Deborah Santana on Loving the Fire, Choosing Freedom, and Levelling the Playing Field

Dr Russell Thackeray welcomes writer and nonprofit leader Deborah Santana from Los Angeles to discuss her work and memoir, Loving the Fire: Choosing Me, Finding Freedom. Deborah explains her nonprofit Do Little, which supports women and girls in health, education, and happiness, and describes her lifelong commitment to challenging exclusion, shaped by growing up with an interracial family and seeing ongoing barriers such as limits on women’s ordination. She critiques cultural and political forces she sees as pushing society toward a white patriarchal system, and emphasises education through original, trustworthy sources. She shares how being married to guitarist Carlos Santana for 34 years led her to feel unseen, and how leaving helped her live by her values, focus on collaborative “circle” work, and reclaim her identity. She highlights meditation as a core resilience practice and offers guidance on moving away from toxic relationships. She directs viewers to deborahsantana.com and notes an audiobook is in progress.00:00 Welcome and Introductions00:49 Flowers and Gardening Chat02:03 Nonprofit Mission Do Little02:58 Why Equality Still Matters03:39 Family Roots and Exclusion08:20 Reclaiming Your Voice10:41 Leaving Celebrity Life11:35 Circles and Museum Work13:11 Truth Education and AI14:31 Loving the Fire Memoir17:12 Meditation and Walking Through Fire19:13 Toxic Relationships and Change20:54 Where to Find the Book21:41 Audiobook and Closing You can contact us at [email protected] can be found online or link to our website https://resilienceunravelled.com