After the murder of George Floyd, I thought a lot about grief, unresolved grief, and how Black people have always had to be “strong.” I thought a lot about the intergenerational trauma so many of us have inherited. There was this echo within my own circles of struggling mentally and needing help, and I felt that the natural response for most white people might have been “see a therapist.” It isn’t as simple for Black people because of
the stigma surrounding mental health and the likelihood that your therapist will be white.
Having had only white therapists myself, I was very self-conscious about being vulnerable and open, but I probably would not have been with a Black person. We know systemic racism permeates every facet of life, which is exactly why there needs to be concrete actions to provide more accessible and culturally competent care to not just Black people but other marginalized and racialized groups.
When I was writing my article “All Booked Up: The Frustrations of Finding a Black Therapist,” I wasn’t surprised to find evidence to support that more Black people would actually seek mental help
if they could find a Black therapist and that better treatment outcomes would also be more likely. I love the way Shaquiera Hamilton, a McGill psychology student, puts it: “We need to decentralize mental health care.” We need to consider other ways of healing that have been effective, outside of lying on a therapist’s sofa, while also providing the opportunity to access culturally competent therapy for those who choose to go that route.
New Journalists-In-Residence partnership to advance fact-checking education
Over the next year, Allison Baker and Viviane Fairbank will be conducting research, in partnership with The Walrus and Carleton University’s Future of Journalism Initiative (FJI), on inclusive approaches to fact-checking in longform journalism, culminating in a guide for students and journalists (you can read more about their project here). As part of this research, Allison and Viviane are hoping to hear from working journalists (reporters, editors, and fact-checkers) and journalistic sources about their experiences with fact-checking.
If you’re interested in participating by sharing your experience or pointing to a case study in the industry, please send a note to allisonbaker@carleton.ca or vivianefairbank@carleton.ca, or send them a DM on Twitter: @allybake or @vivianefairbank. They will not share your name
or story publicly without your explicit approval.
This week's newsletter was written by Alicia Lue, produced by Angela Misri,and copy-edited by Jonah Brunet.
Send us an email at letters@thewalrus.ca and your letter may be included in a future issue of The Walrus.
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