Author name: Buffalo Latino Village

MENTAL ILLNESS IN THE LATINO COMMUNITY: A SUBJECT MATTER WE CANNOT CONTINUE TO IGNORE!

Leave a Comment / Health /

MENTAL ILLNESS IN THE LATINO COMMUNITY: A SUBJECT MATTER WE CANNOT CONTINUE TO IGNORE! In our last article, we were able to conclude that susceptibility to mental illness in Latinx communities is the same as the general population. Latin Americans are no less or more likely to suffer from a range of mental health issues than any other group in America. It’s far more common than we think. In fact, we discovered that over 9 million Latin Americans suffer from some type of mental health issue. Some common mental health conditions that Latinos suffer from tend to be “generalized anxiety disorder, major depression, post-traumatic stress disorder PTSD, and an excessive use of drugs and alcohol” according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (www.nami.org). Despite experiencing mental illness to the same degree as the general population, access to and quality of treatment is quite disproportionate. Only about 33% of Latin American adults receive yearly treatment for their mental illness, in comparison to the average 43% in the United States. This disparity leaves room for more severe and long-lasting forms of mental illness. So why? Why must Latinos suffer more for something that is so common and treatable? Why aren’t Latinos seeking proper treatment for their mental health? Well, to get to the root of the problem, I think that the question must be rephrased. To understand the full scope of the issue we must look at it from a different angle. Instead of asking “why aren’t” Latinos seeking treatment, we should ask “why can’t” Latinos seek treatment. What is preventing them from doing so? What is holding them back? The answer, it’s a lot… It’s our culture, our privacy, our shame, our religion, our poverty, our language barriers, our social stigma. There are so many reasons as to why Latin Americans can’t/don’t seek treatment. There is a general stigma around being a person who is mentally ill. If you are mentally in some capacity, you are portrayed as some emotionally unstable individual who others should be weary of. Mentally ill people tend to not be respected or validated. With these stigmas comes the shame and reluctance to talk about these issues.  This leads to a lack of knowledge and information about the topic. “We cannot know what nobody has taught us. Many Latinos do not seek treatment because they don’t recognize the signs and symptoms of mental health conditions or know where to find help” according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). Latino communities also tend to be private about challenges at home or in their personal life. There’s a common idiom in Spanish that goes “la ropa sucia se lava en casa.” It translates to “the dirty clothes are washed at home.”  It basically means that what happens in your home or personal life, stays at home or to yourself. This is a big part of our culture, so to challenge this key notion is to go against everything you’ve been taught, which is a whole another issue. It’ll leave more to discuss next month though. Thanks for listening, till next time! Read More From This Writer All Post Books Business Culture Education Entertainment Food Government Health Interviews Lower West Side Business & Economic Development Medical Military & Veterans Our Community Peace People Sports Who We Are MENTAL ILLNESS IN THE LATINO COMMUNITY: A SUBJECT MATTER WE CANNOT CONTINUE TO IGNORE! February 28, 2020/No Comments POST TITLE (CAPITAL) Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus Read More MENTAL ILLNESS IN THE LATINO COMMUNITY: A SUBJECT MATTER WE CANNOT CONTINUE TO IGNORE! September 29, 2019/No Comments MENTAL ILLNESS IN THE LATINO COMMUNITY: A SUBJECT MATTER WE CANNOT CONTINUE TO IGNORE! For this month, I would like Read More ON THE EFFECTS OF AGE ON THE WAY WE LEARN LANGUAGES August 29, 2019/No Comments ON THE EFFECTS OF AGE ON THE WAY WE LEARN LANGUAGES Because of the effects of age on the way we Read More Load More End of Content.

