📖 Learning Objectives

1. Explain theories related to social injustice.

2.  Compare and contrast social injustice vs. systematic oppression.

3. Explore the role of the counselor-client relationship based on cultural oppression, systematic and social injustices.

 This section addresses social injustices, culture,  and cultural identities of both counselor and client within the context of their lives, paying particular attention to the ways in which each individual in the counselor–client relationship may be negatively impacted by various forms of cultural oppression. Systemic injustices and inequities, often conceptualized in terms of social determinants of health (Commission on Social Determinants of Health, 2008; McNair, 2017), are foundational to understanding client presenting concerns (Arthur & Collins, 2016; Fellner et al., 2016). This shift away from an individualistic to a systemic lens is evident in feminist, narrative, multicultural, and social justice approaches to counseling (Brown, 2010; Jean Baker Miller Training Institute, 2017; Sterling et al., 2017). It is critical for learners to recognize the impact of various *isms on client health and well-being and to assess actively experiences of cultural, institutional, and systemic oppression. In colonial nations, many people still struggle to embrace the truth of ongoing processes of colonization and the inter-generational effects of colonial violence (Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, 2015). I recognize the importance, from my own personal and professional experience, for learners to actively wrestle with their positioning within the colonial relationship (Collins & Arthur, 2018; Fellner et al., 2016).

One of the most profound examples of othering and cultural oppression occurred through the process of colonization, whereby colonial/settler populations used force to take the lands of Indigenous peoples throughout the world, and then began a process of cultural genocide and forced assimilation that continues to have dramatic effects on the health and well-being of Indigenous peoples to this day.

Watch one or two of the following short documentaries to get a sense of the residential school system, which was a colonialist tool for the forced eradication of Indigenous language, culture, and spirituality; and of the 60s scoop, in which Indigenous children were apprehended and placed in non-Indigenous foster homes.

© CBC News, The National (2015, June 2)

© Historica Canada (2016, June 20)

© CBC News: The National (2016, October 18)

© CBC News: The National (2016, August 23)

Reflect on your own understanding of the short and long-term effects of colonialism. Consider the immense challenge of surviving colonization and colonial violence and on-going oppression for individuals and communities who have experienced these. Connect these experiences with hypothetical presenting concerns of Indigenous clients, and consider the implications for conceptualizing current problems and envisioning change processes.

Every individual, Indigenous or non-Indigenous, living within traditional territories of Indigenous peoples in Canada or in America is, by default, part of a colonial relationship. It is important for counselors to grapple with the historical and current implications of their positioning within this relationship. The following process aims primarily at non-Indigenous practitioners; however, Indigenous practitioners may also gain new knowledge.

• To begin this process, use the First Nation Profiles Interactive Map to investigate on whose traditional lands you live and work. Zoom in; use the “i” on the map to access specific information; then access the Community Website links for First Nations or Inuit community sites. [Note. This Government of Canada site does not have interactive maps for Inuit Nunangat or Métis Nations; however, you may want to peruse additional resources on this page.]
• Next, compare what you learn on the government site to the Native Land Digital map or the First Peoples of Canada interactive map. Use the information you find as a starting place to search for more details about local treaties, forced migration to reserve lands, and current land disputes.
• In my own search, I came across this cartoon from the Victoria Daily Times paper, which depicts the colonialist successful efforts to displace the Songhees nation from the reserve lands on the Victoria harbour. Both the message and the way in which is conveyed gave me a deeper appreciation for my own positioning on this land.

If you are a non-Indigenous practitioner, thoughtfully consider the ways in which you continue to benefit from the legacy of colonization and colonial violence? Consider the implications of your discovers for position within the colonial relationship with Indigenous peoples locally and nationally.

As counselors and psychologists, we are responsible for our own beliefs, values, ways of being, and counseling practices; however, we are embedded within schools, agencies, organizations, governments, and other environments in which individuals may not have been exposed to the same level of consciousness-raising related to culture and social justice. Reflect on the organizations to which you belong for school, work, family, and leisure activities.

• What changes have you noticed over the past decade since this legislation came into being?
• What do you see as your responsibility, personally and professionally, not only to uphold, but also to promote basic human rights?
• How welcoming are you of the change in legislation in the United States. In what ways does this challenge your personal beliefs, values, and worldview?
• What meaning do you make of your emotional and cognitive reaction to the idea that you are expected, as a U.S. citizen and as a member of the counseling or psychology professions, to take an anti-discriminatory stance towards gender identity and all forms of gender expression?
• If you are a gender-nonconforming person, how as the change in legislation affected you over the past decade in terms of your sense of self and your relationship to the dominant culture. What additional changes do you hope for in your personal and professional world?

