Today we’d like to introduce you to Manuel X. Zamarripa.
Hi Manuel X., thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Really, this all began for me was when I was a college student. I was in the library doing research for some paper and I accidentally came across a book titled “Chicano Psychology.” This was the early 90’s and I had never heard of this book before. I was already interested in civil rights, educational rights, and social justice movements. I had studied the Chicano Movement, so I was so surprised and very excited to have come across this book. I was even more more intrigued when I saw that it was published in 1977. This meant that people had already been doing this work even decades before then. That’s when I began learning as much as I could about the history of Chicano Psychology. Flashforward years later. By now I was already in the psychology and mental health field and my love for Chicana/o/x Psychology had grown into a dream to have an institute and it was my wife’s suggestion to launch this as an online initiative. That’s what we’ve been doing ever since. Instead of having a “brick and mortar” establishment, we simply offer community workshops and professional training either online or at physical locations with community partners who offer their space to us.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
As co-founder, with my wife Jessica, of the Institute of Chicana/o/x Psychology & Community Wellness, I help guide and gather professionals in psychology, mental health, education and community members to help reconnect our Chicana/o/x and Latina/o/x community with a culturally relevant sense of wellbeing. We do this primarily by organizing and offering what we call “workshop platicas” to community members that emphasize cultural strengths that contribute to overall wellness. We also work to re-connect with our indigenous ancestral wisdoms that many in our community are often unaware of due to centuries of being disconnected from this part of our identity. We also offer clinical training to professional with the same emphases. What we do that I think sets us apart is that we center culture first and then see how or if culturally responsive Western psychology may or may not fit to benefit the wellbeing of our community. We start with the culture and assuming that there are always cultural strengths. We assume centralizing culture and that a positive perception of one’s own culture background can and should be facilitated in psychotherapy with Chicana/o/x and Latina/o/x clients. We assume that connecting & re-connecting to current & ancestral values/practices can promote a culturally relevant sense of well-being.
We routinely receive feedback from participants that express a sentiment of “this is what I’ve always needed.”
In 2023, I received an American Psychological Association Presidential Citation for the advancement of Chicana/o/x Psychology.
What makes you happy?
Of course what makes me most happy is spending time with my family, especially when our adult kids come over every weekend to just hang out with us. Also, anytime me and my wife have a chance to spend some “us time” together to stay connected with each other and just enjoy spending time with each other without having to check anything off our “to do” list.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.razapsych.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xicanpsych/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChicanoPsychology
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/institute-of-chicana-o-psychology/
- Twitter: https://x.com/InstChicanxPsyc
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9unFmf3lCyudjmGSopW4Og
