MHA to reference BIPOC in awareness materials

Abstract

Rather than use the word “minority” in its Mental Health Awareness Month toolkit, Mental Health America (MHA) announced June 29 the use of a different designation for the month of July, formerly recognized since 2008 as Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month. MHA will now use BIPOC, which they believe more fairly honors and distinguishes the experiences of Blacks, Indigenous People and People of Color. In an effort to continue the visionary work of Bebe Moore Campbell, each year MHA develops a public education campaign dedicated to address the needs of BIPOC. Campbell, an American author, journalist, teacher and mental health advocate, worked tirelessly to shed light on the mental health needs of the Black community and other underrepresented communities. For this July, MHA has developed content for its 2020 BIPOC Mental Health Month toolkit that includes lists of resources specifically for BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities; handouts on racism and mental health and racial trauma; and a Call to Action for people to share how discrimination and/or racism have affected their mental health using the hashtag #ImpactofTrauma. For more information, visit https://mhanational.org/BIPOC‐mental‐health‐month.