Preventing White Supremacy: An Applied Conceptualization for the Helping Professions
Preventing White Supremacy: An Applied Conceptualization for the Helping Professions
Unmasking the Unseen: a journey beyond illusion, healing minds, and reclaiming identity—navigating guilt and trauma to transform shame into strength and build bridges for a just tomorrow
Go Deeper
explore foundations and source material White Guilt and Moral Injury
James Baldwin, The White Man’s Guilt (1965)
Lisa B. Spanierman and Mary Heppner, Psychosocial Costs of Racism to Whites Scale (PCRW): Construction and Initial Validation (2004)
Shelby Steele, White Guilt: How Blacks and Whites Together Destroyed the Promise of the Civil Rights Era (2006)
National Wellness Institute, Healing Racial Trauma Through Body-Centered Psychology with Resmaa Menakem (2019)
White Shame and Perpetration-Induced Traumatic Stress
Patrick R. Grzanka, Keri A. Frantell, and Ruth E. Fassinger, The White Racial Affect Scale (WRAS): A Measure of White Guilt, Shame, and Negation (2019)***
Kristen Brock-Petroshius, Javier Garcia-Perez, Margaret Gross & Laura Abrams, Colorblind Attitudes, Empathy, and Shame: Preparing White Students for Anti-Racist Social Work Practice (2023)
Rachel MacNair, Perpetration-Induced Traumatic Stress: The Psychological Consequences of Killing (Psychological Dimensions to War and Peace) (2005)
Mark Charles and Soong-Chan Rah, Unsettling Truths: The Ongoing, Dehumanizing Legacy of the Doctrine of Discovery (2019)
The Just Podcast, Episode18: Unsettling Truths, White Trauma, and the Devastating Doctrine of Discovery with Mark Charles (2021) <This is where I first heard Perpetration-Induced Traumatic Stress linked to White people. It’s an excellent interview and Charles begins to unpack his connection between PITS and White people at around the 40 minute mark>
***The 2019 article is explored in the paper. However, Meredith V Tittler, Jason B Luoma, and M Kati Lear worked with Partick Grzanka to retest the validity of the WRAS in an article published in 2024: Guilt, shame, and/or both? Further validation of the White Racial Affect Scale. The results of this study confirmed many of the findings from the original White Racial Affect Scale study (Grzanka et al., 2020). They found strong support for the ideas of White guilt and White defensiveness, but the evidence for White shame was again not as clear cut.
White Shame Culture
Patrick R. Grzanka, Kirsten A. Gonzalez, and Lisa B. Spanierman, White Supremacy and Counseling Psychology: A Critical–Conceptual Framework (2019) <While the term “White Shame Culture” is unique to Preventing White Supremacy: An Applied Conceptualization for the Helping Professions, this paper (White Supremacy and Counseling Psychology) planted the seeds of White Shame Culture to see the interlocking norms, values, and traditions—united by shame—across disciplines, giving way to a culture.>
Kai Cheng Thom, I Hope We Choose Love: A Trans Girl’s Notes from the End of the World (2019) <Specfically, check out the first essay: Righteous Callings: Being Good, Left Orthodoxy, and the Social Justice Crisis of Faith>
Nellie Bowles, Are White Women Better Now? (2024)
Sarah Schulman, Conflict Is Not Abuse: Overstating Harm, Community Responsibility, and the Duty of Repair (2016)
John McWhorter, The Dehumanizing Condescension of White Fragility (2020) and Woke Racism: How a New Religion Has Betrayed Black America (2021)
Critical Whiteness Studies:
Introduction to Critical Whiteness Studies.
The Importance of Researching Our Own Stories.
Moving beyond supremacy and shame cultures.
Liberalism and CWS:
Accountability Abuse and Moving Beyond Cancel Culture.
Fourth-dimensional accountability.
Understanding Love and Dominance.
Mental Health Needs of White Liberals:
The role of empathy in addressing hurt and preventing further harm.
Understanding PITS and moral injury.
Guilt and Shame:
White Shame Culture: Insights from Personal Stories.
The Dynamics of White Shame Culture in American Society.
White Guilt:
Healing and understanding Whiteness, trauma, and shame in anti-racism work.
Perpetration-Induced Traumatic Stress (PITS) and its impact on White culture.
Moral Injury and Perpetration-Induced Traumatic Stress:
Addressing unmet needs and the roots of violence.
