Yoga Equity Training
“Create intelligence in yourself in order to create proper understanding in the students for them to develop intelligence. To become a teacher, become a learner first.”
—B.K.S. Iyengar, Geeta Iyengar, Basic Guidelines for Teachers of Yoga
What is Yoga Equity Training?
Teachers carry the art and science of Iyengar Yoga in themselves as they bring those teachings to their students and the world. Just as we have to clear the lens of the consciousness through our yoga practice and study to see the self within, we have to clean the vessel in which we carry the teachings of yoga to others.
Racism and discrimination are part of US culture. Unexamined conscious and unconscious negative attitudes exist within us, even alongside and despite our best intentions. They affect our behavior and the quality of our connections with other people. Please investigate these resources to guide you in your active work to understand and transform the explicit and implicit biases that affect your life, your students’ lives, and your teaching.
These resources are offered in no particular order, and this list is not comprehensive. The list will be updated from time to time, so we encourage you to check back regularly.
Yoga Equity Teaching Resources
6 Ways to Avoid Ableism in Yoga Classes (ARTICLE / BLOG) — Jivana Heyman, August 2020.
A Moment in Time (ARTICLE / BLOG) — Yoga Samachar, IYNAUS Outreach Committee, August 2020.
Accessible Yoga Training (COURSE / TRAINING) — Accessible Yoga Training School.
Courses and action on accessibility and equity in yoga.
Black History & Yoga (ARTICLE / BLOG) — Deidra Demens.
Essays on Race (ARTICLE / BLOG) — Iyengar Yoga with Gwi-Seok.
Essays on Ableism (ARTICLE / BLOG) — Iyengar Yoga with Gwi-Seok.
Healing Justice Principles (GUIDE / READING LIST) — Iyengar Yoga Detroit Collective.
How racial bias works -- and how to disrupt it (VIDEO 14:17) — Jennifer Eberhardt, June 2020.
Jaki Nett Interview (VIDEO 50:57) — Iyengar Yoga Association of Greater New York.
Full Interview with Jaki Nett, Senior Iyengar Yoga Teacher, by Kevin Allen and Deidra Demens for Black History Month.
Restorative Yoga for Ethnic and Race-Based Stress and Trauma (BOOK) — Gail Parker, Ph.D., 2020.
Skill In Action: Radicalizing Your Yoga to Create A Just World (BOOK) — Michelle Cassandra Johnson, 2020.
The cover shoot that brought me face to face with racism in the wellness industry (ARTICLE / BLOG) — Nicole Cardoza
Treating Racial Wounding with Yoga (VIDEO) — Gail Parker, Ph.D.
What is "Brown and Black Yoga" Anyway? (ARTICLE / BLOG) — Iyengar Yoga Detroit Collective: Nurturing Community!
Why Wellness Pros Need to Be Part of the Conversation About Racism (ARTICLE BLOG) — Chrissy King.
Yoga is Dead (PODCAST) — Tejal Patel and Jesal Parikh.
Critical conversations elevating oppressed voices and exposing problems felt by anyone who isn’t in the yoga industry “in” crowd.
Yoga, Race, and Culture (ARTICLE / BLOG) — Dianne Bondy - Yoga International
Yoga Equity Training
Social Injustice in the Body (VIDEO 2:09:04) — IYNAUS Outreach Committee Yoga and Equity Symposium. Chevara Orrin and Marla Apt discuss unhealed race-based trauma compared to trauma caused by systems of oppression and exclusion, practicing non-violence, and creating a supportive, safe yoga environment, March 2020.
The Legacy of Racism and the Ethics of Yoga (VIDEO 1:59:21) — IYNAUS Outreach Committee Yoga and Equity Symposium.
Dr. Andrea Benjamin, Dr. Ann Ostendorf, and Jarvis Chen, ScD, discuss the history of racism and how its legacy affects all of our lives.
Access and Inclusion (VIDEO 1:25:22) — IYNAUS Outreach Committee Yoga and Equity Symposium.
Cohosted by Brittany Harris and Betsy Silva, this session features Iyengar community members speaking about their experiences regarding race, equity, and inclusivity, as well as discussions on making Iyengar Yoga more accessible and giving underrepresented practitioners a stronger voice.
