Reader,

Let’s be clear: therapy is political.

When a client walks into our office, chances are they bring with them a lifetime of navigating systems that were not built for them. For most, systems that target, exclude, criminalize, erase, surveil, or gaslight—based on race, gender, disability, immigration status, class, and more.

To say “I don’t want to be political” in our work is a privilege. And often, what we really mean is:

But we can’t afford to separate the personal from the political. Not when policies decide who gets care and who doesn’t. Not when laws target trans kids, deny disabled folks autonomy, and criminalize immigrants for surviving (just to name a few).

Being political in the therapy room doesn’t mean being performative. It also doesn’t mean debating political parties or telling clients how they should vote.

➡️ It means being willing to talk about how policies, laws, and systems shape our lives—and the lives of the people sitting across from us.

➡️ It means being attuned. It means knowing that mental health is shaped by material conditions. That grief doesn’t exist in a vacuum. That healing isn’t neutral—and neither are we.

If we’re going to talk about the “ethics” of discussing politics, let’s ask:

Whose ethics? Who wrote them? And who gets protected by them?

Decolonial practice is not black-and-white—it’s layered, relational, and context-driven.

It invites us to slow down, ask hard questions, and stay in our integrity even when the “rules” fail us or our clients.

So yes—be political.

Be the kind of therapist who notices how the world is impacting you and your clients, who is willing to talk about it, and who stays rooted in care, not just compliance. 💛

Because silence doesn’t make us ethical—it just makes us complicit.

Community Liberation Sessions

If these are the kinds of tensions, questions, dilemmas you’re holding quietly, you don’t have to hold them alone.

Community Liberation Sessions (formerly Decolonized Consultation Sessions) are 50+ minute facilitated affinity gatherings for:

• Asking the questions that don’t feel safe elsewhere (like supervision or peer consultation)
• Naming harm, burnout, and moral tension in our work (without being criticized or cancelled)
• Thinking through real dilemmas inside oppressive systems (and moving towards practice)
• Practicing accountability without shame (and in community)

These sessions are live community consultation spaces designed for clinicians who are actively wrestling with how liberatory care actually unfolds in practice.

💫 It is a facilitated community space.
💫 It is knowledge exchange.
💫 It is practice.

🗓 Upcoming sessions:
​BIPoC clinicians — Mar 18 & Apr 20 (3pm PT / 6pm ET)
White clinicians — Mar 19 & Apr 23 (2pm PT / 5pm ET)

💻 Free to attend. Limited replay available.

Pick the group that fits you:

Unsure which group to join?
​Read more about affinity spaces here​

Or read more about the sessions if it’s your first time joining

Bring your questions. Bring your dilemmas. Bring your contradictions.
We’ll practice together. 💛

With liberatory care,

Silvana

​​Liberatory Letters | The Practice of Liberation | Decolonize Your Practice​

PS. You can read previous Liberatory Letters here.

PPS. The POL goes out next week. Monthly, longer format letters, read about decolonizing the personal and practicing liberation. Each letter includes prompts for reflection, a 10-minute practice to integrate knowledge, a book recommendation.

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⬆️ Let's connect!