“How do you run away from racism?”: a critical race analysis of accessing mental health counselling in St John’s, NL

Abstract

This critical ethnographic study utilizes concepts from critical race theory to explore the experiences of racialized people when navigating mental health services, specifically mental health counselling. This research has three objectives: 1. To better understand how racialized people navigate the mental health system when they access (or try to access) mental health counselling in Newfoundland and Labrador. 2. To explore how racism impacts racialized people’s need to access mental health counselling as well as experiences of accessing such supports. 3. To critically challenge social work and other professional knowledge about institutional racism in mental health services. Nine racialized individuals completed in-depth interviews that explored their experiences of seeking and/or accessing mental health counselling in St John’s, NL. The findings reflect the complexities of the lives of the participants while examining the permanence of racism within our mental health institutions. Participants shared experiences of racism through all stages of access and service, as well as reported racism as a reason for seeking services. These stories offer critical challenges for social work and other professionals within mental health services to understand and address systemic institutional racism in mental health services.