.
April 16 marked the first anniversary of the Virginia Tech tragedy, in which 32 students and professors were killed by a 23-year-old student. The tragedy continues to have a deep emotional resonance with all Americans who imagined the faces of their own family members or friends in the faces of those who died.
Overnight, the face of a young man—contorted in rage and holding a gun in each hand—became the face of mental illness for many Americans. Yet, the U.S. Surgeon General has reported that the likelihood of violence by people with mental illness is exceptionally small. Acts of violence are exceptional — a sign that something has gone terribly wrong, that the mental health-care system failed.
Untreated mental illness is America’s No. 1 public health crisis. One in four adults—almost 60 million Americans—experiences a mental health disorder in a given year. One in 17 lives with a serious mental illness, such as schizophrenia, major depression or bipolar disorder. One in 10 children has a serious mental or emotional disorder.
On the evening of April 16, Virginia Tech students held a candlelight vigil at a memorial site that consists of a solemn circle of 32 stones. An additional, fitting memorial would be for Americans to close the gaps in the mental healthcare system, and to invest in treatment and recovery.
For all our families and friends, the face of mental illness should be one of hope and recovery. In remembering Virginia Tech, let’s dedicate ourselves to building a mental health-care system that affirms individual dignity and the promise of the human spirit.
Cheryl Porior-Mayhew is executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness of Wisconsin.
.
Advertisement 
Advertisement 
