By Olivia Brecht/Brighton Park Neighborhood Council
WHAT: Chicago’s Mental Health Task Force, chaired by Ald. Sophia King (4th), will convene the first public forum on public mental health services called for by the recently-enacted “Public Mental Health Service Expansion Resolution.”
Residents will be able to provide written and spoken testimony on the mental health needs in the city and provide recommendations on the re-opening the closed public mental health clinics and expanding current mental health services at existing clinics.
WHERE: Malcolm X College, 1900 W. Jackson Blvd., Conference Rooms 1106 and 1107.
WHEN: Thursday, June 13th, 6 p.m. Speakers representing community organizations will be available for interviews at 5:30 p.m.
WHO: Alds. Sophia King, George Cardenas, Jeanette Taylor and others will be present for the event, hosted by the Mental Health Task Force and supported by the Collaborative for Community Wellness. The Collaborative is a coalition of mental health professionals, community-based organizations, and community residents working to address mental health inequity and redefine mental health services to match the needs of the community.
The task force was created to study the impact of the previous Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s decision to close public mental health clinics; to assess the geographic areas most in need of mental health services and the types of services needed; and to determine recommendations.
The task force was created after significant public outcry and organizing by the Collaborative for Community Wellness, which published a report in 2018 on mental health service disparities in Chicago.
“We truly hope that the task force and city council will listen to the residents of Chicago who are asking for free, publicly funded, long-term, trauma-informed mental health services,” said Dr. Arturo Carrillo, Mental Health and Family Services Program Manager at St. Anthony Hospital. “Public mental health clinics are crucial to ensuring that the needs of community residents most impacted by trauma are met.”
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See also: Rahm Emanuel Closed Half Of Chicago’s Mental Health Clinics. What Was The Impact – And Will Lori Lightfoot Reopen Them?
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Comments welcome.
Posted on June 11, 2019