Marcus Hart (00:01.086)
Yo, what's good, Transforming Family? Marcus Hart here, and today we are going to be diving into a crisis so silent, so deadly, it's tearing through our communities like a thief in the night. Did you know that over 60 % of Hispanic Americans with a mental illness get zero treatment in a year? Or that Black folks, like myself,
or half as likely as white folks to get the mental health care that they need. This ain't just a statistic, it's a betrayal. It's a hidden crisis stealing hope from our brothers and sisters in black, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American communities. So why are we losing this battle?
And what can you do to fight back? Stay locked in because this truth is about to hit so hard that you're going to be crying and that you're going to want to share this with someone else. And I'm going to be dropping some solutions that you can act on today. Now, you're not alone in this fight for those who out there who's dealing with it. Like I said, you know, coming from a background of where I grew up.
and poverty, I know what it's like. So let's get into it. I want to break it down to you, family. Mental health disparities aren't just numbers. They are lives. According to the CDC, one in five US adults live with a mental illness. But minority communities, well, they are getting crushed under systemic barriers.
Black adults, only 41 % with mental illness got treatment from 2021 through 2023. And that's compared to 58 % of white adults. Now, I got some theories why that might be, some pretty real hardcore theories around that. Now Hispanic adults on the other hand, 44 % Asian adults,
Marcus Hart (02:17.556)
a shocking 35 % and Native American teens, they are more likely to attempt suicide than almost any other group. And why? It's not just about access. It's about those ghost networks, first of all, and also just cultural differences and cultural beliefs. Okay. You know,
What those are though, the ghost networks, we talked about it before, is those insurance lists of providers who don't even exist or won't take your insurance. It's a trap. It's leaving folks like us running in circles, calling numbers that don't answer while anxiety, depression, and PTSD eat away at our souls. Okay? And you can check back and watch a previous episode that I did that goes into more detail about ghost networks.
Now moving on, let's talk about systemic racism. Studies show discrimination doubles the mental health burden for the B-O-P-O-C communities. What is that? Person of color communities. Depression, anxiety, even hypertension from distress being unseen. Cultural stigma. It's real. And some Asian communities seeking help is seen as a weakness.
In Black communities, mistrust from decades of medical abuse, like the Tuskegee experiment, it keeps folks from even walking through the door. And just being called crazy, the label alone scares Black people. Why are Black and Hispanic folks 50 % less likely to get care, even when they are battling the same demons as everyone else?
The answer ain't what you think, folks. It's a rigged system. I'll say it again, it's a rigged system and it's time to call it right out. Now, this ain't just unfair. This is about life and death and which side of history that we want to be on. Let me paint a picture. Imagine a sister in your church smiling every Sunday.
Marcus Hart (04:37.592)
But inside, well, she's drowning in depression. She's black, uninsured, and the only therapist in her area doesn't speak her language, culturally and literally too. Or a pitcher, a Latino brother, a veteran like me, battling PTSD from combat, but the VA's help is a six-month wait list.
These aren't just stories. These are things that are happening and they are so much real. I have seen it. I personally have lived it. When I came back from Iraq, PTSD had me in a chokehold. It was kicking my butt. And the system, it didn't even see me. It didn't care. Shame kept me in silence. And the lack of a provider who got my struggle, my faith.
My urban roots, my fight.
kept me stuck. And the cause? It's despair. It's families that are torn apart. It's kids like Native American teens who face abuse and neglect at higher rates, carrying trauma into adulthood. It's suicide rates that are climbing faster in minority communities than anywhere else.
When can't you get help? And when you can get help, when the system shuts you out, it's like being told the pain doesn't even matter. But family, your pain does matter. And it's time that we fight for
Marcus Hart (06:27.438)
It was like the moment that I hit raw bottom and I had to find faith. I had to be vulnerable and release all of those experiences growing up in the hood, the crime, the poverty, on top of the combat that I experienced. So I know what it's like to fight battles nobody sees. RAC taught me that. PTSD taught me that.
