Ep 4: With Love, in our Shared Struggle, with Michelle Courtney Berry

With Love, in our shared struggle: a
conversation with Michelle Courtney Berry, an
Ithaca based African American coach, businesswoman, and a
formidable speaker and activist. We talk about activism while
sheltering in place,  and self-care challenges, especially
when doing anti-racist work. Then we get on our soapbox about the
problems caused by the pressure to be “super mother” and how the
mythology of the strong black superwoman affected her personal
and professional life. We talk about how the discomfort of white
women can be lethal to black men and women, and Michelle tells us
the heartbreaking story of how racism lead to the stealing of an
entire lake. 


Michelle Courtney Berry is certified NLP Master Coach and
Practitioner for Health and Wellness as well as an author,
speaker, trainer, actor, performing artist, playwright, poet,
humorist, and nature lover who helps improve the quality of
people’s lives by helping them manage stress, time, conflict, and
competing priorities. Michelle is a former Alternate Acting Mayor
and Alderperson for the City of Ithaca, a former White House TV
reporter, and she's is a 2x TEDx and SXSW speaker who has opened
for Maya Angelou and the Dalai Lama. She holds a graduate degree
in Organizational Behavior and Risk Communication from Cornell
University. She is the Founder and CEO of her consulting
company Courtney Consulting Enterprises, LLC.


Visit Michelle's website here:
https://www.michellecourtneyberry.com/
Subscribe to her excellent blog:
https://www.michellecourtneyberry.com/blog


Watch Michelle's Facebook live video chat every Thursday:
https://www.facebook.com/michelle.berry/videos/vb.805244867/10158312892684868/?type=3


Michelle has been donating her services to our community for
years, and since the beginning of the pandemic, she’s increased
her support to individuals in need and the entire community via
Mutual Aid Tompkins. We encourage you to support her work with
your donations on Venmo @Michelle-Berry-32


The documentary about the story of Luxton Lake mentioned in the
episode can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/fsG4YKsGpcE 


- - -
This podcast is hosted by Yael Daphna Saar, founder of Mama's
Comfort Camp.


Mothers of all ages and stages are welcome to join the Mama's
Comfort Camp safe-space forums here:
www.facebook.com/groups/mamas.comfort.camp/


Mother Up! and Mama's Comfort Camp are projects of the Center for
Transformative Action, a Cornell University affiliate.
www.centerfortransformativeaction.org


Our theme song: is “We are the Answer" by Grey
Gary, you can find more of their terrific music at
www.greygary.com


Visit us at www.MotherUp.org. Much love, hugs all around.