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WHEREAS, Teen Mental Health Awareness Day is designed to raise awareness that mental health is essential for teens; and that mental health issues deserve to be treated as health issues, with care and compassion; and,
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WHEREAS, 22.9% of children in the US have or have had a psychiatric disorder, with half of all psychiatric illnesses occurring before the age of 14 and 75% by the age of 24; and,
WHEREAS, teens experience high levels of anxiety thinking about the future and the caveats that come with it, including gun violence, police brutality, global warming, and a pandemic, all of which we see at excessive rates due to overconsumption of news and media; and,
WHEREAS, teens today pave the way for a better tomorrow and it is essential that they learn early on the importance of mental health to work towards a more tolerant future. have a more tolerant future; and,
WHEREAS, current public discourse and policy decision-making surrounding the mental health of teenagers fails to place teens at the forefront, denying them a crucial and active role in designing much needed change.; and,
WHEREAS, teens experiencing mental illness and mental health issues face damaging and destructive stigma due to the lack of education about mental health; and,
WHEREAS, we recognize the interconnectedness between school, stigma, and mental health and strive to create more equitable learning environments for youth who may be battling with mental health issues; and,
WHEREAS, we fight not only for mental health advocacy, but for the intersectionality between mental health and race and ethnicity, with the understanding that teens in marginalized communities experience a large disparity with mental health services, all while having higher rates of mental health disorders.
NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh does hereby recognize the importance of teen mental health dialogue and policy; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh does hereby declare May 23rd, 2021 as “Teen Mental Health Awareness Day” in the City of Pittsburgh.