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Movements, leaders, victories and the continuing fight for equality.
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In August 1908, a white mob attacked Springfield, Illinois’s Black community, destroying homes and businesses and lynching two Black men. National outrage over the violence helped spur the movement that created the NAACP the following year.
MORE →Reflects the personal views, recollections, and perspective of the author, Mike Davis.
This is a personal recollection on the Move fire on May 13, 1985
Psychoanalytic theory posits that an individual unable to integrate difficult feelings mobilizes specific defenses to overcome these feelings, which the individual perceives to be unbearable. The defense that effects (brings about) this process is called splitting. Splitting is the tendency to view events or people as either all bad or all good.[1] When viewing people as all good, the individual is said to be using the defense mechanism idealization: a mental mechanism in which the person attributes exaggeratedly positive qualities to the self or others. When viewing people as all bad, the individual employs devaluation: attributing exaggeratedly negative qualities to the self or others.[citation needed]
In child development, idealization and devaluation are quite normal. During the childhood development stage, individuals become capable of perceiving others as complex structures, containing both good and bad components. If the development stage is interrupted (by early childhood trauma, for example), these defense mechanisms may persist into adulthood.[citation needed]
The term idealization first appeared in connection with Freud's definition of narcissism. Freud's vision was that all human infants pass through a phase of primary narcissism in which they assume they are the centre of their universe. To obtain the parents' love the child comes to do what they think the parents value. Internalizing these values the child forms an ego ideal.[2][3] This ego ideal contains rules for good behaviour and standards of excellence toward which the ego has to strive. When the child cannot bear ambivalence between the real self and the ego ideal and defenses are used too often, it is called pathologic. Freud called this situation secondary narcissism, because the ego itself is idealized. Explanations of the idealization of others besides the self are sought in drive theory as well as in object relations theory. From the viewpoint of libidinal drives, idealization of other people is a "flowing-over" of narcissistic libido onto the object; from the viewpoint of self-object relations, the object representations (like that of the caregivers) were made more beautiful than they really were.[4]
An extension of Freud's theory of narcissism came when Heinz Kohut presented the so-called "self-object transferences" of idealization and mirroring. To Kohut, idealization in childhood is a healthy mechanism. If the parents fail to provide appropriate opportunities for idealization (healthy narcissism) and mirroring (how to cope with reality), the child does not develop beyond a developmental stage in which they see themselves as grandiose but in which they also remain dependent on others to provide their self-esteem.[5][6] Kohut stated that, with narcissistic patients, idealization of the self and the therapist should be allowed during therapy and then very gradually will diminish as a result of unavoidable optimal frustration.[7]
Otto Kernberg has provided an extensive discussion of idealization, both in its defensive and adaptive aspects. He conceptualized idealization as involving a denial of unwanted characteristics of an object, then enhancing the object by projecting one's own libido or omnipotence on it. He proposed a developmental line with one end of the continuum being a normal form of idealization and the other end a pathological form. In the latter, the individual has a problem with object constancy and sees others as all good or all bad, thus bolstering idealization and devaluation. At this stage idealization is associated with borderline pathology. At the other end of the continuum, idealization is said to be a necessary precursor for feelings of mature love.[8]
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Source: Wikipedia. Article content is retrieved live through the MediaWiki API.
Psychoanalytic theory posits that an individual unable to integrate difficult feelings mobilizes specific defenses to overcome these feelings, which the individual perceives to be unbearable. The defense that effects (brings about) this process is called splitting. Splitting is the tendency to view events or people as either all bad or all good. When viewing people as all good, the individual is said to be using the defense mechanism idealization: a mental mechanism in which the person attributes exaggeratedly positive qualities to the self or others. When viewing people as all bad, the individual employs devaluation: attributing exaggeratedly negative qualities to the self or others. In child development, idealization and devaluation are quite normal. During the childhood development stage, individuals become capable of perceiving others as complex structures, containing both good and bad components. If the development stage is interrupted (by early childhood trauma, for example), these defense mechanisms may persist into adulthood.
Splitting, also called binary thinking, dichotomous thinking, black-and-white thinking, all-or-nothing thinking, or thinking in extremes, is the failure in a person's thinking to bring together the dichotomy of both perceived positive and negative qualities of something into a cohesive, realistic whole. It is a common defense mechanism, wherein the individual tends to think in extremes (e.g., an individual's actions and motivations are all good or all bad with no middle ground). This kind of dichotomous interpretation is contrasted by an acknowledgement of certain nuances known as "shades of gray". Splitting can include different contexts, as individuals who use this defense mechanism may "split" representations of their own mind, of their own personality, and of others. Splitting is observed in personality disorders belonging to cluster B, such as borderline personality disorder and narcissistic personality disorder, as well as schizophrenia and depression. In dissociative identity disorder, the term splitting is used to refer to a split in personality alter-egos.
