Presenter: Iris Fodor, with Jon Blend, Rosie Burrows, Yaël Lewin, Sari Scheinberg, Claire Spiller, and Fiona Turnbull

Seven members of an ongoing Gestalt experiential writing group offer a presentation on writing for advocacy and protest. 

Description:

We are now living in a world in continuous crisis with ongoing wars, terrifying harassment, rounding up and deportation of immigrants, the eroding of civil rights, academic freedom, and women’s rights, as well as disregard for the environment and climate change. In the U.S., we are watching the eroding of our democracy under the leadership of an increasingly chaotic and autocratic president who is inspiring other such leaders worldwide.

Drawing on inspiration from the protest movements of the 1960s, in this workshop, we will highlight the writing and performance of rants, essays, poems, and songs of resistance to enable us to stay present with our experience of outrage at what is happening in our world. We need to acknowledge that protesting and expressing outrage too often takes courage and in many countries is outlawed or dangerous. We need to resist now while we still can.

We will begin with a short lecture on protest and resistance writing as a creative adjustment to an unbalanced world. Each Gestalt writer will highlight a rant, essay, poem, or song for us to model. Next, we will break into small groups facilitated by one of the writing group members and write to resistance prompts. Then, we will gather together and ask for volunteers to read or sing what they have written, followed by a discussion with the participants. We will end with a group sing of Patti Smith’s “Power to the People.”

Biography:

Iris Fodor is a professor emerita in the Department of Applied Psychology at New York University. She has a PhD in clinical psychology and a certificate in creative writing from New Directions. She is a Gestalt psychotherapist known for her teaching, workshops, and writings about feminism, women’s mental health, mindfulness, and integrative psychotherapy. Born in the Bronx, Iris is a lifelong social activist and a photographer. She has traveled, taught, and done workshops worldwide. She has also participated in digital storytelling projects with adolescents from diverse cultures in India, Peru, and South Africa. Her recent work focuses on memoir and experiential writing for therapists. She lives in New York City and Woodstock, New York.