Black Lives Are Beautiful

"Cultivating the spirit of the human condition that Africa-descended people possess requires conditions that affirm rather than invalidate; support rather than denigrate; and surrounded with loving ambiance as opposed to toxic energy. The spirit is challenged, however, to receive that level of valuation and validation in a climate where racism and White supremacy create the condition for a chronic assault on an individual and a people’s humanity. Culturally congruent, therapeutic engagement not only requires an accurate assessment of the residual baggage Black people continue to carry from historic and chronic exposure to individual, instructional and societal racism, but it also requires therapeutic support that provides nurturing spaces for people’s spirits to recover and heal. This text is a blueprint for how to recognize when clients have been impacted by the racial trauma and toxicity of life’s circumstances. It is also a road map for taking people from where they are to where they ought to be. Those of us who are committed to this work enthusiastically embrace the arrival of this book and recommend its adoption by those who are serious about providing therapeutic benefit to people of African descent."

Thomas A. Parham, PhD, president, California State University, Dominguez Hills, and distinguished psychologist, The Association of Black Psychology

"High praise for Black Lives Are Beautiful. This workbook for managing racialized trauma could not be more timely, especially given the persistent barrage of assaults targeted against the Black community (e.g., state sanctioned violence, voter suppression, everyday racism). The authors validate and affirm the integrity of the Black experience. In particular, they provide digestible information concerning the science of racialized trauma, the impact of trauma on the Black psyche, and a host of exercises and nuggets of wisdom that help readers heal from racialized trauma. This is a must read for every Black person because it was written by us and for us."

Norma L. Day-Vines, PhD, professor and associate dean for diversity and faculty development, Johns Hopkins University

"Dr. Steele and Dr. Newton have given the world a precious gift with Black Lives Are Beautiful: 50 Tools to Heal from Trauma and Promote Positive Racial Identity. This is a must-have book for mental health practitioners and an important support for Black clients healing from racial trauma and remembering their value and worth as key components of Black liberation."

Anneliese Singh, PhD, associate provost for diversity and faculty development, chief diversity officer, and provost, Tulane University

"Awareness and knowledge can contribute to personal empowerment and self-efficacy. This workbook has been developed to promote healing, self-love, and acceptance of one’s identity as an individual of African/Black heritage. The authors provide a sensitive approach to promote racial healing as an on-going process in one’s life journey."

Patricia Arredondo, EdD, president, Arredondo Advisory Group, and faculty fellow, Fielding Graduate University