The year 2020 has seen a heightened awareness of systemic racism and social injustice that continues to plague the nation. The University of Maryland's "Maryland Made" Program and Terps Together Subcommittee have paved the way for student-athletes to learn and openly discuss these pertinent issues in an inclusive environment. Terps Together aims to promote a culture of respect and understanding that spans across the entire athletic department. The goal is to create a community that celebrates diversity and champions social justice.
The latest program announced by Maryland Made is focused on advancing the ongoing dialogue regarding racism and social injustice in a conducive environment. Last Wednesday evening, nearly 400 student-athletes, coaches, administrators and staff virtually joined the Recognizing & Responding to Racial Trauma and Racial Anxiety presentation led by Dr. Carlton Green.
Dr. Green is the Director of Diversity Training and Education in the University's Office of Diversity and Inclusion. He has more than 20 years of experience working in higher education and is an advocate for institutional policies and programs that promote access and equality for underserved populations.
The primary goals of the presentation were to define racial trauma and anxiety, how it affects interactions, and to offer considerations for responding to racial trauma and anxiety in oneself and in community. Dr. Green asked each participant to focus on their internal thoughts, feelings and reactions to the presentation, in order to understand the considerations that ensue.
"I want everybody to be able to understand that your body's functioning can be compromised as a result of experiencing race-related trauma," said Green. "PTSD could really manifest when you see a small or large racial event. If you're thinking about the murders that are happening or being exposed to the murders via the news, that's one thing. It's another thing to be sitting in a class and to hear a colleague or professor use a racial slur. When you are targeted because of your race, and when racism is thrown at you and you don't feel safe, your body certainly can degenerate into a place of possibly feeling really distressed."
Alexandra Hargrett, a sophomore on the track & field team, joined the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) as the Co-Chair of the Terps Together Sub-Committee. This group initiated meetings with Dr. Green that led to the inclusive department-wide presentation.
In listening to the words of Dr. Green, Hargrett found clarity in her emotional reaction to racial trauma and anxiety.
"It was eye-opening to me," Hargrett said. "Especially in understanding why I feel enraged when I see these things and the different reactions that people have. All of those things that really made my life make sense in a way that I hadn't been able to articulate or come up with for myself. I also appreciated how Dr. Green tied racial trauma and racial anxiety as two sides of the same coin."
In the presentation, Dr. Green cited the prevalence of hate crimes, racial profiling and the often violent media portrayals of victims that are now routinely used in news media. The presentation connected current events with the trauma and anxiety left within each individual participant and disclosed methods to cope and understand the emotions that follow.
"I definitely appreciated him as a speaker," Hargrett continued. "Both because of his professionalism and ability to combine psychology and race, as well as his willingness to speak on his personal experience and including the experiences of other students on campus, not just students in the athletic sphere."
Dr. Green's final sentiments allowed student-athletes and coaches to reflect.
"When talking about racial trauma and racial anxiety, there has to be some acknowledgment that this is happening for your body," Dr. Green said. "It's moving away from the narrative that many of us have been taught and that is that racism is out there and we just have to keep going. That's actually quite inhumane for our own bodies. There has to be some acknowledgment that racism is affecting our bodies."
For sophomore football player Tyler Baylor, this struck a chord. As a young black man, the mental considerations of racial trauma and anxiety were never brought to the forefront.
"The presentation made me think about for me, as a black man in America, I've always experienced racism, but racial trauma and anxiety are something that I didn't realize that I even dealt with," Baylor said. "When he spoke about it, it explained why I act the way that I do in certain situations, it gives a definition of why we react to certain situations. It's always been second nature to me to take my hood or my hat off when I enter a store or a building because of what I've been taught by my parents, it's interesting to think that my natural instinct is a part of racial anxiety."
Anyone that struggles with racial traumas or anxieties is encouraged to speak to someone in a safe environment. The following are resources on campus that offer support for those struggling with race-related issues:
