Towards the end of his book “No Future without Forgiveness,” Desmond Tutu recalls a time he was traveling to Nigeria. When he boarded the plane he was filled with pride to see that it was being piloted by Nigerians (there were no black South African pilots at the time). During the flight the plane hit some serious turbulence. Tutu recalls his reaction:
“I found I was saying to myself, “I really am bothered that there’s no white man in the cockpit. Can these blacks manage to navigate us out of this horrible experience?”It was all involuntary and spontaneous. I would never have believed that I had in fact been so radically brainwashed.”
This story came to mind after reading numerous articles in the wake of the unjust killing of a young black man in Ferguson, Mo. Sadly, there have been other recent stories about black men losing their lives due to the unwarranted perception of threat they have posed. But I have read more stories coming from Ferguson that speak to the deep, psychological effects of racism that hurt individuals and communities of color.
Some effects of systemic racism are tangible and visible such as poverty, substandard education, and disproportionately high rates of imprisonment. These topics are regularly discussed in an intellectual fashion, with observers wondering how we can ‘fix’ the problem. But the negative psychological ramifications, such as the ‘brainwashing’ experienced by Archbishop Tutu, are less easily disseminated. They are difficult to eradicate and are long-lasting.
Residents of Ferguson have suffered institutional betrayal. Both the justice system and the media have brought harm to this population through acts of both commission and omission. Citizens have been racially profiled and treated as enemy combatants by the police. The media have relied on images of ‘the scary black man’instead of exploring the more complex causes of racism not easily articulated in a 3-minute soundbite. These institutions that are supposed to protect the residents and tell their stories have inflicted even more harm due to their own self-interests.
When trusted institutions relay the message that a group of people are not worthy of protection — but rather what needs to be protected against — those group members may come to believe this message. Just as Desmond Tutu perceived — for a fleeting moment — members of his race incapable of safely piloting an aircraft, minority members can succumb to the self-fulfilling prophecy that they are less capable and worthy than others. Beliefs about self-worth become based on stereotypes and expectations rather than truth.
When minority members are ostracized based on the color of their skin, they experience social pain that is as real and intense as physical pain. Humans literally feel cold when excluded, and physical pain is stronger when the receiver believes it was caused intentionally.
Social exclusion has behavioral ramifications that can hurt communities as well as individuals. Ostracism can cause shame, which in turn can result in violence. If a person cannot gain entry into the community that has rejected him, his frustration may lead him to act in an aggressive manner. Ostracism also increases dishonesty as its victims feel a sense of entitlement due to being denied the rewards that come with social connection. This latter finding puts the video of Mike Brown shoplifting before his unrelated murder in a new light.
Parents of minority children experience anxiety about their child’s well-being that is unkown to white families. While worrying is a universal component of parenting, minority parents have their own set of concerns. They worry about their child’s safety because they know that the color of the child’s skin will evoke stereotypes and prejudice that can result in verbal and physical assault. Part of their parenting involves giving their kids ‘the talk’ about how to behave in order to minimize the threat of these assaults. From very early on, children of color know that they are not valued in the same way as their white peers.
There is no easy answer to racism, but education about the causes of the deep psychological wounds that scar so many of God’s children is a start. The hope is that we will become both enlightened about racial discrimination and motivated as citizens to work harder to alleviate this social ill. In the end we are all negatively affected by this disease. As Martin Luther King said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Ferguson’s pain is our pain.
