Garrett Counseling stands in solidarity with our Black counselors, community, and clients. We support the Black Lives Matter movement, protesters, and any other activists, communities, and leaders who fight systemic and institutionalized racism. Now is the time for us, as a society, to listen to our Black leaders, colleagues, friends, neighbors, and family members. We must not expect our Black Americans to comfort our discomfort, nor should we expect them to answer our questions when we have had more access to historical, cultural, and educational resources than ever before. For those familiar with racism and the insidious and detrimental effects, Garrett Counseling sees you, hears you, and stands with you. We know this is still not enough, and it will never be until White supremacy and institutionalized racism is dismantled. We commit to continuing this fight for true justice. We have a long way to go, but we must continue. We must take action.
For Counselors: Key to the counselor identity is striking a balance between individual counseling and our role as social justice advocates with the ultimate goal of challenging the status quo that perpetuates world-wide inequities, while simultaneously addressing clients’ immediate concerns. Our advocacy identity should be evident across all of the roles we hold (e.g., counselors, counselor educators, supervisors, researchers, leaders, and citizens). Therefore, we must work to increase our self-awareness and other-awareness, to be diligent in recognizing and addressing issues of power and oppression in our clinical settings, classrooms, communities, and our research (ACA, Social Justice Counseling Competencies, 2020 statement).