I try to keep the content that I create here strictly about massage therapy, but in the week that has followed the 2024 General Election, I can no longer allow for my platform to remain complicit or apolitical.
Because here's the thing, massage therapy (and in a broader sense, caring for others) and education (two things I try to accomplish in this space) are both highly political acts.
In the last week, I think the most disturbing reaction (for me anyway) has been the rise of this "your body, my choice" mentality and memes.
What a disgusting thing to say.
What a disgusting thing to think.
What a disgusting legacy for a president to leave behind.
And I'm sure some will say that the president elect didn't use those words, but the fact of the matter is, actually- he has!
Whether it's the Access Hollywood tape or the promise made/promise kept of overturning Roe V. Wade, the president elect may not have used the exact words "your body, my choice"- but the message has always been clear; that women's bodies do and should remain under the power and control of men.
Let me be perfectly clear;
When you are around me, and especially on my massage table,
It's Your Body, Your Choice!
Regardless of sex, gender, or other demographics.
Any massage therapist that would take the opposite view is missing a fundamental understanding of what client-centered care and bodily autonomy is all about.
I fear there are dark days ahead for the United States of America. A fear that appears to be proven well founded with each passing day and as these presidential/cabinet nominees are rolled out.
I believe the path forward involves pushing back harder and insisting ever more forcefully on our true democratic and American values.
None of this is normal.
1) Don't get complacent.
2) Stand up for our true values.
3) Call out the lies and the hate!
Accompanying vlog: https://www.tiktok.com/@kirbyclarkellis.mti/video/7437350770929929518?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7356954434540471851
Peace and Healing,
Kirby Clark Ellis, MTI, BCTMB
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