The Emotional Impact of Racial Discrimination
How racism impacts our minds and our bodies
By Emmanuel Sebakungu
Racial discrimination is the unequal treatment of a people or group based on their race or ethnicity. Racial discrimination has a physiological effect that can affect heartbeat, anxiety, or heartburn that can lead to a long-term negative health outcome. Repeated experiences of discrimination may cause the body to be more physically sensitive in stressful, and routine discrimination can be a chronic stressor that can increase vulnerability to physical and psychological illness.
Racial discrimination is a fairly common experience, with 50–75% of Americans of Color reporting experiencing daily discrimination. Exposure to stressors of everyday racism and microaggressions can lead to negative emotions and negative health outcomes such as anxiety disorder. Chronic worry about experience racial discrimination can impact mental health as well. It impacts people of color by creating stress and negative emotional states such as psychological distress that can increase the risk of physiological disease and impairment.
One group that is particularly impacted is students. A student of color may experience frustrations as a result of racism that can lead to race-related stress. If students feel isolated due to experiences of racism, they may be unwilling to interact with students from different racial/ethnic backgrounds or participate in campus activities such as students’ organizations, intramural sports, classroom discussions, and study groups. Students of color who experience stereotype threat (the risk of confirming negative stereotypes about an individual’s racial, ethnic, gender, or cultural group) may begin to believe that their peers do not regard them as individuals, but as representatives of their racial/ethnic group. The anxiety that often accompanies stereotype threat can have a negative effect on your performance on academic tasks such as class participation, assignments, and exams.
According to the research, the experiences of negative emotions such as psychological distress can exacerbate poor physical health outcomes. For instance, anxiety and anger have been associated with an increased incidence of coronary disease. Therefore, the lack of emotional self-regulation appears to contribute to poor health outcomes while self-regulation appears to protect physical health.
The failure to address racial discrimination will continue to undermine opportunities for Black children, adolescents, and their families that can even impact them psychologically. Some helpful ways to increase self-awareness are journaling, practicing mindful body scans to check your body for signs of stress and anxiety, and active reflection. Such activities can all serve to increase the ability to identify the range of emotions and physical reactions you may be experiencing, all of which are normal and should not be discounted. Moreover, build a support network in connecting with other people with similar experiences and feelings that can help you successfully navigate racism.
