A psychiatrist who spoke at Yale University’s School of Medicine about fantasies of shooting white people told The New York Times Saturday that her remarks were taken out of context to “control the narrative.”
In an audio recording posted by journalist Bari Weiss on Substack, Dr. Aruna Khilanani gave her talk on “The Psychopathic Problem of the White Mind” on April 6 as part of an online lecture, according to the Times.
“I had fantasies of unloading a revolver into the head of any white person that got in my way, burying their body and wiping my bloody hands as I walked away relatively guiltless with a bounce in my step. Like I did the world a f–king favor.”https://t.co/VKJQXpLo8A
— Amy Kremer (@AmyKremer) June 5, 2021
“I had fantasies of unloading a revolver into the head of any white person that got in my way, burying their body, and wiping my bloody hands as I walked away relatively guiltless with a bounce in my step,” Khilanani said. “Like I did the world a fucking favor.”
The psychiatrist claimed people of color are asking a “demented, violent predator who thinks they are a saint or a superhero, to accept responsibility.” (RELATED: Psychiatrist Said She Fantasized About Shooting White People At Yale University Lecture)
Dr. Khilanani told the Times that her lecture “used provocation as a tool for real engagement.”
“Too much of the discourse on race is a dry, bland regurgitation of new vocabulary words with no work in the unconscious,” she said. “And, if you want to hit the unconscious, you will have to feel real negative feelings.”
“My speaking metaphorically about my own anger was a method for people to reflect on negative feelings. To normalize negative feelings. Because if you don’t, it will turn into a violent action,” she added.
During the talk, she recalled a therapist telling her she was “psychotic” whenever she became angry at racism during psychoanalysis, according to the Times. “This is the cost of talking to white people at all — the cost of your own life, as they suck you dry,” Dr. Khilanani said in the lecture.
The Yale School of Medicine said it reviewed a recording of the lecture after faculty members expressed concern and “found the tone and content antithetical to the values of the school,” a statement said.
“In deciding whether to post the video, we weighed our grave concern about the extreme hostility, imagery of violence, and profanity expressed by the speaker against our commitment to freedom of expression,” the statement added.
The university officials limited access to the video to members of the Yale community, and added a disclaimer to the video.
“Yale School of Medicine expects the members of our community to speak respectfully to one another and to avoid the use of profanity as a matter of professionalism and acknowledgment of our common humanity,” the disclaimer said in part, according to the Times. “Yale School of Medicine does not condone imagery of violence or racism against any group.”
Dr.Khilanani claimed Yale suppressed her talk even though they “knew the topic, they knew the title, they knew the speaker,” the Times reported.
“Something is emotionally dangerous about opening up a conversation about race,” she told the Times. “No one wants to look at their actions or face their own negative feelings about what they are doing. The best way to control the narrative is to focus on me, and make me the problem, which is what I stated occurs in the dynamic of racism.”
“My work is important. And, I stand by it. We need to heal in this country.”