Yoga Hierarchies, Power and Equity (VIDEO 1:56:33) — IYNAUS DEIJ Yoga and Equity presents Yoga Hierarchies, Power and Equity.
In this session, CIYTs Hong Gwi-Seok and John Schumacher discuss a brief history of B.K.S. Iyengar, the development of Iyengar Yoga in the context of colonialism, and how we’ve inherited the concept of the guru in the West. CIYT Lisa Jo Landsberg facilitates a discussion about how we, as contemporary practitioners, support an equitable and inclusive tradition. May 15, 2021.
A Candid Conversation with Mychal Bryan (VIDEO 2:05:27) — IYNAUS DEIJ Yoga and Equity presents A Candid Conversation with Mychal Bryan.
In our final session in the 2020–2021 Yoga and Equity Series, we invited all practitioners to join DEIJ Committee members, past speakers, and volunteers in a community dialogue about moving from listening and learning to implement change in practice. Mychal A. Bryan, CIYT, facilitated sharing ideas and posed questions to challenge and elevate our practice as an Iyengar community. July 24, 2021
Yoga and Equity In Action: Iyengar Yoga in Prison (VIDEO 1:56:57) — The IYNAUS Yoga Equity Committee presents Yoga and Equity In Action: Iyengar Yoga in Prison.
A facilitated conversation about teaching Iyengar Yoga within the criminal/legal system. This event featured the experiences of teachers already teaching in these settings and an open discussion to explore ways IYNAUS can help support and connect those doing this work and how IYNAUS might be able to guide those interested in getting started. April 24, 2022.
Forging Connections: Lessons from the Second Tuesday Race Forum of Denver (VIDEO 1:57:09) — The IYNAUS Yoga Equity Committee presents Forging Connections: Lessons from the Second Tuesday Race Forum of Denver.
We heard from Harold Fields and Dena Samuels during this event, who co-facilitated the Second Tuesday Race Forum in Denver. This racial healing discussion group ran for over two decades. They shared their experiences leading the group and lessons for individuals and organizations. The event included an interview with the speakers, small break-out group discussions, and a Q+A session. October 15, 2022.
Embracing Yoga’s Roots with Susanna Barkataki (VIDEO 2:42:23) — The IYNAUS Yoga Equity Committee presents Embracing Yoga’s Roots with Susanna Barkataki.
We welcomed Susanna for this special session of the Yoga and Equity Symposium: “Embracing Yoga’s Roots,” a workshop based on the framework presented in her book, Embrace Yoga’s Roots, Courageous Ways to Deepen Your Yoga Practice. Susanna Barkataki brought subject-matter expertise, passion, and yoga classroom experience. November 12, 2022.
The Power of the Collective Listening Ear with Aaron Johnson (VIDEO 1:04:17) — The IYNAUS Yoga Equity Committee presents The Power of the Collective Listening Ear with Aaron Johnson.
We welcomed Aaron at the IYNAUS Convention 2023—Sankalpa. Aaron Johnson is a facilitator, public speaker, and touch activist. He is a co-founder of Holistic Resistance and Grief to Action and the creator of the Chronically UnderTouched Project. May 16, 2023.
Making Iyengar Yoga More Welcoming and Inclusive with Ryan McGraw and Matthew Sanford (VIDEO 1:38:17) — The IYNAUS Yoga Equity Committee presents Making Iyengar Yoga More Welcoming and Inclusive with Ryan McGraw and Matthew Sanford.
Ryan McGraw and Matthew Sanford shared their firsthand experience with disabilities and being Iyengar Yoga students. They offered insights for making yoga studios and classes more welcoming to students of all levels of abilities. January 27, 2024.
In Conversation with Linda Villarosa, author of “Under the Skin: The Hidden Toll of Racism on Health in America.” (VIDEO 1:24:14) — The IYNAUS Yoga Equity Committee presents Linda Villarosa, author of “Under the Skin: The Hidden Toll of Racism on Health in America.”
Linda Villarosa describes the new understanding that coping with the daily scourge of racism ages Black people prematurely. This is critical reading for anyone in healing occupations. March 2, 2024.