Institutional Racism in Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology: Race Matters in Mental Health (Contemporary Black History)

This book examines the deep roots of racism in the mental health system. Suman Fernando weaves the histories of racial discourse and clinical practice into a narrative of power, knowledge, and black suffering in an ostensibly progressive and scientifically grounded system. Drawing on a lifetime of experience as a practicing psychiatrist, he examines how the system has shifted in response to new forms of racism which have emerged since the 1960s, highlighting the widespread pathologization of black people, the impact of Islamophobia on clinical practice after 9/11, and various struggles to reform. Engaging and accessible, this book makes a compelling case for the entrenchment of racism across all aspects of psychiatry and clinical psychology, and calls for a paradigm shift in both theory and practice. Preface 7 Acknowledgements 10 Contents 11 List of Figures 15 List of Tables 16 1 Introduction 17 References 25 2 How ‘Race’ Began, and the Emergence of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology 27 2.1 Race Thinking 28 2.2 Exploration, Colonialism, Race-Slavery 28 2.3 The European Enlightenment 33 2.4 Scientific Racism 35 2.5 Origins of Western Psychology and Psychiatry 36 2.6 The Scientific Paradigm 39 2.7 Biologisation of Mind 42 2.8 Sociopolitical Context 43 2.9 Limitations of Knowledge 46 2.10 Modern Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology 49 References 50 3 Race Thinking and Racism Become the Norm 54 3.1 Effects of Colonisation 54 3.2 Power of Racism 56 3.3 Distortions of History 58 3.4 The Arts and Nineteenth-Century Sociology 60 3.5 Nineteenth-Century Psychology and Psychiatry 61 3.6 Inherited Instincts 63 3.7 Race Psychology 64 3.8 Mental Pathology and the of race-linked illnesses’. Amend if necessary. 65 References 69 4 New Racisms Appear in the 1960s 74 4.1 Transformations After WWII 74 4.2 American Social Studies 80 4.3 Black Protest in the UK 84 4.4 Definitions of Racism and Race 86 4.5 New Racisms in the UK 89 4.6 Racist IQ Movement 91 4.7 Alleged Mentality of Black People 93 4.8 Racism in Cultural Research 97 4.9 Conclusions 99 References 101 5 Racism in a Context of Multiculturalism 106 5.1 Discrimination, Diagnosis and Power 106 5.2 Ethnic Issues in Mental Health Services 108 5.3 Racialisation 110 5.4 Racism in ‘Psy’ Research 113 5.5 Manipulation of Research Findings 115 5.6 Explanations for ‘Schizophrenia’ in Black People 118 5.7 Racialisation of the Schizophrenia Diagnosis 120 References 121 6 Struggle Against Racism in the UK 126 6.1 The Macpherson Report 126 6.2 Transcultural Psychiatry in the UK 129 6.3 Action on Apartheid 132 6.4 Action by Black Professionals 132 6.5 The Black Voluntary Sector (BVS) 134 6.6 Institutional Action 136 6.7 Government Action 137 6.8 Illustrations of Institutional Racism 139 6.8.1 The MOST Project 139 6.8.2 The Ipamo Project 141 6.8.3 Racist Exploitation of a Black Organisation 142 6.8.4 Racism in a Government Body 143 6.9 Race Matters in Professional Associations 145 References 147 7 Persistence of Racism Through White Power 150 7.1 Controlling Racialised Minorities 151 7.2 Employment in the Mental Health System 153 7.3 Institutional Racism in the Department of Health (DOH) 155 7.4 Black People in White-Dominated Systems 158 7.5 How Whiteness Operates 160 7.6 Privilege and Power 161 7.7 White Knowledge 163 References 165 8 Racism Post-9/11 168 8.1 Diasporic Identities, Nationalisms and Multiculturalism 169 8.2 Obama Years 171 8.3 Rise of the Political Right 173 8.4 Civil Unrest 176 8.5 Changes in the Field of Mental Health 176 8.6 Racist Conclusions of Psychiatric Research 177 8.7 Racism of a Psychology Report 178 8.8 Islamophobia 182 8.9 The ‘Psy’ Disciplines and Islamophobia 184 8.10 Conclusions 188 References 188 9 Racism with the Advent of Trump and After Brexit 195 9.1 New Era of Unashamed Racism? 196 9.2 Why Racism Has Persisted 198 9.3 Future of the ‘Psy’ Disciplines 199 9.4 Conclusions 200 References 203 Bibliography 206 Author Index 210 Subject Index 216 Front Matter ....Pages i-xix Introduction (Suman Fernando)....Pages 1-10 How ‘Race’ Began, and the Emergence of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology (Suman Fernando)....Pages 11-37 Race Thinking and Racism Become the Norm (Suman Fernando)....Pages 39-58 New Racisms Appear in the 1960s (Suman Fernando)....Pages 59-90 Racism in a Context of Multiculturalism (Suman Fernando)....Pages 91-110 Struggle Against Racism in the UK (Suman Fernando)....Pages 111-134 Persistence of Racism Through White Power (Suman Fernando)....Pages 135-152 Racism Post-9/11 (Suman Fernando)....Pages 153-179 Racism with the Advent of Trump and After Brexit (Suman Fernando)....Pages 181-191 Back Matter ....Pages 193-209