Emotional Impact of White Shame and Guilt on Anti-Racist Efforts:
The importance of acknowledgment and inclusion in reducing aggressive behaviors.
White Shame Culture:
The ways we reinforce shame culture in the US
“White fragility” discourse is rarely trauma-informed
Example: racial microaggressions and reinforcing either/or thinking (intent vs. impact)
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Reflection Questions
slow down and think, feel, and make meaning What are some ways recognizing Whiteness as a social construct can enhance your understanding of racial dynamics?
Think of an instance when grasping the concept of Whiteness brought clarity to a historical event or a current issue.
In what ways do your personal experiences shape your perception of Whiteness and its societal impact?
How might exploring the idea of Whiteness foster your personal growth and increase your empathy for others?
Helping Profession Questions
How can an awareness of Whiteness as a social construct influence your approach to providing equitable care and support within diverse communities?
In what ways might examining the privileges and disadvantages associated with Whiteness help you address systemic biases and improve the inclusivity and effectiveness of your professional practice?
Critical Whiteness Studies
How does recognizing your own identity as a White person influence your understanding of racial injustices and your role in addressing them?
In what ways can acknowledging feelings of guilt or shame about being White lead to more constructive actions against systemic racism?
What personal experiences have shaped your understanding of being White and its societal implications?
How can engaging in discussions about being White and mental health contribute to building more inclusive communities?
Helping Profession Questions
How does your identity as a White professional influence your approach to addressing the mental health needs of clients from diverse racial backgrounds? How do you also address the mental health needs of other White people?
In what ways can reflecting on your experiences as a White individual enhance your understanding of systemic biases, and how might this awareness inform your work in the helping professions?
Mental Health Needs of White Liberals
White Guilt and Moral Injury
How do you feel when you hear about racial injustices, and how can those feelings help you make a difference?
Have you ever felt guilty about racial advantages, and how can that feeling lead to supporting equality?
Have you ever experienced moral injury, and how can understanding it help you promote justice?
How can your past experiences with race help you create a more inclusive future?
Helping Profession Questions
As a professional in the helping field, how do feelings of guilt about racial privilege impact your interactions and decision-making with clients or students, and how can you address these feelings to better support them?
In what ways does understanding moral injury influence your approach to promoting racial justice and equality within your professional role, and how can this awareness enhance your effectiveness in fostering inclusive environments?
White Shame Culture
How do feelings of White shame specifically influence your daily interactions and behaviors as a White individual, and what steps can you take to transform these feelings into constructive anti-racist actions?
Why might some White people feel discomfort about their racial identity, and how do you believe this impacts your behavior and interactions with others?
Can you recall a moment when you felt conflicted about your White identity in the context of social justice? How did you navigate that experience, and what did it teach you about your role in promoting racial equity?
How have recent societal conversations about race changed your perception of your White identity and your responsibility to advance equality within your community?
Helping Profession Questions
Considering the influence of White Shame Culture in the helping professions, how do you recognize and navigate its presence in your work with clients or students to ensure that your practices remain equitable and genuinely supportive?
How does the pervasive nature of White Shame Culture within your professional field challenge your ability to foster authentic relationships and trust with diverse communities, and what strategies do you employ to address and mitigate these challenges in your role?
White Shame and Perpetration-Induced Traumatic Stress
How has acknowledging feelings of shame about your actions or beliefs influenced your behavior and relationships with others
In what ways have encounters with shame or failure motivated you to change your perspective or actions regarding racial issues
Are there times in your life where you felt deeply ashamed of something you did How have these experiences affected your personal development
How can understanding your shame-related emotions help you address and overcome personal biases or prejudices
Emotional Impacts and Anti-Racism Efforts
How do research findings that link guilt to overcoming racist beliefs make you reconsider the impact of emotions on driving social change?
Reflect on how feeling shame might have affected your readiness to participate in anti-racist activities, given that it could hinder such efforts.
Think about a time when you felt guilty for acting unfairly—how did this feeling push you towards making better decisions?
Consider moments in your life where being White made you feel ashamed and how those experiences altered your thoughts on justice and equality.
Helping Profession Questions
As a professional dedicated to aiding others, how does your understanding of White shame shape your approach to fostering inclusivity and fairness within your practice?
In what ways might feelings of White shame influence your interactions with diverse communities, and how can you ensure these emotions contribute positively to your professional responsibilities in promoting social justice?