We recently connected with Shawnee Benton Gibson and have shared our conversation below.
Shawnee, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Was there a moment in your career that meaningfully altered your trajectory? If so, we’d love to hear the backstory.
Sadly, the defining moment in my professional career was activated by the death of my eldest daughter, Shamony Makeba Gibson. Shamony was 30 years old and the mother of two children when she passed away 13 days after giving birth to my grandson. She died in the prime of her life and her cause of death was connected to the work that I had been doing for over 10 years before she passed away. Shamony died due to a birth related pulmonary embolism. She was the victim of maternal mortality which is a major crisis in reproductive health that is taking the lives of black women and birthing people in the US at three times the rate of their white counter parts. Her death shook me to the core. I could hardly rap my brain around the fact that my daughter died from the very thing that I had been teaching, coaching and speaking about for a decade. Her death was a confirmation that no matter how much you know, if you are black or brown person in this country, you can still succumb to the crisis in maternal health if the systems and the people in them do not change. Shamony’s death amplified my work and gave me the additional FIRE to increase my work as an activist, advocate and trainer in the realm of reproductive justice
Shawnee, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I am a licensed master social work with over 33 years in the field of social services. I am the CEO of Spirit of A Woman (S.O.W.) Leadership Development Institute and the Co-Founder of the ARIAH Foundation. I entered the field when I was in my early twenties and fell in love with the people, communities and cultures that I was privileged to work with. I have administrative, clinical and executive coaching experience and expertise in women’s leadership, youth development, reproductive justice, racial equity, individual, couples, family and group counseling, trauma and bereavement. These skills, combined with my spiritual and artistic gifts, allow me to guide individuals as they navigate the various stages and phases of their lives. I employ a holistic, cultural and spiritual approach to my work and utilize a social justice lens as a foundational principle for my service to community. My primary healing tools consist of spiritual counseling, vision coaching, psychodrama, sociometry, sacred rituals, energy work, the performing arts and storytelling as mediums to ignite transformation and initiate catharsis.
I am the co-artistic director of a professional improvisational theater company called Big Apple Playback Theatre. I am actor, singer, playwright, poet, spoken word artist, author, producer and director that infuses art into my coaching, counseling and leadership development work. I am also one of the subjects of the Peabody award winning and Emmy nominated documentary “Aftershock”. The film follows me and my family as we fight for reproductive justice in the wake of the tragic and preventable death of my eldest daughter, Shamony Makeba Gibson, who passed away in October 2019 due to a birth related pulmonary embolism.
I believe that “activism is a labor of love and liberation”
Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?
While I have a high regard for social worker and psychotherapy as a profession, I am very clear about the fact that my intellect “alone” was not the catalyst for my success in the field. What has been most helpful in my growth, development and effectiveness as a community healer and leader is my belief in the power of holistic learning. Education with a holistic perspective is concerned with the development of a person’s intellectual, emotional, social, physical, artistic, creative and spiritual potentials. It encourages personal and collective responsibility. It requires that the person bring their WHOLE SELF to the learning environment. The fact that I bring ALL of my intelligences to every space that I am in, has allowed me to be fully grounded, present, open, malleable and porous. I am teachable and my teachers come from every walk of life. I view my interactions with clients as sacred partnerships where I can experience reciprocity and can discover deeper parts of myself. Thinking this way has opened so many pathways and possibilities in my life.
How do you keep your team’s morale high?
The advice that I would give to leaders who are privileged to manage a team is to remember to “partner WITH power” and not to OVERpower. It is important for managers to co-create a work environment with their team members where equity and inclusion are at the center of the work. The leader must be intentional about mobilizing the collective knowledge, skills, resources and networks of the team members (the collective). They must view every member as a co-leader and acknowledge and honor their intersecting identities. The more diverse a team is, the more opportunity there is to innovate and develop creative and effective strategies that will increase productivity and boost morale. Adopting a culturally responsive framework can produce meaningful and sustainable outcomes for individuals and teams. A multifaceted, collaborative and inclusive strategy will open the gateway to creating a work culture where employees feel respected, included and valued. Recognizing the “whole person” rather than only focusing on the parts that meet the organizations “bottomline’ will transform mindsets, increase employee retention and improve the overall health, wellbeing and quality of life of the members.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.spiritofawoman.org
- Instagram: @shawneethehealer
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shawneebg
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawnee-benton-sow/
- Other: Wake Up Everybody Virtual Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/249571992764442 The ARIAH Foundation: www.theariahfoundation.org
Image Credits
Essence Festival – Getty Images / Credit: Paras Griffin March on Washington August 2022 – Getty Images / Credit: Jacquelyn Martin Aftershock Red Carpet Event July 2022 – Alamy Images / Credit: Alamy Stock Photos