This page was co-authored by Bethany Brand and Sebastian McNary. The authors are grateful to Ijeoma Madubata, Ph.D. for her helpful suggestions on an earlier version of this page.
Race is a socially constructed phenomenon that has been used to divide people for centuries, giving rise to systemic racism, discrimination, and violence. The result, a “racial hierarchy” that marginalizes and disenfranchises Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC), impacts our social and political structures, although it is often not recognized by many white people. The consequences of systemic racism extend into all areas of life: social interactions; health, educational, and economic disparities; and disproportionate targeting by the criminal justice system, among many others.
Potential Effects of Racism
Systemic racism has resulted in damaging psychological consequences for BIPOC [1]. COVID-19 is one of many situations that exacerbates racial trauma with psychological and health consequences for BIPOC [2]. COVID-19 and several recent incidents of highly publicized anti-Black police violence have illuminated the depth of racial injustices that people of color have endured for centuries. Due to space constraints, this page can provide only a brief introduction to some of the damaging effects of systemic racism and white supremacy.
Much more research is needed to clarify the links between racism and its myriad societal impacts. Here are some examples of what research has found thus far. Over 75% of Black Americans experience daily discrimination [3].
- Foster care: Black children are disproportionally removed from their families and placed in foster care compared to white children [4].
- Education: Boys of color, as well as children with learning disabilities and those with exposure to poverty, abuse and/or neglect, have poorer educational outcomes than do white males. For example, these children are at much higher risk for expulsions which contributes to the school-to-prison pipeline. Being pushed out of the educational system and into the criminal justice system harms children, who would have benefited from additional educational services and counseling [5].
- Psychological effects:
- Police shootings:
- More than 300 Black individuals – at least a quarter of whom are unarmed – are killed by police in the U.S. each year [6]. These killings have received increased media coverage in recent years; however, they have been occurring for decades, causing devastating grief and trauma.
- “Spillover Effect”: Each additional police killing of an unarmed Black American is associated with 14 “poor mental health days” among Black Americans [7].
- Adolescents who more frequently viewed traumatic events online (such as police shootings of BIPOC) experienced higher levels of PTSD symptoms and depressive symptoms [8].
- Police shootings:
- COVID-19:
- BIPOC are at greater risk for developing COVID-19 and suffering more severe consequences, including death [11].
- Asian Americans have been scapegoated as being the source of COVID-19 in the U.S. [12].
- Many primarily Black and Latinx communities lack adequate hospitals, medical care, housing, personal protective equipment, and testing resources, and Black and Latinx individuals are over-represented in essential personnel jobs. These systemic issues are often ignored and yet make social distancing and quarantining less feasible [13].
- Some politicians and media outlets have racialized the COVID-19 pandemic, blaming BIPOC for their higher rates of test positivity and deaths, without acknowledging the underlying disparities.
- Employment:
- Black and Latinx men have higher rates of unemployment and underemployment than white men. In 2015, the unemployment rates for white, Latinx, and Black men were 9.1%, 10.6%, and 17.8% respectively [14].
- BIPOC often face discrimination in hiring. For example, job candidates with “Black sounding” names were 50% less likely to be called for an interview than identically qualified candidates with “white sounding” names [15].
- Illness and early death:
- Racial discrimination moderated the relationship between PTSD and health complications, accounting for 19% of the variance in health complications [16].
- Exposure to stressors such as racism increases the risk for many health conditions including heart disease, high blood pressure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and the common cold [17].
- In one study, racial/ethnic discrimination predicted psychological distress, well-being, number of bad days, and chronic health conditions for Black Americans [18].
- Criminal justice system:
- BIPOC are disproportionately involved in the criminal justice system:
- 1 in 3 Black men and 1 in 6 Latinx men will be imprisoned in their lifetimes compared to 1 in 17 White men [19].
- 1 in 18 Black women and 1 in 45 Latinx women will be imprisoned in their lifetimes compared to 1 in 111 White women [20].
- BIPOC are disproportionately involved in the criminal justice system:
- Negative financial impact:
- Nationally, 11.6% of white Americans live in poverty, compared to 25.8% of Black Americans, 23.2% of Latinx Americans, and 27% of American Indian and Alaska Natives [21].
- In New York City in 2014, almost 80% of all pre-foreclosure filings were made on properties in primarily Black and Latinx neighborhoods [22].
What is Racial Trauma?
Racial trauma is a form of trauma experienced by BIPOC individuals due to the effects of systemic racism as well as other forms of racism, such as overt interpersonal racism, microaggressions, and generational trauma. Racial trauma may lead to higher rates of PTSD among BIPOC individuals, and can cause other comorbid mental and physical health effects.
- PTSD:
- Research found that Black and Latinx American adults develop PTSD at higher rates that whites [23].
- The only longitudinal study of people with PTSD that included high percentages of BIPOC found that the vast majority of BIPOC individuals continued to suffer from chronic PTSD despite 95% having sought treatment at some point in their lives [24].
- Because negative self-appraisal is associated with diagnosable trauma reactions to traumatic experiences, ongoing exposure to racial microaggressions and the associated negative psychological symptoms may alter BIPOC individuals’ views of themselves and their ethnic groups, thereby contributing to the traumatization process [25].
- Studies have repeatedly demonstrated that exposure to a traumatic event and/or multiple traumas increases an individual’s risk for developing PTSD in response to future trauma [26]. The collective effects of environmental and social stressors faced by BIPOC individuals may both produce cumulative trauma and disrupt these individuals’ ability to self-regulate [27].
- Research on intergenerational trauma has indicated that environmental stress related to specific ethnic identities can produce a trauma reaction, which may be passed on to future generations through emotional distress from talking about the events and/or biological predispositions to developing PTSD [28].
