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Microaggressive Impact on Mental Health Practice 257

and effort, (6) engages in dysfunctional helping/patronization, and (7) denies
any individual bias or racism. All of these beliefs or assumptions, if acted
upon by the caseworker, might constitute various forms of racial microaggres-
sions that would impede the therapeutic relationship. Let ’ s use the above case
study to illustrate how microaggressions impact clients, the counseling process,
establishment of rapport, and the working alliance.

Racial Microaggression Number One: Blackness
Is the Problem — Blame the Victim

It is quite obvious that the social work intern is sincere in his desire to help
the client. Yet, his worldview reflects a dichotomy between recognizing the

race of the client (African American) and attempting to avoid acknowledg-
ing it. The caseworker seems to believe the client ’ s race is the problem rather
than his unconscious perception of “ blackness. ” His statement that he tried
not to let Peter ’ s “ being Black get in the way ” of the session is a typical state-
ment often made by Whites who unconsciously subscribe to a belief that to
be different is to be bad, deviant, pathological, abnormal, or “ the problem. ”
This assumption assumes that the locus of the problem resides internally with
Peter ’ s racial heritage, and stereotypes that are attributed to it. Often we hear
people talk about minorities as “ problem people ” : the “ Black problem, ” the
“ Asian problem, ” the “ Gay problem, ” the “ immigrant problem, ” or the “ person
of color problem. ” In reality, color is not the problem. It is society ’ s percep-
tion of color that more accurately represents the problem. In other words,
the locus of the problem (racism, sexism, and homophobia) resides not in
marginalized groups, but in the society at large.
Adding to the “ blame the victim ” mentality is the clash between the equating
of mental health with individualism, individual responsibility, and autonomy
(Sue & Sue, 2008). Because people are seen as being responsible for their own
actions and predicaments, clients are expected to “ make decisions on their
own ” and to “ be primarily responsible for their fate in life. ” The traditional
clinical role is to encourage self - exploration so that clients can act on their
own behalf. The individual - centered approach tends to view problems as
residing within the person. If something goes wrong, it is the client ’ s fault.
Faulty diagnosis is clearly seen in the caseworker ’ s words: Peter ’ s wanting
things handed to him on a “ silver platter, ” his “ avoidance of responsibility, ”
and his “ wanting to take the easy way out ” are symbolic of social stereotypes
that Blacks are lazy and unmotivated. In previous chapters we pointed out

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