019, 44-45; Page & Woodland 2023, 60-61). While terms often overlap, the former, in particular, emphasises the importance of embodiment skills and practices, also referred to as "politicised somatics" (Haines 2019), for unlearning internalised patterns of oppression and privilege and for working towards transformative change. The paper participates in and deepens earlier feminist discussions on politicised models of healing and liberation by focusing on the importance of embodied knowledge in dismantling oppression, and introducing the role of the somatic, felt-sense knowledge of the body in social justice work.