After discussion and distinction, the ACA government council made the following statement on anti-racism. The ACA leadership listens to a cross-section of members and volunteers to develop an action plan that brings this statement to life.
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ACA Anti-Racism Declaration
Racism, police brutality, systemic violence and the dehumanizing forces of oppression, impotence and white supremacy have undermined the very structure of humanity that ideally holds our society together. Macro-level systemic racism extends to differences in institutional policies and procedures in the areas of physical and mental health care, education, justice, employment, sports and entertainment, and the brutal force of law enforcement. These major social oppressions lead to inaccessibility of resources and social marginalization, which ultimately leads to individual racist attitudes, implicit prejudices, stereotypes, micro-aggression and even death. The continuing and historical injustices are not recognized by those who want to be in power or protect their claims. Some who recognize this do so reactively, temporarily or superficially, and therefore no significant change occurs. Anti-black racism is often referred to as an accidental, unfortunate incident or as a victim's crime.
Words cannot really grasp our feelings. We are angry, exhausted, grieving, suffering, angry and desperate. The American Counseling Association suffers from the murders of George Floyd, Rayshard Brooks, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, Sandra Bland, Michael Brown and countless other Black / African Americans who unfortunately remain nameless. We stand in solidarity with our black brothers and sisters when it comes to denouncing the historical legacy and destruction caused by institutionalized racism and violence against black people, by law enforcement, the hatred of white supremacy, the deafening silence of dehumanization and the complicit inaction to address them persists these systemic evils in our society. As consultants, we listen, empathize and agree with the demonstrators that peace will follow if absolute justice is achieved. Enough is enough, we can no longer watch other black Americans being murdered as the vital force stifles them.
The American Counseling Association is based on sustainable values and a mission that promotes: human dignity and diversity, respect, achieving a quality of life for all, empowerment, integrity, advocacy for social justice, justice and inclusion. If we remain silent and do not promote racial justice, these words will become harmful and meaningless to our members and the advisory community. Given the rapidly developing double pandemic of COVID-19 and the continuing exposure of blacks to institutionalized racism, ACA wants to clarify where we stand and what action we will take. As proactive leaders, advisors, mentors, superiors, scholars and trainers, we will break free from this structure of racism trauma and violence around the neck of the blacks.
Our attitude is: Black Lives Matter. We have a moral and professional obligation to deconstruct institutions that have historically been developed for the benefit of White America. These systems must be dismantled in order to create a level playing field for black communities. Allyship is not enough. We strive to create liberated spaces in the struggle against the domination of whites and the dehumanization of blacks. The burden of trauma between generations should not be borne by black Americans, although they have remained resilient.
All ACA members must be ready to question these systems, but also to deal with their own prejudices, stereotypes and racist worldview. In the future, our actions will be based on the contributions of our members and the votes of others. We are determined to change.
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Further information
ACA has put together a number of resources that focus on cultural skills and combating racism: https://bit.ly/2BuNZ1Y
