Over 200 people have signed a petition calling out tokenism, and urging mental health charities to be more authentic in their anti-racism efforts.
Antonio Ferreira, a mental health ambassador and volunteer for eight charities, started the petition last week. At the time of publication, 229 people had signed it.
“I appreciate everything you do/are doing in the mental health arena; however, I question whether you share the same genuine appreciation for me and others from racialised communities who are your volunteers,” he wrote.
He added that since the Black Lives Matter protests many charities have signalled that they plan to take an anti-racist approach. But that so far this amounts to “tokenism” with a lack of a “genuine and authentic keenness” to take meaningful action.
“I ask everyone to sign this petition, demanding senior leaders of mental health charities to take genuine accountability for these so-called anti-racist approaches,” Ferreira said.
Ferreira also said he aims to organise a day for volunteers to strike.
Since the campaign started a number of charities have agreed to meet with Ferreira. This includes: Mind, Rethink Mental Illness, Mental Health UK, Young Minds UK, Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families, Centre for Mental Health, Give Us A Shout, Samaritans, and Beyond.
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