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a personality disorder characterized by a pervasive, long-term pattern across several contexts of significant interpersonal relationship instability, extreme fear of abandonment, and intense emotional outbursts. People with BPD frequently exhibit self-harming behaviors and engage in risky activities, primarily caused by difficulties in regulating emotions. Symptoms such as dissociation, a pervasive sense of emptiness, and distorted sense of self are prevalent. Onset of symptoms can be triggered by events others perceive as normal, with the disorder typically manifesting in early adulthood and persisting across diverse contexts. BPD is often comorbid with substance use disorders, depressive disorders, and eating disorders. Studies estimate up to 10 percent of people with BPD die by suicide, a rate approximately 730 times greater than the general population in the United States. BPD faces significant stigmatization in media portrayals and the psychiatric field, leading to underdiagnosis and insufficient treatment. Causes of BPD are unclear and complex, implicating genetic, neurological, and psychosocial conditions in its development. The current hypothesis suggests BPD is caused by an interaction between genetic factors and adverse childhood experiences. BPD is significantly more common in people with a family history of BPD, particularly immediate relatives, suggesting genetic predisposition. There is a risk of misdiagnosis, with BPD commonly confused with a mood disorder, substance use disorder, or other mental health disorders. Therapeutic interventions predominantly involve psychotherapy, with dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) and schema therapy being the most effective. Although pharmacotherapy cannot cure BPD, it may be employed to mitigate symptoms, with atypical antipsychotics and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants commonly prescribed. Medications are used cautiously and may have minimal impact on neural function. Due to the high utilization of healthcare resources by people with BPD, up to half may show significant improvement over ten years with appropriate treatment. Estimation of BPD's prevalence varies. In the US, around 1% of the population are diagnosed with it. BPD is more prevalent among adolescents and young adults than elderly, and symptoms may remit with age. The term 'borderline' is debated, as it referred to concepts of borderline insanity and patients on the border between neurosis and psychosis, which are now considered clinically imprecise.
Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) is a complex and heterogeneous personality disorder characterized by patterns of grandiosity, entitlement, low empathy, and interpersonal difficulties, which can manifest as either grandiose ("thick-skinned") or vulnerable ("thin-skinned") forms. Grandiose individuals display arrogance, social dominance, and exploitative behaviors, while vulnerable individuals show shame, inferiority, hypersensitivity, and extreme reactions to criticism. NPD often involves impaired emotional empathy, superficial relationships, and difficulty tolerating disagreement. It is often co-morbid with other mental disorders and associated with significant functional impairment and psychosocial disability. There are two definitions of NPD in the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM); whereas the primary definition is categorical and stems from previous DSM editions, the other definition – part of the Alternative DSM-5 model for personality disorders – is based on dimensional measures of severity of the disorder as well as on specific pathological traits. The International Classification of Diseases (ICD) defines only a general personality disorder since the introduction of the latest edition; hence, it does not include an NPD category. There is no standard treatment for NPD. Its high comorbidity with other mental disorders influences treatment and outcomes. Psychotherapeutic treatments generally fall into two categories: psychoanalytic/psychodynamic and cognitive behavioral therapy, with growing support for integration of different modalities in therapy. However, there are few studies on the effectiveness of treatments. Treatment is frequently not sought; one's subjective experience of the mental disorder, as well as one's agreement to and level of engagement with treatment, are highly dependent on one's motivation to change. NPD's etiology is thought to be largely genetic and neurobiological, with structural and functional brain differences in areas related to self-processing and empathy. Assessment tools such as the Narcissistic Personality Inventory or Pathological Narcissism Inventory can help differentiate subtypes. NPD has historical roots in psychoanalytic theory and remains a subject of controversy in psychiatric classification, while its manifestations continue to appear in literature and media as exemplars of extreme self-focus and entitlement.
Before the 1921 destruction of Tulsa’s Greenwood District, Black residents had created a remarkable center of business and community life. The district included stores, professional offices, entertainment venues and homes owned by Black citizens. Understanding Greenwood means learning what was built—not only what was burned.
MORE →Joe Louis.
