Print

10 A Handbook on Counseling African American Women INTERSECTIONALITY IN THERAPY FOR BLACK WOMEN Intersectionality within therapy emphasizes how systemic, institutional, and structural oppression impact individual and community mental health (Lewis & Grzanka, 2016). Integrating intersectionality into counsel- ing provides therapists an enriched framework from which multicultural- ism is conceptualized. This amalgamation renders a robust understanding of Black women as clients. This influence manifests systemically, in the development of the competencies for various psychological and counsel- ing associations and social justice movements everywhere. Implications for the Therapeutic Care of Black Women Research about Black women’s experiences informs better therapeutic care. A crucial therapeutic benefit of understanding the impact and expe- riences of multiple marginalized identities is empathy for Black women. This level of informed care dismantles the deficit hypothesis practiced in conventional therapy that suggests nonwhite family structures and prac- tices are pathological (Holmes et al., 2011). Adopting an approach that emphasizes individual and collective strengths proves most effective in reducing distress symptoms. Feminist Therapy Feminist perspectives in therapy incorporate many of the intersectional tenets. Feminist models provide a strength-based approach that empow- ers the client, promoting agency and restoring power that may have been taken away from them (French et al., 2019). Pioneering scholars such as Patricia Hill Collins (2000), Kimberlé Crenshaw (1989), and the Comba- hee River Collective (1995) informed the evolution of feminist therapy into multicultural feminist therapy. Adding multiculturalism to feminism integrates core concepts of intersectionality into therapeutic practice. Enns and Byars-Winston (2010) elaborate on how the tenants of multicultural feminist therapy can be found in Guidelines for Psychological Practice with Girls and Women (2007). The guidelines call on practitioners to (a) rely on practices that are effective for diverse groups of girls and women, (b) foster relationships that lead to empowerment, (c) use unbiased and appropriate assessments, (d) consider the sociopolitical context in which problems occur for the client, (e) acquaint themselves with community and educational resources, and (f) work to change institutional biases. Feminist methods also shift the locus of the problem from the individual to the environment (Holmes et al., 2011). It takes into account the systems and institutions involved that have disempowered the client. For addi- tional literature specific to Black feminism, Jones and Harris (2019) outline