A restorative justice approach to somatic therapy, integrating mind-body healing with social activism
STACI K. HAINES is the founder of generative somatics, a
multiracial social justice organization bringing somatics to social
and environmental justice leaders, organizations, and alliances.
Staci is a senior teacher in the field of Somatics; she design and
leads programs in Somatics and trauma, embodied leadership, and
Somatics in organizations, as well as leading teacher training
programs. She has a somatic coaching practice that primarily serves
social movement leaders and trauma and violence survivors and has
been working and teaching in the field of Somatics since 1997.
Haines is also the founder of generationFIVE, a social justice
organization whose mission is to end the sexual abuse of children
within 5 generations through survivor leadership, community
organizing, transformative justice approaches and movement
building. Additionally she is the author of Healing Sex- A Mind
Body Approach to Healing Sexual Trauma (Cleis 1999, 2007), a how-to
book offering a Somatic approach to recovery from sexual trauma and
developing healthy sexual and intimate relationships. Healing Sex
has been nationally recognized and translated into German, Japanese
and Spanish.
“Somatics is a freedom-inducing framework. The central idea is that
the natural living body—with its sensations, memories and emotions,
triggers and pleasures—is a complex system that carries our whole
lives, including trauma and healing, boundaries and risks, patterns
and transformation. Staci Haines is a central teacher weaving the
somatics lineage with social justice and with being in the
body in community, increasing the possibility that we can be
in collective bodies of justice. This book maps the cycles of
healing that shift us from being victims of systemic injustice
to being shapers of constant change and liberatory systems.”
—adrienne maree brown, author of Emergent Strategy and Pleasure
Activism
“If I’ve discovered anything in several decades of social-justice
work, it’s that the body never lies. If we can embrace her, change
can happen. Grounding in my body, not just in my words, has turned
out to be a critical source of humility and courage, preconditions
for any significant change. The ideas and tools in The Politics of
Trauma allow us to listen to our bodies, and then make choices
about what we do rather than constantly reacting to what we think
are external pressures. A must-read for anyone trying to lead
anything.”
—Rinku Sen, activist and author of Stir It Up
“The Politics of Trauma is an essential read for every ‘woke’
person responding to this moment in history’s calling. Movement
leaders know firsthand the level of trauma we have experienced in
our personal lives, our families, communities, and across
generations; and we often carry out our work at great personal
expense. Haines brings a political clarity desperately needed and
reminds us that we must courageously embark on our own healing
journey, grounded in racial, economic, and gender justice. Only
then will we be able to live whole, vibrant, resilient lives and
bring about the transformational change we seek in society.”
—Marielena Hincapié, executive director of the National Immigration
Law Center
“The Politics of Trauma is a bold and important response to a
long-existing split between those who work on individual change and
those working to change the institutions of society. The profound
gift of Staci’s book is that rather than diagnosing what doesn’t
work, it offers us a remedy: Somatics—a body-centered approach to
transformation that fully integrates the healing of individuals
with the creating of a more just and equitable society.”
—Robert Gass, EdD, co-founder of the Rockwood
Leadership Institute and the Social Transformation Project
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