NEWS

Connect with SBCAMFT Members in the Forum

Hi everyone,

We’re excited to remind you about the member forum inside our Wix Groups community — a place where SBCAMFT members can ask questions, share ideas, and connect with other members between classes or events.

Think of the forum as a community conversation space where everyone can participate. This is the platform that has replaced the E-tree.

Here’s a quick guide to help you get started.

Where to Find the Forum

The forum lives inside our Wix Groups community area, labeled "Forum". Once you log in to your member account, click on "forum" at the top menu, and you’ll then see the different discussion boards where you can post or respond to conversations.

What You Can Post About

We’ve created a few different boards to help keep conversations organized:

Announcements

Important updates, news, and information from our team.

Referrals

Post here with your referrals and respond to other posts if you would be a good fit. Be sure to include any requirements the client has requested.

Now Hiring

Now hiring associates, staff or licensed clinicians for your practice or agency? Post details and requirements here!

Therapy Groups:

Share upcoming events or connect with others who may want to attend.

Resources:

This is the place to ask for resource recommendations or to share your favorite books, trainings, articles, videos, etc.

Classes and Events:

This forum is for classes and events (not groups) that you or your agency/practice are hosting.

For Sale and Rent:

Post your office rentals or therapy supplies that are for sale here.

SBCAMFT Perks + Discounts

Exclusive discounts for SBCAMFT members from our sponsors and other organizations.

How to Create a Post

Posting in the forum is simple:

Log in to your member account
Go to the Forum at the top header menu
Choose the discussion board (on the righthand side) where your topic fits best
Click Create Post
Add a title and your message, including all necessary details
Click Publish

Your post will appear instantly for other members to read and respond to.

How to Respond to a Post

You can also jump into existing conversations.

To reply:

Open the post you want to respond to
Scroll to the comment section
Type your response
Click Reply

You can also react to posts and comments to keep conversations engaging.

*If you respond to the email notification, your message with go to the board, NOT the person who posted.

Adjusting your Notifications

Customize your Forum (a.k.a. Groups) notifications so you can receive as many or as few emails as you would like (or none at all!). **Attach PDF that Kady created here

Why Use the Forum?

The forum is a great place to:

• Ask questions

• Share ideas

• Connect with other members

• Learn from the community

• Stay updated on discussions and events

We encourage everyone to jump in and start conversations. **The Forum is available to all ACTIVE SBCAMFT members. You can join as many of the groups (or all) as you'd like. If you don't have access, make sure your membership is active and that you are logged in.

Diversity Newsletter: Happy National Women's History Month!

Updated: Mar 4

This March, we reflect on both the progress made and the work that remains regarding women’s rights, explore the rise of fourth-wave feminism, and consider the call to decolonize the movement 💁🏽‍♀️💖

*Photo is of Norma McCorvey, formally known as "Jane Roe", with attorney Gloria Allred, right, in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on April 25, 1989.*

‘Ia orana everyone,

Happy March! March is National Women’s History Month and this Sunday, March 8th, is International Women's Day.

The Origins of National Women’s History Month & International Women's Day

*Photo is of demonstrators holding a rally for women’s suffrage in New York in September 1916.*

National Women’s History Month first began as a demand.

In the United States, women’s rights first started as an official movement in 1848 at the Seneca Falls Convention, which organizers described as "a convention to discuss the social, civil, and religious condition and rights of woman." By the early 1900s, women across the United States and Europe were organizing for safer working conditions, fair wages, and voting rights. In 1908, thousands of women marched in New York City, and the following year, the first National Women’s Day was coordinated by the Socialist Party of America on February 28th.

A few years later, German activist Clara Zetkin proposed Internationaler Frauentag (International Women’s Day), and on March 19th, 1911, over one million working class women gathered to march throughout Europe. March 8th became the official date for International Women’s Day following the “Bread and Peace” strike held by Russian women in 1917, in which their striking for four days resulted in being given the right to vote. However, it took until 1975, during International Women’s Year, when the United Nations formally recognized March 8 as International Women’s Day, shifting it as a date now recognized worldwide. In the U.S., President Jimmy Carter instituted March 2nd-8th Women’s History Week in 1980, which expanded into Women’s History Month in 1987 after congressional action.

*Photo is of a collection of vintage political and activist pins, largely from the women's liberation movement.*

Today, National Women’s History Month can often be associated with appreciation posts, corporate campaigns, and social media graphics. But its roots are grounded in activism through collective action, organization, and political resistance.

In the fight for equal rights, women have successfully demanded for:

Voting rights: the right for full political participation, and the ability to influence laws and policies that shape women’s bodies, labor, families, and futures.
Fair wages and economic independence: access to equal economic opportunities for employment, and to live free from exploitation and dependence on men.
Legal recognition: to be recognized as full legal citizens, such as through owning property, entering contracts, owning a credit card or bank account, and accessing protections under the law.
Safe working conditions: workplaces free from hazardous conditions, exploitation, harassment, and abuse, ensuring dignity and physical safety on the job.

Women continue to demand:

Bodily autonomy: the right to make decisions about one’s own body without coercion, control, or state interference.
- Reproductive rights: the legal and practical ability to access contraception, abortion, and comprehensive reproductive healthcare.
  - Reproductive justice: the freedom to have children, not have children, and to parent in safe, sustainable communities with access, adequate resources, and support.
- Protection from gender-based violence: accountability and cultural change to end domestic violence, sexual assault, trafficking, and other forms of gendered harm.
Equal pay: the demand for equal compensation for equal work, challenging the systemic undervaluing of women’s labor and the persistent wage gap.
Healthcare equity: the right for accessible, affordable, and culturally competent healthcare that addresses women’s physical and mental health without dismissal or bias.
Care-work equity: addressing the disproportionate burden of unpaid labor expected of women in relationships and in families.
Roles in leadership and decision-making: the right to have meaningful representation and power in political, corporate, and community leadership spaces.

🤔 Question: What would you add to these lists?

The Fourth Wave

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBqlDWHkdHk

Video is from the film "Barbie" (2023) of the character Gloria (played by America Ferrera) speaking about "the impossibility of being a woman."

Feminism has played an integral role in women’s history, transcending culture and many global contexts to challenge patriarchal systems and harmful patterns of male dominance. Feminism is a social, political, and cultural movement and framework that is grounded in the belief that all genders deserve equal rights, opportunities, and dignity. In the U.S., the first wave of feminism brought about voting rights, though initially only for white women. The second wave of “women’s liberation” moved alongside the civil rights movement, and steadfastly pushed against the requirement for women to be housewives and mothers. This period resulted in great progress in legal rights for women, such as through the success of Roe vs. Wade. The third wave has focused on freedom of expression, individuality, and intersectionality, with greater focus on the experiences of trans-women and women of color.

Leading supporters of the Equal Rights Amendment march in Washington on Sunday, July 9, 1978, urging Congress to extend the time for ratification of the ERA. From left: Gloria Steinem, Dick Gregory, Betty Friedan, Rep. Elizabeth Holtzman, D-N.Y., Rep. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., Rep. Margaret Heckler, R-Mass.

So far, the debated fourth, and current, wave of feminism has largely been characterized by the influence of social media. The #MeToo movement, founded by Tarana Burke, has not only illuminated the prevalence of sexual violence, but has also allowed for greater exposure and accountability against assault and harassment (example, Harvey Weinstein). Similarly, public scrutiny of the powerful men tied to Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes have intensified conversations about systemic sexual exploitation, institutional complicity, and the ways wealth and influence can shield abuse. Like in the third wave, individuality, authenticity, and intersectionality remain central themes, evident in movements such as body positivity. The challenging of rigid beauty standards, the policing of bodies, and the freedom of gender expression have hugely been shaped and amplified by queer culture.

