Picture taken in Columbus, Ohio – November 2018
Advocacy Plan
There are clear steps that can be taken to break down the racial caste that is so prevalent in America. Widespread public awareness of implicit biases, public awareness of participation in an inherently racist system, abandonment of the colorblindness philosophy, and advocacy for humanitarianism in relation to race are key pieces that I agree with, as backed by research, that will break down societal barriers for Blacks (Alexander, 2012; Banaji & Greenwald, 2013; Johnson, 2006). I agree that these pieces will bring about racial change because there is a substantial amount of research supporting the implementation of these goals. These goals may seem lofty or out of reach, but I have developed a plan, though not exhaustive, that realistically addresses each of these pieces in order to break down racial barriers. My plan proposes the institution of a diversity curriculum that would be implemented in schools. I agree with the multitude of research that has shown that racial profiling begins as early as childhood; it is absolutely crucial that children learn about race, culture, and diversity from a young age in order to create a society that is more equal for all peoples (Brown & Bigler, 2005). Once I become a school counselor, I plan to implement a program that begins in elementary school and ends once the students have graduated from high school. It will be tailored for appropriateness for each age group and will address topics such as implicit biases, identity development, privilege, discrimination, and value construction through classroom and small group discussion, awareness building activities, family conversations, and homework assignments. The curriculum would be meant to be administered by school counselors only, but teachers would be encouraged to participate as it would benefit them to be more knowledgeable about diversity in their personal and professional lives. The school counselors would travel from classroom to classroom so that each student would be engaged in the curriculum at least once a semester from the time they start school until the time they graduate high school. This plan would help students from a young age develop positive attitudes about their own and others’ diverse identities and values, recognize their implicit biases, break down the uncomfortableness of discussing race, develop deeper relationships with classmates, become aware of the racism that exists in America, and respect all people as valuable beings. The picture above captures many of my thoughts and feelings related to the implementation of this program. Just thinking about the idea of creating a more understanding and equal society through education is exciting to me! The bright colors of the picture are meant to represent my exhilaration towards helping young people become more empathetic and aware of themselves and others while breaking down racial barriers. This image also captures how I think about the idea of this curriculum. This curriculum would ultimately address the white elephant in the room for many schools across America: diversity and race. The white elephant statue being illuminated by the lightbulb in the picture is meant to symbolize the purpose of creating this program: to shed light on, or to talk about, the white elephant in the room (race and diversity) for many schools. Lastly, this image represents my learning on the topic of addressing racism. I have learned that although many of the key pieces to breaking down racism seem lofty, there are many practical ways to implement tangible goals to reach seemingly intangible outcomes. The blurriness of the background of the image represents the seemingly intangible outcomes that must be reached in order to break down racism, while the sharp focus of the center of the image is meant to represent the clarity and tangibility of the changed lives that will result from achieving realistic goals.
Reference:
Alexander, M. (2012). The new Jim Crow. The New Press.
Banaji, M. R., & Greenwald, A. G. (2013). Blindspot. Delacorte Press.
Brown, C. S., & Bigler, R. S. (2005). Children’s perceptions of discrimination: A developmental model. Child Development, 76(3), 333-353.
Johnson, A. G. (2006). Privilege, power, and difference(2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill.
Picture taken on the Olentangy Trail in Columbus, Ohio – September 2018
Servant Leadership
According to Martin Luther King Jr. in a speech posted to YouTube in 2014, African Americans need equal opportunities to succeed in America in order to catch up to the successes experienced by the rest of America; they have been denied equal opportunities for hundreds of years. Martin Luther King Jr. has outlined several ways to help Blacks succeed in America, however, one of the most concrete ways to help is to utilize policies, financial measures, social reform, and other tangible ways to increase equal opportunities for all Americans. I agree that these are key needs for the African American community because these people have been denied opportunities to succeed as much as other Americans; however, I also believe that advocacy is an important step in aiding Blacks to succeed in America. In order to fulfill the needs of the local African American population, as stated by Martin Luther King Jr., I am proposing that there be a benefit concert in Columbus, Ohio featuring local African American musicians in an effort to fundraise for the Kirwan Institute at The Ohio State University. The purpose of this concert is threefold: to celebrate the musical accomplishments of local African Americans, to provide finances for an organization that partners with other organizations to generate equal opportunities for Blacks and other marginalized groups, and to bring a city together to support the value and worth of an often oppressed and discriminated part of its population. The image above is meant to represent my feelings and thoughts in relation to this servant leadership activity as well as represent what I have learned. This image represents my feelings of boldness. We must be bold in serving the underserved in order to make a difference in the lives of those that have been forgotten. The bold words of the graffiti against the white washed wall represent these feelings. This image also represents my thoughts that the solution is relatively simple, although hard to accomplish. The solution is to genuinely love one another. When people love one another, people serve one another and create opportunities for each other to succeed. The black and white coloration of the photo and the plainness of the words against the subtle background represent the simplicity of the solution to racism, oppression, and discrimination. Lastly, this photo represents my learning that the solution to racism, oppression, and discrimination is ultimately loving one another without even having to know the other person. The graffiti words represent this idea. Love is a concept of humanity: we all need it and we all deserve it from each other.
