Beyondblue ‘not ignoring us’

Beyondblue ‘not ignoring us’

Beyondblue has rejected claims it has ignored the GLBT community in ongoing mental health initiatives.
The charity said one reason GLBT depression strategies had not been undertaken was because there was no consistent national research.

Beyondblue CEO Leonie Young told Southern Star the organisation was releasing commissioned national research into the area.

-œEveryone agrees that anecdotally there is a group of young people at risk and we need to be doing better. We’re a national organisation and looking at adding value to what’s being done, rather than starting again, she said.

Gay rights campaigner Rob Mitchell said he was outraged beyondblue had taken so long to act on depression in the GLBT community, particularly among young people.

-œI think it’s morally bankrupt that young gay and lesbian kids have to kill themselves on a nationally consistently level before they act, he said. -œThere is plenty of research already available to back this up.

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3 responses to “Beyondblue ‘not ignoring us’”

  1. I reject BeyondBlue’s spin-doctoring.

    Why did they need a scoping study? There is an Everest-high pile of evidence of depression in our communities.

    How can an organisation with a board of supposedly knowledgeable professionals be this far behind?

    And where’s the T? How many more years is BeyondBlue going to have trans blood on its hands while it catches up with reality?

    Beyond Blue – red necks.

  2. There will be no moments of illumination from Beyondblue in the near future.

    The narration will go something like: A fourteen year old boy suicides. There is no evidence of him being gay and his immediate family and extended circle will not state that this poor lad is diffinitively Gay, therefore he is straight.

    Mental health is largely dominated by straight individuals with a catholic heritage. The best we will achieve is invisibility. It is a bit like, although not as severe as putting Jan Wade in charge of equal opportunity.

    Just another hurdle guys. Stories a plenty have already been told by those whom have considered, and attempted suicide, and those who have known a Gay colleague to have suicided. Because the story tellers have not actually completed the act without splashing on the walls, ‘I have committed suicide because I am Gay, and…’, the stories will be ignored.

    Beyondblue; just public service hacks…

  3. Having grown up on a farm I know the mental health consequences of being at the mercy of the weather. Initiatives like that of beyondblue have changed country people’s attitude toward supporting mental health. The variation of drought with district, season and crop has not prevented beyondblue from acting. Yet the GLBTI community with its world-wide legendary load of mental health is not worthy of their support.

    The other side to this debate is our denial and our silence of GLBTI poor mental health. As one of the few people speaking out about my mental health, I have found support and encouragement but rarely from other people speaking publicly. That needs to change and I encourage readers to tell their story, say for Mental Health Week 2009 in early October (it can’t be me again). I’m happy to be a mentor.