Dear College of Education Community,
June is Pride month and a time to reaffirm our love and acceptance of our LGBTQIA community as a form of self-care for both ourselves and others. Ashley Krombach (she/her) in a statement from My Good Brain blog, asserts, “Everyone deserves to be seen and celebrated without fear of shame and rejection. When creating the space to uplift and honor the meaning and history of Pride Month, we can simultaneously bring awareness to the role we each play in ensuring everyone – no matter their identity – has access to a world where they are free to be nothing short of themselves.” For more information about how to celebrate yourself or someone else, see her entire blog at https://www.mygoodbrain.org/blog/celebrating-lgbtq2-pride-is-celebrating-mental-health
Accepting and celebrating the rights and wellbeing of the diverse members of our world is a hallmark of self-care and our teaching and counseling professions. This week, we witnessed the opposite of self-care when the rights of women to make decisions about their bodies was struck down by the US Supreme Court Roe vs. Wade decision. Many are saddened and angry by this decision, and our professional organizations are greatly concerned about the consequences on the wellbeing of those we serve and on ourselves. Please see excerpts from an early statement by the American Counseling Association below. Self-care is about ensuring justice for all. There is work to do.
American Counseling Association Expresses Opposition to Overturn of Roe v. Wade
Jun 24, 2022
The Supreme Court decision striking down Roe v. Wade abolishes women’s constitutional right to choose to have an abortion without the undue influence of government…We recognize that the loss of access to safe, legal abortion may hinder the ability of women to participate within the workplace and society effectively and successfully. Unwanted pregnancies may affect women’s education, employment, earning prospects, and health. These effects would disproportionately fall on those who are already marginalized, those living in poverty, people of color, nonbinary, and transgender people, as well as those who live in medically underserved areas (e.g., few primary care providers, high infant mortality, high poverty).To read the entire statement, go to https://www.counseling.org/news/updates/news-detail/2022/06/24/american-counseling-association-expresses-opposition-to-overturn-of-roe-v.-wade
For a list of many self-care options, please see our COE self-care website for resources for faculty, staff, students, and the community at:
https://www.csun.edu/eisner-education/self-care/articles-information-self-care
As an act of self-care, may we work for a world where there is love, acceptance, and justice for all.
Warmly,
Shari