Original Article by SIG Members
First ABCT SGM SIG Anti-Racist Taskforce Meeting
October 5, 2020
First ABCT SGM SIG Anti-Racist Taskforce Meeting
October 5, 2020
On July 24, 2020, the Anti-Racist Taskforce of the ABCT SGM SIG had it’s first meeting. Attended by a wide range of our membership (from staff psychologists to incoming graduate students), this first meeting was devoted to identifying members’ interests and expectations of this type of taskforce, creating a mission statement for the Taskforce, and identifying a few actionable first steps that the Taskforce can take in order to further its mission. Members indicated a range of reasons for joining the Taskforce, including: wanting to learn more about how to enact an antiracist approach in clinical practice, research, and teaching; interest in helping the broader ABCT organization embody an anti-racist stance; desire to advocate for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) SIG members; interest in improving dissemination of work that takes an anti-racist stance and/or is written or about BIPOC communities; and interest in developing programming for the SIG and broader ABCT community related to anti-racism and intersectionality (at both the ABCT convention, and through virtual webinars, etc).
In discussing a potential mission statement, members expressed that the Taskforce should focus on improving and adjusting SIG programming and administrative practices to be in line with an anti-racist stance. In addition, they wanted the Taskforce to reach beyond the SIG — to the broader ABCT membership and leadership, as well as to the broader academic community and general public. In line with these goals, the following mission statement is proposed:
The mission of the Anti-Racist Taskforce of the ABCT SGM SIG is to encourage and aid in the implementation of an anti-racist framework across all the work that SIG conducts, especially in the following domains:
· Education. The Taskforce will collaborate with the SIG leadership to develop educational programming for SIG members about anti-racist research, clinical practice, and teaching. The Taskforce will also aid in the dissemination of relevant work through the SIG’s and ABCT’s various communication channels (e.g., listserv, social media)
· Advocacy. The Taskforce will actively advocate for BIPOC and other marginalized communities within the SIG, ABCT, and in our communities. The Taskforce will identify ways to extend the reach of anti-racist efforts within our SIG to the broader ABCT community by collaborating with other SIGs and committees within ABCT.
· Administrative changes. The Taskforce will collaborate with SIG leadership to identify ways that current SIG procedures (e.g., sponsorship of annual convention submissions, student awards, officer elections) can be altered to promote an anti-racist stance and lift up the voices of our BIPOC members. The Taskforce will also work with SIG leadership to identify ways in which current procedures may marginalize subgroups of our SIG community, and work to amend these.
Finally, Taskforce members discussed initial action items that they would like to pursue in the coming month. In line with the educational mission of the Taskforce, a subgroup of members planned to meet separately in the coming month in order to discuss and brainstorm ideas for potential trainings/educational programming that could be developed related to anti-racism. Similarly, a subgroup of members planned to meet to discuss ways that the news section of the SIG website (www.abctsgmsig.com) could be used to disseminate information about anti-racist work by SIG members. With regard to the Taskforce’s advocacy aim, one member plans to reach out to the ABCT Social Networking and Media Committee to discuss potential collaborations related to promoting anti-racist content (especially as relevant to SGM communities) on ABCT’s social media platforms. Finally, regarding the administrative changes goal of the Taskforce, a subgroup of the membership planned to begin a discussion with SIG leadership about ways to engage underrepresented students in programs like the SIG poster sessions and student awards.
Thank you to all the members who attended this first meeting! If you are interested in joining this Taskforce, please email Ilana Seager van Dyk (ilana.seagervandyk@yale.edu) or Jeff Cohen (jmc2284@cumc.columbia.edu). The next meeting will be held on Zoom at the end of August.
Attendees: Jeff Cohen (SIG co-chair), Ilana Seager van Dyk (SIG student representative; incoming SIG co-chair), Kevin Narine (SIG webmaster), Becky LeCroix, Alex King, Satya Satyanarayana, Tim Stahl, Terry Trieu
In discussing a potential mission statement, members expressed that the Taskforce should focus on improving and adjusting SIG programming and administrative practices to be in line with an anti-racist stance. In addition, they wanted the Taskforce to reach beyond the SIG — to the broader ABCT membership and leadership, as well as to the broader academic community and general public. In line with these goals, the following mission statement is proposed:
The mission of the Anti-Racist Taskforce of the ABCT SGM SIG is to encourage and aid in the implementation of an anti-racist framework across all the work that SIG conducts, especially in the following domains:
· Education. The Taskforce will collaborate with the SIG leadership to develop educational programming for SIG members about anti-racist research, clinical practice, and teaching. The Taskforce will also aid in the dissemination of relevant work through the SIG’s and ABCT’s various communication channels (e.g., listserv, social media)
· Advocacy. The Taskforce will actively advocate for BIPOC and other marginalized communities within the SIG, ABCT, and in our communities. The Taskforce will identify ways to extend the reach of anti-racist efforts within our SIG to the broader ABCT community by collaborating with other SIGs and committees within ABCT.
· Administrative changes. The Taskforce will collaborate with SIG leadership to identify ways that current SIG procedures (e.g., sponsorship of annual convention submissions, student awards, officer elections) can be altered to promote an anti-racist stance and lift up the voices of our BIPOC members. The Taskforce will also work with SIG leadership to identify ways in which current procedures may marginalize subgroups of our SIG community, and work to amend these.
Finally, Taskforce members discussed initial action items that they would like to pursue in the coming month. In line with the educational mission of the Taskforce, a subgroup of members planned to meet separately in the coming month in order to discuss and brainstorm ideas for potential trainings/educational programming that could be developed related to anti-racism. Similarly, a subgroup of members planned to meet to discuss ways that the news section of the SIG website (www.abctsgmsig.com) could be used to disseminate information about anti-racist work by SIG members. With regard to the Taskforce’s advocacy aim, one member plans to reach out to the ABCT Social Networking and Media Committee to discuss potential collaborations related to promoting anti-racist content (especially as relevant to SGM communities) on ABCT’s social media platforms. Finally, regarding the administrative changes goal of the Taskforce, a subgroup of the membership planned to begin a discussion with SIG leadership about ways to engage underrepresented students in programs like the SIG poster sessions and student awards.
Thank you to all the members who attended this first meeting! If you are interested in joining this Taskforce, please email Ilana Seager van Dyk (ilana.seagervandyk@yale.edu) or Jeff Cohen (jmc2284@cumc.columbia.edu). The next meeting will be held on Zoom at the end of August.
Attendees: Jeff Cohen (SIG co-chair), Ilana Seager van Dyk (SIG student representative; incoming SIG co-chair), Kevin Narine (SIG webmaster), Becky LeCroix, Alex King, Satya Satyanarayana, Tim Stahl, Terry Trieu