Juneteenth Reflection: 10 Ways Psychology Has Harmed Black Americans—and What Therapists Can Do Better
Juneteenth is often celebrated as a day of freedom, resilience, and progress. For white Americans, it is an opportunity for reflection.
As therapists, we spend much of our time helping people examine the impact of their past so they can move forward with greater awareness and intention. Our profession deserves the same level of reflection.
Psychology and counseling have helped countless people heal. They have also contributed to harm. Understanding that history is not about guilt. It is about growth.
In honor of Juneteenth, here are ten ways psychology has historically harmed Black Americans—and how we can do better.
1. Pathologizing Normal Responses to Oppression
Historically, experiences such as hypervigilance, mistrust, anger, grief, and emotional exhaustion related to racism have sometimes been viewed as symptoms rather than understandable responses to chronic stress.
Do Better:
- Assess experiences of racism and discrimination as part of the clinical picture.
- Consider whether behaviors are adaptive responses before labeling them pathological.
- Recognize that context matters.
2. Overdiagnosing Severe Mental Illness
Research has consistently found disparities in psychiatric diagnosis, particularly the overdiagnosis of schizophrenia among Black individuals.
Do Better:
- Slow down the diagnostic process.
- Seek consultation when cultural factors may influence presentation.
- Carefully differentiate trauma, mood disorders, and psychosis.
3. Ignoring the Impact of Racism
For decades, mental health treatment often focused on changing individuals while paying little attention to the systems contributing to distress.
Do Better:
- Include discussions of systemic stressors when clinically relevant.
- Validate the emotional impact of discrimination.
- Remember that coping skills are important, but so is acknowledging reality.
## 4. Excluding Black Voices from Research
Much of psychology's foundation was built using predominantly White research participants, yet findings were often treated as universal.
Do Better:
- Review who was represented in the studies informing your practice.
- Learn from research conducted by Black scholars.
- Be transparent about the limitations of existing evidence.
5. Defining Health Through a White Cultural Lens
Historically, many counseling approaches assumed White middle-class norms were the standard for healthy behavior, communication, and family functioning.
Do Better:
- Explore cultural values rather than assuming them.
- Avoid measuring clients against one cultural standard.
- Practice cultural humility instead of cultural expertise.
6. Earning Mistrust Through Historical Harm
Mental health and healthcare systems have a long history of discrimination, exclusion, and unethical treatment of Black Americans.
Because of that history, mistrust did not appear out of nowhere.
Do Better:
- View mistrust as information, not resistance.
- Be transparent about treatment recommendations.
- Focus on earning trust rather than expecting it.
7. Focusing on Deficits Instead of Strengths
Black communities have often been studied through the lens of problems, pathology, and risk factors while resilience and strengths received less attention.
Do Better:
- Assess strengths as thoroughly as symptoms.
- Explore cultural, family, spiritual, and community resources.
- Remember that resilience is not the absence of suffering.
8. Underrepresenting Black Clinicians and Leaders
Psychology has historically struggled with representation in leadership, academia, research, and training programs.
Do Better:
- Seek diverse voices in consultation and continuing education.
- Support efforts that increase representation in the profession.
- Examine whose perspectives are informing your clinical work.
9. Creating Harm Through Microaggressions
Many Black clients report experiences in therapy where race-related concerns were minimized, dismissed, or redirected.
Comments such as "I don't see color" may be intended as inclusive but can invalidate important aspects of a person's lived experience.
Do Better:
- Ask questions instead of making assumptions.
- Be willing to discuss race when clients bring it into the room.
- Repair ruptures when they occur.
10. Mislabeling Cultural Mistrust as Resistance
Guardedness, caution, or delayed trust are sometimes viewed as barriers to treatment rather than reasonable responses shaped by personal and collective experiences.
Do Better:
- Understand that trust is built, not owed.
- Respect a client's pace.
- Prioritize relationship-building before expecting vulnerability.
The Juneteenth Challenge for Therapists
Juneteenth reminds us that freedom is not simply about removing barriers. It is about continually examining the systems we inherit and the systems we help create.
As therapists, we can ask ourselves:
- What assumptions am I making?
- What cultural factors am I overlooking?
- Am I considering systems as well as symptoms?
- Whose voices are missing from my professional development?
The goal is not perfection. The goal is progress.
This Juneteenth, may we celebrate resilience, honor history, and commit ourselves to building a mental health profession that is more curious, more humble, and more responsive to the communities we serve.
