We Don’t Trust YOU: Reflections on Anti-Racism in Psychoanalysis

Abstract

Discussions about race and racism are very difficult among psychoanalysts, and are often polarizing. This article argues that the conception of Whiteness as the pathogenic agent of our social ills has created a good deal of animosity that has interfered with the goals of examining structural racism in psychoanalysis, as in the rest of society. The concept of Whiteness is compared to the scientific racism of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Both constructions are manifestations of essentialism. Epistemic trust and mistrust, potential malignant polarization, and a back-fire effect occur, which distracts from paying enough attention to critical social problems at the moment. Terror Management Theory, fear of one’s mortality, is postulated to result in the avoidance of open discussions about differences. Group discussions utilizing deliberative norms are more productive than the usual psychoanalytic style of free and open-ended discussions, which often promote polarization. Can there be a recovery of epistemic trust among analysts who have similar values but may strongly disagree on the right course to follow? Understanding and addressing the difficulties of discussion among psychoanalysts can contribute to addressing these issues in the social realm.

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