The Body Remembers
In 2017, author and psychotherapist Resmaa Menakem coined the phrase “white body supremacy,” a trauma response resulting from the intergenerational transmission of oppressive race-based biases and fears held in the body. This construct is grounded in the belief that the reflexive responses sustained by racism, especially in Black bodies, are often unconscious and manifest at a physiological level. Menakem argues that cognitive processes alone cannot transform or eradicate these deeply embedded patterns, but rather, they must be addressed THROUGH the body, ultimately healing historical and racialized trauma.
The body is where we live. It’s where we fear, hope, and react. It’s where we constrict and relax. And what the body most cares about are safety and survival. . . . It is also where we do most of our healing, including our emotional and psychological healing. . . . It is where we experience resilience and a sense of flow.¹
The Body Remembers is an exploration of ancestral memory and the awakening of shared cultural narratives expressed through Black bodies. Presented as a visual mapping of conversations, collected stories, and written thoughts, this collaboration traverses nostalgia — remembering and reimagining Blackness through portraiture, performance, and prose. Further examining how our past, present, and future histories intersect and inform identity, The Body Remembers serves as a living archive — a dynamic transcript of unique documentations of Black life from the Dayton community.
1. Menakem, Resmaa. My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies. Las Vegas: Central Recovery Press, 2017, pp. 30, 35-36. Accessed November 9, 2022. https://d-pdf.com/book/4541/read.
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Shola, filmed in Dayton, Ohio on April 24, 2023.
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Debi, filmed in Dayton, Ohio on April 23, 2023.
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Sharonda, filmed in Dayton, Ohio on April 22, 2023.
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Elijah, filmed in Dayton, Ohio on April 16, 2023.
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Jason, filmed in Dayton, Ohio on April 16, 2023.
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Devin, filmed in Dayton, Ohio on April 15, 2023.
