In this clip, a Black student describes how mental health is often not discussed in communities of color. She recalls how conversations around mental health began in her family as a result of her sister’s experience with agoraphobia. Ultimately, she reflects on how communities of color don’t have the language to discuss mental health and the medical community doesn’t offer the necessary resources or attention to Black mental health. She compares her mother’s experience to her white friend’s mother’s experience citing how her friend’s mother was diagnosed with depression while her own mother’s doctor never had a discussion with her and primarily focused on her physical health.
My parents especially, they grew up and they were just like, ‘ you gotta do the thing. You gotta live life and if you’re not living life then something’s wrong with you and that’s your own problem and you don’t need to talk about it really’… they didn’t have the language to talk about it.
