May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and you only need to look to the news to find examples of things that need to change in our country when it comes to mental health and social justice.

Daniel Prude, who suffered from a history of schizophrenia and post traumatic stress disorder, was murdered at the hands of the Rochester Police Department in March of 2020. In January of 2021, Elba Pope’s 9 year old daughter ended up pepper sprayed and handcuffed in the back of a Rochester Police Department’s police car, right after they were called for her suicide attempt. Daniel and Elba’s daughter’s cases are two of many cases of police violence where mental health services needed to be provided, but instead police officers responded with brutal violence.
Over the last year, we and our members have identified countless ways to fight for mental health awareness during the pandemic, and provide a collection of resources to help our communities fight for the protection and mental health services they need. We will continue to build power to demand the physical and mental protection Black people need to safely exist and survive the pandemic — and its aftermath.

This month, we’ve partnered with organizations for the first Mental Health Day of Action on Thursday, May 20th. Together, we are encouraging our communities to become mental health advocates and change leaders. We are calling on corporations, elected leaders, and all those in positions of power to commit to creating a safe space for Black communities. Here’s a few ways you can join the fight, take action and help demand healthy, safe spaces for our communities: