3 March 2019 | Guest post by PC Colgate
As something of a philistine in terms of the performing arts – I can spot a good singing voice, but that’s about my limit – I would not have known about the event that took place at The Marlborough Pub & Theatre in Brighton on Friday 1st March. ROCKBOTTOM and Friends, the brainchild of performer Stuart Waters, was billed as ‘A moment to come together and name, claim and shed shame.’
Post-show discussion with PC Colgate, Stuart Waters, Luke Pell, Dawn Hayes and Cerys Evans.
Hosted by Luke Pell, the evening featured highlights of Stuart’s new piece ‘ROCKBOTTOM’ an address from Ash Kotak and poetry from Cerys Evans. Charity MINDOUT, dedicated to assisting members of the LGBTQ+ community with mental health issues, gave a brief talk about their services. And it all finished off with a panel discussion, including questions and contributions from the audience. ROCKBOTTOM has been, and continues until the Autumn, on tour nationally and the Police from the local force to each performance have attended, and been included in the panel discussion.
I was honoured to attend the Brighton performance on behalf of Sussex Police, at the invitation of Stuart. ROCKBOTTOM is a one-man show, in which Stuart chronicles his own struggles with depression and addiction. Disarmingly open about his experiences and the effect they had on him, Stuart entertained, amused and shocked in equal measure. He interacted with the audience and involved us in the story and the whole thing was incredibly intense and thought-provoking. Job done!
Ash then talked about the issues he has faced as a queer immigrant to the UK, who lives with HIV, and how different the experiences of young people coming out as queer today are from those of us who did so in the late eighties and early nineties. In particular, apps such as Grindr, which are open to all, make it very easy for youngsters to meet and meet up with older people, frequently meaning that their introduction to the community and their first experience of it is a sexual one. Often, this will involve the use of drugs (Chemsex, one of Stuart’s addictions) and these youngsters, struggling to come to terms with who they really are, will be exposed to predators and the worst elements of the ‘community’ that would once have protected and supported them at this particularly vulnerable time. Ash highlighted how little thought is now devoted to those who have previously died of HIV, AIDS and related illnesses and how, in this new environment where first contact is frequently remote and online instead of in person, the number of new HIV infections may be expected to increase in the community.
Cerys, a trans female writer, poet and performer, shared with us three of her poems, dealing with different aspects of her emotional and mental state pre-, during and post-transition. As with the others, she shared very personal matters with us and did so with enormous good humour.
Dawn from MINDOUT spoke passionately about the reason for the charity’s foundation in 1998 as a result of a collaboration between The Switchboard (a LGBTQ+ telephone helpline, itself celebrating its 45th year this year) and MIND. A specific requirement in relation to mental health services for the LGBTQ+ communities was clearly indicated and, with the help of lottery funding, MINDOUT was born. They provide a range of services, including counselling, signposting and advocacy and assisted approximately 1,500 people in 2018.
The key themes emerging from all of these was the overwhelming sense of shame that people with mental health issues often have about those issues. This makes it incredibly difficult for them to seek help or tell people that they are struggling. When there are additional feelings of difference or inferiority, in relation to sexuality, gender identity, race, religion, body image, or anything else, whether these exist only in the individual’s own mind or have been caused or made worse by their treatment by others, it becomes even more difficult and people may reach a crisis point where their lives are endangered before anyone else knows there is anything wrong.
The panel discussed these issues and the general agreement, which seemed to be shared by the audience, is that it is a community’s responsibility to be very clear that there is no perception by anyone that mental health problems should be a source of shame. Trite as it may initially sound, it is not an easy message to communicate for some communities and it can often seem, especially to people that really need help, that strangers working for charities, or medical/mental health professionals are the only people out there who will listen, understand and not judge. There can be fear, especially if they have contributed to someone’s issues in the first place, that disclosing how you really feel to friends or family will only make them see you as even less than you already think they do.
But communities are not just about where you are. They are also about who you are and who else is like you. While the government and other interested parties try to get internet giants to ‘police’ their users and content, it is also the responsibility of individuals to act appropriately, both in their own interactions with vulnerable people and in situations where they can see a vulnerable person is being taken advantage of, abused or placing themselves in danger. It is down to all of us to be open to other people’s needs and wellbeing, and to make this clear through our own actions. There is nothing shameful about having a mental health problem. As Dawn said, almost every adult will struggle mentally or emotionally at some stage in their lives and 1 in 4 will require some form of treatment or intervention.
Within the Police, there are several initiatives to make it very clear that there is no stigma within the organisation in relation to those with mental health problems. We have trained Mental Health Advocates, colleagues available for confidential chats. We have an Employee Assistance Programme and Charitable Foundation, which can assist with funding in times of crisis. There is the Backup Buddy app, which contains lots of useful information, contact details for numerous support agencies and the facility to search for a local, specialist therapist if needed. Having myself had significant issues in this area, quite recently, I can confirm that this is not just “lip service”. Once you overcome your shame and open up about mental health struggles, the organisation wraps layers and layers of help, reassurance and genuine affection around you and your needs become the most important thing.
And as Police, there is hardly a job we go to that does not involve mental health, drink, drugs or some element of domestic abuse, often in combination. As Police, of course, we have to work within a legislative framework, but this does not mean we cannot act with compassion and empathy. People having a mental health crisis have done nothing wrong and frequently when we arrive (either because the ambulance service, also severely overstretched, is unable to attend promptly or because the person concerned is displaying aggressive, threatening behaviour and has or says they have some sort of weapon) become more upset, rather than calming down. Nevertheless, we are called upon to talk people away from cliff edges and down from roofs or balconies. We have powers under the Mental Health Act to detain people and take them, against their will if necessary, to places of safety. But there is a very limited number of these approved safe spaces in Sussex, meaning sometimes a long wait in A & E being stared at by people with medical issues, or even a visit to a custody block. In Sussex, we now have a ‘136 car’ in each division. Crewed by an officer and a mental health nurse, who has access to mental health records and can arrange emergency home visits, these specialist crews can often resolve the immediate crisis. This means that the patient can spend time at home, with friends and family, knowing that they will be visited by someone in their safe place. It is rare that we encounter mentally ill people that are not already known to services, so more often than not the person coming to see them will be known to them and someone they have grown accustomed to trusting and confiding on.
Among the LGBTQ+ communities, Police also need to take into account the hate crimes and hate incidents that occur, distressingly often. And here, the key issue is the trust these communities have in us, the Police. There have been problems. There still are problems. But I have never met an officer who will not genuinely try to treat every victim they deal with fairly, respectfully and equally. We do get things wrong, but we cannot learn if we are not told. And the majority of the things we get wrong are down to our lack of knowledge or understanding of a particular community and the issues it faces. So, we have dedicated liaison officers. These are right across the spectrum of diversity, some getting to know communities based on a particular race or religion, others focussing on sexuality and engaging with the LGB+ communities. This used to include the TNBI+ communities, but I have the honour now to be the dedicated liaison officer for members of these communities. I will be trying to improve Sussex Police’s relationship with them and their trust in us. I need to know the things that make them different and the issues this raises for them. But the ultimate aim is to do so, and educate my colleagues, so we can treat them just the same as everyone else, without causing inadvertent offence.
In summary, let’s all remember the things that make us the same and stop feeling bad or making others feel bad about the things that make us different.