Tina Strawn (she/her or they/them)
Tina is a retired fitness professional of over 15 years and started working out and teaching group fitness classes as a way to deal with her mother’s death from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2005, and as a way to take care of herself and find sanity in the midst of being an overwhelmed, body insecure working mother of 3 kids. Tina's hobby of teaching classes turned into a career and she held many regional and corporate positions for companies such as LA Fitness, Lifetime Fitness and Anytime Fitness, where she oversaw hundreds of department heads, studio managers, yoga coordinators and teachers, group fitness instructors and indoor cycle instructors and Personal Trainers across Texas, Oklahoma, Georgia and Alabama.
While teaching fitness classes gave Tina a stage and a microphone and a platform where she has taught thousands of people, it didn't give her a voice. It was only after watching the videos of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile being killed by police in July 2016, that Tina found her voice. And it was only after reading Bryan Stevenson's book, 'Just Mercy,' that helped Tina understand what to do with her voice.
Today, Tina is a racial and social justice advocate, author, and liberation activist. She learns, teaches, speaks, writes and facilitates through the lens of radical Black feminism and critical race theory for the purpose of advocating for Black joy and Black liberation.
She is the Founder of Legacy Trips, which are three-day anti-racism trips visiting the National Memorial for Peace and Justice and the Legacy Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration in Montgomery, and the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, and utilizing spiritual practices as tools to dismantle racism.
She is the owner of Speaking of Racism podcast, which has been downloaded almost 400,000 times.
She is the author of the upcoming book, “Are We Free Yet?: The Black, Queer Guide to Divorcing America ” through Row House Publishing.
She is also a contributing author of the 2020 book, “Check Your Privilege: Lean Into The Discomfort.”
Tina has 3 adult children and has been a minamalist nomad since February 2020. After living in Jamaica for a year, she now lives in Costa Rica, exploring and examining what it looks like and feels like for a queer Black womxn to be free and find home.
What People Are Saying
“Tina truly stands apart from other educators in her space as someone who is not only incredibly knowledgeable but also sincere in her delivery of very sensitive (and often incendiary) subject matter. As an instructor myself, Ms. Strawn’s ability to hold space for challenging conversations, deep learning, and the discomfort of her students is a sight to behold. And her dedication to her craft—always pushing herself to dig deeper in her own education—is inspiring.”
— Rebekah Borucki, Founder of Row House Publishing
“Tina leads by example and guides those around her by honoring her own heart and being. I have been learning from the wisdom Tina embodies for the last two years. As an anti-racism coach Tina provided prospectives and insights that will forever be a part of the foundation of my anti-racism journey.”
— Becka Eppley, Speaking of Racism Board Member and Co-host of the Permission To Be Podcast
“Despite tropical storm Claudette busting her way through Montgomery, last weekend I had the most moving, spirit-ful, connecting, experience on the JUNE 18-20 LEGACY TRIP. We laughed hard and cried hard and worked hard. We found out how much more difficult work there is ahead with new resources and new combinations of thought and action. Forever grateful to Tina and Olivia for making the first nationally recognized Juneteenth hold so much truth, joy and compassion.”