Although there was a heavy weight on my chest after my battle with my dental hygiene
board exam, I always came back to my spiritual faith, even if my light was dimmed. I had the
privilege to share my yoga practice with LAAL in the Bronx, New York, with a group of Bengali Muslim women. Laal is the name for red in Bangla, and it is represented on the woman’s
forehead on the day of their wedding, which symbolizes the mark of menstruation. Two Sylheti
women from the Bronx, New York, founded this nonprofit organization. They chose LAAL as
the name of their non-profit organization because it serves as a reminder of the resilience and
strength of Bengali women. While sharing my practice in the Bengali community, I taught yoga
in a wellness center for undocumented migrants in another non-profit organization. Serving
underserved communities has shaped my goals and view of this sacred practice. In the West,
yoga is often a cookie-cutter fitness activity that only the wealthy can partake in, and this
stereotype is frustrating to think about. When people think about yoga in the West, it's usually
Lululemon, Alo, accompanied by a green smoothie and high-end name brands that participants
wear.
Yoga, unfortunately, in the Western world, has been capitalized on, losing its organic
meaning and creating barriers for marginalized groups of people. Still, the West continues to
enable access barriers for many marginalized groups of people based on socioeconomic status,
race/ethnicity, education, sex, and religion. It is a crucial act of awareness and duty that yoga
practitioners understand these barriers and make space for all people. In my research on the
importance of these social issues, some extensive analyses and critiques were done by yoga
practitioners, physicians, and scholars who advocate for change within the yoga community in
Western civilization.
While holding space at LAAL and sharing my yoga, I often thought of the importance of
reminding these women of the impact of community creation. I was very aware and passionate
about the importance of bringing awareness and the need for dismantling Westernized capitalism
and discrimination towards people of different backgrounds who practice yoga. There is great emphasis on yoga professionals becoming more inclusive and ethically trained to teach yoga to
marginalized identities (Jennifer B. Webb, 2020; Courtney B. Rogers, 2020), and (Erin Vinoski
Thomas,2020). These authors highlight that there is a crucial need to return to the activist roots
of yoga, suggesting practical strategies such as offering donation-based classes and transforming
yoga studio financial models to promote greater economic inclusion (Jennifer B. Webb, 2020),
(Courtney B. Rogers, 2020), and (Erin Vinoski Thomas,2020). Laal NYC is a moving force that
advocates for social justice. It holds a safe space for the Bengali women community in The
Bronx to access essential resources that improve their overall quality of life.
While at LAAL NYC, I saw parts of my identity as a woman with a Middle Eastern
background raised by a Colombian catholic mother and a Jordanian/Palestinian Muslim father.
The urge to belong and participate in the community while raising awareness for the inclusion of
marginalized groups was driven by my experiences and the lack of inclusivity in yoga. Through
a social justice lens, the Westernized yoga practice highlights the intersections and exclusionary
identities that have emerged around individuals who practice yoga. This trend contradicts the
sacred practice of yoga with respect to the organic formula of how yoga came about in our world
(Webb, J. B., Rogers, C. B., & Thomas, E. V ., 2020). I worked spiritually and ethically with the
passion for dismantling these false narratives to provide yoga and mindfulness for this non-profit
organization by spreading awareness with respect to the Bengali community and promoting
inclusivity within Western yoga spaces. The founders do a quarterly check-in with their workers
and volunteers, and I could not wait to share my ideas. I collaborated and shared my ideas with
the LAAL founders by creating a goal plan, filming our classes, and sharing them on
PowerPoint, showcasing their wellness program's needs, growth, wants, and overall potential.
The feedback was exceptional and opened my eyes to the future of LAAL, its community, and myself as a woman sharing my yoga practice with other women from different walks of life with
similar goals. Thanks to these humbling experiences with the LAAL community, the tremendous
support, and deep retrospection, I started to look at my delays as blessings in disguise. Sports and extracurricular activities like yoga, improv, acting, Latin club, poetry club, and band were avenues I took as a young girl who struggled to feel a sense of belonging. Volleyball, for me, was more than an activity that gave me something to do during my
adolescence. It was an outlet, a healing mechanism, an escape to fill one of the many voids I felt
as a young girl in high school. Roosevelt High School was the high school my brother graduated
from, and I was so happy to fill in the vacant spot as a junior varsity volleyball coach. I received
a call from a childhood friend asking if I was interested in the position, and I was thrilled to
apply. A year after my grace period of waiting to retest, I failed my dental board exam again. I
saw an opportunity to be a role model, a coach, and a mentor for high school girls and give back
to my community just like my past coaches did for me, and took it.
