Transcription
[Music] My parents had an arranged marriage, and they moved to the U.S. in the late 60s, landed up in Indiana of all places. We were the only Korean family in town. I've always been deeply involved in racial and social justice. In tandem with that, I was deepening my own practice as a Buddhist and trying to understand healing and being happy. And so I ended up following that calling, that led to being a therapist.
I identify as a Black Dominican woman, which means I'm Dominican American, have African ancestry. I grew up in Washington Heights. I've always kind of wanted to be a therapist. Being a person from a marginalized community, it's very easy to mute certain parts of you, and I find that they're the parts that are really special that make you you.
I'm originally from Colombia, South America, and immigrated to the United States when I was 7. I grew up in Paterson, New Jersey, with my mom; she was a single mother. I thought I was gonna be a doctor, run into it. I wanted to be a biologist growing up, but pre-med, medical school—it was limiting. I wanted to help people more. Unless the Glee, I wanted to help people more, and someone be—I see people look like my mother and I and and occur relate to her stories.
I grew up in a family of clergy; my great-grandmother—all ordained deacons. And the work that I've done in Paris—told care—there's always a need for someone who can show up as their authentic selves and really walk with someone on their journey. I wouldn't be a therapist if I didn't have the sort of faith that teaches me to recognize my gifts and to use them to help others.
When I got to graduate school, I told them I, you know, I really, I'm really here because I want to study family therapy. I want to be a family therapist. And the first thing that came to their mouth was, "If you want to be a Family Therapist, Ackerman yes, it was the place for you." To be a social working diversity program gave me the tools in a language to be able to like really use my own identity, my own experiences. The mentorship that I have received—Ackerman has been so amazing. Laurie Incipo are my spiritual family therapy parents. I really found my voice through them. It's highly on might be that you have access to a training institute while your son in graduate school. For me, I think that that spoke to the Institute's commitment to diversity and commitments are really expanding what family therapists look like. To have a team of therapists of color to support each other and to work together—there's the thing that you know you can't help other people in their darkness if you haven't worked through your own. And I think that that's really special—to be able to hold space for other folks because someone else has been able to do that for you.
I have been able to bring in parts of my own identity, some of the shared experiences that I had with the client. We need more family therapists of color. We need more people who have diverse experiences in the diverse background, but we're trying to fill that hole, we're trying to fill the gap—a personal mission, if you will. It's a really increase accessibility to mental health services to marginalized communities. Therapy is important to me because we all need to be held and listened to and understood. I think everyone has something to offer, everyone has something to give, and everyone has a worry or a hope for—for a family member. And to see the families and the lives that are being touched by this work is incredible.
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