From Poison to Power

What would your community be without the weight of unresolved harm?

A 6-week series on community, conflict, and accountability | Sundays, Feb 14–March 21, 2027 | 12:00–1:30pm ET | Online

We all have access to something powerful — in ourselves, in our communities, in our shared practices. But conflict eats it. Harm fractures it. Unresolved tension drains people until they leave, go quiet, or burn out.

This course is about reclaiming what's ours. We'll look honestly at the ways power gets poisoned inside our own communities — and we'll build practices for addressing it. Not to avoid hard things, but to move through them without losing each other.

This includes guest speakers who are doing this work in real contexts, in real communities.

This is for activists, practitioners, and community builders who know that the internal work of a group is just as important as the external work — and who are ready to take it seriously.

What's included

• Live weekly sessions on Zoom, including guest speakers

• Access to all 6 sessions with a single registration

• Session recordings shared after each class

• Space for reflection, grounding, and real conversation

Live attendance is welcome but not required.

Schedule (all times Eastern)

• Sunday, February 14, 2027 — 12:00–1:30pm ET

• Sunday, February 21, 2027 — 12:00–1:30pm ET

• Sunday, February 28, 2027 — 12:00–1:30pm ET

• Sunday, March 7, 2027 — 12:00–1:30pm ET

• Sunday, March 14, 2027 — 12:00–1:30pm ET

• Sunday, March 21, 2027 — 12:00–1:30pm ET

Pricing

Registration covers the full 6-week series. Sliding scale: $300–$500. Please pay what feels generous but not painful to you right now. Donating any amount truly helps keep this work going.

5 pay-what-you-can spots available — first come, first served.

We take care of each other.

Week-by-week roadmap

• Week 1: Introduction — Creating Safety in Groups. What safety actually requires. Why it's a practice, not a given.

• Week 2: Creating Interior Refuge. Building an inner ground stable enough to stay present when things get hard.

• Week 3: The Practice of Self-Inquiry. Turning toward ourselves honestly — without self-punishment.

• Week 4: Practices for Addressing Conflict and Interrupting Harm (Part 1). Tools for naming what's happening and beginning to move through it.

• Week 5: Practices for Addressing Conflict and Interrupting Harm (Part 2). Deepening the practice. What repair actually looks like.

• Week 6: Course Conclusion — Structures of Accountability. How to build systems within communities that hold people without destroying them.

About your teachers

I (Rima) am the Founding Director of the Initiative for Black Buddhist Studies and a Research Fellow at the Institute of Buddhist Studies. I am the author of The Fire Inside: The Dharma of James Baldwin and Audre Lorde (North Atlantic Books, 2026), among two other books. A twice-awarded Fulbright Scholar, I have spent my career bringing together Black radical thought, contemplative practice, and the wisdom of ancestors — and making it accessible beyond the walls of academia.

I (Rashid) am an intersectional-contemplative teacher and restorative justice facilitator. My practice involves actively envisioning a transformed world where everyone can exist free from the pain reinforced by systems of othering, domination, and disembodiment. By utilizing various contemplative practices and healing-centered ways of knowing, I assist individuals in rediscovering belonging and meaning within the unique expressiveness of their individual embodiment. 

What people say

"I first came to know Dr. Rima’s teaching style through a class on race, gender, and sexuality in Buddhism. I was blown away in the first session by her intentionality and inclusiveness. I had never experienced a non-trans practitioner thinking so much about the experiences of trans Buddhists, let alone going out of their way to find relevant readings and resources. Alongside this, her embodied presence, attuned listening, and thoughtful reflections made it into a space where others felt safe to share vulnerably. I have since experienced this same magic in all the other forms her work has taken. She is brilliant in her knowledge, but beyond this, when she doesn’t know something, she goes out of her way to learn and deeply contemplate. She has taught me so much about presence, generosity and relationality." — Ollie, student