200+ organisations unite to celebrate inaugural Mental Health Action Day

MTV Entertainment Group and around 200 brands, non-profits and cultural leaders have teamed up to launch the first-ever Mental Health Action Day.

The inaugural event will be celebrated today in the US, Thursday 20 May, during Mental Health Awareness Month. Over the past two decades, suicide rates have risen, particularly among young adults. And the Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the already dire crisis, giving way to what many mental health professionals have called the “second pandemic”.

Although more people than ever are comfortable discussing mental health, finding effective resources and knowing how to get help remains a challenge. Mental Health Action Day is an open-source movement of brands, organisations and cultural leaders to drive culture from mental health awareness to mental health action.

 “Even before the coronavirus pandemic, we were already in a growing mental health crisis,” pointed out Arianna Huffington, Founder and CEO of Thrive Global. “The past year has shown us the value of mental resilience; and the necessity of putting an end to the stigma around mental health and widening access to mental health services. Mental Health Action Day will help spur the culture shift we need on mental health and wellbeing.”

MOVING FROM AWARENESS TO ACTION

The pandemic has “created difficult circumstances for countless people around the globe – from the loss of loved ones, social isolation, unemployment, and new caregiving struggles – all major factors driving declines in mental health. But it also shined a spotlight on how critical it is to prioritise and address mental health issues in the workplace”, noted David Hanrahan, CHRO at Eventbrite. “Our philosophy at Eventbrite is it’s OK not to be OK, and we’re proud to stand alongside hundreds of other organisations on Mental Health Action Day to help move mental health issues from just awareness to action.”

Mental Health Action Day was planned in partnership with TaskForce; a cultural organising agency that builds capacity for those taking on the most pressing challenges facing communities across the nation and world. “From Covid-19 to economic struggles and the continuing fight for racial justice, the other half of the twin pandemic is the rise of our mental health challenges,” stated Erika Soto Lamb, Vice President of Social Impact Strategy at MTV Entertainment Group. “This is a critical moment to shift our culture from mental health awareness to mental health action and MTV is proud to come together with diverse cross-sector leaders on this inaugural day to encourage and empower people to take action; for themselves, for their loved ones or for the systemic changes needed to improve our social and emotional wellbeing.”

MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT TOOLS

Living through the coronavirus pandemic for the last year has “cast a bright spotlight on health and wellness and amplified an already critical need for awareness and resources dedicated to mental health”, according to Jon Chapman, Co-Founder and President of EVERFI. ” Removing the stigma around talking about mental health is an important first step, but access to resources to help is crucial. We are proud to be joining with MTV and so many like-minded organisations to raise awareness and provide resources to those in need.”

Partnering organisations will encourage people to take their first steps towards mental health action; whether for themselves, for their loved ones or to advocate for systemic changes. Resources and tools will be available for people to seek help in a myriad of ways from starting a meditation practice, learning how to support a friend, or advocating for change.

ENSURING MENTAL FITNESS

 “We commend MTV for providing this platform and all those joining us in participating in the Mental Health Action Day to help young Latinos take the first step towards improving their mental wellbeing,” commented Ron Estrada, Senior Vice President of Head of Government Relations and Corporate Social Responsibility at Univision Communications Inc. “Univision’s commitment to informing and empowering our community related to health and wellness is long-standing. Providing resources and information about mental health, especially in the wake of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic is critical for our community.”

Partners like Chipotle Mexican Grill are also inspired by the momentum of Mental Health Action Day. “At Chipotle, our vision for people is to create a culture where employees can thrive and pursue their passion. To ensure our employees can build a supportive network and ensure mental fitness, we are proud to offer access to mental health benefits for both our employees and their family members,” highlighted Marissa Andrada, Chief Diversity, Inclusion & People Officer of Chipotle Mexican Grill. 

“At Morgan Stanley, we’ve made it our mission to find ways to fund resources and raise awareness for mental health needs among children and young people; recognising the profound impact it has on so many individuals,” added Joan Steinberg, President of the Morgan Stanley Foundation; and CEO of the Morgan Stanley Alliance for Children’s Mental Health’s Advisory Board. “We look forward to continuing that work with MTV and the partners on Mental Health Action Day to drive mental health awareness for better outcomes.”

POWERFUL COALITION

Rashad Robinson, President of Color Of Change – the US’ largest online racial justice organisation – is also “proud to participate in the inaugural Mental Health Action Day in partnership with MTV”. “By joining forces with this powerful coalition, we will continue to build awareness among potential allies, turning energy around racial justice into real policy. A major part of mental health is ensuring that those in power are creating a safe and equitable world for Black people by means such as divesting from racist policing, and investing in communities and mental health services,” explained Robinson. “Color Of Change, alongside our millions of members, will continue to demand the physical and mental protection Black people need not only to survive, but become powerful in our communities, as the devastating effects of Covid-19 continue to disproportionately affect and threaten our livelihoods.”