Yet this progress has not been without resistance, as online spaces have also amplified misogynistic subcultures, such as the “manosphere.” This has been popularized by figures like Andrew Tate and Jordan Peterson, who promote rigid, hyper-masculine ideologies, and frame gender equity as a threat to male power. The term “toxic masculinity” equates manhood with dominance, emotional suppression, aggression, and control, reinforcing harmful expectations that limit men’s emotional wellbeing while contributing to gender inequality and violence. Also, discussions have appeared on “trad wives” who promote a return to romanticized gender roles in which women prioritize homemaking, birthing children, and submission within a heterosexual marriage.

These dynamics, while indicating progress, also underscore that the struggle for true gender equality remains ongoing.

Decolonizing Feminism

“I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.”

— Audre Lorde

The term of "decolonizing feminism" was first proposed by María Lugones, a feminist of Argentine origin living in the U.S. To decolonize feminism and truly approach this ideology from an intersectional lens is to acknowledge that mainstream feminist movements have historically centered Western, white, and middle-class experiences over the experiences, leadership, and knowledge of Indigenous women, women of color, and trans-women. It calls for the complete dismantling not only of patriarchy, but calls for collective liberation from all oppressive systems, and the ways that colonialism, capitalism, classism, and racism intersect with sexism and gender oppression.

It’s also important to acknowledge that the movements for women’s rights and LGBTQIA+ rights have always been deeply interconnected because both challenge rigid systems of gender and power. Efforts to expand women’s rights have historically disrupted patriarchal norms, which are the same norms that police sexuality, enforce heteronormativity, and marginalize queer and trans identities. Progress in one movement has often strengthened the other.

Resources

March is also Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, Gender Equality Month, Greek-American Heritage Month, and Irish-American Heritage Month.

These diversity newsletters are intended as a form of psychoeducation. If you have a correction, question, or would like to expand on anything stated here, please reach out to SBCAMFT Diversity Director, Aute Porter, at diversitydirector@sbcamft.org.

Thank you for reading!

In liberation,

Aute Porter, LMFT #153925

(she/her/'ona)

Director of Diversity, SBCAMFTdiversitydirector@sbcamft.org

@themaohitherapist

Located on the unceded lands of the Chumash-Barbareño people.

Diversity Newsletter: Happy Black History Month!

This February, we honor Black History Month by exploring its origins, overlooked figures, and reflect on Black mental health ✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿

*Photo is of Harriet Tubman, on the far left holding a pan, posing with a group of people whom she helped escape from slavery in the late 19th century.*

‘Ia orana everyone,

I hope you all are having a lovely start to this new year! Is it me, or has it already been a lot?

For the first official Diversity Newsletter of 2026, we are celebrating Black History Month.

Black History Month

*Photo is of civil rights activist and organizer, Amelia Boynton Robinson, after being beaten unconscious by police on "Bloody Sunday" (March 7. 1965) when marching for desegregation in Selma, Alabama.*

Black History Month first originated in 1926, when scholar and pioneer of Black history, Dr. Carter G. Woodson, established Negro History Week after discovering that Black history was systematically suppressed and ignored by academics. Choosing dates in February to coincide with the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln, Negro History Week emphasized the political, cultural, and intellectual contributions of Black Americans. Through consistent advocacy, this week evolved to Black History Month, and was officially recognized in 1976.

The contributions of Black Americans to the United States are immense, playing an important and formative role to our country, while also highlighting our struggle for justice and equality. Through forced labor, enslaved Africans and their descendants generated enormous wealth that fueled American industrialization and capitalism. Through resistance and organizing, Black Americans challenged oppression via abolitionist movements and built independent institutions, such as churches, schools, and mutual aid networks that sustained their communities. In law and politics, Black Americans helped establish the nation’s first multiracial democracy, and, through sustained advocacy, expanded civil and constitutional rights. Culturally, Black creativity has profoundly shaped American life through art, dance, literature, social media, and especially music. And, Black athletes have used sports as one of the few accessible pathways to wealth and representation, breaking records on behalf of the U.S. — even while navigating barriers and unequal recognition.

Click here and here for a list of events taking place in Santa Barbara for Black History Month.

Anti-Blackness: the Root of Racism

*Photo is of a group of Black Panther Party members demonstrate outside a New York City courthouse on April 11, 1969.*

“Anti-Blackness is a global structure of domination that positions Blackness as a threat, a problem, or a deficit.”

