Self-care is the act of checking in with oneself and tending to one’s own emotional, physical, and spiritual needs. This can look like phoning a friend, making a snack, taking a break, or saying a prayer or affirmation.
Community care, similar to self-care, involves checking in with your community and tending to the collective needs of one another. This can look like organizing mutual aid, sharing meals with friends, organizing a letter writing campaign about issues impacting your neighbourhood, or planting a beautiful garden to brighten the days of passersby.
At Social Inc., we noticed a moment where self-care merged with community care by way of sharing music. Some of us enjoy listening to new songs or dancing around our homes in moments of physical distancing, as acts of self-care. Sending a song you like to friends, creating pick-me-up playlists for a colleague who’s feeling sad, or the use of protest songs in global movements—sharing music is an act of community care.
To tend to this convergence of self- and community-care, Social Inc. created a playlist project which has resulted in a number of themed playlists, as well as community connection playlists contributed by staff at Mohawk College.
Celebrating Black Artists
This playlist is a genre-crossing celebration of historic and contemporary Black artists!
Trans Day of Visibility Playlist
This playlist showcases the work of 2-Spirit, Trans, gender non-conforming, and non-binary artists. Created in celebration of March 31st, Trans Day of Visibility, which is a day designated to celebrate and amplify the voices and lives of 2-Spirit, Trans, gender non-conforming, and non-binary people in our communities!
Day of Pink Playlist
Day of Pink (April 14th) is an annual day of recognition to promote 2SLGBTQIA+ visibility and challenge homophobia in workplaces and on campuses. Enjoy this mix of songs from 2SLGBTQIA+ artists!
College Connection Playlists
In response to feelings of isolation amplified by COVID-19, Social Inc. introduced a few playlists curated by staff and community of Mohawk College to spread joy through music
Yolande Linton’s Playlist
Meet Yolande Linton (she/her)
Social Inc. Coordinator
I am from the beautiful island of Jamaica and while social distancing I have to jam to some cultural music. Here is a playlist of some of my favourite jam. My playlist is cultural but uplifting to me. Hope it is to you as well. Enjoy!
Brittany Lauton’s Playlist
Meet Brittany Lauton (she/her)
Manager, Student Life
I love this playlist—it’s almost all women, all jazz. It clears the fog from my brain and helps me start my day. I work with the Student Life team who is working hard to help students find ways to connect to the feeling of community we have on campus in our new virtual world.
Taylor Berzins’ Playlist
Meet Taylor Berzins (she/her)
Social Inc. Coordinator at Mohawk College
While practicing social distancing, I’ve been enjoying catching up on reading and tending to the many plants in my home. I’ve been missing hiking and getting out into nature, so this playlist is themed around nature/the environment (and it’s great for dreamy solo dance parties).
Ingie Metwally’s Playlist
Meet Ingie Metwally (she/her)
Events Coordinator, Student Life
Ingie and her team provide leadership programming, volunteer opportunities, and events that connect and celebrate students at Mohawk.
While working from home, Ingie is practicing yoga daily, exploring new music, and soaking in the sun whenever possible for her social distancing self-care.
SACHA’s Playlist
In honour of Sexual Assault Awareness Month in April, SACHA participated in our playlist project.
Meet SACHA!
SACHA – the Sexual Assault Centre (Hamilton and Area) is a feminist, non-profit, community-based organization that provides supports to people who have experienced sexualized violence at any point in their lives. We offer free counselling, a 24-hour Support Line (905.525.4162), public education and diverse communities outreach, advocacy, and coalition building. We are located in the YWCA building in downtown Hamilton but currently all of our services are running remotely. You can connect with us through our website form or call and leave a voicemail (905.525.4573) and we will get back to you just as soon as we can! We are a diverse team and this playlist reflects the unique perspectives and styles we bring to our work! During social isolation we are missing our famous SACHA potlucks but we are keeping spirits high by doing the work we love and always making the time to connect with each other to still feel close while we are apart!
Missing Social Inc.?
Email: Reach out to us at socialinc [at] mohawkcollege.ca (socialinc[at]mohawkcollege[dot]ca) to stay connected!
Social: Find us at Mohawk Student Life on Facebook and Instagram.
