As Henry Ford quite aptly said: "Most people spend more time and energy going around problems than in trying to solve them." Human beings have a tendency to avoid problems rather than facing them. But, we can't afford to do that because the problems of today's world are not such that they can be ignored or hushed away - we are dealing with issues that end up deciding people's lives. Rape. Mental health. Gun violence. Racial discrimination. There is so much social stigma surrounding these and many other issues, but how long can we keep ignoring them?
Let's address rape. On average, there are over 288,820 victims of rape and sexual assault in the United States. That's in the US alone. And this isn't even counting all the unreported cases - of which there are many. We're blessed that we live in a country where there are people and resources to reach out to when something happens. But there are still many, many victims that are afraid to reach out because of the social stigma surrounding rape and assault. They're afraid they'll be told they were "asking for it," because of their clothes, who they were with or that they were under the influence of something they shouldn't have been. As a result, they keep quiet, they deal with the aftereffects of PTSD and trauma in silence. And while sexual violence has fallen by half in the last 20 years, even one victim is one too many.
Another issue which has much stigma surrounding it is mental health. According to the National Alliance for Mental Health, approximately 1 in 25 adults in the United States experiences a serious mental illness that is substantially dysfunctional and debilitating. And that's just counting adults who reported their symptoms to a doctor or therapist. 16 million adults had at least one major depressive episode in the past year. And in the demographic of 15-24 year olds, suicide is the second leading cause of death. But these people aren't always getting the help they need - because they're afraid of exclusion and discrimination, both in the workplace and in social circles. They're told that people like to associate themselves with happy, put-together people. And telling someone with depression or anxiety to "get over it" or to "grow up" is the reason why so many people, especially young adults, keep quiet about their symptoms and don't get the help they need.
In the end, rape and mental health aren't the stigma, ignorance is. Educating ourselves and others about these issues and approaching them with an open heart and mind will truly better our society.
