“Our Legitimate and Unavoidable Impatience”: Forensic Mental Health Assessment and the Black Experience
摘要
Colorblind racial ideology, which claims to promote fairness by disregarding race, paradoxically reinforces systemic discrimination and limits culturally responsive practices in psychology. This chapter critically examines the impact of colorblindness in forensic mental health assessment, highlighting its role in sustaining structural biases within the legal system. By centering whiteness, traditional forensic practices marginalize non-Western epistemologies and fail to address disparities in clinical and legal outcomes for racially minoritized individuals. The chapter argues for a shift toward transparent non-objectivity in forensic assessment, where racial justice is an explicit goal alongside scientific rigor. Additionally, it explores the integration of structural competence in forensic clinical practice to address systemic inequities. By incorporating race and ethnicity into forensic evaluations and embracing frameworks that acknowledge systemic oppression, forensic psychology can better fulfill its ethical and social obligations.