Guest Commentator

Jennifer M. Gómez, M.S.

BC Guest Commentator Jennifer M. Gómez, M.S., Ford Fellow, is a doctoral candidate in clinical psychology at the University of Oregon, researching the effects of trauma on diverse populations. In this domain, she has published over 20 peer reviewed articles, book chapters, scholarly newsletter pieces, and newspaper op-ed pieces. She is the co-editor of the special issue of Journal of Trauma & Dissociation—Self Injury & Suicidality: The Impact of Trauma & Dissociation (2015). She has developed cultural betrayal trauma theory as a way to understand interpersonal trauma outcomes for minorities, with a specific focus on African Americans in the U.S. She is dedicated to using her work to contribute to national discourse on violence and healing in the African American community.

1 piece

Guest Commentary

Black, Raped, Shamed, and Supported: Our Responses to Rape Can Build or Destroy Our Community

By Jennifer M. Gómez, M.S. Guest Commentator

Black people are often placed in an impossible position of having to choose whom to protect; this protection can be so necessary against a society that alternates between denigrating us and erasing our very existence. That truth does not mean we should turn on each other through violence or, perhaps even more dangerous, in our reactions to such violence.

“We have to become accustomed to criticizing the things we love.”—Angela DavisThe issue of campus sexual violence has received national attention, with many universities grappling with…

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