Yes, we do adopt!

This episode Malaika is joined by Natalie Thoreson. Natalie is inVision Consulting's sole proprietor and primary consultant. Natalie has designed and facilitated social justice, anti-oppression, and liberation workshops for over 15 years. Natalie organically nurtures a sense of community with her unrivaled skills in shaping safe, welcoming, creative, and productive spaces based on understanding, respect, and authentic support. Natalie provides tools to allow participants to think critically about their own backgrounds and biases, while simultaneously dissecting concepts like oppression, prejudice, and stereotyping.

In this episode Malaika and Natalie explore themes of race, allyship and affinity spaces.

In this episode Malaika is joined by Robin Joy Park. Robin is a queer ,transracial Korean adoptee. Robin's participation and post-adoption services, (including teen groups), mentor and mentee programs. living abroad in Korea, navigating birth family search and reunion and DNA testing have all deeply influenced and informed much of her professional perspectives.Robin works in various in-home and  residential therapeutic settings. Robin is a clinician at the center for connection and lead support groups for parents and caregivers at five acres.

In this episode, some of the topics that Robin and Malaika cover are: play therapy as an opportunity for connection and care, helping  kiddos with transitions and the concept of ambiguous loss.

In this episode Malaika welcomes Angela Gee. Angela is an adult adoptee and adoptive parent and a marriage, family, and child therapist who works to hold space for adoptees and their families. In this episode,  Malaika and Angela discuss the importance of creating safe spaces for adoptees to build community and ways that we can show up in support of our kiddos. 

In this episode Malaika welcomes Jamie Nunez. Jamie is the Bay Area Regional Manager for Common Sense Media. Through his work Jaime supports school districts, educators, and parents in their efforts to implement digital wellness initiatives. Jaime offers parents  helpful strategies for navigating media wellness. Together Malaika and Jamie talk about creating boundaries for safety and well being while also using media and technology as an opportunity for connection.  

This episode Malaika welcomes  Kate Goka an educator,  brilliant creative, and an adoptive parent parenting across racial lines.  Kate joins Malaika to talk about her experiences as an Asian-American parent parenting who is parenting Asian,  Black and Latinx children. Together Malaika and Kate explore themes of  bridging cultural differences within  families, making space for connections and claiming our space for learning. 

Welcome to the 3rd season of Yes, we do adopt! 

For the season 2 finale Malaika is joined by Dr. Sam Coleman, Dr. Christine Beilard, Sandria Washington, Satcey Gatlin and Nefertiti Austin of the Black Adoption Collection, a group that is working to represent Black members of the adoption constellation. In November, they worked to highlight black voices during National Adoption Awareness Month, through their initiative Black November.

This conversation features themes of:  adoptees having access to their stories, adoptive parents dealing with their feelings and emotions about connection and contact., as well as raising awareness about Black adoption.

This episode Malaika is joined by  Maya Mosely- Katakanga and Michlene Kali.  Maya and Michlene are both mamas and veteran homeschoolers.  Maya and Michlene generously share their perspectives and brilliance around supporting their children and children around them in honoring their unique learning path. This conversation is a timely conversation for many families who are working to support  their children who learning remotely. 

This episode Malaika welcomes Ijeoma Ononuju. Ijeoma is  a professor, a scholar and racial justice advocate in schools. Together Malaika and Ijeoma reflect on I schools, race and parenting through a global pandemic. 

This episode  Malaika is joined by  Sean Sparks. Sean is a therapist, a program coordinator with the Children's Bureau and a staunch advocate for the health and wellbeing of children, especially those who joined their family through adoption and foster care. In this conversation, Sean and Malaika reflect on  the impact COVID 19 is having on families,   the global racial uprisings, the movement to defund the police and the disparities in allocation of resources for families.

For the first episode in season two Malaika talks with Carlos Windham. Carlos is a performer, a comedian,  a musician, a writer and the principal and founder of El Porvenir Services  LLC. Through their work with El Porvenir Services LLC , Carlos is creating change within organizations and systems to center the voices of those most impacted by white supremacy. Additionally, Carlos has been a guest speaker at Pact camp West and has  written an article for Pacts Point of View, which laid out ways that we can think about and unpack our understanding of white supremacy. In this conversation, Carlos and Malaika talk about parenting through a pandemic and global uprising, as well as how through it all we can be supporting our resident leaders [otherwise known as our kiddos] find their way  towards joy and liberation

Welcome back to season two. Our second season was recorded in the spring and summer of 2020.  Right in the middle of a global pandemic,  racial uprisings,  here in California wildfire season and to top it all off or waiting for a national election that will have deep, deep impacts on the direction of this country. We decided that it was only fitting to focus this season on black voices. Throughout the season, we explore topics of activism. homeschooling,  educating black children,  child welfare reform,  global uprisings and how families are managing resistance. and self-preservation.  

Susan Dusza Guerra Leksander, LMFT Adoption Agency Supervisor and First/Birth Family Specialist at Pact, an adoption specialist talks about working with expectant parents  who are considering placement. In this episode Susan gives us a snap shot of how her work is moving the field of adoption toward one that acknowledges and respects the humanity of expectant families and first/birth families. 

Malaika Parker is joined by Nefertiti Austin, author of  Motherhood So White: A Memoir of Race, Gender, and Parenting in America. Malaika and Nefertiti explore the world of adoption, motherhood and carving out space in White narrative of parenting for our stories to shine. 

Katie Wynen, adoption specialist with Pact, an adoption alliance talks child centered adoption, supporting same race placement AND challenging the adoption industry.