Texts, authors, and way-makers below have been highlighted for their compassionate, ethical and honest approach to wakefulness and healing. This list aims to center the voices and experiences of decolonists, people of color, queer and trans folks, and body positive advocates. It does not center teachers who defend privilege or who have knowingly harmed their students. If you have a resource that fits this list but isn’t on it, please reach out.

race and decolonization

  • Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

  • Are Prisons Obsolete? by Angela Davis

  • An Indigenous People’s History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

  • An African American and Latinx History of the United States by Paul Ortiz

  • Being Black: Zen and the Art of Living With Fearlessness and Grace by Angel Kyoto Williams

  • White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo

  • Stamped from the Beginning – The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi

  • My Grandmother’s Hands – Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies by Resmaa Menakem

  • For Indigenous Minds Only – A Decolonization Handbook by Waziyatawin and Michael Yellow Bird

  • The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander

  • 13th – Documentary film exploring the intersection of race, justice and incarceration: Available on Netflix

  • www.decolonizeyoga.com

  • www.honordontappropriateyoga.com – Susanna Barkataki

  • www.yogaisdeadpodcast.com – Tejal Patel and Jasel Parikh

  • Terra Cognita: Instagram for Accurate Indigenous History and Rights

  • www.blackyogateachersalliance.org – Black Yoga Teachers Alliance

  • www.yogaservicecouncil.org – Yoga Service Council

gender and sexuality

  • A Queer History of the United States by Michael Bronski

  • Queer Theory and Native Studies: The Heteronormativity of Settler Colonialism by Andrea Smith

  • Monster, Terrorist, Fag: The War on Terrorism and the Production of Docile Patriots by Jasbir Puar and Amit Rai

  • Transgender History by Susan Stryker

  • Stone Butch Blues by Leslie Feinberg

  • Gender Outlaws: The Next Generation by Kate Bornstein and S. Bear Bergman

  • www.jacobyballard.com – Jacoby Ballard

body positivity

  • A Disability History of the United States by Kim E. Neilson

  • Unlady Like – How to Get a Yoga Body: Podcast and Instagram with Jessamyn Stanley

  • Yoga and Body Image – 25 Stories About Beauty, Bravery and Loving Your Body by Melanie Klein and Anna Guest-Jelley

yoga philosophy, mythology and history

  • Indian Mythology by Devdutt Pattanaik

  • Yoga – The Ultimate Spiritual Path by Swami Rajarshi Muni

  • Tantra Illuminated by Christopher Hareesh Wallis

  • The Chakras: Energy Centers for Transformation by Hareesh Johari

  • Yoga Anatomy by Leslie Kaminoff

  • The Key Poses of Yoga by Ray Long

  • Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda

  • The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda by Swami Vivekananda

  • The Bhagavad Gita According to Ghandi by Mahatma Ghandi

  • The Bhagavad Gita by Eknath Easwaran

  • Hatha Yoga Pradapika translated by Swami Swatmarama

  • The Radiance Sutras by Lorin Roche

  • Myths of Light by Joseph Campbell