MENTAL ILLNESS IN THE LATINO COMMUNITY: A SUBJECT MATTER WE CANNOT CONTINUE TO IGNORE! Read More »

PR EARTHQUAKE RELIEF FUND

Leave a Comment / Politics /

PR EARTHQUAKE RELIEF FUND Puerto Rico se Levantara, Como Siempre! As the island continues to recover from continuous earthquakes, Puerto Ricans across the globe, along with those from the sports industry and here, in Buffalo, N.Y., are voicing their solidarity with the natives impacted by the earthquakes. How could the Trump administration deny, hold back and limit relief funds to the people impacted by the earthquake disaster? The people of the island of Puerto Rico are American citizens, entitled to the same rights and dignified treatment, as any North American. The proof is for the eyes to see, the destruction, more than obvious … The earthquake tremor rattled the cities, towns and villages, destroyed houses, churches, schools and bridges, no electric for days, weeks, maybe months, for some places and locations in the island.  Right here in our home base, Buffalo, NY, people like Wilmer Olivencia, Nadia Pizarro, Lucy Candelario and others, reacted immediately, reaching out to who’s who in the Puerto Rican/Latino community, holding several meetings at the Belle Center, and organized everyone under the umbrella “P.R. Earthquake Relief fund”, to solicit the necessary needs for the people of Puerto Rico. About two or three days later (Saturday, January  18th), a press conference was held, hosted by Lucy Candelario, attended by Mayor Brown, Councilman David Rivera, and other elected officials, the meeting was coordinated by Nadia Pizarro (press officer) and Lucy Candelario (executive director, Belle Center). Once the word got out, support and donations started coming in. Monetary donations were made by the Puerto Rican & Hispanic Day Parade, presented by Charlie Torres, PRACA, presented by Wilmer Olivencia, and the Veterans Memorial Association, presented by Ventura Colon.  Catholic Charities and M&T Bank reached out and are working with the committee. Nadia Pizarro said a Facebook page was set up, “PR Earthquake Relief Fund”, where you can go for information and how you can help or donate. It should be noted that this is the same group that came together two years ago to help with the hurricane Maria, raising over $200,000 dollars, plus providing ground assistance to hurricane victims that relocated to western New York. Please get involved and see how you too can assist Puerto Rico, right here from Buffalo, NY, by working together with the PR Earthquake Relief Fund. For information, contact Lucy A. Candelario, Executive Director, The Belle Center, 104 Maryland Street, Buffalo, NY 14201 – Tel. 716-845-0485, ext. 202 – Email: icandelario@thebellecenter.org. Checks can be made out to the PR Earthquake Relief Fund, and mailed to the Belle Center, to the attention of Lucy Candelario. Note:  The PR Earthquake Relief Fund is made up of the following community leaders (list in progress): Lucy Candelario, Wilmer Olivencia, Nadia Pizarro, Casimiro Rodriguez, Tamara Alsace, Gliset Colón, Councilman David Rivera, Maritza Vega, Jose Chegui Rivera, Oswaldo Mestre, Miguel Santos, John Sanabria Sr., Luis Reyes, Felicia Cruz, Hector Pagan, Victoria Perez, Aileen Gonzalez Marti, Yolanda Martinez-Rodriguez, Viviana C-Y, Charles Torres, Eugenio Russi, Ramos, David Caban, Wilda, Nadia Nashir, Alicia Barinas, Taina Rodriguez, Alicia, Beatriz Flores, Christian Parra, Geo Hernandez, Victoria Perez, Solomon Joseph, Ventura Colon, and Jose C. Pizarro. Read More From This Writer All Post Business Culture Entertainment Food Government Health Interviews Lower West Side Business & Economic Development Medical Military & Veterans Our Community Peace People Sports PR EARTHQUAKE RELIEF FUND February 25, 2020/No Comments POST TITLE (CAPITAL) Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus Read More THE IMMIGRANTS ARE COMING, THE IMMIGRANTS ARE COMING – A Series January 25, 2020/No Comments THE IMMIGRANTS ARE COMING, THE IMMIGRANTS ARE COMING – A Series What you need to know about CARRP, a program Read More  THE IMMIGRANTS ARE COMING, THE IMMIGRANTS ARE COMING December 25, 2019/No Comments  THE IMMIGRANTS ARE COMING, THE IMMIGRANTS ARE COMING This is the new era of the immigrants entering the United States! Read More Load More End of Content.

