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  • unitedlly
    • Oct 2, 2020
    • 3 min read

Addressing Mental Health in the Black Community

By: Zoha Mustafa


Although there has been much progress within the past couple of years, the Black community still continues to struggle with the topic of mental health. The community is restricted by barriers, such as racism, stigma, and social and systematic structures within society.

  

Racism and race-based trauma leave Black people susceptible to mental health issues, such as depression and anxiety. The recent social unrest involving George Floyd’s death is an example of this. Data from the Census Bureau shows the cases of anxiety and depression among different racial and ethnic groups after the police killed George Floyd. The number of cases spiked for the African-American community from 36% to 41% after May 26, the time that the video of George Floyd was released. Furthermore, according to the Center for Health Journalism, direct and indirect discrimination contributes to poor mental health overall, specifically microaggressions. Although individuals may not be outright discriminatory against the Black community, they may engage in behaviour that could be considered subtly discriminatory, such as assigning intelligence to someone based on their race. 



The misconception of mental illnesses amongst Black communities creates barriers for individuals to access support or resources of recovery. Black author Sherri Williams, Ph.D. explains her difficulty to confess her mental state while dealing with depression when she writes “Like most black people it’s not something I talk about openly with everyone. I’m already black, a woman, and overweight. Why add another stigmatized identity? Why give people another reason to doubt my capability? Why threaten my professional reputation? Why be vulnerable?”

This proves how many in the Black community associate weakness with mental illness, which further dilutes the affected individual’s intention to access support. Additionally, the stigma of mental health outlines issues involving gender stereotypes and expectations within Black culture. Black women and men are held to these expectations, which further cause them to overlook signs of an unhealthy mental state at the expense of their reputation. Author Hafeez Baoku puts this into perspective when he writes, “Speaking from experience, I know how black men grow up in culture that tells us ‘men are not supposed to cry’ that we ‘should deal with problems on our own’ This only enforces the idea that it is not okay for us to say we are hurting inside.” Baoku also mentions how many people fear being labelled weak, and for that reason don’t express their pain. Though Black men do struggle with mental health, Black women find it much more challenging to deal with their mental health and access support.


Sherri Williams explains that for centuries, Black women have been projected as “having bodies and nerves of steel” making it unacceptable for them to show weakness or vulnerability. In addition, the results of a study on mental health among African Americans showed that the population suffered from depression at high rates. The results included that African-American women had a higher currency of depression than African men by 5%. Regardless, both groups struggle to share their mental wellbeing in order to appear less vulnerable and to live up to their community’s expectations. In the long term, this acts as a barrier for Black men and women to seek support or look for family or friends to talk to.

 

A supporting issue that affects the conversation of mental health in the Black community involves social structure. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Offices of Minority Health writes that “African Americans living below the poverty level, as compared to those over twice the poverty level, are twice as likely to report psychological distress.” The Black community's stress and mental health related to social structure are apparent due to the related systematic barriers of racism and microaggressions. These barriers make it extremely difficult for Black men and women to search for employment or even be considered for higher-paying employment opportunities, educated or not.


Mental health is an issue that’s not spoken about enough in the Black community, considering many of the challenges they have to go through as mentioned above. Canadian psychologist Natasha Browne writes, “Not only is mental health difficult to discuss, it’s quite hidden within the Black Community.” There is a vast number of Black mental health sources of support across places like Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America. These sources include websites, numbers to call, and online support. 


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