Changing Times: Reducing Stigma within Mental Health in California

By Ashley Jones, MSW Intern

On January 1, 2015, AB 1847 will take effect in California, seeking to humanize those Californians who live with mental illness. NASW-CA has been in full support of this bill. Assemblymember Wesley Chesbro has worked to accomplish abolishing stigmatizing mental health language within California’s laws, and Governor Brown signed AB 1847 into law on July 18. With the help of the California Mental Health Services Authority (CalMHSA), the Stigma and Discrimination Reduction (SDR) Consortium, and Disability Rights California, words like “crazy,” “insane,” “feeble-minded” and “abnormal” will no longer be part of the state’s vernacular. Such terms increase the assumptions regarding the character of persons with mental health disorders, and can cause fear, shame, and discrimination (California Mental Health Services Authority, 2014).

The disabilities community has shifted to using what is known as “people first” language, which modernizes how we look at individuals who may have a noticeable or unnoticeable impairment or illness apart from the population at large. What this language does is prevent the identification of an individual by their disability or illness, and addresses them as a person before all else, who is not defined by what could be seen as a stigmatizing mental health condition (e.g. “person with a mental health impairment” versus “a crazy person”) (Centers for Disease Control, 2014).

With nearly 18 percent of Californians with some form of a mental health disorder (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2014), this is a milestone in achieving quality and dignity for those who have been marginalized by a society that has long seen mental health impairments and disorders as a problem, rather than a part of who a person is. AB 1847 shows the beginnings of how far we are willing to go to end the stigma and enable those with mental health needs to get the help that they need, without judgment.

NASW-CA is in support of this bill and extremely pleased it has become law.

Ashley Jones is an MSW intern for NASW-CA and can be reached at naswadvoc@naswca.org

References:

California Mental Health Services Authority. (2014). Changing Stigmatizing Words in State Law. AB 1847 (Chesbro).

Centers for Disease Control. (2014). Communicating with and about people with disabilities.  Retrieved on August 6, 2014, from www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/disabilityandhealth/pdf/disabilityposter_photos.pdf.

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2014). The NSDUH Report.  Retrieved on August 6, 2014, from www.samhsa.gov/data/2k14/NSDUH170/sr170-mental-illness-state-estimates-2014.htm.