Crisis Counseling for Black Lives Matter Protests

Abstract

The resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement in response to the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and other Black individuals during the summer of 2020 was accompanied by widespread public demonstration and protest. Despite the peaceful nature of most demonstrations, data indicate that protesters experienced police violence at a disproportionate rate compared to demonstrations associated with other movements. Due to the crisis and unrest that undue police violence toward Black communities can cause, it is imperative that counselors identify ways to support communities in their collective acts toward resistance and liberation. This article reviews how counselors can integrate the Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling Competencies and the American Counseling Association’s Advocacy Competencies into crisis counseling responses that support protesters of the Black Lives Matter movement.

A study of help‐seeking behaviors for African American men: Implications for counselor education

“…On May 25, 2020, George Floyd, a Black man, was murdered by police in Minnesota. His death sparked a resurgence of activism in support of Black lives being subject to police brutality (Green et al., 2021). Floyd's death is a painful reminder of how the humanity of African American men is consistently devalued, even to the point of being denied oxygen by law enforcement officers during their final moments.…”

Use of the MSJCC: A content analysis of ACA journals

“…Specifically, in July 2020, the Journal of Counseling and Development published a special issue promoting the integration of the MSJCC into practice, research, and advocacy and called for use of the MSJCC to transform the counseling field . This special issue reflected the continued commitment of the counseling field to multicultural and social justice issues (Chang et al, 2010; and was published in 2020, a time of political and social unrest in the United States (Green et al, 2021). Lau and Ng (2014) argued that effective counseling training programs must prepare students to be responsive to the ever-changing social landscape, which includes conducting relevant and timely research in the field.…”

“…Specifically, in July 2020, the Journal of Counseling and Development published a special issue promoting the integration of the MSJCC into practice, research, and advocacy and called for use of the MSJCC to transform the counseling field (Singh & Nassar, 2020). This special issue reflected the continued commitment of the counseling field to multicultural and social justice issues (Chang et al., 2010; Singh & Nassar, 2020) and was published in 2020, a time of political and social unrest in the United States (Green et al., 2021).…”

The depth of stories: How Black young adults' disclosure of high arousal negative affect in narratives about the COVID‐19 pandemic and the BLM protests improved adjustment over the year 2020

“…Although the black lives matter (BLM) movement promotes and maintains resilience and empowerment in Black individuals (Godsay & Brodsky, 2021 ), activism itself may come with physical and psychological costs (Santos & VanDaalen, 2018 ). For instance, BLM protesters experienced greater police violence and race‐related stress compared to protests for other movements (Green et al, 2021 ; Hargons et al, 2017 ). In sum, both the COVID‐19 pandemic and the BLM protests may have been traumatic for Black communities (Bassett et al, 2020 ; Phiri et al, 2021 ).…”