Page 303 - Microaggressions in Everyday Live Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation

Counselor/Therapist Credibility 277

Perhaps the most powerful sentence that has direct relevance for racial,
gender, and sexual - orientation microaggressions is the following: “ Evidence

of bias, stereotyped thinking, and prejudicial beliefs and attitudes will not go
unchallenged, even when such behavior is rationalized as being a function
of ignorance, joking, cultural differences, or substance abuse. When these
actions result in physical or psychological abuse, harassment, intimidation,
substandard psychological services or research, or violence against persons
or property, members of the training community will intervene appropri-

ately ” (p. 643). As microaggressions are reflections of biased worldviews,
oftentimes invisible to the perpetrator, rationalized away as an innocent
remark due to some other benign excuse, and represent violence directed
toward socially devalued groups in clinical or training environments, they
MUST be challenged by fellow professionals. To ignore or excuse them is to
perpetuate injustice and oppression.
2. Since the early 1980s, the terms multicultural or cultural competence
in the helping professions have become a central feature that guides
mental health practice, education and training, and research in psycho-
logical service delivery (APA, 2003; Sue, Arredondo, & McDavis, 1992; Sue,
Bernier et al., 1982). Sue and Torino (2005) give the following defi nition:

Cultural competence is the ability to engage in actions or create conditions that
maximize the optimal development of client and client systems. Multicultural
counseling competence is defined as the counselor ’ s acquisition of awareness,

knowledge, and skills needed to function effectively in a pluralistic democratic
society (ability to communicate, interact, negotiate, and intervene on behalf
of clients from diverse backgrounds), and on a organizational/societal level,
advocating effectively to develop new theories, practices, policies, and organi-
zational structures that are more responsive to all groups. (p. 8)

Four objectives can be distilled from the definition that have relevance
to combating microaggressions: making the “ invisible ” visible, establish-
ing expertise and trust, and providing appropriate services to diverse
populations.
• The old adage “ physician [or therapist], heal thyself ” before healing
others is all - important in having helping professionals become aware
of their own values, biases, and assumptions about human behavior.
What stereotypes, perceptions, and beliefs are held about marginal-
ized groups that may hinder the ability to form a helpful and effective
(Continued)

1/19/10 6:15:43 PM
c12.indd 277 1/19/10 6:15:43 PM
c12.indd 277