Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Racism And Anxiety In A Black American Sample: The Role Of Mediators And A Brief Mindfulness Manipulation, Jessica Rose Graham

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

It is important to determine factors that may exacerbate the negative effects of experiences of racism on anxiety, as well as factors that might buffer racism's negative impact on anxiety in Black American samples. To examine these factors, we conducted two related studies. In study 1, 119 Black American individuals completed the Schedule of Racist Events, the five factor mindfulness questionnaire, the anxiety control questionnaire (assessing perceptions of control), the self-hatred subscale of the cross racial identity scale, and the depression anxiety and stress Scale. As hypothesized, frequency of racist experiences over the past week was significantly positively associated with …

Down At The Cross, Elena Perez-Zetune

SURGE

For the first thirteen years of my familial life, I walked a block to devoutly pray to statues with open arms, promising open gates- my radiant mother walking with once thin father, hand in hand like a teenage couple. My sister, with her thick night-black curly hair, skipped and fell every other step, not due to young age but simply an unfortunate quarrel with gravity. Always trailing close behind was my brother clutching his precious cards shouting, “I choose you Pikachu” along the way.

From kindergarten through eighth grade, I walked through the hallways of my Catholic primary school. The …

Overheard At Gettysburg, Rashida Aluko-Roberts, Zakiya A. Brown, Monae S. Evans

SURGE

Monday. In Old TKE. A student of color is called in the hallway to hear the “funniest thing ever.” (giggling) “Night night little nigglet.”

Tuesday. In an AFS class. “I’m pretty sure the majority of black students in my private school were there because of sports.”

Wednesday. In Musselman. Woman: “I can’t believe Trayvon Martin got shot because someone thought skittles was a weapon.” Man: “To be honest, he did look suspicious because he was black.” [excerpt]

Fearless: Emily Cranfill, Emily J. Cranfill

SURGE

Emily Cranfill ’15 has been getting a lot of attention recently, but not necessarily for all of the volunteering, organizations, and groups with which she’s normally involved. Since first hearing last week about the Ku Klux Klan’s (KKK) plans to come protest in the town of Gettysburg, Emily has been inspired to take action by organizing a Rally for Unity Against Hate on campus this Saturday afternoon while the KKK will be protesting. And the responses to her fearless ideas, enthusiasm, and initiative have been staggering. [excerpt]

Effects Of Racism And Discrimination On Personality Development Among African American Male Repeat Offenders, Tiffany Nicole Lockett

Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

Effects of Racism and Discrimination on Personality Development among

African American Male Repeat Offenders

Tiffany Nicole Lockett

Throughout history in the United States, the African American community has consistently been the victim of social policies put in place to disenfranchise this population (Mauer & Chesney-Lind, 2002; Painter, 2007; Parham, White & Ajamu, 1999). With a longstanding presence of systemic racism and discrimination, the criminal justice system and the dominant culture continues to pathologize this minority group and advocate for increased penalties which further stigmatize African Americans, particularly males in this group (Reiman, 1996; Russell, 1998). Though most criminology research …

Authentic Connectedness : An Exploration Of Gestalt Therapy Principles In Addressing The Dynamics Of Interacting Across Identity Difference, Marissa H. Mcmillin

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This qualitative study explored the experiences of how Gestalt therapists understand and apply principles of "authentic connectedness" when interacting across difference, such as race, culture, class, gender or sexuality, in both their clinical work and experiences in daily life. The researcher was especially interested in how these principles are used to understand and address interactions around privilege and oppression, which are dynamics that come up on a daily basis in American society, both within and beyond the therapy relationship. Ten Gestalt therapists, formally trained in Gestalt therapy, were interviewed and asked to describe interactions where they were cognizant of a …

A Guest In Someone Else's House : The Construction Of Asian Americans As Foreigners, Deepa Ranganathan

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

Social workers, like many people, wrongly tend to think of Asian Americans as beings exempt from the problems of racism. The social work profession considers "race" to be a property inhering almost solely in African Americans. Meanwhile, the profession assigns the property of foreign "culture" primarily to Asian Americans. This thesis uses the work of Critical Race Theory (CRT) scholars to show that social workers, in presuming that Asian Americans are a class of people who are essentially foreign, are actually reproducing a form of exclusionist racism that Asian Americans have faced for generations. A partial solution to this problem …

An Exploratory Study Of Motivations Of White People Engaged In Antiracism Work, Bronwyn R. Shiffer

