BIPOC Liberation from Psychiatric Harm

BIPOC Liberation from Psychiatric Harm Project

The Problem

All institutions are systems of oppression, and all systems of oppression are rooted in anti-Blackness; this includes mental health services. People perceived to be mentally ill are criminalized within our society. Unjust psychiatric involuntary hospitalizations are a violation of basic human rights. We have a right to our bodies unless we are considered to be dangerous, and Black and Brown bodies are already seen as dangers to society. This means that many BIPOC psychiatric survivors experience unjust hospitalizations, where oftentimes police force is used.

Our Purpose

We are investigating the traumatic experiences of BIPOC who have been involuntarily hospitalized to understand what these survivors deem to be traumatic about their hospitalization, and how they make sense of it. We are dreaming ways to hold multiple systems (psychiatry, counseling, police, the law) accountable to the harm that BIPOC survivors have endured. We are centering the experiences of Black survivors because we know that all of us are not free until Black people are free. We hope to bring what we know and learn back to these communities, and to combat anti-Blackness and ableism. 

The Team

Dr. Victoria McNeil-Young (she/her) has research interests that include liberation psychology and the health impacts of racism related stress on the well-being of marginalized groups, specifically Black women. 

Ollie Trac (they/them) is a psychiatric survivor invested in the liberation of Queer and Trans BIPOC communities. 

This project will be carried out under the mentorship of Dr. Della V. Mosley (she/her), co-founder of the Academics for Black Survival and Wellness movement and PI of the WELLS Healing & Research Collective at UF.

How You Can Help

We want to move freely and dream of a liberation that does not answer to the Ivory Tower, and there is a lot of love and labor that goes into the work of the BIPOC Liberation from Psychiatric Harm project. Therefore, we are seeking your support to continue the work of this movement. 

80% of funds received will be allocated to the project team for labor costs. 20% of funds received will be allocated to psychiatric survivors and will support any other endeavors that get us closer to community and liberation. 

Please share this project with your communities and help us fund this project.