For this Halloween episode, “co-ghosts” Amber and Will are in costume as Wonder Woman and Superman, two characters known for embodying truth and justice! To open, Will shares his love of “dark joy”–à la the Addams family–which includes things such skull art and goth aesthetics. Amber’s joy is some of her “Forty Before Forty” activities (which, admittedly, have turned into a “Fifty Before Fifty”) including doing to a UFO convention and a haunted tunnel tour of Portland! They discuss bias and exclusion in schools for the main topic; touching on what gets taught versus banned, racial biases in discipline, adultification, police in schools, school-to-prison pipelines, standardized testing, achievement gaps, language assimilation, and more. During Story Time, Amber shares a story about a student who was penalized for their accent–not great, particularly since there are ways in which “accents” can be accommodated–and a story about a task force that created guidelines to help reduce bias and colonization in education. The question is about how “anger” and “disgust” are common reactions to bias and prejudice; is one more “useful” as a reaction? A great discussion ensues! (Spoiler alert, anger tends to be less helpful in actually resolving anything.) This episode’s Bias Habit-Breaking Skill is Speaking Up, with guidelines for how to address both intent and impact and how to speak up for other people’s slip-ups versus your own slip-ups. (Allies have particular power when speaking up for others.) To close out the episode, Amber’s joyful recommendation is the fun, smart, charming show Abbott Elementary! If you’re unfamiliar, Abbott is a sitcom focused on faculty and staff working at a K-8 school in Philadelphia (with some fun, recurring student characters); the setting naturally allows for great diversity in the cast, and though it’s a comedy, the show frequently tackles topics that real teachers have to deal with, and highlights the difficulties facing educators, while still being thoroughly entertaining.

Dr. Cox’s book is available now! The publisher is University of California Press, and the full title is Overcoming Bias Habits: An Evidence-Based Guide to Creating a Joyfully Inclusive World.

Check your small local bookstores!

From Amazon: https://a.co/d/iwnakbM

From Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/overcoming-bias-habits-william-t-l-cox-phd/1148276458?ean=9780520410428

We now have merch! Buy some to support the show at https://www.biashabit.com/store

Follow Diverse Joy on social media, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, Threads, and Bluesky.

We invite guest Mark Hayward, a highly accomplished international performer with multiple world titles and world records, to talk about bias and inclusion in circus and variety arts. (Spoiler alert: It might sound oddly specific, but the stuff we talk about is entirely generalizable). For this episode, Mark’s joy is the sense of community he gets from spending time with fellow jugglers, performing artists, and circus folks. Amber’s joy is her project watching all the Disney animated feature films (an idea she got from producer Eric Roman)! And Will shares about his husband Eric Roman’s amazing baking, which you can check out on Instagram @SuperGayBakes. For the main discussion, Mark talks about inclusion and bias in the past and present of circus and variety arts. The world of the circus has an interesting and rich, but complex, relationship with diversity. On the negative side, of course sometimes circuses used differences to make spectacle (e.g., “freak shows”). On the more positive side, the circus was often a place where people of color, LGBTQ+ folks, and disabled folks could make a living and find a sense of community, in times when traditional financial opportunities were often closed to them. We also discuss how activities like juggling and yo-yo are forms of play that can contribute positively to mental health. During Story Time, Mark shares a story related gender and belonging/inclusion in competitive environments, and a story related to being receptive when someone pointed out a misuse of power during a performance. This episode’s question is about how changing social norms related to inclusion, has played out when working in performance arts, and the importance of knowing how to grow and change with the times. This episodes bias habit-breaking skill is to Think Ahead. We’re less likely to show bias when we’ve thought things through ahead of time. Mark’s joyful recommendation (which Amber also loves!) is Murderbot, a sci-fi TV show and book series that connects to many issues related to classism and culture, with a diverse cast of characters–without the show being about diversity. CSAW Nonprofit: https://www.csawcircus.org/about @TheMarkHayward

To be notified when you can preorder Mark’s book about how to be an MC, sign up here: http://Www.modernvaudevillepress.com/mc

Dr. Cox’s book is available for preorder! The publisher is University of California Press, and the full title is Overcoming Bias Habits: An Evidence-Based Guide to Creating a Joyfully Inclusive World.

Check your small local bookstores!

From Amazon: https://a.co/d/iwnakbM

From Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/overcoming-bias-habits-william-t-l-cox-phd/1148276458?ean=9780520410428

We now have merch! Buy some to support the show at https://www.biashabit.com/store

Follow Diverse Joy on social media, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, Threads, and Bluesky.

Will and Amber are dressed as pirates for “Arrgust,” which is International Pirate Month. While Amber sports a more traditional pirate outfit, Will’s takes inspiration from Star Wars and includes a Kowakian monkey-lizard puppet that he wears on his shoulder. While sharing their joys for the month, Amber discusses her collection of Loungefly bags and mini backpacks (a vast collection that includes many that have been gifted to her, because so many people know she collects them, making her easy to shop for) which she uses for her various Disneybounds; and Will discusses the joy of cruises he and Eric Roman have been on (a couple of them with his parents). This episode’s discussion is about how to work joy into your life to promote your mental and physical health. Amber shares science and practical skills, as found in the field of positive psychology, related to joy and health, to help your nervous system, prefrontal cortex, and more. She also shares some new-to-the-show acronyms: PERMA and SMILE to help you remember the tools she discusses. In Story Time, Will shares an experience related to racism in high school, and Amber shares a story connected to microdosing joy and her cultural heritage. This episode’s question: Is there a difference between happiness and joy? (Spoiler alert: For technical and diagnostic reasons, yes, there is.) This episode’s Bias Habit-Breaking Skill is Seeking Individuating Information, which is getting to know the details of what makes someone unique, rather than relying on group membership to distinguish them - this comes more naturally when dealing with majority culture folks in a group, as you have to rely on more individuating information to tell them apart, but less naturally for folks not in the majority: It’s a numbers game! Will’s joyful recommendation is the touching, LGBTQ+ Netflix show–which recently concluded with a movie–Heartstopper! (It’s based on a graphic novel, so a double recommendation.) We highly recommend it if you like adorable romance and need more queer representation and joy in your life!

Dr. Cox’s book is available for preorder! The publisher is University of California Press, and the full title is Overcoming Bias Habits: An Evidence-Based Guide to Creating a Joyfully Inclusive World.

Check your small local bookstores!

From Amazon: https://a.co/d/iwnakbM

From Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/overcoming-bias-habits-william-t-l-cox-phd/1148276458?ean=9780520410428

We now have merch! Buy some to support the show at https://www.biashabit.com/store

Follow Diverse Joy on social media, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, Threads, and Bluesky.