Full Description
Black girls face a mental-health crisis. Acting as a call to action, this book examines the long history of overlooking Black girls' pain and analyzes how expectations of resilience place harmful pressure on them, contributing to anxiety, depression, and delayed self-care. Chapters trace the trauma Black girls have shouldered since enslavement and pair this history with first-hand accounts from contemporary Black girls who describe the pressures they face today and the limited emotional support they receive in educational and social settings. By amplifying these voices, the text challenges the 'Strong Black Girl' image and calls for expanded mental-health resources to ensure Black girls' well-being is prioritized. With current policies failing to meet Black girls' needs, In Plain Sight makes their pain visible and offers concrete steps that equip parents, schools, community members, health providers, and policymakers with tools to take meaningful action to support and protect Black girls.
Contents
Introduction; Part I. Seeing Black Girl Pain in History: 1. 'The war of my life had begun': pain, strength, and resilience during enslavement; 2. 'They were angry with me, and I didn't know why': survival after 'emancipation'; In Plain Sight: Seeing Our Black Girls in Images; Part II. Stressors Uncovered in the Black Girls Study: 3. 'My mother is very hard on me': home stressors; 4. 'How am I going to get that 92?': school stressors; 5. 'It was hard for me to find out which Black girl I was supposed to be': stressors in majority-white schools; 6. 'We have to just stay alive': community stressors; 7. 'It molds how you see you': stressors from media; 8. 'I find a way to reset': Black girls' thriving in plain sight; Conclusion; Websites for supporting Black girls' social media use; Appendix A. Data collection tools and analyses; Appendix B. Detailed PRaCY survey data; Appendix C. Interviewees from the Black girls study.
