The Racial Equity Social Justice (RESJ) Committee was formed to address the bias in the world of mental health that traditionally privileges the voices of white, male, heterosexual, cis-gendered, euro-centric, able-bodied clinicians.
The RESJ was inspired to come together because DDP has also been a part of these rooted harmful oppressive systems and has failed to embrace the beautiful spectrum of identity that exists in the communities that we serve.
RESJ provides a safe and brave space that will allow for the DDP community to find healing, purpose, and solidarity, as we move towards dismantling oppression, racism, bigotry, heterosexism, and other forms of non-inclusivity.
The RESJ Committee will work with and advise Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy Institute (DDPI), DDPI Board, and the various DDPI communities and committees.
Our goal is to identify and eradicate all non-equitable, racist, and/or non-inclusive practices within our system and to repair harm and damage that we may have perpetrated in the past.
We have prioritized the following tasks:
- Awareness and Education
- Analysis and Reduction of Barriers to Access/Equity
- Informing and Revising DDP/DDPI Training Practices and Materials
- Outreach and Community Building
- Consultation
Shani Sephton, former RESJ Committee Chairperson
You can hear more about the RESJ Committee from Shani Sephton, former Committee Chair, in the video below from the online DDPI AGM in November 2020.