Season 4, Episode 4
The Many Mediums for Confronting Trauma
In this episode we talk to a Ph.D. student in history about a patchwork quilt and a family’s journey from enslavement to educational access in the Ivy league and an anthropologist about using film, dance, and photography to empower those who have survived state violence.
The Intricate Riddle of Life
The Many Mediums for Confronting Trauma • Season 4, Episode 4
Listen on these platforms
The legacy of trauma resulting from more than 200 years of slavery in North America, and colonialism abroad, has yet to be fully comprehended. In this episode, Breanna Moore discusses her engagement with fellow student collaborators to recreate the history of Penn’s connections to slavery, which began with a memory book and a journey through her own family’s history. And Deborah Thomas explains how the many mediums of art, including film, dance, and photography, have helped her promote healing within communities marked by trauma in Jamaica and beyond.
This episode includes excerpts from Four Days in May: Kingston 2010 featuring Jacqueline Gordon, Shawn Bowen, and Aaliyah Levy. The documentary film was directed and produced by Deanne M. Bell, Junior “Gabu” Wedderburn, and Deborah A. Thomas.
Guests
Breanna Moore, C’15, and Ph.D. candidate, Department of History
Deborah Thomas, R. Jean Brownlee Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Center for Experimental Ethnography
Host
Alex Schein
Producer
Blake Cole
Editors
Alex Schein, Brooke Sietisons, and Loraine Terrell
Interviewers
Loraine Terrell and Blake Cole
Illustration
Marina Muun
Music
Theme by Nicholas Escobar, C’18
Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions
More Episodes
The Restorative Power of Art
In this episode, we speak with researchers at the Positive Psychology Center, who examined how art museum visitation and museum program participation impact flourishing-related outcomes.
Music and Meaning
In this episode we speak with a professor of music about the power of song and dance during the apartheid era in South Africa, and a College alum about his process composing music for the screen, and our very own OMNIA podcast.