Reference:
King, M. L., Jr. (2014, January 19). Martin Luther King Jr. on improving social equality [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R56OPiso6iY
Taken in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – March 2018
Strengths-Based Needs
In order to win the fight against racism in America, there are several things that African Americans need. Firstly, African Americans need people to understand that everyone has implicit biases. Americans’ automatic implicit preferences for race make them participants in an inherently racist system (Banaji & Greenwald, 2013). Secondly, African Americans need Americans to realize that because everyone has implicit biases that make them participants in a racist system, that racism is not a problem just for Blacks but forallAmericans (Johnson, 2006). Thirdly, African Americans need people to abandon the doctrine of colorblindness and to advocate for racial equality from a humanistic perspective in which Black people will be viewed by the depth of their character rather than by the color of their skin (Alexander, 2012). I agree with current research that these are the general needs of African Americans if the war against racism is to be fought well because I believe that racism is not a specific situational issue, but rather a pervasive issue relating to the good of humankind. Discussing the needs of African Americans is shocking to me. It shocks me because their needs point to the fact that they are not being respected for the mere fact that they are valuable human beings just like every other person. The colorful pop of the word “love” against the bleak background in the picture represents the vibrant shock that I feel when I remember that the value of human life is something that has to be fought for in America. When I think about African Americans’ needs, I know that racial justice is certainly attainable, but that it will be a difficult process. Racial justice is attainable because people are becoming more and more aware of the inherent racism within themselves and American society, the first step towards racial justice. However, achieving racial justice will be difficult because Americans are in very different stages of their understanding of racism and their willingness to do something about it. In this image, the word “love” represents my belief that racial justice is possible. Love and compassion still exist, and this gives me hope. However, the isolation of the word “love” in the image represents my belief that racial justice will be difficult to attain. While love among human beings exists, it is not pervasive in everyone’s life just as the word “love” in the image does not encompass the whole picture. Lastly, this image represents my learning that the greatest step towards racial justice is to respect people for their character and their humanity; this is what I call love for humankind. Love is the central concept of human connectedness and racial respect just as the word “love” is the central theme within the image above. This idea has changed the way in which I think about how I may participate in the movement fighting for racial justice.
References:
Alexander, M. (2012). The new Jim Crow. The New Press.
Banaji, M. R., & Greenwald, A. G. (2013). Blindspot. Delacorte Press.
Johnson, A. G. (2006). Privilege, power, and difference(2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill.
Systemic Challenges
Black people are still being mistreated as they were during pre-civil-war times, however, this time it is more invisible. This mistreatment has manifested itself through the war on drugs and discriminatory court rulings. The war on drugs has been focused on targeting Blacks, giving them overly harsh prison sentences that later impact their ability to reintegrate into society (Alexander, 2012). Additionally, oppressive American White-normative culture, fueled by implicit biases, is a constant reminder to Blacks that they are second-class citizens in this country (Banaji & Greenwald, 2013). I agree that these are the systemic issues faced by Blacks today because all the current research on implicit biases and the war on drugs seem to best explain the manifestation of racism in America. Knowing that hatred and discrimination is still prevalent in America makes me feel angry because humanity is something that should be respected. It also makes me feel overwhelmed because there are so many moving parts to this issue. The chaotic background in the picture represents my feelings of being overwhelmed by the many facets of this issue, and the black and white coloration represents the simple reality that this enraging issue still exists today. Americans, usually more implicitly than explicitly, herald Whiteness among a population that is becoming less and less White. I think that the exaltation of Whiteness is an issue because it is an effort to maintain unprecedented superiority. This image captures a White person’s hand holding up a 1987 issue of the Reader’s Digest. If you look closely, all the people on the cover are White. In fact, every issue of the “Great Autobiographies” 1987 publications feature exclusively White people except for one issue that has a section on Gandhi. A look at world history up until 1987 will quickly show that there were many great authors and leaders that were Black, however, Reader’s Digest only focused on White authors and leaders. This mere observation reinforces the fact that Black people are unappreciated and oppressed and that White people are praised and acknowledged in America. This is just one example of how I think that Americans are implicitly producing a White-normative, oppressive culture. I have learned over the last several months that racism is now more invisible than visible, and that it is all encompassing; I have gained a new understanding that has given me a new perspective on how to show compassion to people with respect to their racial identities. The transient quality of the background in the photograph and the surrounding blurriness that seems to swallow the book represent my learning that racism is everywhere and that it tends to be invisible.