But my faith, well, that's what pulled me through. And when I hit rock bottom, when the system failed me, God didn't. And that's the truth that I'm bringing to this crisis. As a black man, a minister, and a mental health advocate, I have seen how the enemy uses shame, stigma, and systemic barriers to keep us down.
Marcus Hart (07:28.418)
But I have also seen how shameless, gritty, Jesus-feud faith, can break through those chains. This ain't just about mental health. It's about justice. It's about God's call to love your neighbor as yourself. When Black, Hispanic, Asian, and Native folks are left behind,
We are called to be warriors for equity. To tear down walls of stigma and mistrust. It was my divine encounter in the chaos of my own life that showed me that healing starts with truth, community, and faith. And that's what I'm asking you to lean into today.
God sees your struggle and so do I. Faith can be your life long.
community.
can be a lifeline.
Marcus Hart (08:38.744)
So what do we do? First, we gotta talk about it. Silence kills. Start those conversations in your church, your barbershop, your group chat, at the food court in the mall. Normalize mental health. Second, demand cultural competent care. The National Library of Medicine says that minority groups get worse care because providers don't understand our culture.
Push for therapists who look like you, who get your faith, your hustle, your pain. Programs like NAMI's, Share and Hope are creating safe spaces for Black, Hispanic, and South Asian communities to talk mental health. So join them. Third, advocate. Contact your local reps and demand those policies that fund minority mental health initiatives.
Where are they? Support groups like the Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation, which fights stigma in black communities. And if you're struggling, call 988. It's free 24-7, and they got resources for black, tribal, and LGBTQ plus folks. This isn't just an awareness mux, You know, it's a crisis.
You hold the key to change. If this truth hits you, don't just listen. Now is the time to act.
You can do this by sharing this episode with three people who need to hear it. You can share this episode with your alderman, with your county executive, with your state representative, with your congress member. You know, so there's so much that I can go into, especially the political side of this.
Marcus Hart (10:49.59)
and how there are so many other non-profit organizations that aren't banding together to push this forward. I mean, I can talk about that all day to, you know, until I am blue to the face and then you feel some type of way.
I don't have to do that. I believe the people who listen to this podcast are the one who got the intelligence, who got the sensibility.
Marcus Hart (11:29.654)
start making some changes, demanding some changes. You can make changes and you can demand changes all at the same time. It's very possible.
Your voice matters. You matter. And if you saw one, once again, who's struggling and you don't want to go get help because you think your family members are going to laugh at you, they're going to call you weak, or you're not being a real man, look at, you know, telling you that it's too expensive, you know, all of these different weird excuses.
Marcus Hart (12:12.446)
There's this common one that I hear in the black community. say, don't tell those white folks your business. And, you know, I have to rethink that.
I rethought that decades ago, well over a decade ago, not decades, we haven't made it to the 20 year mark yet since I've been on my healing journey,
Marcus Hart (12:40.128)
I took a close examination at that and realized that, you know.
Marcus Hart (12:50.446)
It's not about color.
It's about lives. It's about getting your life saved.
It's about digging down deep and wanting to be better and do better and know better. Because these stereotypes...
these beliefs, all these different things, they just don't matter.
Marcus Hart (13:27.5)
I want to lift you guys in prayer and I want to offer you my free three minute prayer guide to help crown your soul and to also give you strength to share this episode and to do more beyond just listening or watching. Visit MarcusDashHeart.com for that guide. And if you got a story on that very same website, click on the
newsroom and blogs tab and you can submit it there. know, even if you need coaching to break through your own barriers, hit me up. And if you're ready to join the fight, subscribe to the Transforming Live show on YouTube, know, Spotify, leave a comment below. What's the biggest mental health barrier that you have seen in your community? Let's talk about it. Family, we're not just raising
aware it is. We are raising an army of hope. Share this now. Let's transform lives together. And again, I just want to give you a quick encouragement. Let's lift each other up in this fight.
Marcus Hart (14:44.398)
Until next time, many blessings, peace, and lots of love. I'm out.
