A legacy burden is a belief or emotion passed down generationally through the family tree, ethnic lineage, or environment/society. We carry many legacy burdens in the United States—racism, patriarchy, individualism, and materialism, to name a few. These collective legacy burdens create cultural traumas that are pervasive and persistent.
Collective legacy burdens are systemic and significantly influence organizations, institutions, and policies. The remnants of this burden continues to spread in our society like a virus that infects us all. This session will introduce and examine these ideas and discuss their impact and what we can do to reduce the harms done by collective legacy burdens in our communities.