Reflecting on the amazing student-athletes I had the privilege to coach and mentor, I
realize how much I have learned about myself by being in a leadership role. It is beyond
humbling to look back and remember the hard work, dedication, sweat, and tears these young
student-athletes faced. I remember these girls being discouraged by past coaches and previous
statistics. This leads to the importance of acts inspired by the Buddist pedagogy that emphasizes
the importance of relationships in education and the need for self-liberation from ego. (Hattam,
R., 2020).  I entered this program with a positive attitude, an open mind, an open heart, and a willingness to teach these girls the sport of volleyball. Along with learning the sport of volleyball came other valuable tools that these student-athletes learn and will use to shape their futures. High school is an academic experience that helps you learn about yourself and prepares you for the world outside. I have always admired my elders, mentors, teachers, coaches, and professors because I have always respected the value of learning and discipline. I went into this coaching experience to inspire these young student-athletes and show them that winning is possible with hard work, teamwork, and dedication. For many young adolescents, extracurricular activities can be a haven, a way to make friends, learn team-building skills, and become more physically active, which helps reach optimal physical and mental health. Encouraging the youth to explore every part of their being is vital to their futures, which is why I was thrilled to be a part of the athletic department during this time. Youth who participate in sports avoid dropout and continue to participate in sports into high school have higher levels of physical activity and lower levels of sedentary behavior (Shull, E. R., Dowda, M., Saunders, R. P., McIver, K., & Pate, R. R., 2019). Most middle and high school youth are not as active in school sports because most kids would rather spend their off time on social media apps and technology. This, in turn, most likely leads to fewer social skills, team-building skills, unhealthy physical habits, and even mental health disparities. With my professional yoga training, I incorporated it into team conditioning practices. The authors of “Making it Okay: Professionals in High-Stress Environments” construct their understanding of the impact of a yoga-based retreat designed to build resilience. (Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 28(5), 1-10) revealed that participants experienced a significant personal transformation. Their feedback described the retreat as a “reflective time for somatic awareness” that enhanced their physical and mental well-being (Reeves, T. J., Dyer, N. L., Borden, S., Dusek, J. A., & Khalsa, S. B. S., 2022). The emphasis on experimental learning
and the social dynamics of sharing practices learned during the retreat suggests that mindfulness
practices contribute to long-term resilience (Reeves, T. J., Dyer, N. L., Borden, S., Dusek, J. A.,
& Khalsa, S. B. S., 2022). Making volleyball fun to learn while including mindfulness practices was essential
because these practices built community and resilience while shaping these young girls mentally
and physically for future games and practices. I kept strict rules during practice time to learn
plays and practice efficiently and effectively, but I also ordered the team pizza on a Saturday
after a long morning of practice. By the end of our season, these girls were sure that the balance
of volleyball, school work, and social life was not easy, but they were achievable. Hard work by
these young girls led to rewards, and my goal was to show them that rewards come to those who
work hard and put in the time.
Based on this coaching experience, my reward was seeing these young student-athletes
find the passion for themselves, the sport of volleyball, and their teammates. This experience
gave me much insight because I saw how the education system affects and influences students
from a leadership role perspective. Hattman’s argument reflects the freedom from ego,
concluding the calling for an awareness of pedagogy and how it cultivates compassion and
interdependence (Hattam, R., 2020). He advocates for rethinking pedagogical approaches that
foster virtues such as compassion and interdependence, moving away from neoliberalism
frameworks that dominate current educational policies (Hattam, R., 2020). Hattman discusses the struggle for the “souls” of educators and students, highlighting the concept of “soul” and how it
is rooted in Foucault’s understanding of subjectivity (Hattam, R., 2020). I used my knowledge
and brought my values to a community of young student-athletes, motivating and encouraging
them to be their best version.
Many lessons were learned from this experience, one experience not as pleasurable as all
the others, but I am grateful for the experience because it motivated me even more to bring
awareness to the importance of encouraging the youth. Every experience in a child’s life is taken
with them into their adult life, and every educator, mentor, parent, and coach has an ethical duty
and a responsibility to encourage our youth that hard work, dedication, and passion will lead to
positive results. This ties into my career and educational experiences because not in every game I
have played, I have won, but I never gave up or stopped trying despite my challenges. I showed
up even when I didn’t feel like showing up. I was kind even when my heart was sad, and I kept
fighting until I got a “yes” or a win. This team took this with them, and I hope they will keep this
mindset forever. Whenever there was a loss, we all felt this loss as a team, and when one team
player was down, we all made an effort to encourage one another and lift the other for the next
practice. I practice this resilience with friends, family, and work colleagues in my personal life,
which makes the world go round, uplifting communities and those we love.