Healthcare Professional Consideration: Healthcare professionals should recognize the power imbalances resulting from oppression, privilege, and marginalization and work to correct the imbalances within healthcare services and the broader institutional and societal context. White Identity White identity is essential to discuss when practicing within a cultural humility framework. Because Whiteness is presented as the cultural norm, many White people have difficulty understanding that they are part of a culture. The term “White.” usually describes a group of people and refers to light-skinned people of European descent. More importantly, being unaware of their racial identity makes Whites unaware of their role in perpetuating racism. Lacking awareness of Whiteness, however, also hinders White people from interacting with people of color (Kirkpatrick, 2020). If their racial identity development is stunted, White people typically retreat to a position of comfort that usually involves identifying with White culture and avoiding issues of race. White individuals who successfully manage their emotional reactions typically continue to progress in their racial identity development (Kirkpatrick, 2020). White individuals often do not see themselves as a visible racial group, whereas people of color are very aware of White people’s racial identity. Thus, it is likely that White counselors will have a hard time recognizing the power and privilege that they possess as White counselors. One of the foundational tools of cultural competence is self-awareness. Hence, White counselors must reflect on various facets of their identity and understand their White racial identity. White identity theory was first developed by Janet Helms in the 1980s and 1990s as a tool for White counselors to “create meaning about their identities as Caucasians, particularly in terms of how they think about, respond to, react to and interact with clients from different racial/ethnic groups” (Chung & Bemak, 2012, p. 67). In other words, the theory’s formation was based on the idea that White people are so immersed in the dominant culture that they are unaware of the influence of the dominant culture’s ethnocentric images and ideals. Being White makes it easier to assimilate into the dominant culture and to partake in unearned privileges many White people enjoy but do not acknowledge. Most White people perceive themselves as unbiased, but self-perception may impede them from taking responsibility for their prejudice (Chung & Bemak, 2012; Sue & Sue, 2016). White counselors have a special responsibility to understand their privileges and biases so that they may develop a positive relationship within counseling sessions (Chung & Bemak, 2012). Given that America is becoming increasingly more diverse, how do White people feel about immigration, their numerical decline, the election, and the first Black president? Likely, White counselors will likely have experienced racism or discrimination. Racial identity typically develops as we move from a lack of awareness of our racial background to awareness and integration of our race into our sense of who we are. Ashley Jardina (2019) suggests that there are different categories of White people and that each group has distinct views of race and diversity. Jardina states that “There is a second thing going on and that it is that, perhaps, it is equally as troubling as racial prejudice, but it is different in nature, and it is that some Whites are reacting negatively to these changes because they feel a sense of attachment or identification with their racial group with being White and they are worried about their group status and about its ability to maintain power, to hold onto privileges in a country that’s becoming rapidly diverse” (Center, 2019). She suggests that one group of White people is eager for this country to become more diverse. Others are not eager for African Americans to become a more significant share of the population or achieve greater political, economic, and social equality
because they think that when people of color do this, it comes at the expense of their group power (Center, 219). Whiteness refers to the construction of the White race, White culture, and the system of privileges and advantages afforded to White people in the U.S. (and across the globe) through government policies, media portrayal, decision-making power within our corporations, schools, judicial systems, and so on. As an ideology, Whiteness is comprised of a belief in White supremacy, White culture, and White privilege (Kirkpatrick, 2020). To claim to be “just human” and thus outside of the race is one of the most powerful and pervasive manifestations of Whiteness. Whiteness theory does incorporate White privilege. White privilege is the societal and institutional benefits granted to individuals based on the color of their skin. Peggy MacIntosh, one of the most iconic pioneers of White privilege, states, “I was taught to see racism only in individual acts of meanness, not in invisible systems conferring dominance on my group.” McIntosh created a list of how her White privilege benefits her in her article “White privilege: Unpacking the invisible knapsack.” Racism is present and unavoidable in the traditions, the carefully (if indirectly) schooled blind spots, the laws, the architecture, the history texts, and the customs of our daily lives. Moreover, it will remain there unless we intentionally find it, oppose it, and root it out; it is all too easy to keep putting that effort off to another day. Staying conscious of privilege requires standing up to “White fragility.” Professor Robin DiAngelo (2006) brought the concept of White fragility into public awareness in White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism. She describes it as a manifestation of an internalized White superiority, a method of regaining and maintaining control in discussions about race (Raypole, 2022). White fragility stems, in large part, from an incomplete understanding of racism, according to DiAngelo. Plenty of well-meaning people consider racism terrible and wrong, a word to whisper in a hushed tone and avoid implying at all costs (Raypole, 2022). They might define racism as consisting of the following:
● Actively disliking people of color ● Wishing (or doing) them harm ● Considering them inferior
However, racism goes beyond individual thoughts or feelings of prejudice and discrimination. It also involves the following:
● Systemic oppression ● Denial of resources ● Lack of safe spaces ● Unequal opportunities at school and work
According to DiAngelo, society is structured to prevent White people from experiencing racial discomfort, which generally results in White people not having difficult conversations about race - exactly the behavior that produces and reproduces White supremacy. DiAngelo posits that “White progressives cause the most daily damage to people of color.” DiAngelo explains that White individuals must develop their racial stamina to have difficult conversations about race and listen to people of color’s voices that used to remain silent when White supremacy is exposed (Raypole, 2022).
Page 69
Book Code: PCTX1324
EliteLearning.com/Counselor
Powered by FlippingBook