Racial Justice Resources for Activists, Advocates & Allies

Racism is a mental health issue because racism causes trauma. And trauma paints a direct line to mental illnesses, which need to be taken seriously.

Past trauma is prominently mentioned as the reason that people experience serious mental health conditions today.[1] But obvious forms of racism and bigotry are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to racial trauma.
Every day, people of color experience far more subtle traumas:

• People who avoid them and their neighborhoods out of ignorance and fear;
• Banks and credit companies who won’t lend them money or do so only at higher interest rates;
• Mass incarceration of their peers;
• School curricula that ignore or minimize their contributions to our shared history; and
• Racial profiling.  (MHA)

Racial disparities, or unfair differences, within the system of mental health are well documented. Research indicates that compared with people who are white, black, indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) are:

• Less likely to have access to mental health services
• Less likely to seek out services
• Less likely to receive needed care
• More likely to receive poor quality of care
• More likely to end services premature

Regarding racial disparities in misdiagnosis, black men, for example, are overdiagnosed with schizophrenia (four times more likely than white men to be diagnosed), while underdiagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder and mood disorders. Additionally, concerns are compounded by the fact that for BIPOC, mental health care is often provided in prisons, which infers a multitude of issues.

BIPOC are overrepresented in the criminal justice system, as the system overlays race with criminality. Statistics show that over 50% of those incarcerated have mental health concerns. This suggests that rather than receiving treatment for mental illness, BIPOC end up incarcerated because of their symptoms. In jails and prisons, the standard of care for mental health treatment is generally low, and prison practices themselves are often traumatic. (ct.counseling.org)

What happens at the intersection of mental health and one’s experience as a member of the Black community? While the experience of being Black in America varies tremendously, there are shared cultural factors that play a role in helping define mental health and supporting well-being, resiliency and healing.

Part of this shared cultural experience — family connections, values, expression through spirituality or music, reliance on community and religious networks — are enriching and can be great sources of strength and support.

However, another part of this shared experience is facing racism, discrimination and inequity that can significantly affect a person’s mental health. Being treated or perceived as “less than” because of the color of your skin can be stressful and even traumatizing. Additionally, members of the Black community face structural challenges accessing the care and treatment they need. (NAMI)

POST TRAUMATIC SLAVE SYNDROME  : Dr. Joy DeGruy Leary

WHAT IS P.T.S.S.?
P.T.S.S. is a theory that explains the etiology of many of the adaptive survival behaviors in African American communities throughout the United States and the Diaspora. It is a condition that exists as a consequence of multigenerational oppression of Africans and their descendants resulting from centuries of chattel slavery. A form of slavery which was predicated on the belief that African Americans were inherently/genetically inferior to whites. This was then followed by institutionalized racism which continues to perpetuate injury.