- DSM-5:
- Covert racism may not fall under DSM-5 Criterion A traumatic experiences, but it causes significant stress, as well as psychological and physiological damage, for members of minority groups [29].
- Due to the potential social costs and stigma that result from sharing experiences of racism [30], people who are victimized by racism may not have the opportunity to process these experiences through therapy or interpersonal interactions. This may cause an individual to involuntarily reexperience traumatic experiences in an attempt to make sense of them [31], therefore meeting Criterion B [32].
- Several other elements of racial and intergenerational trauma indicate that racial trauma can be mapped onto the DSM-5 framework for PTSD [33].
- Comorbid psychological effects:
- For African Americans, in addition to racial trauma, experiences of racism may also contribute to the development of depression [34].
- Experiences of racism can been found to cause stress responses such as anger, paranoia , anxiety, and helplessness-hopelessness [35]. (Note: In light of extensive racism, it is unclear when BIPOC suffer from “paranoia” versus reality-based intense fear of others, particularly whites.)
Resources for Further Reading:
Check out a presentation made by Keshia L. Harris, Ph.D. and Farah Harris, LCPC on how race-based and environmental trauma impact the mental health of Black individuals in the workplace and academia.
The Presentation: Harris & Harris, 2020: Click here to download.
Black Lives Matter: https://blacklivesmatter.com/
NYU McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy and Research: https://mcsilver.nyu.edu/
Racial Equity Tools: https://www.racialequitytools.org/home
[1] Lebron, D., Morrison, L., Ferris, D., Alcantara, A., Cummings, D., Parker, G., & McKay, M. (2015). Facts Matter! Black Lives Matter! The Trauma of Racism. New York, NY: McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy and Research, New York University Silver School of Social Work.
[2] Liu, S. R., & Modir, S. (2020). The outbreak that was always here: Racial trauma in the context of COVID-19 and implications for mental health providers. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 12(5), 439–442. https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0000784
[3] American Psychological Association (2016). Stress in America: The impact of discrimination. Stress in America™ Survey.
[4] Lebron et al., 2015.
[5] Lebron et al., 2015.
[6] Bor, J., Venkataramani, A., Williams, D.R., & Tsai, A.C. (2018). Police killings and their spillover effects on the mental health of black Americans: A population-based, quasi-experimental study. Lancet. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31130-9
[7] Bor et al., 2018.
[8] Tynes, B. M., Willis, H. A., Stewart, A. M, & Hamilton, M. W. (2019). Race-related traumatic events online and mental health among adolescents of color. Journal of Adolescent Health, 65(3), 371–377. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2019.03.006
[9] Smith, W. A., Hung, M., & Franklin, J. D. (2011). Racial battle fatigue and the miseducation of Black men: Racial microaggressions, societal problems, and environmental stress. The Journal of Negro Education, 80(1), 63–82.
[10] Sue, D. W., Alsaidi, S., Awad, M. N., Glaeser, E., Calle, C. Z., & Mendez, N. (2019). Disarming racial microaggressions: Microintervention strategies for targets, white allies, and bystanders. American Psychologist, 74(1), 128–142. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000296
[11] Liu & Modir, 2020.
[12] Liu & Modir, 2020.
[13] Liu & Modir, 2020.
[14] Lebron et al., 2015.
[15] Bertrand, M. & Mullainathan, S. (2003, July). Are Emily and Greg More Employable than Lakisha and Jamal? A Field Experiment on Labor Market Discrimination. National Bureau of Economic Research. http://www.nber.org/papers/w9873.pdf
[16] Carter, S., Powers, A., & Bradley, B. (2020). Understanding the influence of racial discrimination on the associations between PTSD symptoms, physiological arousal, and health among African American women with trauma exposure. Biological Psychiatry, 87(9)(Suppl.), S349. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2020.02.896
[17] Clark, R., Anderson, N. B., Clark, V. R., & Williams, D. R. (1999). Racism as a Stressor for African Americans: A Biopsychosocial Model. American Psychologist, 54(10), 805–816.
[18] Fernando, 1984; as cited in Clark et al., 1999.
[19] Bonczar, T. P. Prevalence of Imprisonment in the U.S. Population, 1974-2001 (NCJ 197976). U.S. Department of Justice.
[20] Bonczar, Prevalence of Imprisonment in the U.S. Population.
[21] Lebron et al., 2015.
[22] Lebron et al., 2015.
[23] Sibrava, N. J., Bjornsson, A. S., Pérez Benítez, A. C. I., Moitra, E., Weisberg, R. B., & Keller, M. B. (2019). Posttraumatic stress disorder in African American and Latinx adults: Clinical course and the role of racial and ethnic discrimination. American Psychologist, 74(1), 101–116. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000339
[24] Sibrava et al., 2019.
[25] Williams, M. T., Metzger, I. W., Leins, C., & DeLapp, C. (2018). Assessing racial trauma within a DSM–5 framework: The UConn Racial/Ethnic Stress & Trauma Survey. Practice Innovations, 3(4), 242–260. https://doi.org/10.1037/pri0000076
[26] Breslau et al., 1999; McLaughlin et al., 2010; Stradling, 1994; Cloitre et al., 2009 as cited in Williams et al., 2018.
[27] Williams et al., 2018.
[28] Williams et al., 2018.
[29] Williams et al., 2018.
[30] Garcia et al., 2005; Stangor, et al., 2002; as cited in Williams et al., 2018.
[31] Foa et al., 2007; as cited in Williams et al., 2018.
[32] Williams et al., 2018.
[33] Williams et al., 2018.
[34] Fernando, 1984; as cited in Clark et al., 1999.
[35] Armstead et al., 1989; Bullock & Houston, 1987; as cited in Clark et al., 1999.