Reclaiming the Body: An Autoethnography in the Power of Emotions in Intergroup Dialogue on Race

• In Event: Exploring the Possibilities of an Embodied Dialogic Praxis for Personal Transformation and Collective Liberation

Abstract

This paper employs critical exploration of my experiences and reflections on building meaningful relationships within and across identity groups and locates the significance of Racial Battle Fatigue (RBF) as a conceptual framework (Smith, 2008) in intergroup dialogue (IGD) at a predominately white institution. This paper is intended to draw closer attention to the conditions under which people of color, in this case, facilitators, position and express themselves within institutional frameworks that are both hostile and liberatory. I offer a taxonomy of emotions as a method of inquiry to ground rage, love, and vulnerability in the discursive re-engagement of the body through feminist methodologies rooted in a holistic conception of the self (Dillard, 2012; Okello, 2019). I focus on concepts of resistance, vulnerability, and love as an embodied practice, arguing that there is an assumed burden and accountability embedded within the struggle to dis/engage from the reality of dialogue related to race and racism. A deeper analysis of how tension moves through spaces that are difficult to understand is necessary given that the language we use to describe it is often rooted in the preservation of white comfort. This paper utilizes the nuance afforded by Black feminist thought to trace my steps as a co-facilitator for intergroup dialogue (IGD) on race and ethnicity for undergraduate students to uncover the emotional foundation and practices of IGD for facilitators of color.

Author

• Easton James Davis, Syracuse University