As a child living in public housing on Chicago’s South Side, I never realized that what I experienced growing up could be considered “abnormal,” “high-risk” or a “community failure” by other people. I could not play outside after dark because this is usually when the shooting started. I very often had to
Tag: Multiculturalism & Diversity
Multiculturalism & Diversity
Cliff Hamrick was meditating long before he became a counselor, having found the practice useful for treating the depression he had experienced some years before. Now a private practitioner in Austin, Texas, Hamrick integrates Eastern and Western approaches to counseling because he believes it benefits his clients. Partway across the
(Press Release from SAMHSA) The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) Administrator Pamela S. Hyde announced the award of a minority fellowship grant of up to $1.6 million to expand the behavioral health workforce in order to reduce health disparities and improve health care outcomes for traditionally underserved
As members of the Sikh faith, we were in shock when we received the news on Aug. 5 that six members of the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in Oak Creek had been shot and killed. Immediately, we reached out to our families and were glued to the television as we
The past three decades can be described as a golden age in the history of the American Counseling Association. Licensure laws for professional counselors have been approved in all 50 states and several territories, helping to define the identity of the counseling profession. ACA publications, research, professional development activities and member
July is National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, and the American Counseling Association is urging its members to use this time to think about the racial and cultural disparities that are still evident in the mental health treatment system in our nation. The U.S. House of Representatives proclaimed July to be
The importance of developing culturally competent counselors has never been greater. As the world becomes increasingly interconnected because of technology, economic and business initiatives, pop culture and professional opportunities, cultures are less and less segregated. The likelihood of daily encounters with individuals from other countries or with different ethnic backgrounds
African Americans are a complex cultural group. Although considered to be one culture, many cultural differences exist within this group. That same statement could be applied to any culture, but it is African Americans who have one of the most historically oppressive pasts and who continue to face numerous microaggressions along
One of the pillars of the counseling is empowering clients to achieve the goals they have set themselves. But over time, counselors have also placed greater focus on international issues and social justice counseling. Manivong J. Ratts, president of Counselors for Social Justice, a division of the American Counseling Association, calls
Picture the following scenario. You are a counselor with less than one year of experience. Recently, an employment opportunity opened up at a school to work with adolescents who have a variety of behavioral issues, including excessive anger. An interview is scheduled, a job offer extended. You eagerly accept. The