06/06/2020
Some thoughts about race and racism.
Most scientists agree that race is a social construct, that is something that we have made up in order to facilitate categorizing others. There is no underlying biological support for the few, observable differences among people (skin color, hair texture, shape of features) to justify the distinctions we make about them – and the resulting differences that creates in terms of how people are valued and treated in societies. Yet we persist in using these non-scientific and inconsequential differences to decide who we consider friend and who we consider foe.
What is challenging for most people is separating an idea or thought that we find troubling from the person who expresses it. This makes it very difficult for opponents to hear each other and at least learn more about why the person feels the way they do. We end up entrenching in our positions and hunkering down behind the fortifications and maybe lobbing an insult or barb out from time to time.
There is no mental health diagnosis for someone who has beliefs or behaviors which are negatively focused on others solely because of their race, gender/gender orientation, sexual orientation or other physical or social characteristic. There are several diagnoses that describe behaviors that can be harmful to others (antisocial behavior, narcissistic behavior and paranoia for example) but these do not include the component of a singular focus on an individual or group’s race, gender or sexual orientation. Researchers have proposed the creation of a diagnosis of intolerant personality disorder which would be defined as the inability or unwillingness to accept the beliefs, perspectives or practices of other people. It would be classified a disorder when these beliefs result in activities that suppress the quality of another person or group’s life or cause them pain or suffering. The perspective is that when people exhibit behaviors that are against social norms then they are problematic and in need of intervention.
Research into the effects of perceived constant and persistent discrimination supports the outcome that we have seen in places in the country recently. Minority stress (google it!) describes the impact of prejudice and discrimination on people and the resulting physical and mental health outcomes. There are also traumatic reactions associated with the long-term exposure to events or an environment that is perceived to be hostile or threatening. To be clear, I am not condoning the destruction of other people’s property. However I am supporting what I know to be the fact that people who have experienced long-term trauma frequently have reduced impulse control, increased reactivity to real or imagined threats and are less likely to be concerned with social norms that are not evenly or fairly applied to them. Rioting is a symptom of a deeper problem that must be addressed if we want to create a community where that is not perceived as an option.
How do we make progress? There is probably no one answer to this. But all answers involve learning to actually listen to other people, trying to understand their perspective and being and feeling heard when we share ours. If we can figure out how to do that, the next steps will be a great deal easier.
