The news headlines appear to catch horrifying pictures of police brutality and the demonstrations they cause. Yet witnessing prejudice and bigotry is always a constant yet ignored fact if you are black or another ethnic minority, and it can take a significant toll on your mental health, increasing the risk of depression, anxiety, tension, trauma, and misuse of drugs.
You are much more likely to experience negative life events, such as poverty, unemployment, imprisonment, or violence, as a person of color. Our society also overlooks black and minority contributions to history and culture, popular films and TV shows appear to concentrate only on negative racial stereotypes, and hateful, aggressive bigotry is promoted by some influential politicians. It is less likely that financial institutions will give you credit or charge even more for doing so. And it's our black and brown communities that bear the brunt of the misery when tragedy hits, such as the global coronavirus pandemic and the subsequent economic fallout.
Then there are the subtler manifestations that pervade everyday life of racism. A security guard who, because of the color of your skin, follows you around the shop. The police officers who stop and without cause search you. The company which refuses service to you. The manager who, again, overlooks you for promotion. When you approach, the white people who cross the street stop seating on the bus next to you, or keep their bags closer when you step into an elevator. Such common "micro-aggressions" can be emotionally scarring and leave you as a human being feeling marginalized, exhausted by stress and devalued. You may rage against our society's lack of equality, despair at the feeling of impotence, or feel traumatized by the injustice of it all.
It's important to note, whatever your experience of prejudice, that you're not alone. There is strength in numbers, and no matter how abhorrent they may be, there are steps you can take to better cope with situations beyond your influence. Hope still remains. Powerful movements around the world are calling for social change and even more people seem to be slowly taking notice. Although personal prejudice and structural and institutional racism will not vanish overnight, in the face of bigotry and intolerance, there are plenty of things that you can do to stand up to discrimination, strengthen your family and community, and protect your mental health.
Cultural trauma or traumatic stress centered on race originates from exposure to racist violence or prejudice. It can erode your sense of self-worth and contribute to insomnia, anxiety, chronic stress, high blood pressure, eating disorders, drug addiction, and even PTSD symptoms such as hypervigilance, suicidal thoughts, and changes in mood.
To feel traumatized or for your mental wellbeing to suffer, you don't need to witness racism firsthand. It can also cause racial trauma to watch news coverage of police violence against black people, experience racism against your friends, relatives, or neighbors, or be exposed to the distressing rhetoric of certain political leaders.
Ethnic trauma may also be transferred from one generation to the next through, for example, recounting harrowing tales or continuously mistreating a group. Research has shown that black babies have higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol than white infants by the time they are a year old, meaning they are already responding negatively to prejudice and racism.