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The purpose of this study was to explore the question: What motivates White people in doing antiracism work? The research was a qualitative study with a sample of 12 participants who self-identified as White clinicians or teachers and as engaging in antiracism work. Participants reflected on their motivations for entering and staying engaged in antiracism work during in-person or phone interviews. The findings of this study offer insight into the many factors of motivation of White people involved in antiracism work as well as what support structures sustain long-term action and engagement. Nearly all participants spoke about personal benefits from …

Clinicians Behind The Curtain : Are White Smith Students Addressing Race And Racism, Why Or Why Not? If So, How?, Malcolm R. Pradia

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The literature confirms the importance of providing cross-cultural education and the development of cross-cultural skills for trainees entering clinical practice. In recognition of this, Smith College School for Social Work has a written commitment to anti-racism and as part of this commitment the college has developed a curriculum that addresses race and racism in clinical practice and the social work profession. Given this commitment, this study surveyed twelve white Smith College School for Social Work students to understand if white Smith students were addressing race and racism with clients of color in clinical practice, why or why not, and if …

An Exploratory Study On White Empathy And Cross-Racial Experiences In The Virtual World, Caitlyn I. Keckeissen

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This mixed-methods, exploratory study was conducted to investigate two areas of inquiry: (1) whether the experience of playing SecondLife™ as an avatar of color had an impact on White-identified Americans' beliefs and values about race and racism; and (2) what participants identified as relevant to their process of developing empathy for people of color and acknowledgment of racism. Seven self-identified White adult Americans completed pre- and post-experiment measures of colorblind and symbolic racism as well as 6 non-consecutive hours over the course of one month, and then participated in a qualitative interview to reflect on the process. The study investigator …

The Long Term Effects Of Racial Socialization Of African American Sons Through Communication Patterns From Their Mothers, Jacqueline A. Johnson

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study explored the long-term effects of racial socialization patterns from African American mothers to their sons to discover whether they are enhancing or impeding the wellbeing the African American males. While several distinct socialization types emerge throughout the literature with egalitarian, and barrier socialization messages predominating, the measures have focused primarily on the effects of racial socialization on academic performance. This qualitative study attempted to illuminate a gap in the literature: the long-term effects of mother to son racial socialization messages as evidenced by the limited research examining the later life experiences of adult African American men. The results …

Racially Aware Supervision : Examining How White Mental Health Clinicians Address Cultural Competency With Their White Supervisors, Elizabeth Hammond

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This research examines how multicultural competency and racial difference are addressed in supervision between White mental health clinicians and their White supervisors in mental health settings that serve primarily clients of color. The researcher completed a qualitative case study analysis of five participants who were asked to discuss the content and nature of their supervision with their White supervisors. Three research questions served as the foundation to explore supervisors' and clinicians' attention to cultural competence in the supervisory relationship: (1) How are multicultural issues, race, and racism addressed in supervision? (2) How does attention to clinician-client cultural issues in supervision …

What We Teach Our Children : A Content Analysis Of Racism In Second Grade Textbooks, Mary G. Fesperman

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study was undertaken to examine racial bias and prejudice in current second grade textbooks. Second graders are generally 7-8 years old; an age during which morals and values are developed and racist ideations can be either challenged or solidified. Using the standards of multicultural education as an ideal, textbooks aimed at this population were examined to explore the extent to which racism continues to be reified. The three most widely adopted second grade textbooks in America were assessed in the ways they depict African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, and White Americans. Using a method of content …

Dismantling The Dominant Narrative Of The Irreversibility Of Schizophrenia : Three Meaning Making Approaches To Psychosis, Sarah K. Alpern

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The dominant discourse of schizophrenia as an incurable and biologically determined disease was interrogated through the lenses of race, culture, postmodern philosophy as well as quantitative and qualitative data suggesting a causal relationship between trauma and psychosis (Ensink, 1992; Read, J., van Os, J., Morrison, A.P. and Ross, C. A., 2005; Romme and Escher, 1989, 1996, 2000). The superior outcomes of those treatment models that privileged psychosocial support over pharmaceutical interventions also called into question the primacy of the medical model, as did the longitudinal studies of the World Health Organization (WHO) and over-representation in diagnosis among African Americans (Osiezagha, …

A Social Justice Perspective In Anti-Bullying Program Implementation, Monica Vanderheiden

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Oppression is in our everyday lives. Children get to experience it first hand in school by simply being different than others. Bullying has become a serious problem in American schools and many programs have been implemented to address it. This thesis grew out of a large evaluation study of anti-bullying program implemented in a large school district located in the Pacific Southwest. The main goal of this thesis is to continue the research process of the large evaluation study by focusing on the theme of implementation. Another goal is understand social justice as it relates to anti-bulling program evaluation. In …

