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Editorial
. 2022 May;61(5):586-590.
doi: 10.1016/j.jaac.2022.01.001. Epub 2022 Jan 10.

Combating the Conspiracy of Silence: Clinician Recommendations for Talking About Racism-Related Events With Youth of Color

Affiliations
Editorial

Combating the Conspiracy of Silence: Clinician Recommendations for Talking About Racism-Related Events With Youth of Color

Chardée A Galán et al. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2022 May.

Abstract

Graphic videos of race-based violence, including police brutality toward Black people and anti-Asian hate crimes, have exploded over the past year. While documentation of these horrific acts has brought visibility to the pervasiveness of racial discrimination, it has also resulted in youth of color being exposed to racial stressors more than ever before across numerous social media and news platforms.1-3 Beyond the significant race-related stress already experienced by youth in school contexts,4 this increased exposure to racism via media is concerning, as both direct and vicarious exposure to racial discrimination can compromise psychological well-being of youth and cause trauma-like symptoms, such as intrusive thoughts, vigilance, and depression.3,5.

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Conflict of interest statement

Disclosures: Dr. Galán has received funding from the National Science Foundation, the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, and the Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology.

Dr. Tung has received grant or research support from the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

Ms. Tabachnick has received funding from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Ms. Sequeira has received funding from the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of General Medical Sciences.

Dr. Novacek has received funding from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Ms. Kahhale has reported no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest.

Ms. Jamal-Orozco has reported no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest.

Dr. Boness has received funding from the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and the American Psychological Association.

Mr. Gonzalez has received funding from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

Ms. Bowdring has reported no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest.

Ms. Bekele has reported no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Example broaching statements and cultural missteps to avoid.

References

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    1. Bor J, Venkataramani AS, Williams DR, Tsai AC. Police killings and their spillover effects on the mental health of black Americans: A population-based, quasi-experimental study. Lancet. 2018;392(10144):302–10. 10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31130-9 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Liu SR, Modir S. The outbreak that was always here: Racial trauma in the context of COVID-19 and implications for mental health providers. Psychol. Trauma: Theory Res. Pract. Policy 2020;12(5):439–442. 10.1037/tra0000784 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Carter RT. Racism and psychological and emotional injury: Recognizing and assessing race-based traumatic stress. Couns Psychol. 2007;35(1):13–105. 10.1177/0011000006292033 - DOI
    1. Steketee A, Williams MT, Valencia BT, Printz D, Hooper LM. Racial and language microaggressions in the school ecology. Perspect Psychol Sci. 2021;16(5):1075–98. 10.1177/1745691621995740 - DOI - PubMed

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