Unlearning Oppression
About Abbazero and Swan
Abbazero comes from a Jewish community within the Igbo people of Nigeria and was initiated into the ancient mystery traditions of his grandfather in Benin. He has traveled the world for decades, studying spiritual traditions and political movements, and brings a depth of wisdom, perspective and profound presence to all the communities he serves. He is a heartful catalyst for those seeking profound change in themselves and the world.
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Abbazero generally eschews social media, preferring in-person connection, and refuses to list his Western credentials or put himself in the limelight, but he makes himself available for teaching and ceremony when the spirit calls him, and no one walks away from a session with him unmoved!
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With 25 years of Buddhist meditation practice and 20 years' study of the psychology of cultural conditioning, Swan infuses teachings of compassion and humor into all areas of her work, creating dynamic environments to address the isms and catalyze change on the individual, group and social levels.
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Swan has spent over 20 years as a student and senior teacher in the UNtraining, a program for dismantling racism (untraining.org) and facilitates interactive workshops using participatory theatre to address racism, sexism, heterosexism, classism, and other forms of social oppression.
She is trained in numerous modalities, including Theatre of the Oppressed, Nonviolent Communication, Hakomi, Feldenkrais, Expressive Arts Therapy, Depth-oriented Brief Therapy, NLP, RC, and Vipassana meditation, and has worked with clients of all backgrounds, from government officials and police chiefs to teachers, social workers, parents, priests and people in jails and prisons.
While often engaged as a guest lecturer, Swan’s passion is in engaging communities in dialogue and action related to their own struggles. Her direct, spontaneous, and caring style helps people access their own strengths to move into creative alliance-building for social change. She balances intellectual exploration of the nature of systematic oppression with experiential examination of the cultural conditioning that keeps institutional racism intact on a day-to-day basis within groups as well as in the larger society.