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Bronfenbrenner (1979) described the exosystem as our indirect environment, or the policies that influence our microsystems and mesosystems. Counseling leaders may have direct or indirect roles in their indirect environment. Examples of counseling leaders’ exosystems are university guidelines that influence how they use instructional technology in the classroom, or actions taken by ACA on certain issues that the membership may or may not have had a direct influence in deciding. For example, members who did not and do not agree with ACA’s statement endorsing BLM are still influenced by ACA’s statement denouncing all forms of racism.

BLM advocacy step. Supporting the BLM movement at the exosystem level requires culturally responsive counseling leaders to willingly step out and openly endorse ACA’s position on the BLM movement, even in the midst of potential discomfort or disagreement. Doing so is an acknowledgment of the courage, reflection, and reflexivity required of culturally responsive counseling leaders to support collective action that humanizes, legitimizes, and supports diverse ways of supporting Black lives.

Evaluation of the effectiveness of this advocacy step. Culturally responsive leaders can evaluate their effectiveness in this advocacy step by assessing their visible, vocal, and written support of ACA’s public statements, as well as statements of other counseling organizations, in support of the BLM movement.