Harlem, by Langston Hughes, at The Poetry Foundation
My blog post on this poem and this moment: 
A Dream Deferred: Langston Hughes, Then and Now | Psychology Today

I wish I could share a meal with all of you; find out how you're doing in the midst of all our crises. I hope this message finds you and your loved ones and friends in good health. May you be safe and well. All my friends and loved ones are well, thankfully - but so much is not right with the world. I hope these writings, videos and podcasts will be helpful to you and provide some solace and comfort. I'm doing my best to double down on my values, as are everyone in my community.

Also: doubling down on my commitment to stay off social media as much as possible. My heart is with Black Lives Matter (you can also donate via ActBlue) and those asking for justice and equity, but at this moment, the violent unrest is inseparable from the desires of White Supremacists, the President, anarchists, opportunists and even foreign governments to sow chaos. It's very disheartening to see some prominent people on social media not making these distinctions and thereby helping us find a "third way" beyond the false dichotomies and walls that seem to divide us. Maybe we could see all of the above as a tragic consequence of injustice and the unavoidable sequelae of systemic racism leading to the death of George Floyd and others, painful as it all is. All spilling from a common wound of disconnection. This is where a space of sadness, loss and mourning opens up for me, personally, perhaps a necessary prelude to compassionate engagement. These moments are precisely what those of us who cultivate non-violence, compassion and understanding are here for. Let's keep each other strong, for the recovery, and this grim "re-discovery." Let's create better sequelae than those we have seen this last week. George Floyd was murdered on my birthday, and I won't ever forget him.

I've just joined Postcards to Voters. I urge you to join as well and start sending postcards to voters in swing states. This made a difference in 2018, and offers a personal touch which just might shift the tide. I'm ready for change, and I'm hopeful.

I also encourage you to help the Navajo and Hopi nations in this time of great need due to COVID-19.

You can send goods straight to the reservation via this registry on Amazon. I'm not a fan of Amazon, but this seems like the best way to give right now, and you can give exactly what is needed and asked for.

Theresa Hatathlie-Delmar's Gift Registry on Amazon

Instructions for purchases: "When you CHECKOUT, look for "Theresa Hatathlie-Delmar's Gift Registry Address"

"We are firm believers in supporting communities by giving them WHAT THEY ASK FOR not what WE THINK they need.” 

Direct funding: Navajo & Hopi Families COVID-19 Relief Fund  

Blogposts since my last newsletter (many with accompanying guided meditations and other videos)

On Psychology Today:

The Politics of Blaming China: Asian Americans Will Suffer (April 19, 2020)

PRGS: Pandemic Reverse Ghosting Syndrome (April 30, 2020) - a humorous take on being "haunted" by ghosts during the pandemic.

COVID-19 as Metaphor: The Immuniversity, Not War (May 6, 2020) - based on my April 11, 2020 Contagious Compassion Zoom session. An alternative way to think of the virus and disease.

Coping with Loneliness and Isolation During COVID-19 (May 26, 2020) - based on my April 25th Contagious Compassion Zoom session

A Dream Deferred: Langston Hughes, Then and Now (May 30, 2020) -  with a link to PBS' Poetry in America episode on Langston Hughes' poem Harlem.

Fighting Racism Against Asian Americans During COVID-19 (May 31, 2020) - based on my May 9, 2020 Contagious Compassion Zoom session. Describing some features of Asian American psychology which make racism's sting particularly bad. (PROMOTED TO ESSENTIAL TOPIC by PSYCHOLOGY TODAY!)

"But what happens to the dream called America when it is deferred? Our collective dream? Our E Pluribus Unum dream? Our dream of unalienable rights?"

"Is that dream a crying river, now, carrying us all to an uncertain but certain end?"

On Medium

The PBS “Asian Americans” Documentary: A Critical Look by a Superfan (May 13, 2020) 

Anna May Wong's "Certificate of Identity"

Thanks for reading.

If you're looking for a diversion -
make some mouse-dragging music with Mikutap 

May all beings be happy.
May they be joyous and live in safety.
– from the Metta Sutra

Warmly,

Ravi