Tester

Q&A
Anastacia Tolbert
Haptic: You teach a workshop
that focuses on how the body
and the memories embedded
in it tell stories. What sorts of
stories do they tell? Why is it
critical that we listen?
Anastacia Tolbert: I believe
our bodies hold stories from
our past and present. They
attempt to protect us from
stories we don’t have all the
pieces to—stories that are too
hard to reconstruct and stories
where we aren’t the main
character. I think it’s important
to unearth those memories so
that we can better understand
who we are in the present and
empower ourselves to BE IN
our bodies more in the present.
Another of your workshops
involved the act of screaming
as part of a self care ritual for
women. Why do you focus on
self cafe?
Self care is something that is
often frowned upon as it relates
to women… specifically
women of color. Some of us
have been taught that to love
or take care of ourselves is selfish
and unnecessary. I believe
self care should not be viewed
as a bonus—something you do
when you are older and all the
children are gone… I believe
self care should be a built in ritual/rite/spiritual
practice taught
to us while we are still children.
Screaming is an exercise of
healing I usually begin all my
workshops with to empower
the participants by choosing to
scream and use their own voices
without the negative preconceived
notions that go along
with screaming or making noise.
In many cases, screaming is associated
with danger or distrust
or unwelcomed or unexpected
body touching. As children we
are told to “stop screaming.”
Boys are often told, “stop
screaming like a girl.” Screaming
in my workshops gives participants
a freedom that they
may not have experienced yet
and a practice they can continue.
In the poem “What to Tell My
Sons After Trayvon Martin, After
Michael Brown, After Medgar
Evers, After, After, After, After
and Before,” you focus on the
devaluation of black lives and
the impossible, contradictory
expectations that are placed
upon black bodies. As a mother
of two sons, how does the
political urgency of these issues
influence your work?
As an artist and mother I use
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