Dear Treasured Supporters,
This petition feels like the mighty little engine that could—powered by our collective will to ensure that no one dies in a mental health crisis simply because they asked for help. I am beaming watching the number of signatures slowly rise. With deep gratitude, I want to share a few important updates and resources as we rest, reflect, and gear up for a renewed push this fall.
🔎 Taking on ODD Overdiagnosis in Mental Health
My recent work on how Black children are overdiagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) was featured in MindSite News and Psychology Today, reaching readers as far away as Brazil(!). This diagnosis is too often a weaponized label that criminalizes rather than contextualizes behavior shaped by trauma and racism. This connects directly to SHIELD: pathologizing resistance and calling the cops on children in distress are two sides of the same oppressive coin.
🎙️ Upcoming Event: Grappling with the Biomedical Model
On August 3rd, I’ll be in conversation with journalist and author Robert Whitaker (author of Anatomy of an Epidemic) through the Institute for the Development of Human Arts. This dialogue will unpack how biological framings of mental illness—especially those tied to “danger to others”—individualize distress and erase the racialized violence baked into police-led crisis responses. We’ll explore why the biomedical model fails so many—and what it would take to move toward care rooted in equity, truth, and collective liberation.
👉 Register here.
📘 New Free Guides—For Parents & Providers
This summer, I released two free tools to empower more informed and compassionate crisis care:
- Before You Say Yes: A Parent’s Guide to FULL Informed Consent & Mental Health Crisis Management for Your Child
- Before You Recommend Calling 911: A Healthcare Provider’s Guide to Giving FULL Informed Consent During Mental Health Crises
These tools were created for all of you—the parents, providers, and advocates who want to do better and be better when it matters most.
🙏🏾 Thank You
To everyone who has commented, shared, liked, sponsored, or simply held space for this work—thank you. To Rise Justice Labs, whose support has been game-changing: I’m deeply grateful.
This summer, I’ve taken time to rest and recalibrate. I’ll be back soon with renewed energy and a fresh strategy for this campaign.
Until then:
With heartfelt gratitude,
Dr. Rupi Legha