The seventh public forum of the American Psychoanalytic Association was held on December 15, 2000. The panelists for “Glass Ceilings, Glass Walls: Race in America” were James Forbes, the senior minister of the Riverside Church, one of the largest multicultural congregations in the nation; Maria Hinojosa, a correspondent for CNN, who has reported on race issues for both radio and television; Dorothy Holmes, a psychoanalyst who has written and lectured extensively on psychoanalytic perspectives on race; and Eugene Wolfenstein, professor of political science at UCLA, who has written on Malcolm X and racism. The co-chairs of the public forum were Purnima Mehta and A. Michele Morgan.
Forbes presented the idea that race can be understood as a faith, in that it can define what one values and is loyal to. Racism often derives its power from a claim that another race is a degenerate form of humanity. Blackness in such a society takes the form of the essence of evil. Whiteness then feels an ontological duty to control and possess. No area is untouched by race; it is in the bloodstream. The white majority fears losing its primacy.
Forbes suggested that the way forward from racism would involve both whites and blacks developing a racial security, taking care of themselves, before racial groups can reach out to each other. Each group needs security from which to risk compassion for the other. White folks do not think they are beautiful, said Forbes; they haven't worked through the ugliness of whiteness. Forbes suggested that white superiority has elements of a narcissistic defense. We need to tell stories, to engage, to educate, and to share. Forbes advocates a public truth and reconciliation process and some form of reparations. He sees the need for conversation across the divide of race and safe places for a dialogue. As an example of how race is hidden in our society, he noted that there is no museum of slavery comparable to the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C.
The power of the media is to decide what is news. Racism is often not visible as news. A recent example was the disenfranchisement of the black vote in Florida. Hinojosa discussed the difficulties of being a minority person in television journalism. Often the implicit message is to be visible as a person of color but not to challenge the power structure. The person of color may become an honorary member of the white community and obtain its materialistic advantages, but with a loss of core values. At the same time, there is pressure to represent social conscience and become a racial symbol. But those who are angry are seen as problematic. This can lead to self-censoring. How can one remain within the system and yet effectively challenge prevailing stereotypes?
“… race can be understood as a faith, in that it can define what one values and is loyal to. Racism often derives its power from a claim that another race is a degenerate form of humanity. Blackness in such a society takes the form of the essence of evil. Whiteness then feels an ontological duty to control and possess. No area is untouched by race; it is in the bloodstream.”
It was pointed out from the floor that the attendance at the forum was relatively low. The public forum was scheduled concurrently with several other events. What does this say about our commitment to social issues? There were few attendees from outside the American. Was there adequate publicity? Is this an example of institutional racism in the American? There are many unconscious reasons not to say anything about racism; people are afraid of the strong feelings involved.
Holmes pointed out that in this society, racial images are always present unconsciously. As defense, they participate in splitting and projective phenomena. Through identification with the aggressor, the oppressed and the oppressors are connected. Rage is often disavowed or repressed. Impulses are assigned to outgroups, and personal responsibility is diminished. In reality testing, the other is seen as unimportant. Most psychodynamics of power will have racial representations.
Holmes feels it is important that therapists appreciate the conscious use of race to represent unconscious dynamics and the unconscious racial images that need to be interpreted. Racial transferences often carry deep rage that needs to be fully expressed as part of the uncovering process. It is ironic that psychoanalysis, which was founded in a climate of racial conflict and has studied extensively the influence of the Holocaust through multiple generations, has generally ignored the influence of race in our society. How little is taught in our institutes about the interrelation of race and psychodynamics?
Wolfenstein argued that many in the white community have the fantasy that race does not pertain to them. Race is a problem for someone else or some other place. This, of course, is a defense familiar to psychoanalysts: displacement and disavowal. The innocence of whites could be understood as a defense against rage or awareness of sorrow, but at the same time, this innocence is deeply felt. People with this attitude often live in privilege and don't have to confront racial issues. Another issue related to “white innocence” is that the majority is gradually becoming a minority. There may be a backlash to avoid giving up power.
On the black side, a corresponding issue is the feeling of being invisible. Why is it the burden of the oppressed to liberate the oppressor? The one who has privileges has no motivation to change and pays no penalty. Many in the minority community are tired of it being “their problem.” It is likely that the status quo will go on as usual unless the system is disrupted.
Robert S. White, M.D., is a member of the Western New England Psychoanalytic Society and an assistant professor of psychiatry at Yale University.