Grief Studies

Final cohort of the year, limited spots <3

(I didn’t realize this was only sent to my paid subscribers, so I’m sending it to everyone again, apologies!)

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As I write this, it’s the final hours of October 6th, 2024.

One year into the genocide in Gaza — Lebanon has been attacked now as well. In the last two weeks, reportedly over 2,000 Lebanese have already been murdered. Israel is using the same tactics—bombing hospitals, refugee camps, and completely obliterating all kinds of infrastructure. This is a tactic of genocide.

One year on, this is the most documented and the most denied genocide in the history of mankind.

Understandably, so many Palestinians have been asking for the last year - what about October 6th? Zionists and sympathizers really love obsessing over what happened on October 7th as if it happened in a vacuum… but it’s funny you ask because this is from Reuters on October 6th, 2024.

His name was Labib Dmaidi. He was 19. A settler killed him on October 6th.

What we are witnessing is a loss of humanity on a global scale.

Last week I saw a white man question Ta-Nehisi Coates, he said, “But if you were to read this book (Coates’ new book) you would be left wondering why does any of Israel exist, what a horrific place, committing horrific acts on a daily basis…” (They tell on themselves so much… it’s like, so you do get it… you just pretend not to, the spiritual bypassing I see Zionists do on the daily is mind boggling) …it’s also frustrating to watch them ask Islamophobic and anti-Arab questions that are often like listening to a bratty child have a tantrum… settler colonialism is so fucking embarrassing. You’ll be forced to defend anything. Even genocide. The grief in realizing that so many people right now believe never again just means for white people, or anyone accepted into the framework of whiteness… and literally nobody else.

This last year has been a year of deep The Office-like stares of horror, confusion, and anger into an invisible camera (God, are you there?) and nothing has felt good for me… except teaching, reading, writing. This class, Grief Studies in particular, has been incredibly healing for me. I’ve sat with over one hundred students teaching it this year alone and it’s changed me and held me in profound ways to be in community with those of you who want to learn from me. There’s an exchange, however — intimacy, vulnerability, emotionality are such powerful things to hold and receive.

I wish I could teach this class more and I’m grateful for the interest… but it’s a big container to hold. However, I’ve also seen how potent a container it is… so I’m committing myself to teaching this for at least another year… a lot of this work is a part of my practice of slowly becoming a death doula, a life practice that I’ve been moving towards, glacially, over the last few years.

Getting closer to this particular anniversary has just made me angry. So I keep thinking… “I’m in the second stage of the grief cycle…” but anger, rage and frustration in the face of such lying and propaganda and denial… it’s hard not to feel consistently MAD ALL THE FUCKING TIME. But I am constantly channeling it - into writing, reading, action, action, action… I am angry but one of the best ways for me to channel that anger… has been to teach. There’s a lot I know that I’d like to share.

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A NOTE: There are no more full scholarships available!

So I’m introducting Grief Studies, an 8-week writing + grief processing class.

In the first five classes, we will focus on one of the five stages of grief (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance) alongside the five stages of decolonization (rediscovery/recovery, mourning, dreaming, commitment, and action). The last three classes will focus on “finding meaning,” “restoration” and “resilience.”

A lot of this work was sourced from my own findings while writing Who Is Wellness For? As I wrote the book, I started to see this relationship between how grief was undoubtedly an indicator of so much, it was like a current that moved through our bodies, charging certain parts of us—generally without our full comprehension. Yet, I realized, in my own life, the more you enquire after your own grief, the more that is revealed, and the easier it is to get to know yourself… the better a tool you become for revolution in your community and society.

Then, after further inquiry, I realized the grief stages are strangely synced with the decolonization steps… which is apt. We, all, collectively, heal through decolonizing.

This class is designed for that.

I will be using writing prompts and works by Billy-Ray Belcourt, Aracelis Girmay, Hala Alyan, Agha Shahid Ali, Mosab Abu Toha, Hanif Abdurraqib and Noor Hindi (to name a few of the brilliant writers whose work we will be reading every week) to let theirs (and others’) works guide us to the center of our own grief.

This workshop is for anyone who wants something to participate in something that will push them through some of the stagnation of sadness and onward to liberation.

More information:

When: We will meet for 8 weeks every week from October 27th (right at the beginning of Scorpio season) 9 am PST - 12 pm PST to December 15th (right into Sagitarrius season… I like to use astrology as a tool…duh)

There is limited space available.

Where: Zoom (I’ll send a link)

Will this be recorded? Yes.

How much is it?

• It’s $650 for the 8 weeks

• There’s a sliding scale rate of $500 for Black, Indigenous, and Palestinian folks as well as working class and disabled folks and CSA survivors. I know I also have a lot of readers in the Global South, if you ever want to take a class please reach out and I will try and figure something out.

• There are a few partial scholarships

• There are 5 full scholarship spaces, if interested please let me know why you want to take this class & why you’d like/need a scholarship.

• I also take a payment plan

The workshops I teach are a place of care and radicality.

I prioritize the voices that are silenced in this everyday white supremacist, Zionist, ableist, anti-Black, Islamophobic, anti-Arab/Palestinian, transphobic, queerphobic world and so these workshops are an attempt to create a space where we can acknowledge that these systems of oppression exist, and understand that it’s our responsibility to unlearn these things, especially when (and while) we are in community. If you are a privileged-bodied person, please move with that understanding in this space. Humility is required here.

I don’t tolerate harmful language, at the same time, I endeavor to create a space of accountability and witnessing. This is hard work, grief work requires ego work, if you are willing to do this work, and are hungry to be in space with others who want to do this work, please reach out. It will test you, it might even push at certain limitations and boundaries… grief work is very uncomfortable work but I’m realizing it’s the most significant work you can do right now… especially if you’re feeling stuck.

If all this sounds interesting and you feel ready, email me at mofhasan@gmail.com

*****

Take care of yourself today.

Reach out to your friends and hold them. We are in for a long ride… but I think this is moving us toward our inevitable evolution as a society. The work doesn’t scare me. These days I’m humbled by it. If this resonates, I hope you’ll join me for this class.

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