Reflecting on Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health

Emi Norton Staff Reporter

Speaking up and breaking down the barriers that oppression and world culture builds between ethnic minorities, and the right to a healthy state of mind.

The month of July was named Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month in 2008 by the House of Representatives. Campbell’s bountiful efforts to create safe spaces where people of color could find equitable support for mental health care allowed for the unheard to be heard and the untreated to be treated.

Advocates that stood alongside Campbell sponsored the month of awareness in July with two goals in mind: improve access to mental health treatment and services and promote awareness of mental illness, and secondly, to honor Campbell and enhance public awareness of mental illness in and around underserved communities.

Students part of ethnic minorities at Oklahoma State University today talk about their battles with mental illness and how they overcome barriers that continue to stem from the dark side of world culture. As a result of admirable effort from Campbell, individuals like first year Ph.D. student, Wilson Lazo-Salmeron, are taking opportunities to share their journeys with mental illness and seek out supportive resources.

“I have learned from my therapy experiences to cope and foster a better relationship with my mental health,” Lazo-Salmeron said. “I am still learning and growing from my new experiences. Mental health is super important and I hope to advocate for more services, education and training for people.”

As a native of El Salvador, a small country in Central America, Lazo-Salmeron’s heritage as well as being a member of the LGBTQ+ community has inherently put him in a position that has made it more difficult to cope with the stress of life.

“As much as I love advocating for myself and others, it gets draining to do that, especially in predominantly white areas such as OSU,” Lazo-Salmeron said. “I have an established support system in my hometown in Maryland, and have found some new ones here which have been helpful. Nevertheless, microaggressions and biases still take a toll on my mental health, but I have better strategies to care for myself during these times.”

Studies show that racial and sexual minority groups show increased levels of anxiety, depression, suicidal tendencies, post-traumatice stress disorder and the list goes on. These results have reportedly been linked, but not limited to, immigration status, economic conditions, education levels and access to public health benefits.

“I did not want to be seen as less than or weak,” LazoSalmeron said. “Additionally, white supremacy culture and patriarchal systems prevented me from speaking up about my mental health. I felt like I had to internalize everything to be seen as perfect, strong or complete.”

In addition to LazoSalmeron, members of minority groups across the OSU campus from all different backgrounds have experienced the same emotional and social oppression, finding it difficult to speak up about their mental health. Senior marketing and management major, Emmily Marquez, shares her experience as a young girl growing up in a hispanic household as she struggled with her mental health.

“Mental health is now very important to me,” Marquez said. “Growing up, I wasn’t sure if it was because in my culture therapy and healings were not an option. I am currently in therapy and it has started to help me see some things that weren’t clear before, but I’m still in the process and working things out.”

In a culture that has little access to information and resources about mental health and illness, like many others, Marquez felt like her feelings were not understood as a minority in America.

“Being a minority in America and dealing with my mental health, one of the biggest obstacles that I’ve had to overcome has been my parents not hearing me out,” Marquez said. “My grandma, who I love very much, has always been there for me, taken care of me and stood by my side. At the same time, I was missing that parental connection since a bunch of my peers had those connections with their families.”

As the years go on, access to information that leads minority groups to resources that have the power to assist with mental health and illness is slowly increasing but has a long way to go. Coping with the stigma that hovers over individ- uals from similar backgrounds as Lazo-Salmeron and Marquez has forced them to explore different strategies that allow them to take initiative of their mental health and heal on their own terms.

“Our identities and backgrounds provided us with strength and resilience,” LazoSalmeron said. “If you are not in a position right now to access information, I suggest trying to find a community you can feel safe in. It can be very hard, but having people you feel safe around can provide hope and security. If that isn’t possible at this time, I think finding a safe activity that you love can be rewarding. It won’t fix everything but it can be meaningful to breathe, reflect and be present with that activity.”

For information on OSU’s mental health resources, visit https://wellness.okstate.edu/ student-wellness/resources.html entertainment.ed@ocolly.com