California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 163

Introduced by Assembly Member Ridley-Thomas

June 17, 2014

Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 163—Relative to Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

ACR 163, as introduced, Ridley-Thomas. Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month.

This measure would proclaim July 2014 as Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month in California.

Fiscal committee: no.

WHEREAS, Mental illness is one of the leading causes of
disabilities in the United States, affecting one out of every four
families and victimizing both persons with the illness and those
persons who care for and love the persons afflicted; and

WHEREAS, Serious mental illness costs Americans
approximately $193.2 billion in lost earnings per year; and

WHEREAS, The National Institute of Mental Health has
reported that many people suffer from more than one mental
disorder at a given time and 45 percent of those with any mental
disorder meet criteria for two or more disorders, including diabetes,
cardiovascular disease, HIV/AIDS, and cancer, and the severity
of the mental disorder strongly relates to comorbidity; and

WHEREAS, 57 million Americans have a mental disorder in
any given year, with fewer than 40 percent of adults living with a
mental illness, and a little more than one-half of youth 8 to 15
years of age, inclusive, with a mental illness receiving mental
health services in the last year; and

WHEREAS, According to the 1999 Surgeon General’s Report
on Mental Illness, adult Caucasians who suffer from depression
or an anxiety disorder are more likely to receive treatment than
adult African Americans with the same disorders even though the
disorders occur in both groups at about the same rate, when taking
into account socioeconomic factors; and

WHEREAS, Although mental illness impacts all people, African
Americans receive less care, poorer quality of care, and often lack
access to culturally competent care, thereby resulting in mental
health care disparities; and

WHEREAS, According to the California Reducing Disparities
Project report, “Pathways into the Black Population for Eliminating
Mental Health Disparities,” the African American population
reveals alarming statistics related to mental health, including high
rates of serious psychological distress, depression, suicide attempts,
dual diagnoses, and many other mental health concerns, and that
cooccurring conditions with physical health problems, including
high rates of heart disease, cancer, stroke, infant mortality,
violence, substance abuse, and intergenerational unresolved trauma,
provide a complex set of issues that places the population in a
crisis state; and

WHEREAS, According to the same California Reducing
Disparities Project report, in relationship to the African American
population, the mental health system has offered inaccurate
diagnoses, disproportionate findings of severe illness, greater usage
of involuntary commitments, and a woeful inadequacy of service
integration, and the complexity of these factors has created an
intense stigma in the African American community that disparages
mental illness as “crazy,” a condition and a status that are viewed
as personally caused and difficult to resolve; and

WHEREAS, The African American population has rejected the
label “crazy” and continues to work within its communities using
strategies and interventions that it knows work to help its people
overcome physical, social, emotional, and psychological limitations
and challenges; and

WHEREAS, According to the California Reducing Disparities
Project report, “Community-Defined Solutions for Latino Mental
Health Care Disparities,” participants see negative perceptions
about mental health care as a significant factor contributing to
limited or nonexistent access to care, and the most common
concerns are stigma, culture, masculinity, exposure to violence,
and lack of information and awareness, among many others; and

WHEREAS, According to the same California Reducing
Disparities Project report, a substantial proportion of the Latino
participants believe that limited access and underutilization of
mental health services in the Latino community are primarily due
to gaps in culturally and linguistically appropriate services, in
conjunction with a shortage of bilingual and bicultural mental
health workers, an absence of educational programs for Latino
youth, and a system of care that is too rigid; and

WHEREAS, According to the California Reducing Disparities
Project report, “Native Vision: A Focus on Improving Behavioral
Health Wellness for California Native Americans,” most American
Indians and Alaska Natives living in California are expected to
learn to cope in both Western and Native American worlds on a
daily basis, Native Americans within California have shared
concerns about loss of culture, alcohol and drug abuse, and
depression and suicide as contributing factors to mental health
disparities, and the disconnection of culture and traditional values
has fragmented Native American communities, families, and
individuals; and

WHEREAS, According to the same California Reducing
Disparities Project report, being misdiagnosed and given severe
mental health diagnoses can be stigmatizing and can affect the
person’s self-esteem, which, in turn, can discourage the person
from seeking help through Native American practices and cultural
identity through community involvement; and

WHEREAS, According to the same California Reducing
Disparities Project report, lack of cultural identity can impede the
mental health healing process. Western mental health service
delivery focuses on the individual, rather than taking into
consideration the Native American community as a whole, and a
holistic approach is needed for individual, family, and community
wellness; and

WHEREAS, According to the California Reducing Disparities
Project report, “In Our Own Words,” which details disparities in
the Asian American and Pacific Islander (API) population, API
community members report high rates of mental health conditions,
but have difficulty accessing services due to cultural and linguistic
barriers. Language, in particular, presents a substantial challenge
as many API community members have limited English proficiency
and interpreters, when available, often lack the expertise in mental
health terminology and cultural knowledge to effectively
communicate with the patient; and

