WORKSHOP WORKSHOP

The “Good White Therapist”: Exploring whiteness and challenging colourblind racism in counselling and psychotherapy

Workshop Details

Ruth Smith

Based on Ruth’s PhD research into how white trainee counsellors understand race, racism and whiteness, this talk will consider her original concept of the ‘Good White Counsellor’. This concept argues that counselling and psychotherapy systemically believes that taking a colourblind approach is the ‘right’ way to understand race.

Ruth will explore ideas about the historical construction of whiteness, white ignorance and white privilege and identify how these may manifest in counselling and psychotherapy by using examples from her research findings and from collaborative self-reflection.

The workshop will include her PhD research findings and incorporate the work of race scholars such Charles W. Mills, Eduardo DeSilva and Shannon Sullivan in order to understand the role of whiteness within counselling and psychotherapy. The seminar is intended to be reflexive and supportive in order to allowing us to consider whiteness and how it impacts us personally and within our therapeutic practice

Dr Ruth Smith lives in South Wales and has undergraduate and postgraduate degree in counselling and psychotherapy and a PhD in Social Justice. Ruth’s research interests are critical whiteness studies, socio-politics and social justice, particularly how these intersect with counselling and psychotherapy. Ruth has worked as a therapist with survivors of trauma, including survivors of war, torture and human trafficking.

She now works in private practice and can be contacted via her website: drruthsmith.co.uk