Psychological Lynching: An Examination of Educational Trauma and Identity Development

Abstract

This article seeks to shed light on the ways urban educational spaces aid in the traumatization of Black students and their identity formation. Educational spaces and experiences have continued to shape identity development for many individuals who encounter this contextual setting (Clayton, 2020; Leath et al., 2019). This article positions the theories of critical race (CRT) and racial space (RST) as a vehicle to more intentionally explore and link trauma work to discussions of identity development. In these spaces, identities are strengthened or disrupted, with implications for academic and social well-being. This study highlights the voices of eleven Hampton Roads, Virginia teachers. These teachers reflect and share their traumatic experiences and provide insight into how those experiences influenced their identity development. Additionally, this article contributes ideas for conducting identity-conscious trauma research and building race-conscious pathways for supporting trauma-exposed youth in urban educational spaces.