Applying Psychological Science, Benefiting Society
The struggle to protect Black girls and women remains. Unfortunately, Black women remain vulnerable to sexual violence due to what we call intersectionality, the systematic oppression Black women experience based upon their race and gender. Here is what you can do to help.
November 20 is the Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR). To date, in 2019, at least 19 transgender women and two additional transgender/gender-diverse people have been killed as targets of anti-transgender violence. Here are several tips for how to support and advocate for transgender people and transgender women of color in particular.
Native American people are often overlooked, considered extinct, romanticized, forgotten, ignored and bear the burden of negative stereotypes. Belonging to a socially invisible community has consequences beyond being misunderstood and stereotyped. It can lead to much more dire outcomes – specifically, the public disregard of the epidemic of violence against Native American women and girls reflects passive cultural genocide.
Traditionally, African American grandparents have played a critical role in the caretaking responsibilities of their grandchildren. This has allowed their adult children to be able to pursue educational and employment opportunities. However, how the consequences of mass incarceration on the African American family system extend beyond the incarcerated individual into the lives of their children and the grandparents left to care for them are little discussed.
As a healer are you grounded to be present with pain? Can you be comfortable being on the outside of a group and still maintain your self-confidence? What is the preferred terminology when addressing the original people of this land? Is it OK to say “Indian”? Do you know the history of the people you serve?
When my son was just eight weeks and two days into his gestational period, I settled my anxiety of giving birth to a Black male. The night before I gave birth, unlike his twin sister, he was hovered up into the corner of my womb and his heart rate had begun to slow down. That following morning, he was born. Now 20, my Black son has dreams and aspirations but there is the threat of death in the air.
did whatever I thought would provide the best start for my daughter and cement me as a “good mom”. And as a young 21-year-old, unmarried, Black mother I felt even more pressure to prove this to others since I knew my age, amongst other things, unfortunately said otherwise to some people. Absent the knowledge and support of any family or friends that breastfed their children, I did my research and decided to breastfeed my daughter and enrolled in WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, infants, and Children). I was doing what I was thought was best for my daughter while simultaneously, purposefully performing an act that I thought would shatter anyone’s doubt that I could be a good, competent parent.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate for Black males between ages 20 and 24 is more than double the national average for this age group (14.3% vs. 7.1%). The APA report on “Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic and Sexual Minority Boys & Men” prompted a deeper focus on how these employment disparities lead to adverse health impacts, specifically amongst Black millennial men. An APA fact sheet examines this narrowed topic.
Alarmingly, maternal mortality rates for women living in the U.S. are the highest in the developed world with stark racial disparities. Black women specifically have the highest maternal mortality rate in the U.S. and are nearly four times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes compared to White women.
This post continues our blog series regarding racial/ethnic socialization practices, programs, and approaches. APA is putting together a clearinghouse of resources to help parents/caregivers to protect youth of color and themselves from the psychological damage of discrimination and racism. For more information regarding APA’s new initiative and to provide feedback as we continue to engage in […]
Psychology Benefits Society 