The Mental Health Stigma in African and African American Communities

Abstract

The mental health of college students in higher education should be a concern for the vast majority. According to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey, 41% of all college-age students reported at least one mental health condition (Gorban, 2021). In recent times, concerns have doubled due to the significant socioeconomic and political changes in the world including, but not limited to, the student debt crisis, annual increases in colleges’ cost of attendance, rates of employment and unemployment, community safety and varying levels of discrimination including racial, gender and religious discrimination. With the emergence of the ongoing novel COVID-19 pandemic, students in higher education are faced with increased mental health challenges (Salimi et al., 2021).