Brandon’s presentation is called “The Myth of Peace and Conflict Done Well”
Drawing a direct line from a Ph.D. in Mythological Studies to his diversity and restorative justice work in Oakland, CA, Brandon Williamscraig shares the story of accepting the invitation to introduce his research and internationally funded Peace Practices curriculum as a research coordinator and instructor in the Somatic Psychology department at Pacifica Graduate Institute. Direct experience and research make clear that mythic and archetypal literacy are both central to whole system healing and essential to the specific kind of somatic, fully embodied process of legitimate suffering, grief, and recovery that is our survival challenge as a species. To illustrate this, Brandon will introduce participants to a process that moves from the archetypal to the culturally specific by way of mythological study. Discerning core tensions in specific cultural complexes, as well as specific conflicts that result in trauma and a need for healing, the group will receive examples of working through/by way of conflict in order to create responses and practice somatic exercises tuned to address injustice and restore balance. That process, repeated over time, results in healing and power sharing that works through difference. This is the practice of Conflict Done Well, without which bodies politic, and especially their most marginalized members, are profoundly vulnerable to authoritarianism and other deep wounds to the world soul, or Anima Mundi.
This presentation is part of a special panel on Confronting Colonialism and White Supremacy in Myth, sponsored by the Pacifica Graduate Institute Alumni Association. Thank you, PGIAA!
About Brandon
Brandon Williamscraig, Ph.D. was co-founder and CEO of the San Francisco Bay Area nonprofit Association Building Community, or ABC. He served as a post-doctoral fellow, fieldwork supervisor, and instructor for all levels of graduate students at Pacifica Graduate Institute in the Depth Psychology Somatics Specialization. He holds an international 5th degree black belt in aikido and has founded learning communities and served as chief instructor. He has extensive experience with private and public institutions, offers leadership, diversity, and facilitation training, and has worked in the study of peace and conflict since 1998 while providing curriculum development, conflict education, and mediation services. His teaching and research focus on the embodied (somatic) psychology of belief, the narrative/mythological construction of culture, and The Myth of Peace.
To hear Brandon’s presentation and many others, join us at the Mythologium!
The Mythologium is a conference and retreat for mythologists and friends of myth, held July 30 – Aug 1 via Zoom. Register here!