Black Twitter blew up this week after a therapist posted a TikTok discussing Black men and how they perceive therapy.
Shabree Rawls, a Black female clinician with over 153,000 followers on the platform, uploaded a video on August 13 talking about how Black men need to expand their "emotional vocabulary."
"Y’all think b***hes just be talking in ya’ll ear just to be f***ing talking; we don’t," Rawls says. "Y’all think b***hes just wanna argue with y’all because y’all refuse to expand your emotional vocabulary; we don’t. It’s to provide clarity for both us and y’all dusty b***hes.”
The TikToker explains that 90% of her clients are Black men, and expanding one's emotional vocabulary is meant to "make their lives easier." She says that there's no need to "choke down" your emotions, and the lack of emotional availability can push away intimate partners.
“This f***ing weird a** world that is so hard on y’all, like let’s acknowledge that the world is very difficult for y’all, but y’all are not making it any easier bruh, bruh,” she said. “You’re not. When b***hes are telling y’all to go to therapy, it’s not for us, it’s for y’all sad mother***kers. Go to therapy. Talk about that sh** that’s on your chest... y’all are doing a disservice to y’all self.”
_PanamaGold uploaded Rawls' TikTok to Twitter, and some users fired back at the therapist for her delivery and "tone deaf" messaging.
"This is such a dangerous pop culture articulation of Black male mental health issues," a user quote-tweeted. "Pathologizing & speaking down to patients struggling to find words for trauma is not best practice in any literature I have read. This shaming tactic is why many BM don't pursue therapy."
"I was waiting for her to share some examples of emotional vocabulary to add to a person's arsenal, but it never came. So, even though I know you didn't ask me, I think a good practice is to empower people with information instead of what she did."
"Telling Black Men to expand their vocabulary in shame is very different than Creating a safe environment for them to explore their feelings."
"Every therapist I've had has been affirming, caring, and gentle. This clown is none of those things."
Others jumped to Rawls' defense, like one user saying, "You might not have liked her delivery. & she ain’t gotta call women bitches. But idk how y’all skewed this to say 'she’s complaining about Black male clients' ... She’s clearly telling Black men to go tf to therapy & stop holding shit in when the world is already so hard on you."
Another person quote-tweets this: "She held Black men to task to improve yall quality of life, and because it wasn’t dainty and respectable, y’all want her license revoked. Make it make sense."
"Men talk crazy af to each other, but the moment a woman throws a few curse words at y’all, y’all get sensitive," someone wrote. "Regardless of what she said or how she said it. Everybody needs therapy. You need it for yourself. Point, blank, period. Go better yourself!!!"
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