‍The Untrolling Project

‍When distress becomes misplaced blame

‍Pain and suffering are nonpartisan. Fear, anger, anxiety, and loss can leave people vulnerable to messages that promise relief by telling them whom to blame or exclude.

‍The Untrolling Project examines how distress can become attached to people or groups who are inaccurately blamed for its causes, and asks participants to test those narratives against evidence.

‍The question is not whether pain is real. It is whether the explanation attached to it is accurate, and what becomes possible when the two are examined separately.

‍What exists today

‍The first episode/pilot of the project has been released. The released material offers an introduction to the project. A complete multi-episode series is not yet available.

‍Untrolling America

‍Untrolling America is the project’s multimedia work, written and produced by Rev. Dr. Thandeka and Jennifer Jennings. It brings together historical narrative, analysis, and guided reflection on how emotions and public stories become entangled.

‍Untrolling means examining inherited explanations: where we were injured, how distress became attached to blame, and what a more careful understanding might make possible for ourselves and our communities.

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‍The project invites viewers to ask:

• What am I actually feeling?
• Where did this feeling begin?
• What story tells me whom to blame?
• What evidence supports that story?
• What becomes possible when emotion and target are examined separately?

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‍Understanding and accountability

‍Understanding emotional experience does not excuse harmful conduct. It does not reduce racism, political violence, or institutional injustice to individual psychology.

‍History, institutions, material conditions, ideology, and political power remain essential to the analysis. Emotional awareness can contribute to that analysis, but it cannot replace it.

‍Continue the work

‍Episodes and companion workbooks can support individual reflection, facilitated discussions, congregational programs, classrooms, and community screenings.

‍Watch the currently available project material, explore related reading, or contact LBB about a conversation or screening appropriate to your setting. Supporters and partners can also help make further production possible.