The Bandana Project

BRIDGING THE MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCE GAP ON CAMPUS

By Laine Bottemiller, Culture Editorial Assistant Illustrated by Riley August, Makeup Director and Staff Graphic Artist

Iwas sitting on the 80 bus, lost in my own thoughts, when a flash of bright green caught my eye. It was a lime green bandana tied to a backpack. I could have sworn I saw the same bandana earlier that day, again captivated by the bright green. You’ve most likely seen them too: a green flash cutting across the street or catching the wind as a late student jogs to class. Whether we realized it or not, we were witnessing an international movement of mental health solidarity.

The Bandana Project, also known as the Green Bandana Project, was created in 2016 at the University of Wisconsin-Madison as a way to empower those struggling with mental illness.1 After founder Conlin Bass experienced the suicide of his uncle and close friend in high school, he was compelled to take action: “I was just really looking for a way to kind of change things, or look for an outlet to try and improve situations for people struggling with mental illness.”2 Working alongside the UW chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), Bass created a movement that now supports mental illness in over 50 chapters.3

Unfortunately, Bass’s tragic experience with suicide and mental health are not uncommon. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, suicide is the third-leading cause of death for people 15 to 24-years-old,4 and 73% of college students report facing some sort of mental health crisis while at school.5 Bass details the universal impact of mental illness: “Nobody is unaffected by it.”

Despite how widespread mental illness is across college campuses, there is still a stigma against those who struggle with it and seek help. According to psychiatrist Wulf Rössler, stereotypes about mental illness impose assumptions of dangerousness and unpredictability, exacerbated by the negative and inaccurate media representations of mental illness that sensationalize violence committed by those with mental illness.6 The consequences of these stereotypes include the worsening of symptoms and reduced likelihood of pursuing treatment.7 College students seeking treatment are also faced with a lack of information on where and how to access mental health resources; 28% of students say they would not know where to go on campus to receive mental or emotional health care.

This lack of resources is where The Bandana Project seeks to bridge the gap between students and the support they need. The project breaks down the barriers of stigma by maintaining simplicity; as their website explains, there are only two steps to joining the project: “Step 1: Wear a Bandana. Step 2: Change a Life.”8

When members join the project, they tie a lime green bandana to their backpack, pledging to support the mental health of those around them and to reject the stigma surrounding mental illness. The bandanas signify the individual is carrying resource cards with national and regional-specific mental health information.9 At UW-Madison, these resources include the phone numbers for University Health Services and multiple suicide prevention lifelines. Additionally, the cards include guidance on calling 911 in the case of a mental health emergency. All the while, members of the movement are not required to obtain any additional training, maintaining the accessibility of the project and those who want to take part.

Sabine LaLiberte, The Bandana Project’s Director at UW, explained how these resources make mental health help more approachable: “It’s already hard enough to have conversations about mental health, so a movement that requires a training or time commitment will cause barriers for people to join.” LaLiberte compared the bandana wearers to a liaison, bridging the gap between students and mental health treatment.

LaLiberte described how another key aspect of the project is the visible solidarity the bandanas provide. She said the project has “made a lot of people more aware [of mental health issues],” ensuring students know “this is a really common issue” and that they’re not “the odd one out.” Furthermore, the glimpse of lime green creates an opportunity for conversation.

“By wearing your bandana, you’re saying I’m open to those conversations, I’m open to helping [you] and giving you those resources,” LaLiberte said.

The Bandana Project can help facilitate the conversation around mental health on campus, but support needs to come from multiple levels. Right now, students pursuing mental health services at University Health Services face long wait times and a limit of 10 sessions per 12 months— not even one session a month for a year.10 Students deserve institutional change to make mental health resources more accessible.

Madison students interested in learning more about The Bandana Project can find the organization on Instagram @ bandana_project_uwmadison or online at namiuw.org. Student groups looking to connect with the project can email nami.wisco@gmail.com to find a time to introduce the project and distribute bandanas and resources.11 The simplest yet most powerful way to support the project is to become a part of it—stop by the NAMI office, pick up a bandana and start the conversations necessary for change.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, a time to raise awareness and advocate for mental health. The NAMI’s national message this year is “Together for Mental Health.”12 The Bandana Project offers togetherness, a chance for connections that break down barriers. A body of 47,936 students can be overwhelming and lonely, but The Bandana Project offers reassurance that there are students ready to start the conversation and make changes for mental health support on campus—one bandana at a time.13 ■

¹ “Bandana Project,” Bandana Project, accessed April 2022. ² Mary Kate McCoy, “UW-Madison ‘Bandana Project’ Shows Students They Aren’t Alone In Mental Health Struggles,” Wisconsin Public Radio, Dec. 24, 2018. 3 “Bandana Project.” Bandana Project, accessed April 2022. 4 Eliza Abdu, Steven Schlozman, & Gene Beresin, “The College Mental Health Crisis: A Call for Cultural Change 5 MGH Clay Center for Young Healthy Minds.” Clay Center for Young Healthy Minds; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2020. “10 Leading Causes of Death, United States.” WISQARS Data Visualization. ⁶ Rössler, Wulf. 2016. “The stigma of mental disorders.” EMBO Reports 17, no. 9 (July): 1250–1253. 7 Borenstein, Jeffrey. 2020. “Psychiatry.org - Stigma, Prejudice and Discrimination Against People with Mental Illness.” American Psychiatric Association. 8 “The Bandana Project.” n.d. Bandana Project. 9 Bandana Project. n.d. “Bandana Project.” Bandana Project. 10 UNIVERSITY HEALTH SERVICES UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON. 2018. “MENTAL HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE USE INFORMED PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT.” University Health Services. 11 NAMI-UW. n.d. “SUPPORTING THE BANDANA PROJECT.” NAMI-UW. 12 National Alliance on Mental Illness. n.d. “Mental Health Month.” NAMI. 13 Erickson, Doug. 2021. “Record-setting freshman class maintains UW–Madison’s commitment to Wisconsin families.” UW–Madison News, September 28, 2021.