National Alliance on Mental Illness
Multi-Cultural Support

NAMI Multi-Cultural Action Center

NAMI created the Multi-Cultural Action Center in 2002 to focus attention on system reform to eliminate disparities in mental health care for diverse communities, ensure access to culturally competent services and treatment for all Americans, and particularly to help and support people of diverse backgrounds who are affected by serious mental illness. The NAMI Multi-Cultural Action Center works to:

Advance NAMI’s policy agenda and address issues that disproportionately affect diverse communities;

Develop and promote culturally competent programs and practices;

Decrease stigma through public education that addresses specific cultural barriers;

Support NAMI grassroots multicultural advocacy and outreach efforts;

Build diverse leadership at all levels of the organization;

Develop strong partnerships with multicultural organizations.

The significant progress made in discovering effective treatments for serious mental illness has unfortunately not translated into better services for people of diverse populations living with these illnesses. The Multicultural Action Center collaborates with other organizations and coalitions to advocate for equal access to mental health treatment for diverse communities.

Many mental health providers are ill-equipped to meet the needs of patients from different backgrounds and often times display bias in the delivery of care.

The Multi-Cultural Action Center addresses this issue by highlighting current effective cultural competence standards, promoting successful programs and institutions, and promoting the implementation of laws such as Title VI of the Civil Rights Act which requires providers to ensure that limited English proficient individuals have equal access to services.

Furthermore, the center provides training and technical assistance to NAMI states and affiliates to encourage that all NAMI programs and services are culturally competent and available to people from diverse communities.

There are not enough bilingual/bicultural mental health providers. This reality makes quality care less accessible for people of diverse communities. NAMI’s Multicultural Center works to highlight and advocate for programs to promote mental health careers as viable options for youth of traditionally underserved communities.

Genetic research has highlighted significant differences among racial and ethnic groups in the metabolism, clinical effectiveness, and side effects of medications. Far too often diverse communities are underrepresented in clinical trials and research studies. The Multi-Cultural Action Center disseminates news about existing research and advocates for increased funding for research centered in diverse communities.

Depression and suicide rates are higher among teens of diverse communities. Youth of color and GLBT identified youth face higher rates of misdiagnosis and over-institutionalization.

The Multi-Cultural Action Center works closely with NAMI’s Children and Adolescent Action Center and partner organizations to advocate for youth system reforms and to implement practices and programs appropriate for children of diverse communities and their families.

People with mental illness are overrepresented in the criminal and juvenile justice systems. People with mental illnesses who are from diverse communities are also overrepresented in these systems. The Multi-Cultural Action Center advocates for access to appropriate diagnosis and treatment for people in these systems, and promotes culturally appropriate jail diversion programs.