What is White racial identity and why is it important?

When George Floyd died, people across the United States started to look more critically at how white supremacy affects all of us. In this episode, we talk to mental health experts and scholars about why understanding your whiteness and the ways that white supremacy benefits you is an important part of becoming self aware.

Jump ahead to the noted time stamp:

Exploring White racial identity will be a lifelong process (1:10)
Join or create and accountability group (1:57)
Be proactive about your relationships with people of color (3:38)

Featured in this video:

Resmaa Menakem is a trauma specialist and author of “My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies.”

Rebecca Toporek is a psychologist and professor in the Department of Counseling at San Francisco State University.

Ilyse Kennedy is a trauma therapist and founder of Moving Parts Psychotherapy in Austin, TX.

Kelsey Arias is a crisis interventionist and Crisis Line Supervisor at Lines For Life in Portland, OR.

Watch more episodes of ‘The New Normal’ at the links below:

“The New Normal” is a series from The Lily and The Washington Post that talks about how to navigate the different ways news affects our everyday lives, hosted by Nicole Ellis. The Lily is a publication of The Washington Post that covers critical stories about women and gender.

Racial trauma can be deadly for Black people. Here are five ways to cope with it: https://youtu.be/f7ivK-4gvvk

How to talk about race with racist white parents and family: https://youtu.be/QNlpOxZdACI

How to be anti-racist: it’s more than books, quotes and Blackout Tuesday: https://youtu.be/iL0HJ2VDSxU

Advice on coping with racism amid protests of police violence after George Floyd’s death: https://youtu.be/pWei7jdIWc4

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