'Is this resistance through yoga? Or is it healing?'

Following weeks of protests in Philadelphia against police brutality and oppression, Sudan Green created Spirits Up! to bring healing to frontline protesters through yoga, meditation, arts and speakers. The six day series took place at historical locations across the city, culminating in Malcolm X Park in West Philadelphia on Juneteenth, which commemorates the emancipation of those who had been enslaved in the United States. Organizers of Spirits Up! provided free yoga and mats to participants. In an effort to offer a safe space for healing from racial trauma, organizers are raising money to open an all black yoga and wellness studio, as well as a scholarship for yoga teacher training.