A Dededo native pursuing his doctorate in Alaska is asking CHamoru adults across the globe to help him understand how colonization affects their mental health and sense of identity.
Jonathan U. Guerrero, a doctoral candidate in clinical-community psychology at the University of Alaska Anchorage, is collecting data for his dissertation through an anonymous online survey that examines internalized oppression, civic engagement and substance use behaviors among CHamoru people.
“Internalized oppression is sort of the narratives of, let’s say, colonizers’ narratives turned inward, so people start to believe that their culture is inferior to certain cultures or to dominant cultures,” Guerrero said in an interview with the Guam Daily Post…