Belief in Free Will and Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome Denial
The belief that people’s behaviors are freely chosen, and not the result of all of their previous experience, enables some to justify the plight of others and perpetuates blaming victims for being victims. And although it’s a belief that is contradicted by a mountain of evidence, it remains replete throughout our entire society, primarily inculcated as part of a traditional religious worldview.
This Sunday on Equal Time for Freethought Dr. Joy Degruy, author of “Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome,” defends her work against criticism in the recent book by Sana Butler, “Sugar of the Crop: My Journey to Find the Children of Slaves.” Butler claims that the children of freedmen simply chose to leave their slave experience behind, and that any problems currently experienced in families who descend from African slaves is just the result of people deciding to not “choose” correctly.
Join us as Dr. DeGruy weighs in on personal choice, Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome denial, and recent events in general.
Dr. Degruy holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications; two master degrees in Social Work and Psychology; and a PhD in Social Work Research. With over twenty years of practical experience as a professional in the field of social work, she gives a practical insight into various cultural and ethnic groups that form the basis of contemporary American society.
see the new book on black north africans and moslems taking white european slaves 1500-1800 in the mediterranean. Where is the white/european PTSD? It doesnt exist. These historical grudges only exist within the individuals and groups that continue to dwell on them. All of human history is about the killers and the killed, the slavemasters and slaves, the absolute rulers and the ruled, the torturers and the tortured. Whether from the monguls killing a million in one city assault or from the germans killing millions of jews, or the romans and greeks or goths doing likewise, we all have ancestors who have been both. Learn from it, get over it, stop looking for excuses and instead determine what you need to do to be successful, and join the modern world or western civilization. If you think there is a culture you can copy that will give you more then please return the electric lights and air conditioning and the millions other marvels that have come from the european peoples and their decendants. We will relinquish the use of korean pottery and whatever great technology that originated in africa as long as you give up everything you got from the europeans and their decendants. You can start by giving up penicillin.
Denial on the part of white people is the problem. They put bush in office twice! Enough said!
To reference historical events in the Mediterranean, does not address the historical events in America. It is true, that many cultures around the world have experienced the role of being the oppressed or the oppressor. In America, not the Mediterranean, African slaves and their descendants were the oppressed. To assume the end of slavery, meant there was an end to the oppression, is ludicrous. The oppression is a vicious cycle that starts in childhood. TJ’s suggestions of “getting over it” and “not making excuses” is the idea of meritocracy where people think all you have to do is “pull yourself up by your bootstraps”!
I’ll end with this: a 5 yr old African American boy, walks into a public school system, where 80% of the teachers are white women with little to no understanding of his culture and and familial experiences. He then has to battle being labeled and segregated in special education because African Americans represent 12.6% in special ed and 12.8% of the population, while White Americans represent 8.8% in special ed and 79.8% of the population. He then has to deal with standardized tests that do not acknowledge the cultural values of African American students but instead the cultural values of middle class white students. As if that is not enough, that same public school system suspends African American students at a higher rate than white student with alarming disproportions. (In case you are unclear of my put, these are concrete examples of OPPRESSION)
If he is fortunate and able to avoid the systematic pitfalls, he then graduates into a society where he gets sits down at a computer and read a comment that tells him to “get over it”, “stop making excuses”, and give up penicillin…seriously?!
I enjoyed reading your comments Amber Morgan in responce to TJ’s nonsense. It’s my opinion that racist people are mentally challanged people. Yes I am putting it mildly. To be blunt racism is an ideology that fosters mental retardation. Racism allows it adherents to not see the forest because of the trees. &, the racist really does not mind admiring the beauty of the trees although the racist does miss out on the magnificents of the forest.
I would then suppose there’s no PTSD for vet’s? Based on TJ’s comments all a vet need do is “get over it”.
In response to TJ, there is a response by Europeans to the presence of Muslim Arabs and Africans in Europe. This can be seen by limits being placed upon immigration, increases in violence against Muslims and other non-white people. The difference is that the European has power over his/her environment. He/she has the ability to punish and/or reward people for their behavior. Black people world wide do not have that power. We are subject to punishment and reward under the system of racism.
When Black people say, ‘get over it,’ I’ve learned to interpret that statement to mean to willingly accept the abuse in the form of deceit and/or direct violence under racism to continue without acknowledgment. This is mentally sick behavior that needs to be addressed. Masochism is not the answer.
Terrill, I so agrre with you and would like to add that the strategy of “divide and conquer” is as effective today as it was when first implemented this is evivent in the response of african americans that have been successfulin moving forwrdwed as Dr, DeGruy has nebtioned yes some thirive however, in the face of reality in my opinion African Americans will never be accepted as human beings within White America because we were property and I believe this promotes an attitude of “ownership’ and “entitlement” that is associated with “white privleges”. which results in the terminology “minority” to define non whites. I absolutly am disgusted that this terminology would be acceptable by anyone as an appropriate term to define human beings. I feel as though I have missed a lot of relevant, important, and much needed knowledge in refernce to providing adequate and effective services for clients that I work with. I always new that deeper issues were present that went beyond the scope of what I had been taught. I just recently learned about Dr. Degruy Leary which is sad considering I am a second term phd student. (REVISED)