AS many of you know, Guyanese are racially divided when it comes to many important issues. After reading some news articles and subsequent comments that some people thought were appropriate, I realised that many people don’t understand what racism is, let alone identify and stop when it is happening.

Racism means prejudice or discrimination towards an individual or group of people simply because of their race. It’s based on social perception of biological differences between people. When the term ‘race’ was created, it was intended to classify individuals and respect their differences and dispositions. The root of the word can today be translated as ‘beginning’ or ‘origin’. However, over time, we have turned it into the belief of superiority or inferiority in a socially unjust and morally incomprehension way.

Racism means that a personally perceived, dominant group benefits from the oppression of others. It’s an unjust power structure that hurts an entire society with active discrimination. It promotes hatred and it is not far from racial segregation that our ancestors fought years to overcome. Racial segregation is the separation of humans based on their race. It used to apply to daily activities such as where one can eat, attend school and generally socialise. While segregation has been largely outlawed, it is still noticeably prevalent in Guyana. We see it in certain villages, politics and even in some modern social norms.

It caused me to think about it in regards to my field; just how much racism can affect mental health. Even though racism is one of our oldest and most serious concerns, the study of racial trauma in the field of psychology is fairly new. However, we certainly do know that exposure to racism does have a detrimental effect on our entire well-being. It can cause issues ranging from low self-esteem to mental health illnesses such as depression or anxiety to even suicidal thoughts and behaviours. I have so many clients who have also turned to aggression, violence, isolation and substance abuse due to racism.
Personal perception is vital in regards to mental health. It focuses on the belief that our moods, thoughts and emotions begin and end with us. Many people need validation from others but having good mental health means positive self-awareness as well as a realistic view of your strengths and weaknesses. This is greatly affected in those who are exposed to and experience racism. Many of us tend to believe what others say or think about us or those like us. Our self-esteem is greatly lowered when we feel judged and ridiculed by things we cannot change – colour of our skin being only one factor. The key to making a difference is to know that it is happening and even more so, it is damaging.

Something I think that we all too often forget- when on a table, it is much easier to go down to someone’s level rather than pull them up to your higher ground.

When we become aware of what is going on and do something about it, it gives us a great feeling of power and completely diminishes the possibility of hopelessness. When one is properly educated, they never feel like there is nothing that can be done.

It is hard (or at least should be) to accept that we play a role in the diminishing of our own and other’s self-worth. We know that if we have a certain view about others, we have an underlying fear that others equally critique us. Having good mental health does not simply mean living without a diagnosis but rather the ability to have healthy views, relationships and the ability to make a worthwhile contribution to society. This kind of racism affects both those perpetrating and being victim to it. It increases substance use and abuse, and violence such as assaults, homicides, suicides within an entire community. It brings out hopelessness that we are so used to seeing, that it almost goes unnoticed.
I believe the biggest problem that we face is that we assume race comes with a moral defect. We believe that people act in certain ways or have certain values due to the colour of their skin. In Guyana, race is the focus of the discussion on everything – violence, crime, substance abuse and even suicide. A famous philosopher John Locke coined the term Tabula Rasa which means blank slate. It is a term that expresses the view that people are not born good or bad but without any predetermined rules of how or what they will process. This means that everything, including racism, are learned behaviours- one that can be stopped in its tracks. Appreciate people for who they are and what they can bring to the table, not the colour of their skin. Diversity brings out more knowledge and advancement, for individuals as well as an entire society- never forget that.

Thanking you for reading. Please keep sending any topics you’d like to talk about to caitlinvieira@gmail.com 

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