Disenfranchised Grief Examining Social, Cultural, and Relational Impacts

Disenfranchised Grief expands the professional helper’s understanding of the grief experiences that result from social, cultural, and relational oppression, microaggressions, disempowerment, and overt violence. The authors blend trauma-informed practice and recent research on critical race theory, cultural humility, and intersectionality to both broaden mental health professionals’ conceptualization of disenfranchised grief and its impacts and promote equity and inclusion among populations that have been marginalized.

Part One: Foundations for Understanding Disenfranchised Grief 1. Disenfranchised Grief: The Complicated Interweave of Death and Non-Death Losses Renee BlockerTurner and Sarah D. Stauffer 2. Identity and Loss: Where Intersectionality and Disenfranchised Grief Converge Quinn K.Smelser 3. Our Bodies: Holders of Unspoken Grief Emily R. Keller 4. Wounds of Spirit: The Disenfranchised Nature of Spiritual Trauma Renee Blocker Turner, Tina K. Bailey, and Brooklyn Gordon 5. Untangling Racial Trauma and Disenfranchised Grief Chinwé U. Williams and Layla J. Bonner Part Two: Systemic Barriers to Grief 6. Social and Systemic Barriers to Grief for Biracial Individuals and Their Families Christina Villarreal-Davis 7. Complicated Grief and Challenges in LGBTQIA+ Communities Doneley Meris 8. The Interplay of Disenfranchised Grief and Systemic Barriers from COVID-19 for African Americans Theresa Libios and Edward F. Hudspeth 9. Disenfranchised Grief for Individuals With Disabilities Rochelle Ritzi and Marshall Lyles 10. The Aftermath of Sexual Violence: Consequent Grief and Loss Maria Haiyasoso 11. Addressing Violence and Loss in Schools Amanda Winburn and Mary Bess W. Pannel Part Three: Disenfranchised Grief Impacting Families 12. Loss Within the Margins of Childrearing: Disenfranchised Grief in Parenting Mandi Meléndez 13. African American Sibling Loss: A Sister's Perspective Tangela C. Sawyerr 14. The Grief of Parenting "Borrowed Children": A Foster Parent Perspective Theresa Fraser 15. The Sacrifice of Service: Grief and Loss Within the Military Community Christina Watts-Figueroa and Alton R. McCallum. Jr. 16. Ovdje nisam, a tamo me nema: The Silenced Complicated, Complex Grief of Bosnian Refugees Selma Zakomac-Bacevacand Meyleen M. Velasquez Conclusion

Renee Blocker Turner, PhD, LPC-S, RPT-S™,is the director of the Expressive Therapies Institute, PLLC, and an author, researcher, and speaker with 20 years of experience supporting individuals and families in grief. Sarah D. Stauffer, PhD, LPC, NCC, NCSC, RPT-S™, Psychologue-Psychothérapeute FSP, is children’s services director at Association ESPAS in Switzerland and Associate Editor of the International Journal of Play Therapy.