As a licensed clinical social worker serving children, individuals, and families in the private and public sector for more than 15 years, I understand what the intended purpose is when using the word minority when referring to certain populations. When used appropriately, the word really refers to a group that is not part of a majority. It is not intended to be negative, harmful, or biased when used in this way. (See Dictionary.com for a definition.) Unfortunately, the word minority is used quite often in negative forms to refer to certain groups through many platforms, such as the social media. The way the word is used now in many instances has completely changed the meaning and purpose, making the use of it feel harmful and negative.

 

     The use of the word in this negative form has created an opportunity for the word to really hold a bias. I personally have supported many children and adults who experienced the harmful effects of the word when used inappropriately.

 

     Why, then, have we been referring to certain groups using this word, and how does this action affect mental health?  While we examine the use of this word, let us also reflect on the use of other words, such as immigrant, alien, and Hispanic. Words have power, and they can break people. Thus, language should be respectful. In an effort to improve our own mental health and that of those around us, we should lead efforts aimed at identifying and replacing words that encourage oppression and victimization. Now more than ever, our society is being called on to become active participants in the work to address the generational abuse and trauma faced by oppressed communities. As we fight for the rights of all oppressed and vulnerable groups, our duty is to ensure we use strategies that change the way we discuss culture.

 

 

      One of the definitions for the word minority is “a group in society distinguished from, and less dominant than, the more numerous majority, a racial, ethnic, religious, or social subdivision of a society that is subordinate to the dominant group...” according to Dictionary.com.

 

     As a child, I felt this word was used to refer to my community as being less than. As an adult, I experienced the word being manipulated to define and confine my community. And now as a social worker, I often have supported students and families who have experienced negative biases as a result of the use of this word, as well as others such as illegal alien. Media outlets are providing an excellent example of using language and/or terminology to portray the stereotypes associated with belonging to a minority group, rather than demonstrating all aspects, including the positives of being a part of that minority group. In an article titled On Race: The Relevance of Saying ‘Minority,’ Edward Schumacher Matos references the following quote: “... 'minority' is part of a media language 'mired in euphemisms and the tortured, convoluted syntax that betray America's pathological avoidance of straight talk about race relations' ....minority status is insulting to blacks, Latinos, and Asians and ignores their cultural influence on the mainstream....the emphasis encourages victimization.”

 

     As a licensed clinical social worker working in the education field, I have had to listen to endless accounts from my students of how this word has negatively impacted the way they view themselves. They do not understand why this word is used to reference their community or ethnicity. I have had to process with my students the implications of this word, as well as others, such as “immigrant” and “alien.”  Many of my students shared the way the use of this word made them feel, “ashamed, sorry, less than, and inadequate.”

 

     These experiences will forever stay with me. I myself endured many harsh experiences of racism and discrimination while growing up as an immigrant in the South Bronx. Even this word “immigrant” is just another example of an attempt to refer to certain group in a derogatory and inferior form. As a young teenager, I was once forced out of a New York City Yellow Cab by a driver who insisted I could not afford to pay him. While I screamed and fought against his hands, which he used to drag me out of his car, he insisted no Latino “minority” living in the Bronx could afford to pay his fare. As I lay on the ground on which he threw me; I was once again reminded of a word that was used to encourage victimization, hate, and violence. Do we even realize the implications of such actions, the re-traumatization, and re-victimization that occurs in moments like these?

 

 

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Available in Paperback and Hardcover: ON CLINICAL SOCIAL WORK: MEDITATIONS AND TRUTHS FROM THE FIELD is Dr. Danna Bodenheimer's NEWEST book.

 

Jonathan Singer of the Social Work Podcast wrote the foreword to this book, and he said, "Danna pays attention to life’s details with a psychotherapist’s insight and writes about them with the passion of a slam poet. She speaks to the soul of social work and inspires us to think about more than just social work."