Until The Cops Come Knocking, Mauricio E. Novoa

SURGE

“Fuck the police coming straight from the underground/ A young nigga got it bad ‘cause I’m brown/ And not the other color so police think/ They have the authority to kill a minority” – Ice Cube, “Fuck Tha Police”

At some point in our lives, we have all walked down a street for some minute errand, and a few of those times we may have crossed paths with men in uniform patrolling the streets. Some who cross them may not think anything of it, but for others, they feel their eyes follow every step they take and distaste is exchanged …

Fearless: Mauricio Novoa, Mauricio E. Novoa

SURGE

This week, we acknowledge Mauricio Novoa ‘14 as a fearless advocate of social justice through his use of the power of words.

Mauricio, an English major with a writing concentration, keeps a personal blog called Greasy Frijoles where he has been posting original poems since January 2012. Aside from being a very talented writer, Mauricio writes in various styles and on a number of topics. Many of his pieces confront racism and classism head on. [excerpt]

The Legal Limits Of Racism, Chelsea E. Broe

SURGE

When I heard the news that the Food Network decided not to renew Paula Deen’s contract after she admitted to making racist comments, I was happy. Not because she used racial slurs, of course, but because she was punished for it. Maybe I’m a cynic, but I like the idea of public attention being placed on wrongdoings. That’s the whole point of having free speech, after all: to have an open dialogue wherein all possible viewpoints can be voiced, considered, challenged, and criticized until they are ultimately decided to be acceptable or unacceptable. [excerpt]

Rape Culture Ruined My Favorite 80s Movie, Stephanie K. Adamczak

SURGE

I will admit that I wish my best friend was Duckie, I want to attend just one Saturday detention with Emilio Estevez, and I listen to an unhealthy amount of music from the Smiths and the Psychedelic Furs. Yes, I am a child of the nineties, but I spent many high school nights watching John Hughes films and attempting to dye my hair the perfect shade of Molly Ringwald red. [excerpt]

The Council Of Conservative Citizens: Extolling Nativism And Perpetuating Stereotypes, Jordan M. Tinnon

Honors Theses

The Council of Conservative Citizens (CofCC), an overtly pro-white, anti-immigrant political organization, uses biased news articles laden with racial stereotypes to promote and propagate their dogma of white superiority and nativism. In these articles particular attention is paid to the supposed threats of Hispanic immigration, attempting to make the case that Hispanics put white Americans’ health and safety, along with the white American way of life, at risk. Six recent articles from the CofCC website are shown to capitalize on the fear of the public to further advance and support a doctrine of nativism. Nativism has serious ramifications both to …

A Christian Understanding Of Aesthetic Agency: A Theological Framework Of Resistance To Cultural Imperialism, Elise Edwards

LUX: A Journal of Transdisciplinary Writing and Research from Claremont Graduate University

Aesthetic agency refers to conditions, capacities, and states that inform artistic forms of acting and exerting power on social structures. In resistance to the marginalization of women of color, aesthetic agency is exercised through creative acts of culture-making and critique of such practices to challenge domination and representation of the oppressed other. To support this work as a feminist Christian ethicist, I construct a theological framework for aesthetic agency. This paper proposes a theological understanding of transformative aesthetics and then describes the exercise of aesthetic agency for Christian communities by using a television special, Black Girls Rock! as an example.

Biased Language Usage And Age In Reinforcing Marginalizing Behavior, Rebecca Lynn Tanner

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Biased language usage is prevalent within every society and within every level of all these societies. While there are many studies that look at the psychological, physical, and symbolic manifestations of biased language, it is unclear as to when this type of behavior is recalled as being derogatory by people. This study conducted in-depth face-to-face interviews of ten individuals in a medium-sized Midwestern city. Questions focused on the age and context in which interviewees recalled twenty-four different situations of exposure to derogatory and marginalizing language usage or behavior. The study suggests that most language is first encountered within the family …

Sheltering Xenophobia, Ronald Sundstrom

Philosophy

What is xenophobia? Why is xenophobia immoral? How is xenophobia’s conceptual and moral meaning diminished? Investigations of these questions would invigorate xenophobia as a topic in public morality and discourage the public’s acquiesc- ing to xenophobia’s new prominence. This paper focuses on the third question, the diminishment of xenophobia. In the first sec- tion, I outline a general conception of xenophobia. In the second, I explain how theories of membership in liberal democratic soci- eties relegate xenophobia to a minor moral concern. And, in the third, that the conflation of xenophobia with racism disadvantages the former. How liberal Democratic nations …

