Who We Are | Stories of Colonialism and Cultural Reclamation

The Romani People ft. Bre

Welcome to who we are, a multicultural storytelling podcast hosted by Maya Kalaria. We share decolonization stories and healing journeys of cultural reclamation, finding identity and belonging in the wake of colonialism. We explore social justice through reclaiming our own narratives. In this necessary and eye-opening episode, Bre shares her journey of uncovering the mystery behind her maternal family's Romani roots and how she is consciously reclaiming this important part of her heritage. We discuss the centuries of oppression that Romani people have faced, including slavery, the Romani Holocaust, forced sterilization and the societal prejudice which has often denied them access to basic healthcare, water and other human rights. The Romani left India around 1,500 years ago. As an Indian woman myself, whose family left India around a century ago and have been moving ever since, we talk about the flawed, often colonial logic behind this prejudice and how in this increasingly globalised world, there are very few of us who have not migrated. Join us for this deeply personal yet universal episode - we'd love to know what you think.

The Dominican Republic ft. Dra. CarolLaine M García

Welcome to who we are, a multicultural storytelling podcast hosted by Maya Kalaria. We share decolonization stories and healing journeys of cultural reclamation, finding identity and belonging in the wake of colonialism. We explore social justice through reclaiming our own narratives. In this complex and powerful episode, CarolLaine shares her family’s story, and how many lineages flow through her, from West African, Spanish, Portuguese and Indigenous Taíno, creating a living legacy of the colonial history of her land and people. She shares how this complexity impacted her, and how she came to deeply accept and work with all of these parts of herself as well as finding balance between her scientific, academic mind and her intuitive self. To find out more about CarolLaine’s work, see here [https://www.drcarollainemgarcia.com/].

Indonesia ft. Hannah Kendaru

A gentle note - this episode contains some mentions of sexual assault. Welcome to who we are, a multicultural storytelling podcast hosted by Maya Kalaria. We share decolonization stories and healing journeys of cultural reclamation, finding identity and belonging in the wake of colonialism. We explore social justice through reclaiming our own narratives. In this fascinating episode, Hannah eloquently captures the distinction between historical and intergenerational trauma, weaving her personal history between the two. As someone whose parents are Indonesian and white British, she speaks powerfully of the relationship between the colonizer and the colonized parts within herself, of truth and forgiveness, and how she learned to move through these challenges into heart-led action. We speak about the current colonial energies affecting Bali, where Hannah lived for a while, and how corrosive yet now-needed western tourism continues to be for the people of the land. Hannah's work can be found here [https://inspire-breathwork.org/].

Mexico & Guatemala ft. Magalí Morales

A gentle note - this episode contains some mentions of sexual assault. Welcome to who we are, a multicultural storytelling podcast hosted by Maya Kalaria. We share decolonization stories and healing journeys of cultural reclamation, finding identity and belonging in the wake of colonialism. We explore social justice through reclaiming our own narratives. In this rich and powerful episode, Magalí talks us through the colonial history of her ancestral lands and peoples, sharing both collective and familial stories across generations. She shares her own experiences of life as a woman of colour in America (Turtle Island) and how a harrowing incident while studying in England as a young woman became a defining moment in her life. Join us for a candid, beautiful, deeply spiritual and complex journey of colonial harm, loss, abuse, healing and - ultimately - what it means to love each other as well as our collective home, Mother Earth.

Cambodia ft. Dany Srey-Snow

Welcome to who we are, a multicultural storytelling podcast hosted by Maya Kalaria. We share decolonization stories and healing journeys of cultural reclamation, finding identity and belonging in the wake of colonialism. We explore social justice through reclaiming our own narratives. In this deeply moving episode, Dany vulnerably shares the painful and courageous story of her family's journey from Cambodia to America/Turtle Island, as refugees escaping the Cambodian genocide. We unpack the many layers of emotions that are held inside the body through the generations as a consequence of carrying this heavy history, including grief, anger and the messier emotions that are hard to tie a neat bow around. Dany shares some of the challenges of growing up in the US as a girl of Cambodian descent, and how she is working to heal herself from the physical to the spiritual level to help create a healthier, more healed world for herself and others. You can find Dany's work here [https://sreydanyco.com/] and @sreydanysnow [instagram.com/sreydanysnow]