Mental Health in the Black Community

African Americans are 20% more likely to experience mental health problems than the general population.

20 percent.

This may seem like a small number compared to other statistics but this statistic is very important when it comes to the black community being aware of mental health problems.

In a recent Twitter poll, 91 percent of people in the black community do not think we take mental health as seriously as it should be taken. This number is surprising, yet expected.

To promote awareness for this issue, actor/rapper/comedian/producer Donald Glover took a step in talking health on national TV. In his TV show Atlanta, Glover is waiting to be processed at a local jail in the second episode, he watches a Black arrestee with an undetermined psychological problem fill a cup with toilet water, drink some of it and spit some on a White officer. Given how police too often see people of color with cognitive or behavioral issues as problems, an officer beats the man and his colleagues join in. Earn, who is in jail because he's witnessed a shooting, watches all of this with concern. Before the beating, he tells another officer the man needs help before that officer tells him to back off.

Celebrities such as Chris Brown, Fantasia Barrino, and Kanye West suffer from mental health problems. No one is exempt from experiencing mental health issues or disorders and as members of the black community we must learn to fight against it and bring more awareness to this issue.

One simple way that we can combat this issue is to simply talk about it. Be ready to listen and encourage and never be judgmental.

Remember to tell your story and pass it on.

#theRelay

#celebrities #MentalHealth #Awareness #Listen #AfricanAmerican