PR EARTHQUAKE RELIEF FUND Read More »

ENTRELAZANDO ALIANZAS: DESARROLLANDO AGENDAS PROGRESISTA DOMESTICAMENTE E INTERNACIONALMENTE

Leave a Comment / Community, español /

ENTRELAZANDO ALIANZAS: DESARROLLANDO AGENDAS PROGRESISTA DOMESTICAMENTE E INTERNACIONALMENTE Un mes vino y se fue, ya vamos por Febrero del 2020. Les escribo para motivarlos a pasar revista. Es mi deseo de que cada una de las comunidades inmigrantes y latinas radicadas en Bufffalo y las cuidades que le colindan nos reunamos y empezemos a forjar agendas colectivas. Al hacer esto nos edificamos en varios niveles: personal, familiar y comunal. El momento es ahora1 Ya basta, de que a nuestras comunidades se nos visiten solo en tiempo de contienda politica, buscando votos y despues olvidarnos. El llamado es de participacion! Participacion conjunta aqui y alla! Esta decada solo ha empezado! Un plan de trabajo en que podamos forjar agendas de accion publica desde la educacion y la participacion civico politica con el objetivo de consolidar un presente transparente y un futuro para nuestras familias. Mi llamado es de forjar alianzas de trabajo y edificacion comunal a traves Buffalo y las comunidades donde nuestros familiares viven y aportan. Empezemos por la tematica de la gobernabilidad y la representacion equitativa. Y continuo con la tematica de la seguridad de la cuidadania y en particular de la mujer, y el femicidio. Felicito a las diversas organizaciones comunales que dia a dia levantan la voz de la igualdad y por la justicia social en nombre de aquellos quienes por una u otra razon no pueden en estos momentos y por aquellos silenciados por la violencia institucional. La agenda crece y se desarrolla a paso agigantados ya que la madre naturaleza nos habla y nos dice que necesitamos trabajar juntos para aliviar tanta contaminacion ambiental y tanta desforestacion. La agenda continua y llega a las aulas donde necesitamos edificar el sistema educativo y edificar las destrezas basicas de cada nivel desde la primaria hasta nivel universitario. Una alianza que es edificante es la del arte y la educacion. Entrelazando el arte y la educacion es una manera unica de edificar a los maestros y el sistema educacional–somos las alas de la creatividad! Les insto a escribirnos y a invitarnos a sus actividades comunitarias, a sus salones de clase y a sus programas para compartir con nosotros sus desafios, logros y progreso. Las posibilidades son inmensas y amplias se que juntos podemos levantar voces y crear un presente viable y un futuro para generaciones. Ya sease una celebracion de la independencia, una junta de vecinos y/o una protesta por una que otra situacion injusta estoy aqui para apoyarlos y ser un conducto para el dialogo y el cambio. Toma un momento y escribe las metas personales a corto y a largo plazo que deseas llevar a cabo Comparte aquellas que son de edificacion comunal, crea una agenda de trabajo y de descanso tambien. Oye, platica y edifica! Estoy aqui para servirte y crecer juntos! Read More From This Writer All Post Art Books Business Culture Education Entertainment Food Government Health Interviews Lower West Side Business & Economic Development Medical Military & Veterans Our Community Peace People Sports Who We Are ENTRELAZANDO ALIANZAS: DESARROLLANDO AGENDAS PROGRESISTA DOMESTICAMENTE E INTERNACIONALMENTE February 21, 2020/No Comments POST TITLE (CAPITAL) Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus Read More LOS TRES REYES MAGOS: LLAMAN A LA ACCION CIVICO-COMUNAL January 21, 2020/No Comments LOS TRES REYES MAGOS: LLAMAN A LA ACCION CIVICO-COMUNAL Ahi vienen Los Reyes, cargados de una agenda de trabajo en Read More Victoria para todos los empresarios: LEY DE RESPONSABILIDAD FISCAL DE M.A.R.CH December 21, 2019/No Comments Victoria para todos los empresarios: LEY DE RESPONSABILIDAD FISCAL DE M.A.R.CH La nueva ley de responsabilidad fiscal, M.A.R.C.H (siglas en Read More Load More End of Content.

ENTRELAZANDO ALIANZAS: DESARROLLANDO AGENDAS PROGRESISTA DOMESTICAMENTE E INTERNACIONALMENTE Read More »

Scroll to Top