Abstract
This article aimed to understand, based on qualitative research, the impact of racism on Black women’s experiences. To this end, accounts authored by women who self-identify as Black, found on websites and internet blogs were used as data sources. The phenomenological analysis of data was based on Edmund Husserl’s philosophical proposal, and consisted of a narrative synthesis that summed the essential elements of these women’s experiences. Results of this research enabled the understanding that experiences of racism, lived by Black women, start during childhood and accompany them throughout their lifetime, impacting their mental health. Dissatisfaction with their natural hair and skin color appear as concrete signs of turning down their Black identity; sharing their experiences with other Black people about racism helps them recognize their Blackness. The process of awareness, recognition and acceptance of Blackness drive them to self-acceptance and the construction of an identity that integrates their condition as Black women. We conclude that the emotional support given by people who live similar social suffering can be essential to the process of overcoming it, as should be the process of psychological intervention, when founded on attitudes of comprehensive empathy and acceptance. In this regard, we suggest that psychologists’ education include both courses and practice that encompass the theme of racism as part of our social reality.
Keywords:
Racism; Black Women; Mental Health; Phenomenology