NARPA 2021 Webinar Series:

The Promise and the Pitfalls of 988: Survivor Advocacy Perspectives

Monday, September 27, 2021
Presenters: Leah Harris, Author/Facilitator; Victoria (Vic) Welle, Trainer/Facilitator; and Jess Stohlmann-Rainey, Director of Program Development/Rocky Mountain Crisis Partners

Calling 911 can be a death sentence for people experiencing suicidal and mental health crises. The 2020 National Suicide Hotline Designation Act designates 988 an alternative to 911 for suicide and mental health emergencies. Many states received 988 planning grants requiring state/local planners to include people with lived experience in the process. This webinar features perspectives of three psychiatric survivors as active participants in their state’s 988 planning councils. They look at potential opportunities with 988; how it may replicate existing coercive systems; and what an ideal grassroots, civilian 911 alternative looks like.