That Awkward Moment When I Accidentally Internalized Racism, Rashida Aluko-Roberts

SURGE

I recently attended a conference about the importance of Africana Studies (AFS) and it had a panel of visiting professors that consisted of mostly black men and women. I was beyond impressed by their achievements and found myself engaged and excited by their discussions. My admiration for these scholars only grew exponentially when I learned that one of the female professors was from Sierra Leone, just like me! [excerpt]

Copyright ©2013, American Sociological Association, Volume Xix, Number 1, Pages 130 - 152, Issn 1076 - 156x The Impacts Of Terrorism And Capitalist Incorporation On Indigenous Americans, Asafa Jalata

Asafa Jalata

This article demonstrates the connections between terrorism, colonial state formation, and the development of the capitalist world system, or globalization, exploring the consequences of colonial terrorism on indigenous American peoples. First, the piece introduces the central argument and conceptualizes and theorizes terrorism. Second, it examines the structural aspects of colonial terrorism by connecting it to specific colonial policies and practices. Third, it explains the ideological justifications that Euro-American colonial settlers and their descendants used in committing crimes against humanity and dispossessing the homelands of indigenous Americans, as well as in amassing wealth/capital by ignoring moral, ethical, and philosophical issues and …

The Impacts Of Terrorism And Capitalist Incorporation On Indigenous Americans, Asafa Jalata

Sociology Publications and Other Works

This article demonstrates the connections between terrorism , colonial state formation, and the development of the capitalist world system, or globalization, exploring theconsequences of colonial terrorism on indigenous American peoples. First, the piece introduces the central argument and conceptualizes and theorizes terrorism. Second, it examines the structural aspects of colonial terrorism by connecting it to specific colonial policies and practices. Third, it explain the ideological justifications tha Euro-American colonial settlers and their descendants used In committing crimes against humanity and dispossessing the homelands of indigenous Americans, as well as in amassing wealth/capital by ignoring moral, ethical ,and philosophical issues and …

Racism And Identity In Onwueme's Riot In Heaven, Onyeka F. Iwuchukwu

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In her article "Racism and Identity in Onwueme's Riot in Heaven" Onyeka Iwuchukwu explores Tess Osonye Onwueme's acclaimed play in the context of the Black diaspora in the U.S. Iwuchukwu posits that because of Onwueme's exploration of the theater of the absurd in the play, audience's attention is directed to the illogical presentation of dialogue and action. However, the technique with textual properties suggesting unmotivated and meaningless references in fact carries profound meaning. Further, the said "absurd" presentation and narration results in a strong ideological and political message akin to the practice of littérature engagée. Iwuchukwu's analysis of …

A Qualitative Study Of Interracial Dating Among College Students, Stephanie Firebaugh Rose, Michael W. Firmin

Psychology Faculty Publications

We present the results of a qualitative research study involving interracial dating on a university campus. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 20 college students (10 couples) who currently were involved in interracial dating relationships. Participants repeatedly told us of experiences they had relating to public interaction. These involved dynamics relating to religion, friends and acquaintances, and prejudice and discrimination incidences. Additionally, themes emerged relating to the couple’s interpersonal relationships. These included their own reactions to discriminatory behavior, being thick-skinned about their interracial status, interracial sensitivity experienced by the African-American partner, and experiences of shared culture connectedness. Finally, the couples related …

Coloring In The Margins : The Impact Of Racial And Ethnocultural Identity On The Professional Lives Of Social Workers Of Color, Jessica R. Sundram

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This exploratory quantitative study examined the impact of racial and ethnocultural identity on the professional lives of social workers of color, focusing on experiences of social workers of color with racism, the influence of racial and ethnocultural identity in cross-cultural clinical work, and the perceived impact of racial and ethnocultural identity on career trajectory and professional experiences. Social workers of color have been and continue to be underrepresented in the population of licensed social workers. In this study, a sample of 86 social workers of color with a Masters in Social Work and two or more years of experience in …

"Somebody Better Put Their Pants On And Be Talking About It" : White Therapists Who Identify As Anti-Racist Addressing Racism And Racial Identity With White Clients, Morgan R. Stone

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This qualitative study explores how White therapists who identify as anti-racist address race, racism, and racial identity with white clients from an anti-racist perspective. Twelve White therapists were interviewed and asked what anti-racism means to them, how they have responded to racism with white clients, and how they attempt to incorporate anti-racism values into their lives and therapy practices. The therapists were also asked how they were trained to address these issues in their psychology, social work, and counseling programs, and their use of the racial identity of their white clients to improve therapeutic outcomes was discussed. Most of the …