A White and Nondisabled Psychoanalyst: Owning Racism and Ableism in the Clinical Process

ABSTRACT

In this paper the author offers a discussion of Ebony Dennis’ paper, “The Paranoid-Schizoid Poison and Envious Attacks on the Black Other” (this issue, pp. 141-153). The author summarizes Dennis’ perspective on whiteness as well as that of other psychoanalytic authors. Similarities and differences between racism and ableism are discussed, and the author offers a history of the disability rights movement, the main concepts in the field of critical disability studies, and a clinical discussion illustrating ableism and nondisabled privilege in the clinical process.

KEYWORDS:

• Whiteness
• disability
• ableism
• nondisabled privilege
• autism

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

¹ I will primarily be using identity-first language, consistent with the practices of the disability rights and autism rights movements (Brown, 2011). Additionally, I will avoid euphemisms for disability such as “differently-abled,” as these terms are considered to be problematic and are not used by the disability rights movement or in the critical disability studies literature.

² I am following the New York Times convention when referring to racial groups to capitalize “Black” and to leave “white” lowercase (Coleman, 2020).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Christina Emanuel

Christina Emanuel, MFT, PsyD, is a psychoanalyst and psychotherapist in private practice in Pasadena, CA. She is a Training and Supervising Analyst and faculty at the Institute of Contemporary Psychoanalysis in Los Angeles. Dr. Emanuel writes, teaches, and presents about autism, disability studies, and relational psychoanalysis.