Smith, Constantine, Graham, and Dize (2008) explored a number of forms of racism (some subtle, others less subtle) to deconstruct and analyze the stories that we tell ourselves as a means of explaining away attitudes and beliefs that are fundamentally racist. The authors of this article focused on the implications of these ways of spinning racism in our work with clients from nondominant ethnic groups; however, these same processes of distorting perceptions and experience can lead to unintentional oppression with clients from other nondominant populations, because they emerge from unexamined personal biases or assumptions. By trivializing biases or convincing ourselves that they don’t exist, we blind ourselves to their significant sociocultural, economic, and political influence. This has the effect of marginalizing the lived experiences of individuals and groups who are targeted, directly and indirectly, by prejudice and discrimination. Complete the Spinning of *isms template (MS Word version) to examine the ways in which you may unintentionally fall prey to some of these conceptual traps.

Consider a time when you heard a voice in your own head that made an unfair judgment of another person based on visible or invisible markers of difference. Be honest with yourself, because none of us are completely free of these *isms. Perhaps it was an assumption that a colleague would be healthier if she lost weight. Or maybe it is a belief that being gay is a lifestyle choice. Or what if refugees are really taking jobs away from real citizens?  Return again to the ways in which you might be most inclined to spin your thinking when this occurs.

• What steps might you take to bring those assumptions or biases into the open?
• How might holding them limit your ability to engage in culturally responsive and socially just practice?
• What are risks or losses involved in letting them go?

Complete the self-study quiz, Myths and Facts About Women. You will receive immediate feedback about your responses. As you reflect on your score on the quiz, attend to the following questions:

• Which answers were most surprising for you?
• Why were these answers unexpected?
• What feelings are you experiencing as you reflect on this information?
• Has misinformation about women ever influenced your behavior in the past? How might increasing your knowledge influence your future actions?
• What does this information tell us about male privilege in our society?
• How might the responses differ if the data focused only on women of color, Muslim women, women with disabilities, or transgender women?

Becoming a parent is one of the most significant events in some people’s lives. Watch the UN Free & Equal short video on Intersex Awareness. Place yourself in this moment and reflect on how you might react to the news of a healthy, normal, intersex baby.

© UN Human Rights (2016, October 24)

To further capture a glimpse of the experience of intersex children and adults, explore the  information on the UN Free & Equal Intersex Awareness page, particularly the Intersex Voices section, and the website of Mx. Anunnaki Ray, an intersex activist.

Write a short letter to your newborn intersex baby about what your hopes and dreams for them are.

Click on the link below to watch a short video of Dr. Neeru Bakshi in which she applies the concept of neuroplasticity (i.e., how to rewire our brains) to the phenomenon of racism.

Psychology of racism: How to rewire your brain toward antiracist thought
© K5 News (2020, November 23)

Reflect on your own motivation to learn, grow, and evolve as a human being. What steps can you take today to kick start your lazy brain? What new avenues for appreciating diversity might emerge from simply challenging your mind? What might the consequences be for other people and society as a whole if you choose to stop allowing your brain to grow?

The Commission on Social Determinants of Health, World Health Organization (2008) identified a number of key social determinants of health that impact the health and well-being of individuals, communities, and entire populations across the world. Complete the Barriers and goals for health equity table (Word version) to apply these key factors to a nondominant population of your choice. Identify one professional competency that you need to enhance in order to address the change goals you highlighted, and list two things you will do this week to begin to build this competency.

Consider the map of Sexual Orientation Laws in World created by the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association. Choose two of the countries in shades of red on the map from different continents and then look up the specific laws in the Mendos (2020) report on State-Sponsored Homophobia. The world has become a smaller place in the last century with the advent of world travel, the internet, and other aspects of modern life that connect us to other places and peoples.

One of the foundational principles of systems theory is that we are all interconnected, so that a change in one part of the system has a ripple effect in other areas. What are the implications for counseling practice in Canada of these world-wide examples of continued cultural oppression of 2SLGBTQIA+ persons? Conversely, what impact might the profession of counseling in Canada have on the lived experiences of others around the world? Reflect on the challenges of working with an immigrant or refugee from one of these countries, who identifies as a sexual minority.