Using the work done between 2019 and 2025 by a collective of Expressive Therapists, Psychologists, and counselors known as Voces Arts and Healing in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico as a case example, this presenter will discuss practical and arts-based applications of the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma's Healing Environment And Restorative Therapies (H.E.A.R.T.) model to support people seeking asylum in the United States. Focus will be paid to the importance of training and supporting the agencies, communities, and organizations that host the asylum seekers - especially in light of the geopolitical and policy changes that have impacted the experience of people seeking asylum in the United States.

References:

McLaughlin, S., Klauck, L., Eshel, M., Ramirez, K., Govoni, D., & Mageary, J. (2023). Decolonizing Internal and External Borders: Reflections on Therapeutic Engagements with Asylum Seekers. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2023.102083

Ramirez, K., Kossak, M. & Mageary, J. (2021). Voces Arts and Healing: Working on the US-Mexico Border with Asylum Seekers. In J. Scarce (Ed.), Art Therapy in Response to Natural Disasters, Mass Violence, and Crises. London, England: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.