REVEALED: Taxpayer-funded Wisconsin mental health office pushed ‘white privilege’ training for school counselors

According to newly released documents shared by Moms for Liberty activist Scarlett Johnson, Wisconsin school guidance counselors received training on concepts including white privilege, white fragility, intersectionality, microaggressions and "deconstructing whiteness" as part of a state-sponsored trauma-informed care program. Johnson said the materials were provided by a whistleblower.

The training was administered through the Wisconsin Office of Children's Mental Health, a taxpayer-funded agency that reports directly to the governor's office. One training toolkit, titled "Exploring Race and Culture from a Trauma-Informed Lens," instructed counselors and mental health professionals to discuss race, privilege and systemic inequities as part of their work with children.

Training materials asked participants to consider questions including, "What is your race? How do you identify?" and "What opportunities have you experienced because of your race/skin color?" Another discussion prompt asked participants to examine how "white fragility" affects their ability to show empathy and collaborate with others.

The curriculum also included a section titled "Deconstructing Whiteness," which encouraged participants to examine the role whiteness plays in their lives and challenge systems that place whiteness at the center of programs, policies and institutions. Additional materials discussed concepts such as intersectionality, microaggressions and systemic racism.

The documents reference a 32-minute training video titled "Exploring Racism and Whiteness/Embracing Truth." Participants included Wisconsin Office of Children's Mental Health Director Linda Hall, Journey Mental Health Center Chief Diversity Officer Armando Hernandez, Kids Forward Health Policy Analyst William Parke Sutherland and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee curriculum manager Pat Parker.

During the video, Hall argued that race must be considered when addressing childhood trauma and mental health.

"As we consider trauma sensitivity, we need to consider race. That means we have to address white privilege and racism in our country and how it influences everything, including human services," Hall said.

Other speakers discussed topics including colonialism, white privilege, anti-racism and racial disparities. One portion of the training encouraged participants to view discussions about racism, microaggressions and privilege as opportunities for learning and personal growth.