By Ms Jheri Worldwide
Staff Writer
You’re not crazy, you’re just traumatized systemically. This is not an Achilles heel or a crutch, it’s just the facts. I’m sharing this knowledge in hopes that we can collectively embrace and use it as empowerment. Are you familiar with Dr. Joy DeGruy, “Dr. DeGruy developed her theory of Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome, publishing her findings in the book “Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome – America’s Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing.” The book addresses the residual impacts of generations of slavery and opens up the discussion of how the black community can use the strengths we have developed in the past to heal in the present.”
As I explored the Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome concept, this is the easiest-to-digest definition I could find by Dr. DeGruy, “P.T.S.S. is a theory that explains the etiology of many of the adaptive survival behaviors in African American communities throughout the United States and the Diaspora. It is a condition that exists as a consequence of multigenerational oppression of Africans and their descendants resulting from centuries of chattel slavery–a form of slavery which was predicated on the belief that African Americans were inherently/genetically inferior to whites.”
This definition speaks to the conditioning that has come from the social impacts of Post-traumatic Slave Syndrome in American society through the generations. Even today in popular culture when someone refers to, “white-only pie” people of the culture know the reference and the feeling of being in an unwelcoming restaurant or learning environment. Some of us have felt the sentiment on our jobs or even in houses of worship. Physical manifestations are seen in housing discrimination with examples such as, “urban renewal” and today defined as “gentrification.” Other elements are apparent, for example, how we engage with one another and the decisions we make about day-to-day thinking versus long-term goal setting and planning. Even reading, once something that we were physically assaulted now is something many members of our community choose not to do.
In her book, Dr. DeGruy describes the adaptive and survival behaviors passed down over hundreds of years, “Black Americans today exhibit three key behavior patterns that resulted from the multi-generational oppression, centuries of chattel slavery, and institutionalized racism. Vacant Esteem: Insufficient development of “primary esteem,” along with feelings of hopelessness, depression, and a general self-destructive outlook. Marked Propensity for Anger and Violence: Extreme feelings of suspicion, perceived negative motivations of others. Violence against self, property, and others, including the members of one’s own group, i.e. friends, relatives, or acquaintances. Finally, Racist Socialization and (internalized racism): Learned Helplessness, literacy deprivation, distorted self-concept, antipathy.
So what do we do now? How can we persevere against this trauma? The first step is breaking out of short-term thinking or survival mode and planning for the future with a generational wealth mindset. We can also focus on supporting businesses of people with shared experiences that we can relate to. Overall, awareness and understanding of our condition is the first step. As Maya Angelou has stated, we are our ancestor’s wildest dreams, we are also the manifestation of their perseverance. We are blessed with the opportunity to keep moving forward.