WHEREAS, According to the same California Reducing
Disparities Project report, stigma and misconceptions about mental
health concerns are also significant barriers to API persons seeking
mental health services, especially because many API languages
lack a vocabulary for mental health concerns that is not derogatory,
mental health care that is truly culturally competent for API persons
is often unavailable, and standard Western methods of assessing
and treating mental health clients may not be appropriate; and

WHEREAS, According to the California Reducing Disparities
Project report, “First, Do No Harm: Reducing Disparities for
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Questioning
(LGBTQ) Populations in California,” coming out as LGBTQ for
members of African American, Latino, Native American, and API
populations may require them to choose between the safety of their
families and cultural environment and their LGBTQ identities.
Their unique needs and status are often rendered invisible, in any
community with which they choose to associate, and too often
they find themselves having to choose; and

WHEREAS, According to the same California Reducing
Disparities Project report, LGBTQ participants from these
populations indicated dissatisfaction with how mental health care
providers had met their needs regarding their intersecting identities
and their racial or ethnic concerns, and also reported being rejected
by mental health care providers because of their sexual orientation;
and

WHEREAS, According to the same California Reducing
Disparities Project report, Latino, Native American, and API
participants reported higher rates of having seriously considered
suicide compared to Caucasian participants. When compared to
other groups, African American participants reported almost twice
as many suicide attempts that needed treatment by a doctor or
nurse; and

WHEREAS, The three major brain diseases, schizophrenia,
bipolar disorder, and depression, adversely affect the economy,
contribute to the rise in incarceration rates, and erode the quality
of life for patients and their loved ones; and

WHEREAS, Nearly two-thirds of all people with a diagnosable
mental illness do not receive mental health treatment due to stigma,
lack of community-based resources, inadequate diagnosis, or no
diagnosis; and

WHEREAS, Communities of color are in need of culturally
competent mental health resources and the training of all health
care providers to serve multiethnic patients; and

WHEREAS, Advocates for traditional mental health
organizations must be encouraged to incorporate and integrate
minority mental health education and outreach within their
respective portfolios; and

WHEREAS, An estimated 70 percent of all youth in the juvenile
justice system have at least one mental health condition, and at
least 20 percent live with severe mental illness that is usually
undiagnosed, misdiagnosed, untreated, or ineffectively treated,
thus leaving those incarcerated in vulnerable conditions; and

WHEREAS, Minority mental health patients are often among
the so-called “working poor” who face additional challenges
because they are underinsured or uninsured, which often leads to
late diagnosis or no diagnosis of mental illness; and

WHEREAS, The faith, customs, values, and traditions of a
variety of ethnic groups should be taken into consideration when
attempting to treat and diagnose mental illnesses; and

WHEREAS, African Americans and Hispanic Americans used
mental health services at about one-half the rate of Caucasians in
the past year, and Asian Americans used mental health services at
about one-third the rate of Caucasians; and

WHEREAS, African Americans are misdiagnosed at a higher
rate than persons of other ethnic groups within the mental health
delivery system, and greater effort must be made to accurately
assess the mental health of African Americans; and

WHEREAS, There is a need to improve public awareness of
mental illness and to strengthen local and national awareness of
brain diseases in order to assist with advocacy for persons of color
with mental illness, so that they may receive adequate and
appropriate treatment that will result in their becoming fully
functioning members of society; and

WHEREAS, Community mobilization of resources is needed
to advocate, educate, and train mental health care providers to help
remove barriers to the treatment of mental disorders; and

WHEREAS, Access to mental health treatment and services is
of paramount importance; and

WHEREAS, There is a need to encourage primary care
physicians to offer screenings, to partner with mental health care
providers, to seek the appropriate referrals to specialists, and to
encourage timely and accurate diagnoses of mental disorders; and

WHEREAS, The Legislature wishes to enhance public
awareness of mental illness, especially within minority
communities; and

WHEREAS, The late Bebe Moore Campbell, a mother,
grandmother, wife, friend, advocate, celebrated writer and
journalist, radio commentator, community activist, cofounder of
the National Alliance on Mental Illness Urban Los Angeles,
University of Pittsburgh trustee and educator, and recipient of
numerous awards and honors, was recognized for her tireless
advocacy and fight to bring awareness and attention to mental
illness among minorities with the release of her New York Times
best-selling novel, “72 Hour Hold,” and her children’s book,
“Sometimes My Mommy Gets Angry,” both of which bring
awareness to the plight of those with brain disorders; and

WHEREAS, Bebe Moore Campbell, through her dedication and
commitment, sought to move communities to support mental
wellness through effective treatment options, to provide open
access to mental health treatment and services, and to improve
community outreach and support for the many loved ones who are
unable to speak for themselves; and

WHEREAS, July is an appropriate month to recognize as Bebe
Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness
Month; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate
thereof concurring, That the Legislature of the State of California
hereby proclaims July 2014 as Bebe Moore Campbell National
Minority Mental Health Awareness Month to enhance public
awareness of mental illness among minorities; and be it further

Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies
of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.