Sebastian Jackson, Anthropologist

Anti-Blackness refers to the structural devaluation of those racialized as Black, positioning Blackness as the baseline against which humanity, belonging, and worth are measured, and thus serving as the root of all racism. It has also historically dictated forms of exclusion, containment, surveillance, exploitation, and disposability. Anti-blackness exists across all institutions, with disparities around law and incarceration, healthcare, access to resources, economics, education, and media. I feel it’s important to name here, as it is undeniably a key player to not only understanding oppression and liberation, but also in understanding the experiences of Black and African-Americans, throughout history, up until now.

Further Reading: Recognizing and Understanding Your Anti-Blackness by Dr. Janice Gassam Assare

Zooming In: Hidden Figures

Pauli Murray (1910 - 1985)

Murray was a writer, legal scholar, and Episcopal priest who made huge impacts as an activist on civil rights and gender equality, despite working “behind the scenes.” Before Kimberlée Crenshaw officially defined “intersectionality,” Murray wrote about the interconnection between race and gender discrimination. Thurgood Marshall deemed her book States’ Laws on Race and Color as “the bible” of the civil rights movement, with Murray laying the groundwork for cases such as Brown v. Board of Education. Murray was also a co-founder of the National Organization for Women (NOW), though did not receive credit as such during her lifetime, and influenced many gender discrimination cases for women’s rights.

Murray was mixed-race (Black, Native American, Irish, and white), queer, and struggled with her gender identity, sometimes passing as a teenage boy in her youth. By today’s terms, she likely would identify as gender non-conforming and trans-masc, which unfortunately may be why her innovative work is not more well-known.

Read more about her fascinating life here: The Many Lives of Pauli Murray by Kathryn Schulz

Paul Robeson (1898–1976)

Robeson was a true jack of all trades, excelling as a professional football player, an acclaimed singer and actor in film and on Broadway, and as a scholar. Finding himself playing tokenized, “noble savage” roles on stage, he advocated for global Black liberation and cultural reclamation by bringing the art of Negro spirituals (church music) into his performances. As such, he was the first Black performer to play specific leading roles, such as in Othello. Robeson used his fame and platform to advocate for labor rights and anti-colonial movements.

His outspoken criticism of racism, capitalism, and his refusal to denounce socialism together-led him to being surveilled by the FBI, and blacklisted during the McCarthy Era. Despite being so well-known in his time, even being touted as one of the most famous men alive, his important legacy is virtually unrecognized in the present. His life illustrates how Black radical thought has been systematically suppressed, though also shows the courage in living true to one’s beliefs.

Watch a documentary about his life Paul Robeson: Scandalize My Name produced by Lucasfilm here.

Dr. Mamie Phipps Clark (1917 - 1983)

Clark was a trailblazing social psychologist whose research on child development and racial identity paved the path for desegregating schools. She conducted the Doll Study, which demonstrated how racism and segregation harmed Black children’s sense of worth and self-concept. This research revealed that both Black and white children attributed negative traits to Black dolls, and positive traits of white dolls. This study provided critical evidence in Brown v. Board of Education, and was the first psychological research cited by the Supreme Court, where she served as an expert witness

Alongside her husband, Dr. Kenneth Clark, she co-founded the Northside Center for Child Development in Harlem, which was one of the first institutions to provide culturally responsive mental services to Black folks. Clark adhered to gender expectations of women at the time, and thus often let her husband receive the limelight, despite developing and conducting the bulk of their work together. Read more about Dr. Clark’s life here.

Black history continues, with many individuals actively shaping the political, cultural, and social landscapes today, examples including: Stacey Abrams, who has continued the fight for voting access; Tarana Burke, founder of the #MeToo movement, Ryan Coogler, whose film Sinners recently received a record-breaking 16 Oscar nominations, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, holding a historic appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court, Ta-Nehisi Coates, whose writing has challenged national conversations about race, history, and power; and Colin Kaepernick, whose protest against racial violence sparked a global movement.

