The role of a mentoring group for family therapy trainees and therapists of color.

This article discusses the development, process, and impact of a mentoring group for family therapists of color. A within-group process for trainees of color in a predominantly White institution can provide a valuable resource for support, validation, empowerment, and collective action. The article examines how such mentoring promotes the effectiveness of therapists of color, as well as the practices and goals of social justice and diversity within training institutions and the field in general. Reflections and recommendations for implementing such a group are offered, as well as a personal narrative of a group member's experience of finding her voice in the group.

Healing internalized racism: the role of a within-group sanctuary among people of African descent.

This article addresses the role of a "within-group" sanctuary for healing internalized racism among people of African descent. Internalized racism is distinguished from racism, juxtaposing the different experience of those who are oppressed and those who are privileged by racism. It is suggested that a context consisting exclusively of persons of African descent can provide an optimally safe space for initial stages of healing from internalized racism. The anxiety that a collective of African descendants can generate among whites, and subsequently among those of African descent, is examined by raising questions as to its possible meanings. Whites are encouraged to use their privilege to support such self-determined sanctuaries, rather than to obstruct them. People of African descent are encouraged to tolerate the anxiety that can be generated without "changing back," and to examine whether internalized racism is also implicated.