What Has Gone Before:

The role of mother is an important one for many Black women, and it is accompanied by tasks not shared by their white counterparts, specifically, racial socialization of Black children. It is important therefore that psychotherapists understand additional stressors brought to bear on Black women as mothers as well as the effect of those stressors on their parenting skills. This paper focuses on the legacy of adaptive strengths Black women have exercised in coping with an antagonistic environment; potential complications in the task of racial socialization; traditional resources found in Black families, as well as psychotherapeutic interventions which may enhance this process when problems occur.