Coming Together and Falling Apart: Looking at Relationship

Abstract

SUMMARY Race was an essential element in how this couple both came together and fell apart, and offers a useful lens to understand the partners and their connection. Their relationship began with pride in their shared African ancestry, and hit bottom with the threat of violence in the presence of their four-year-old daughter. Their racial identity was a source of strength for each of them, yet the effects of racism stressed them and their relationship and contributed to their undoing as a couple. The case is written by the woman's therapist, who draws upon relevant clinical and cultural literature and incorporates her increasing sensitivity to how racial issues affect relationships between women and men, and between client and therapist.