Psychotherapeutic Work with Intergenerational Trauma

Black rage and internalized oppression: the impact of intergenerational racism

In this lecture, Isha Mckenzie-Mavinga illustrates how racism continues to cause and compound trauma and depression. It is often forgotten that slavery was damaging for both the perpetrators and the enslaved. While both parties have played a significant role in moving on from this atrocity, silences about the impact of slavery and colonialism on developmental processes can mean that clients may not have appropriate support for recognizing the intergenerational impact of this collective trauma. In her book, Black Issues in the Therapeutic Process Isha devised the concept of recognition trauma, presented as a challenge to dominant Eurocentric theory and attitudes when working with family origins, cultural context and intergenerational trauma. This presentation considers the inherited effects of slavery and colonialism as an influence on mental health in the narratives of African/Caribbean psychotherapy clients.