Uncensored host aims to create space to share experiences, advocate for racial justice through conversation

This First Person article is the experience of Alexa Joy, a researcher, journalistand graduate student at The New School for Social Research. For more information about CBC's First Person stories, please seethe FAQ.

If you've been paying attention to the coverage of police violence in the U.S. the past few weeks, it can become overwhelming. There's a numbness that strikes it surpasses our conscious mind and makes its way into our subconscious psyche. This is a common reaction to trauma.

When we're exposed to traumatic events, a biological reaction occurs. Adrenaline rushes through the body and the memory is imprinted into the amygdala, part of the brain where emotional memories are given meaning, attached to specific associations and stored.

Examining the biological reaction helps us understand our emotional significance of the event, including the intensity and impulse of emotion.

Ifyou feel emotionless or numb, or you shut down altogether when you hear of another incident of police violence, resulting in a death here's a reminder:

It is not normal to see Black, Indigenous and people of colour murdered recklessly, senselessly and violently on your news feed.

It is not normal.

I believe thatmost likely, we will not see an endto these injustices anytime soon. But we do have power over the content and media we choose to take in during these times.

This might seem counterproductivetelling readers to be mindful of the news we take in as I write this web storybut the news can trigger this subconscious numbing reaction in us. (Therefore, I am not bothered if people choose not to read this article.)

Partake in conversation

However, if you find that you have the energy and time to partake in conversations of injustice and police brutality, I'd like to offer some incredible voices from our community to help get you through any challenges you might be experiencing.

Last September, when CBC Manitoba and I launched Uncensored, it was in direct response to the summer of George Floyd.

I thought, "We have to keep this momentum going."Though I was nervous (and honestlyskeptical) about working with the CBC to have these conversations on anti-Blackness and white supremacy in mainstream media, I felt something had to continue.

But I too am human and can only devote so much of my energy covering Black trauma. We are more than our pain and our trauma, on display for the world to see or ignore.

The relaunch of Uncensored earlier this year walked listeners through four episodes, each building on topics of mental health and self-care, Black and queer indignities, our solidarity between Black and Indigenous communities, and a perspective from our elders, asking if things have changed.

The following episodes will hopefully provide some support in these tense moments and remind us that you're not alone in your numbness.

In Episode 1, premiering back in Black History Month, entitled Doing The Most, I sat down with Nampande Londe, a Winnipeg activist and founder of the online platform It Happens in Winnipeg.

We explored the phenomenon of activist burnout, while building on the politics of care. Who checks in on the front-line activists putting their lives on the line for our justice and freedoms?

Common struggles

The solidarity and common struggles faced in Black and Indigenous communities with regards to police violence and systemic racism is a narrative we shared across communities.

In our second episode, Our Native Land, we hear from a PhDcandidate, educator, community organizer and author Tasha Spillett.

Spillett helped us walk through the histories of Black and Indigenous communities in Manitoba and explored what lies behind these untold narratives. What does Black and Indigenous solidarity look like in the racial justice movement?

In our third episode, Black and Queer, I sat down with community activist and artist Kayla Fernandes, to explore what it means to be Black and queer in Winnipeg.

Fernandes brought light to the intersections of Black and queer identities specifically, challenging the erasure of Black queer activists in mainstream demonstrations of Black History Month, and bringing forth these narratives in a time that is so essential for exposure to all Black histories.

I hopethese episodes provide a space for listeners to feel validated.- Alexa Joy

Finally, for our last episode titled, Before the Movement,we heard from one of our elders.

Longtime Winnipeg human rights advocate and community leader Beatrice Watson looked back at what has changed over the years in the fight for racial equity in Winnipeg. Ms. Watson's extensive career in community and social justice provided listeners with honest encounters of the past and its connection to our current moment.

This time around, Uncensored led the conversation to heal, uplift and be critical of the times we're living in. As we see a glimpse of hope in the recent guilty verdict in theDerek Chauvin trial, we also see just as much violence. How much can we take?

I'm not confident in the criminal justice system in the U.S. or Canada. But I hopethese episodes provide a space for listeners to feel validated and supported in their thoughts and anxieties.

• Read more opinion pieces published by CBC Manitoba.

For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here.