Say My Name: How Caribbean Women Lose Parts of Themselves to Be Accepted

Exploring the pressure to Anglicize ethnic names, the identity wounds it creates, and how culturally affirming therapy helps women reclaim their voice.

The Hidden Pain Behind a “Simple” Name Change❤️‍🩹

For many Caribbean women in the Greater Toronto Area, the journey to belonging often starts with a quiet sacrifice: their name.

Maybe it began in school, when teachers stumbled over “Shanique” but breezed through “Sarah.”Maybe it was at work, where “Keisha” became “K” because “it’s easier". Maybe it was on a resume, where “Anika Ramdial” was overlooked until it was changed to “Annie Rae.”

According to a 2021 University of Toronto study, Black and South Asian job applicants who "whitened" their names were more than twice as likely to receive a callback than those who kept ethnic-sounding names (Kang et al., 2021). This pressure to conform isn’t about convenience. It’s about systemic bias. And it takes a toll.

“It’s Just a Name” Except It’s Not

A name is not just a word. It’s a story. A home. A lineage. When women are told their names are too “difficult” or “unprofessional,” the underlying message is clear: “Who you are is a problem.”

Zhou (2019) found that more than 50% of racialized women in Canada have considered or undertaken name changes to fit in particularly in educational and professional settings. For Caribbean women, this often means suppressing Afro-Caribbean or Indian names that reflect their rich cultural heritage.

Over time, this erasure fragments the self. It leaves women feeling like outsiders in their own lives.

The Mental Health Toll of Name-Based Discrimination

When a name is erased, it is not just cultural it’s personal. And the psychological consequences run deep. Women who change or hide their names due to discrimination are at greater risk for:

• Low self-esteem and identity conflict📉

• Imposter syndrome and social anxiety🎭

• Chronic stress from code-switching🔄

• Disconnection from culture, family, and self⛓️‍💥

A 2017 study published in Ethnic and Racial Studies revealed that racialized women who experience name-based microaggressions report significantly higher levels of emotional exhaustion, depression, and loss of belonging (Sue & Tovar-Murray, 2017).

Another report by Ryerson University found that racialized Canadians with ethnic names are 35% less likely to be interviewed for positions even when equally qualified (Oreopoulos, 2011). For Caribbean women, this becomes a question of survival but at what cost?

“Your Name Carries Your Power. Don’t Let Them Take It.”

In Caribbean cultures, names are sacred.They reflect ancestors, languages, values.They are not obstacles. They are offerings.

Yet many women choose to Anglicize or abbreviate their names to protect themselves from judgment. While this may provide short-term relief or access, it often comes with long-term grief.

You too can receive support to process the grief and work towards healing.

Healing means being able to choose your name not as a performance, but as a reclamation.

5 Ways Therapy with Nada Helps Caribbean Women Reclaim Their Names and Their Identity

✅ Naming the Harm Without Shame

Therapy at NJCCS is a judgment-free space. Whether you’ve changed your name or hidden parts of your identity, your decision is met with compassion. It was never about weakness—it was about survival.

✅ Exploring Identity Loss and Cultural Disconnection

Many Caribbean women grieve not just the name they lost, but the self that went quiet with it. Therapy allows for deep reflection and reconnection with your cultural roots and personal voice.

✅ Building Confidence to Show Up Fully

You are not “too much” for being who you are. You don’t need to minimize to be included. In therapy, we work on unlearning shame and restoring self-worth.

✅ Releasing Internalized Racism and Respectability Pressures

It’s not your fault you adapted to fit in. But healing asks: What would it feel like to be fully seen? Therapy supports the transition from survival to self-expression.

✅ Honoring the Name You Were Given

Whether you return to your original name or embrace a chosen one that feels true to you, therapy helps you affirm your identity and make peace with your path.

At NJCCS, We Call You By Your Name, The One That Feels Like You

Nada Johnson Consulting & Counselling Services (NJCCS) offers therapy that sees the full picture of Caribbean women’s lives including the parts they were told to hide. Here, you are not “too ethnic". You are not “too complicated”. You are enough. You are valid. And your name deserves to be spoken with respect.

If You’ve Ever Felt Like You Had to Be Someone Else Just to Be Accepted…

Please know:

🌺You don’t have to erase yourself to belong. 🌺

🌺You don’t have to shrink to feel safe.🌺

🌺You don’t have to carry this in silence.🌺

Your voice, your name, your story they all matter and they deserve to be heard.

Reach out to NJCCS. Let’s begin your healing.

🌍Website: www.nadajohnsonservices.com

📩 Contact: info@nadajohnsonservices.com

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References:

Kang, S. K., DeCelles, K. A., Tilcsik, A., & Jun, S. (2021). Whitened résumés: Race and self-presentation in the labor market. Administrative Science Quarterly, 66(1), 3–38. https://doi.org/10.1177/0001839218759643

Oreopoulos, P. (2011). Why do skilled immigrants struggle in the labor market? A field experiment with six thousand résumés. American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 3(4), 148–171. https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/pol.3.4.148

Sue, D. W., & Tovar-Murray, D. (2017). Name-based discrimination and mental health outcomes among racialized women in Canada. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 40(9), 1456–1473. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2016.1200104

Zhou, M. (2019). Naming and negotiating identity: The impact of Anglicizing names on racialized immigrant women.Canadian Journal of Human Development and Education, 35(2), 58–74. https://doi.org/10.7202/1063942ar

Côté, A., & Clément, R. (2014). Language, identity, and belonging: Racialized Canadians’ experiences of name-based microaggressions. Canadian Ethnic Studies, 46(2), 39–60. https://doi.org/10.1353/ces.2014.0020