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Looking Back, Moving Forward: a Phenomenological Investigation of African American Millennials’ Views on Historical Trauma

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Looking Back, Moving Forward: a Phenomenological Investigation of African American Millennials’ Views on Historical Trauma Looking Back, Moving Forward: A Phenomenological Investigation of African American Millennials’ Views on Historical Trauma by Ariel Lewis B.S. in Business Administration, December 2008, Bowie State University M.A. in General Psychology, May 2011, The Catholic University of America A Dissertation submitted to The Faculty of The Graduate School of Education and Human Development of The George Washington University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy May 17, 2020 Dissertation directed by Jorge Garcia Professor of Counseling The Graduate School of Education and Human Development of The George Washington University certifies that Ariel Lewis has passed the Final Examination for the degree of Doctor of Education as of March 11, 2020. This is the final and approved form of the dissertation. Looking Back, Moving Forward: A Phenomenological Investigation of African American Millennials’ Views on Historical Trauma Ariel Lewis Dissertation Research Committee: Jorge Garcia, Professor of Counseling, Dissertation Director Lionel Howard, Associate Professor of Educational Research, Committee Member A. Elizabeth Crunk, Assistant Professor of Counseling, Committee Member ii © Copyright 2020 by Ariel Lewis All rights reserved iii Acknowledgements It’s difficult to even know where to begin. There are so many people who have contributed to this accomplishment, with some of them being complete strangers to me. I thank my ancestors. You had no way of knowing that one day there would be a little Black girl in Baltimore, lost and lonely, trying to find her way. You had no way of knowing that she would live in a time where brown-skinned people would achieve amazing things and yet still fight daily against the institutionalized racism that can be traced back to your capture and enslavement. You didn’t know that brown skinned people would claim the highest offices, excel in every field, and undertake the arduous process of reclaiming what was taken from you, but here we are. Here I am. I’m just so thankful and proud to be descended from generations of people who fought for something. Because you fought, you set an example for us to keep fighting—in our communities, schools, workplaces—we fight every day because too many have sacrificed too much for us to settle for being mediocre or complacent. This dissertation represents a segment of my fight. This program has been a test on many levels but ultimately, even when I felt like the chips were down, I could not give up. I would not be the one to drop the baton in this relay. You deserve more than that. Thank you for being my motivation and cheering for me from whatever beautiful place you currently reside. I hope that I have made you proud. Wesley Lewis: My husband, my best friend, and my rock. Thank you so much for your undying support. In the most difficult moments, you have been the force that kept me going. Early on in our relationship when I told you that I wanted to pursue a career in iv mental health, you supported me, but you couldn’t have really known all of the sacrifices that would be made along the way. Thank you for never giving up on me or my dreams. Leo, Cadence, and “December bean”: Each of you have been an inspiration and motivation to me in different ways. Leo and Cadie, as I completed this research, it became unavoidably connected to my hopes, dreams, and fears for you. More than anything, I wanted you to grow up having a mom that demonstrates just a snippet of the greatness that you’re capable of. You can accomplish anything you want in this life. Don’t you dare let anyone tell you anything different. December bean, although you never got to experience the world, your presence is always felt and a driving force for me to reach higher. Mom and Dad Lewis: Thank you so much for your support along the way. Whether it was offering to watch the kids, celebrating my successes, or offering reassurance when the going was tough, you’ve offered me the consistent love that I needed. Thank you. Other family members and friends: I know that many of you wondered if I would ever complete this mysterious document. Although most of you did not directly contribute, you still helped by adding joy to my life. This has been a long journey and no one makes it on their own. No burrito is too big and no contribution is too small. Dr. Jorge Garcia. I feel very fortunate to have benefited from your guidance throughout the program. Thank you for believing in me and my ability to accomplish this milestone. v Dissertation Committee. Thank you for being so generous with your time, knowledge, and patience. I never doubted that each one of you wanted to see me be successful. I appreciate you all more than words can convey. GSEHD Department of Counseling and Human Development faculty and staff: Thank you for providing me with such a great foundation and contributing to my love of counseling. When I arrived at GW, I was so excited to begin this journey but I had a lot to learn along the way. Thank you for challenging me and supporting me along the way. I would like to send special love to the CCSC staff. You have been instrumental to me getting to this point. Thanks for everything. vi Abstract of Dissertation Looking Back, Moving Forward: A Phenomenological Investigation of African American Millennials’ Views on Historical Trauma Background: The current DSM-5 criteria for trauma eliminate events that do not involve actual or threatened death or injury to an individual or someone that that individual has a close relationship with. This is quite limiting as it ignores the reality that one person’s negative experiences may have long-term effects for others as well. Historical trauma is a concept that accounts for these trickle down effects by outlining the manner in which trauma can be group experience that is cumulative over time and damaging across generations. While historical trauma has been explored in relation to some historically marginalized groups, a review of the existing literature reveals that African American historical trauma is an understudied topic. African Americans possess a rich history, inclusive of both tragedy and triumph, with perhaps the most widely recognized of the tragedies being chattel slavery. Slavery would then be followed by many years of institutionalized racism and an ongoing struggle for equality. The purpose of this study is to explore the manner in which African Americans perceive and make meaning of historical traumas experienced by earlier generations, and how they cope with those realities in the present. Method: This study employed phenomenological interviews as a means of allowing the target population to speak about their perceptions of historical trauma in their own words. The 12 participants self-identified as African American millennials, with at least two generations of families having been born in the United States. Interviews were held via vii online video conferencing software and by phone. Interviews were then transcribed and analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Results: Thematic analysis revealed the presence of eight main themes. This themes included (1) What’s in a name?, (2) Education on African American history: early and inadequate, (3) Slavery was just the beginning, (4) Storytelling as preparation, (5) All- encompassing loss, (6) Pride as a grief response, (7) Restricted expression, and (8) Navigating an evolving racial climate. These findings will contribute to the ability of clinicians, researchers, and other decision makers to include historical trauma in their conceptualizations of African American millennials. Suggestions for clinical practice as well as future directions for research are provided. viii Table of Contents Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................... iv Abstract of Dissertation .................................................................................................. vii List of Figures ................................................................................................................... xi List of Tables ................................................................................................................... xii Chapter 1: Introduction ....................................................................................................1 Overview ..........................................................................................................................1 Current Racial Climate. ...............................................................................................2 Trauma and loss. ..........................................................................................................4 Statement of the Problem .................................................................................................6 Purpose and Research Questions ....................................................................................7 Statement of Potential Significance .................................................................................8 Theoretical Foundation or Conceptual Framework ......................................................10 Historical trauma theory. ...........................................................................................11 Grief and loss. ............................................................................................................11 Summary of the Methodology.......................................................................................12
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