September 26, 2022 IN: California, Resources & toolkits

A Right To Heal: Mental Health in Diverse Communities (September 2022)

Across California, Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) gathered together once again to share their perspectives on the communities’ mental health needs. This report documents the collective stories, experiences, struggles, and resiliencies that emerged from those discussions with the intention of 1) honoring the voices of those who participated, 2) providing information that can be used by BIPOC communities to advocate and advance the mission to strengthen community mental health, and 3) educating local and state policy makers about BIPOC communities’ mental health needs, as well as how to better improve the mental health resources available.

This report documents experiences and impacts of historical and institutional oppression and the associated trauma that are interwoven with BIPOC communities’ mental health needs. Much of the information is not new; however, this report centers the voices of California’s diverse racial
and ethnic communities and provides a glimpse inside how BIPOC communities are leveraging
the strength and power from within to take care of their mental health. This report comes at a
pivotal moment of a continuing pandemic that disproportionately harmed BIPOC communities combined with protests organizing around ending racialized violence. With this sociopolitical backdrop and years of investing in stigma and discrimination reduction within California’s BIPOC communities, community members demonstrated a willingness and tenacity to raise their voices about mental health issues, needs, and experiences.

Read the full report here.