Partners to date include: 

• 320 Changes Direction
• AARP
• Active Minds
• Administration for Children and Families
• AIM Youth Mental Health
• AIR – Attitudes In Reverse®
• Aliento
• Alma
• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
• AmeriCorps
• batyr
• Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Inc.
• BET
• BetterUp
• Blue Shield of California’s BlueSky Initiative
• Born This Way Foundation
• Boys & Girls Clubs of America
• BRAVO SIERRA
• Bring Change to Mind
• Charity Bomb
• Chipotle Mexican Grill
• Cities Thrive Coalition
• City of Kindness
• CivicGeorgia
• Clubhouse International
• CMT
• Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment (CAPE)
• Color Of Change
• Comedy Central
• Comedy Gives Back Communities In Schools® Compass Coffee
• Complex Networks
• Cope Notes®
• Crisis Text Line
• CURA Strategies
• Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services
• DoSomething.org
• Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation
• Drumming for Your Life Institute
• Empathy Rocks
• Empire Vets
• End Rape On Campus
• Entertainment Industries Council, Inc. (EIC)
• Eventbrite
• EVERFI
• Falkora Mental Health and Neutrotech Initiative
• FaZe Clan
• Feeding America®
• Fender Musical Instruments Corporation
• Find Your Anchor
• First Responders First
• Fountain House
• FourBlock
• General Assembly
• Generation S.O.S.
• GI Go Fund
• GIPHY
• Give an Hour
• GLAAD
• Grit Digital Health
• Gympass
• #HalfTheStory
• HeadCount
• Headspace
• Health Action Alliance
• Hilinski’s Hope
• Hillel International
• Hines Foundation
• Home Base
• Hope For The Day
• Hopelab
• Inseparable
• International Mental Health Association (IMHA)
• It’s On Us
• JobPath Partners
• Joyful Heart Foundation
• JV Agency
• kate spade new york
• Kenneth Cole
• LogoTV
• Long Island Alzheimer’s Dementia Center
• Love is Louder
• MAD TASTY
• March for Our Lives
• MedCircle
• Mental Health America
• #MentalHealthPH
• Mentally Aware Nigeria Initiative (MANI)
• Morgan Stanley
• Movember
• MTV
• Musack
• MusiCares
• Muslim Advocates
• Muslim Public Affairs Council
• National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI)
• NAMI Westside Los Angeles
• National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention
• National Alliance for Hispanic Health
• National Safety Council
• NBCUniversal
• Never Alone Mental Health & Suicide Prevention
• NEXUS
• NM Impact Ltd.
• NoStigmas
• Notes for needs
• NowMattersNow.org
• NowThis
• Number Story
• Office Depot
• On Our Sleeves®
• One Love Foundation
• One Mind
• Operation Homefront
• Overtown Youth Center
• Painted Brain
• Panorama Global
• Paramount Pictures
• Paramount Network
• PAUSE+EXPAND
• Peer Health Exchange
• Penske Media Corporation
• Plant People
• Poder Latinx
• Pop TV
• Project Healthy Minds
• Psych Hub
• Puffco
• Punk Rock Food Drive
• Queens Gaming Collective
• Rare Beauty by Selena Gomez
• Reddit
• Represent Justice
• RespectAbility
• Rise Above The Disorder
• Rock to Recovery
• Saint City Culinary Foundation (iheardyou.org)
• Sana Benefits
• Sanvello Health
• Shatterproof
• SHOWTIME^®
• Simon Wiesenthal Center Museum of Tolerance
• Smithsonian Channel
• Snap Inc.
• Songs That Saved My Life
• Sound Mind Live
• Special Olympics, Inc.
• Storyline Partners
• Stronger Than Stigma®
• Student Veterans of America
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
• Taskeen Health Initiative
• TaskForce
• Teen Line
• The Ad Council
• The Chopra Foundation
• The Clinton Foundation
• The Jed Foundation
• The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
• The Kennedy Forum
• The Lewis Prize for Music
• The Mental Health Coalition
• The National Council for Behavioral Health
• The People Concern
• The Trevor Project
• The Upswing Fund for Adolescent Mental Health
• Therapists in Tech
• Therapy for Black Girls
• theSkimm
• THIRA Health
• Thrive Global
• TimelyMD
• TIME’S UP Foundation
• To Write Love on Her Arms
• Too Small To Fail
• Trans Lifeline
• TV Land
• Two Chairs
• Uber
• UNICEF
• United Nations Verified
• Unite The United
• United Suicide Survivors International
• United Way Worldwide
• Univision Communications Inc.
• VH1
• ViacomCBS
• ViacomCBS Veterans Network
• Vibrant Emotional Health
• VICE Media Group
• Vice Ventures
• Victoria’s Secret PINK
• VidCon
• Watering Seeds
• Wounded Warrior Project
• YouTube

Learn more about the event on the website: www.MentalHealthActionDay.org