References:
Alexander, M. (2012). The new Jim Crow. The New Press.
Banaji, M. R., & Greenwald, A. G. (2013). Blindspot. Delacorte Press.
Annotated Bibliography
Balkin, R. S., Reiner, S. M., Hendricks, L., Washington, A., McNeary, S., Juhnke, G. A., & Hunter, Q. (2018). Life Balance and Work Addiction Among African Americans. The Career Development Quarterly, 66, 77-84. doi:10.1002/cdq.12123
The purpose of this research study was to analyze the connection of life balance and work addiction to African American populations. The authors used a combination of recent and older research to define life balance and work addiction, to develop an understanding of the racist systemic realities in America, and to explain the role of community as it relates to work addiction and life balance in African American peoples. Participants of this study, a sample of 115 African American adults from two southern states (47 men and 68 women), were prompted to complete the Work Addiction Questionnaire and the Juhnke-Balkin Life Balance Inventory; both utilized a 5-point Likert scale. The results of these surveys found that there was a very strong inverse correlation between community support and work addiction. This information implies that counselors should work to develop a thorough understanding of how African American social ties may affect this population’s mental health. There were two main aspects of this study that were concerning to me. Firstly, the results of the study failed to generate a clear understanding of how life balance was related to African American populations. Secondly, the correlational findings are unable to prove causality; this study was not able to determine if community support causes a reduction in work addiction. There should be more research conducted to understand if there is a causal relationship between community ties and reduced work addiction among African American populations.
Chatters, L. M., Taylor, R. J., Woodward, A. T., Bohnert, A. S. B., Peterson, T. L., & Perron, B.E. (2017). Differences Between African Americans and Non-Hispanic Whites Utilization of Clergy for Counseling with Serious Personal Problems. Race and Social Problems, 9, 139-149. doi:10.1007/s12552-017-9207-z
The authors of this research article intended to study the racial differences in seeking help from clergy for serious personal problems that caused psychological distress. This article utilized several research studies to explain the differences in help-seeking behaviors, specifically the differences in seeking help from clergy, between African Americans and non-Hispanic Whites. Additional literature was used to explain frequency of contact with clergy as it varied between different racial groups and also the type of help each racial group was likely to seek from clergy. The literature cited was relevant to the past 15 years, however, there were a few sources used that were published in the last 20 years. The sample used in this study included 6082 adult participants from America (3570 African Americans, 891 non-Hispanic Whites, and 1621 Black Carribeans). Data collection was retrieved through the distribution of The National Survey of American Life to the testing population. The research discovered that while African Americans have the most religious involvement of the three racial groups in the study, non-Hispanic Whites utilize clergy for help with personal problems most often. The authors concluded that African Americans are less likely to seek help for personal problems from clergy because they do not want to affect their personal relationship with the clergy they see frequently. The authors additionally stated that clergy should be considered useful mental health resources especially for clients of low socioeconomic status. In response to the conclusion of the study, I would suggest that future research be dedicated to establishing the causality of why African Americans are less likely to seek help from clergy; the authors seemed to come to this conclusion without any statistical support. Despite this, the information gathered is helpful when considering contexts in which African American clients may feel comfortable seeking help for their mental health.
Johnson, P. D. (2016). Somebodiness and Its Meaning to African American Men. Journal of Counseling and Development, 94, 333-343. doi:10.1002/jcad.12089
The author conducted qualitative research for the purpose of developing a deeper understanding of “sombodiness,” or meaning and purpose, as it relates to African American males’ psychological well-being and existential sense of meaning. Outside sources were used to develop a better understanding of the history of African American men’s resiliency when having a sense of “sombodiness.” Additional research was used to explain the need to research effective counseling strategies for helping African American males. A mixture of recent and older research was used to effectively develop an understanding of the history of “sombodiness” and the need for research in identifying how this concept relates to modern concepts of counseling African American males. Research was conducted using an interpretive phenomenological analysis approach to gain insight into how 10 self-identified, native American, African American adults made sense of their experiences of meaning and purpose. The author used in-depth interviewing methods and several forms of sampling to gather data. The study found that spirituality is a significant factor for developing a sense of worth and meaning for African American males. This sense of purpose is a fundamentally cathartic, motivating force for African American males in achieving mental health. Practical implications of these findings are that spiritual concepts are key components to mental health for African American males and that counseling this population must include discussion of meaning and purpose. The concern with this research is that these findings may not be able to be generalized to Black men of different ethnicities. Another concern with this study is that the author’s interviewing techniques are only briefly described, making this research hard to replicate. There must be more research conducted to better understand practical methods for introducing discussions of meaning and purpose with African American male populations.