Black and African-American Mental Health

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rorgjdvphek

Video is of psychologist Dr. Joy DeGruy discussing her explanatory theory, Post-Traumatic Slave Syndrome, on the intergenerational trauma impacting descendants of enslaved Africans.

Black mental health must be understood within the context of historical trauma, ongoing systemic racism, and unequal access to care. Research consistently shows that Black Americans experience higher rates of psychological distress than white Americans, yet are significantly less likely to receive mental health treatment, and when they do, are more likely to encounter misdiagnosis, involuntary treatment, or culturally incongruent care. Gender also plays a critical role, as Black women report high levels of stress related to caretaking, workplace racism, and gendered racial expectations, while often being socialized to prioritize strength and self-sacrifice over rest and vulnerability. Meanwhile, Black men face disproportionate exposure to racial profiling, criminalization, and violence, contributing to elevated rates of trauma, depression, and suicide, particularly among younger men. Today, many culturally responsive frameworks addressing Black mental health have emerged, such as liberation psychology and Afrocentric approaches. Another example includes Dr. William Smith’s racial battle fatigue, which names the cumulative psychological toll of chronic exposure to racism and microaggressions, resulting in outcomes like high blood pressure and burnout. Post-Traumatic Slave Syndrome, defined by Dr. Joy DeGruy, situates present-day mental health challenges within the intergenerational trauma of enslavement, and the African-diasporic experience.

For generations, Black communities have relied on collective forms of healing through family, spirituality, storytelling, music, activism, and mutual support, often in the absence of accessible or culturally-specific mental health services. This month’s resource list aims to help therapists in increasing their competency in supporting Black and African-American clients.

Resources

Santa Barbara Organizations

Directories

Books

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: America's Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing by Dr. Joy DeGruy
My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies by Dr. Resmaa Menakem
Racial Trauma: Clinical Strategies and Techniques for Healing Invisible Wounds by Dr. Kenneth Hardy
The Pain We Carry: Healing from Complex PTSD for People of Color by Natalie Y. Gutiérrez
Thriving in the Wake of Trauma: A Multicultural Guide by Dr. Thema Bryant
Decolonizing Therapy: Oppression, Historical Trauma, and Politicizing Your Practice by Dr. Jennifer Mullan
My Body is Not an Apology: The Power of Radical Self-Love by Sonya-Renee Taylor
Santa Barbara Public Library Book List

February is also Ethnic Equality Month, in addition to Black History Month, amongst these culturally significant dates:

February 1 – National Freedom Day
February 2 – Imbolc - Wicca/Paganism
February 4 – Rosa Parks Day
February 7 – National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
February 10 – Safer Internet Day
February 11 – International Day of Women & Girls in Science
February 15 – Nirvana Day (Buddhist)
February 15 – International Childhood Cancer Day
February 15 – Maha Shivaratri (Hindu)
February 16 – Family Day (Canada)
February 17 – Chinese New Year (Lunar New Year) - Year of the Horse
February 17 – Mardi Gras
February 17 – Ramadan begins in the evening (Islam)
February 18 – Ash Wednesday
February 20 – World Day of Social Justice

This past weekend, I had the privilege of attending CAMFT’s Leadership Conference where numerous discussions on issues of diversity took place. At one such discussion, a Black therapist and attendee said aloud, “I never expected to be living in a civil rights movement. ” Given the numerous injustices taking place at this moment in time, I felt this was such a poignant reminder of our current climate, and of what many are feeling. Reflecting on these important aspects of our country's history this month is an opportune time to see tangible examples of hope, courage, resistance, change, and justice.

These diversity newsletters are intended as a form of psychoeducation. Underlined texts are hyperlinks. If you have a correction, question, or would like to expand on anything stated here, please reach out to SBCAMFT Diversity Director, Aute Porter, at diversitydirector@sbcamft.org.

Thank you for reading!

In liberation,

Aute Porter, MMFT, LMFT #153925

(she/her/'ona)

Diversity Director, Santa Barbara Chapter of CAMFT

diversitydirector@sbcamft.org

@themaohitherapist

Located on the unceded lands of the Chumash-Barbareño people.