Dr. thOTs Dr. thOTs

Ryan and Khalilah get into a hairy situation, cutting it up about body hair, grooming, and all things structural stigma. They talk Crown Act buzz and bush commercials, shame and discrimination, gender and personal boundaries - a true salon of ideas. This episode is definitely not a wash - at least not with shampoo. Highlights include: Ryan growing trees under his arms, Khalilah calling for waxing at her wedding, and an occupational werewolf being born.

We got students in the house! Khalilah and Ryan are joined by Jaime Leitre Jr. and Rebecca Parkin for a lively discussion about publication, studenthood, and the structures of power in the process. Becky has recently published a critique of whiteness in the science in JOS and Jaime on dissident genders and sexualities in AJOT. They give us all the tea on publishing challenging and disruptive content as students. Highlights include: Jaime being a bear, Becky giving a great plug, and the hosts being proud thOT mentors.

Khalilah and Ryan warmly welcome Dr. LaRhonda Manigault-Bryant - to the podcast but also to Carolina! After a delightfully contentious conversation about shades of blue, the three docs get into it about Black women in media, in church, and in big bodies. The three discuss the narratives of Black women, the power of documentary for dissemination, and the work that still needs to be done in representation. Highlights include: Ryan bringing the ice to the cookout, Khalilah finding the thigh gap, and Rhon finding God's blue.

Ryan and Khalilah, representing no organizations or institutions they are affiliated with, recorded this episode as a special conversation about student movements given the current situation within the US and global context. In the episode, they discuss there own experiences as faculty, student activists, and ongoing supporters of students' right to protest. They emphasize the importance of critical interrogation of media and narratives while at the same time historicizing student movements in a US context. They discuss the sometimes necessary reality of challenging governments, policies, and state sanctioned actions and strategies for keeping students, campuses, and faculty safe while acknowleding the need for difficult and uncomfortable conversations. There are no highlights because it is all a necessary conversation.

Your girl Dr. Khalilah Johnson and colleagues wrote a whole paper about the State of the Science when it comes to DEIJAB in occupational therapy in the United States. The thOTs talk the limits of DEI and how it sits with decoloniality, and decolonization. Khalilah discusses why she thinks Black women are leading these risky efforts and why DEI often focuses on race.
Highlights include: The first ever Dr. thOTs blooper that you get to hear and a white man standing in front of a Black woman asking her about DEI.

The Dr. thOTs duo welcome Whitney Harris to the podcast this week to talk everything leadership, inclusion, and identity. Whitney discusses how she got involved with COTAD National Leadership and what drives her forward in the work, particularly from her experience as a mixed race practitioner. The thOTs discuss the ways leading can look differently and finding your own way in the work. Highlights include: Ryan creating a new "academic uncle role", Khalilah getting into her DNA, and Whitney doing it anyway!