Patterson, L., & Stutey, D. M. (2018). Play Therapy With African American Children Exposed to Adverse Childhood Experiences. International Journal of Play Therapy, 27(4), 215-226. doi:10.1037
This research article was aimed at investigating the effectiveness of the combination of individual and group play therapy techniques in helping African American children living in poverty that have experienced adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). The literature used in this piece of writing was dedicated to understanding poverty and ACEs among African American populations and to recognizing the positive implications that play therapy can have on children. This literature derived from mostly recent, relevant sources. The population of this study included 12 African American students (kindergarten-4thgrade; 4 females and 8 males) living in poverty who were identified as having unhealthy internalized and/or externalized behaviors. Teachers of the students were given the Impairment Rating Scale to rate the children’s externalized behaviors, while students were given the Spence Anxiety Scale to measure internalized behaviors. These assessments were given three times throughout the study and were used in a pretest-posttest fashion (with one of the three times being administered after the 6 weeks of individual therapy) in order to measure the effectiveness of 6 weeks of individual play therapy and the effectiveness of 6 weeks of group play therapy in reducing externalized and internalized behaviors. This study found that play therapy had a significant effect on reducing children’s disruptive internalized and externalized behaviors. More specifically, the most statistically significant results were found after both individual and group therapies had been administered. These results indicate that play therapy is very effective in helping African American children in poverty work through unhealthy internalized and externalized behaviors. The greatest limitation of this study was its small sample size. Future research should be conducted to increase the scope and efficacy of these findings. Overall, this study came to important conclusions on methods of helping African American children in poverty handle unhealthy internalized and externalized behaviors.
Trahan, D. P., Jr., & Lemberger, M. E. (2014). Critical Race Theory as a Decisional Framework for the Ethical Counseling of African American Clients. Counseling and Values, 59, 112-124. doi:10.1002/j.2161-007X.2014.00045.x
The purpose of this discussion on race and its relation to counseling was to unpack the importance of ethical counseling that is racially sensitive and relevant in specifically helping African American clients achieve mental health. The authors cited literature in the article in order to explain the roles that race plays in counseling, discuss the need and importance for ethical racially-conscious counseling decision making processes, and explore how racially-conscious counseling methods can be utilized in practice. These outside sources were mostly relevant within the past 20 years, however, there were some resources that were used that were written in the early 1990s. The article argued that counselors must be educated in racially sensitive counseling techniques in order to break through some minority clients’ caution in seeking help from a culturally considered superior race. Additionally, the article claimed that counselors should reflect upon their own racial identities and then become aware of a client’s culture in order to build therapeutic rapport. The authors established that therapeutic rapport is the key to ethical, racially-conscious, racially relevant counseling techniques. Ultimately, counselors should use Critical Race Theory concepts to guide their therapeutic practices because it leads to “better ethical relationships and outcomes” (p. 120). My greatest concern with these findings is that a significant amount of the research used in the article was written in the 1990s. While these findings are practical for counselors today in helping African American clients achieve mental health, researchers should consider updating this research to better understand counseling African American populations in today’s society.
Watson-Singleton, N. N., Okunoren, O., LoParo, D., & Hunter, C. D. (2017). Emotional Benefits and Barriers of Psychological Services Scale: Initial Construction and Validation Among African American Women. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 64(6), 684-695. doi:10.1037
This research article was written to explore how African American women perceive the barriers and benefits of seeking psychological help. Additionally, this study was conducted to validate and examine a new assessment that would test the benefits and barriers of seeking psychological help. The research cited in this article was relevant and was used to explain the fact that African American women have significant mental health issues but are less likely to seek psychological help when compared to African American men and other ethnic groups. The authors of this article conducted two similar studies to estimate the value of a new assessment called the Emotional Benefits and Barriers of Psychological Services Scale (EBBPS Scale). Each study used a testing population of about 200 African American adult women and gave them a demographic questionnaire and the EBBPS Scale to complete. The studies were aimed to measure the benefits and barriers to seeking psychological help. The data found that when these women thought that counseling would be mostly helpful, they were more willing to seek help, but that when they thought counseling would be more distressful, they were less willing to seek help. Furthermore, the study found after thorough statistical analysis that the EBBPS Scale is valid and useful. The most obvious implication of these findings suggest that strategies should be implemented to increase the perceived benefits of counseling and decrease the perceived barriers to counseling for African American women specifically. Culturally sensitive counseling practices should be implemented to increase the perceived benefits of counseling services. I believe that the information discovered by this study was useful but that the authors could have done a better job of operationally defining the measures that the EBBPS Scale was set to measure.