The African American Experience: Psychoanalytic Perspectives edited by Salman Akhtar brings together the contributions of distinguished mental health professionals and scholars of humanities to offer a multifaceted perspective on the transgenerational trauma of slavery, the hardship of single parent families, the ruthlessness of anti-black racism, and the crushing burden of poverty and social disenfranchisement on the African American individual. The book also sheds light on the resilience of spirit, the dignity of perseverance, and the glow of talent that is widespread in this group. It contains penetrating and informative biographical essays on Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Mohammad Ali, Barack Obama, and Oprah Winfrey. Such discourse on human greatness is balanced by the considerations of daily joy and anguish on clinical and societal levels. This wide-ranging and nuanced volume on the history, culture, and psychosocial struggles of African American people fills an important gap in the literature on psychotherapy and psychoanalysis.
Acknowledgments Introduction Part I: Core Stories Chapter 1: The Five Hundred Year History of African Americans, Jan Wright Chapter 2: Psychoanalysis and African-Americans: a politico-historical overview, Dionne Powell Part II: Character Studies Chapter 3: Command and Legacy: Martin Luther King, Jr., Salman Akhtar and Shawn Blue Chapter 4: Ideology and Identity: Malcolm X, Clarence Watson and Salman Akhtar Chapter 5: Power and Meaning: Muhammed Ali, David Campbell Chapter 6: Resilience and Influence: Oprah Winfrey, Glenda Wrenn Chapter 7: Charisma and Vision: Barack Obama, Kimberlyn Leary Part III: Cultural Spectrum Chapter 8: Anti-black Racism, Forrest Hamer Chapter 9: African American Families: Still A Band of Slaves?, LaShawnDa Pittman Chapter 10: Personality Development in Different African-American Cultures,Carlotta Miles Chapter 11: Hollywood and African-Americans, Christin Drake Part IV: Clinical Strands Chapter 12: An African American's Becoming a Psychoanalyst: Some Personal Reflections, Samuel Wyche Chapter 13: The African-American Patient in Psychodynamic Treatment, Cheryl Thompson Chapter 14: Racial Transference Reactions in Psychoanalytic Treatment: An Update, Dorothy Holmes Chapter 15: White Analysts Working With Black Patients, Jennifer Bonovitz Chapter 16: Racial Enactments in Dynamic Treatment, Kimberlyn Leary References Index About the Contributors
Acknowledgments Introduction Part I: Core Stories Chapter 1: The Five Hundred Year History of African Americans, Jan Wright Chapter 2: Psychoanalysis and African-Americans: a politico-historical overview, Dionne Powell Part II: Character Studies Chapter 3: Command and Legacy: Martin Luther King, Jr., Salman Akhtar and Shawn Blue Chapter 4: Ideology and Identity: Malcolm X, Clarence Watson and Salman Akhtar Chapter 5: Power and Meaning: Muhammed Ali, David Campbell Chapter 6: Resilience and Influence: Oprah Winfrey, Glenda Wrenn Chapter 7: Charisma and Vision: Barack Obama, Kimberlyn Leary Part III: Cultural Spectrum Chapter 8: Anti-black Racism, Forrest Hamer Chapter 9: African American Families: Still A Band of Slaves?, LaShawnDa Pittman Chapter 10: Personality Development in Different African-American Cultures,Carlotta Miles Chapter 11: Hollywood and African-Americans, Christin Drake Part IV: Clinical Strands Chapter 12: An African American's Becoming a Psychoanalyst: Some Personal Reflections, Samuel Wyche Chapter 13: The African-American Patient in Psychodynamic Treatment, Cheryl Thompson Chapter 14: Racial Transference Reactions in Psychoanalytic Treatment: An Update, Dorothy Holmes Chapter 15: White Analysts Working With Black Patients, Jennifer Bonovitz Chapter 16: Racial Enactments in Dynamic Treatment, Kimberlyn Leary References Index About the Contributors
