Black youth affected by trauma exposure

I submitted an application to the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) Research Assistantship Program in January and received an email in March stating the program and applications had been canceled. My research explores the pathways between trauma exposure and substance use and suicidality among Black youth, and I was hoping to conduct research with the NIJ’s Office of Crime Prevention and Youth Justice. We have trauma-informed interventions for the general population, but where are the interventions specifically designed for Black youth and their unique lived experiences? I conducted a study on suicide in Black communities, and I found that homelessness or relocations, financial burdens, and strained, unsuccessful, or controlling relationships were almost always factors linked to suicide. Every story conveyed a sense of John Henryism, a high-effort, active coping style to deal with stressors. I also wanted to continue my work related to predictors of substance use in Black youth who have had contact with the juvenile justice system because research on this population is so limited and I wanted to help fill that gap.

In addition, I hoped to do research with the NIJ related to victims, perpetrators, and bystanders. As a Ronald E. McNair scholaropens in new window, I previously studied the bystander effect in sexual assault cases and noticed there was a lot of scrutiny of bystanders by the media in the 2020 George Floyd murder. People on social media were blaming people for “standing around, recording, and doing nothing” as well as blaming other officers for not intervening. This opened up broader questions about the role of bystanders and whether we are inadvertently lessening the blame of perpetrators by focusing on bystanders, or if there should be programs empowering bystanders to safely intervene in these instances. The NIJ would have been a great opportunity to re-explore this phenomenon.

I am worried that the funding cuts will continue to foster the cycle of trauma, suicide, and substance use among Black youth. There is already significant racial and ethnic inequity in this country, so I am not surprised that Black people are being overlooked again. Still, it strengthens my commitment to make meaningful contributions, even though I know it is an uphill battle to do this type of research. I currently work in a clinical setting at a detention center in College Station, Texas, where I provide therapy to adults who are waiting for trial. Many of them are Black and Hispanic men who talk about how nobody taught them about concepts such as trauma and the impact of substances on their mind and body, and they've expressed appreciation to have this opportunity to begin addressing their mental health.

I am still deciding what to do after I earn my PhD, and the NIJ assistantship would have helped me see if I enjoy working in a policy setting. I was hoping to gain experience communicating research to different audiences and translating research into policy recommendations. But now I’m more hesitant to pursue a career path in government or policy because the funding cuts have created so much uncertainty.