Dear Friend & Supporter of NAMI Contra Costa,
As we acknowledge July as BIPOC, (Minority) Mental Health Awareness Month, we at NAMI CC are determined to identify and address the challenges faced by ethnic and cultural communities. We recognize that inadequate funding, poor access, and few referral options to respectfully and appropriately meet both the non-clinical and clinical mental health needs of Contra Costa County’s African American community members is a social justice issue. One-size-fits-all approaches that don’t consider culture and the many harms that African Americans have experienced due to systemic racism have created significant challenges for this population. African American residents often do not receive culturally responsive non-clinical and clinical mental health services.
Our NAMI CC African American Team recently lost significant California Department of Health Care Services (California DHCS) funding through the CalHOPE grant. We recently experienced massive lay-offs and a reduction in work hours to retain the dedicated African American team members who are still with us. As such, the African American Team has stretched themselves thin to fill the gaps in care by offering non-clinical lifesaving support locally and throughout the state of California. However, without appropriate financial support for our nonclinical services, the African American Community will continue to be grossly neglected. We do not receive any specific funding to address the needs of African Americans through our Contra Costa County Community Engagement Program contract, despite the knowledge carried by all, that African Americans living with a mental illness are the most harmed.
At NAMI CC, we understand that if one community suffers, all communities feel the pain. We closely monitor mental health needs of all residents of this county, examine trends, as well as solicit and receive input from those we serve, staff/volunteers and other like-minded partners. Our decisions are made from this collected data from each County department, as well as our statewide work with CalHOPE.
- African Americans make up less than 10% of the population in Contra Costa County, yet African American males typically make up over 40% of the county’s mental health criminal justice population.
- African Americans also have a 5-7 year delay in receiving a mental health diagnosis. Both of these issues sadly result in African Americans being criminalized for living with what is a medical condition and rarely receive the services needed to improve outcomes.
- 70% of all juveniles incarcerated in this county have documented mental illness and the bulk of these young people are African American.
- African Americans continue to make up the largest population of those who living with behavioral health challenges and are unsheltered in Contra Costa County. Our attempts to get specific funding for this group have been unsuccessful.
With no money in our budget to address the non-clinical needs of African Americans/Black Americans in our county and the tireless efforts of volunteers and talented staff, we have managed to support a highly diverse and inappropriately served African American Community. We want to make sure that like other groups, those from the African American Community seeking mental health services can always reach out to a Peer or Family Member who share their lived experience. African American Contra Costa residents need to know how valuable they are to our community, and we want to make that a reality.
A testimony from a local Contra Costa County African American resident underscores the great need for African American cultural support. Earlier this year, we facilitated a Mental Health 101 Training for African Americans at Easter Hill Church in Richmond. The following comes from a mom who was in attendance:
In the past, I have reached out to several county programs and received no results. My son lives with depression, anxiety, and has a diagnosis of schizophrenia. He, like many who live with severe mental illness, denies the need for help. However, he does not live a fulfilling life and spends most of his time alone. After attending the training, I was able to connect with a NAMI CC staff member for the African American team and have utilized their ethnic specific resources. I can get support from their African American Family Support Group and my son has agreed and followed through with enrolling in the Peer-to-Peer course which gives him the tools he needs to better understand his mental illness and more importantly connect with others who understand. He is now more eager to connect to his purpose and create a plan for his life that better fulfills him. This has resulted in improvement in both his and my own mental health.
NAMI CC relies on the generosity of individuals like you to continue our work. Our goal for July through October is to raise $100,000 through this campaign to better meet the behavioral health needs of the Black community. All donations are tax-deductible and can be made by visiting our website (www.namicontracosta.org/donate), sending payment directly to our Chase Account through Zelle (510-990-2670), or by mailing a check to: 2151 Salvio Street. Ste. V, Concord, CA 94520, which will allow NAMI CC to continue its mission:
To provide support, outreach, education and advocacy to individuals, families, and the broader community impacted by mental illness.
Sincerely,
Gigi R. Crowder, Chief Executive Officer
La Tanyua Brown-Thompson, NAMI CC Board of Directors President