Knowledge Share Description

Opium poppies have been at the centre of imperialist and racist drug wars for centuries. Being refined and forced against people across the globe, this plant has largely been stripped of its traditional knowledge and used as a tool of oppression and control. Yet, beyond this exploitation, this plant has been used as a traditional medicine for generations. Further, its medicine is woven into stories of resistance and solidarity across the globe. This knowledge share will explore traditional knowledge around opium poppies rooted in South Asian, North African and West Asian traditions, history of imperialist drug wars, and the use of the plant as a tool of resistance against imperialism, the war on drugs and slavery.

We will explore:

• Participants will walk away with a clear understanding on the energetics, and traditional protocols of opium poppy, including traditional knowledge around opioid withdrawal

• impact of western thought on the plant

• how the plant has supported resistance movements

• how it can continue to support self-determined movements for liberation

Cost

$35 - early bird February 12, 2025

$45 - low income

$65 - standard

$90 - pay-it-forward (if you have financial abundance, this is our pay-it-forward option to fund our full tuition scholarships)

or access this knowledge share via our Living Library

For more information on sliding scale please check out this amazing work!

The zoom link will be sent upon registration. Recording will be available for 30 days.

Please apply here for a scholarship.

Living Library

You can access this knowledge share and all of our 2025 knowledge shares by becoming a member of the Living Library.

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Accessibility Information

Virtual Gathering

*ASR (automated) captioning provided

The knowledge share zoom link will be sent out immediately upon purchase, along with any other necessary information.

Wednesday, March 12, 2025

5:00pm - 7:00pm Eastern Standard Time

Class will be recorded and available for 30 days. This means you can join from anywhere in the world.

Facilitator

Shabina is a mixed Khoja (Muslim Kutchi from Uganda) and French “Canadian” community herbalist, registered acupuncturist and Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner whose work is rooted in the principles of self-determination and liberation. She is the co-director of Seed Soil Spirit, a grassroots Herb school run by and primarily for Black, Indigenous and other racialized peoples, working to uplift traditional Plant knowledge.