Richmond-Queensborough MLA Aman Singh got personal about mental health and addiction during his first official appearance in the B.C. Legislature.
Singh, the first turban-wearing Sikh to be elected to the provincial government, took his seat in the B.C. Legislature for the first time on March 15. Because of COVID-19 social distancing protocols, he’d participated in proceedings virtually for the previous two weeks.
“For me, it's a bittersweet moment as a racialized person, as a person of colour,” he said. “Bitter in recognition of the storied history of these halls, of this province and the many oppressive things done to people in society that originated from these halls; I want to recognize that and recognize that history. And sweet, because of all of the good that also originated from these halls and a sense of hope I feel and see with all of you, all of us working together, for all of the good that we still have to do for this province and for the people that we represent.”
In his first private member’s statement, Singh focused on youth mental health. He referred to the death of Andre Courtemanche, a 16-year-old Langford teen who suffered from depression and anxiety and took his life in January.
“My thoughts are with Andre and his family, who are grieving,” he said. “I have a year-and-a-half-old daughter. I can't even conceive of that.”
While “things are not that great right now,” Singh said the NDP government is working to make it better to help the countless number of people who desperately need help.
“This is no easy task. There are so many barriers to dealing with mental health and addictions – stigma and the fear of asking for help being a huge one. I know that well. I know that really well,” he said. “The hardest thing I ever did in my life was to reach out for help during my darkest times in the throes of alcoholism, when I was in the proverbial valley of the shadow of death. I was an adult. Reaching out as a youth must be so much harder.”
Singh said he wants to work to ensure mental health supports and services are in place when people need them and reach out for them.
“It’s fickle. It comes once, that moment of clarity, when you have the strength to reach out, and it doesn't last long,” he said. “We need to make sure that the resources are there so that hand can be clasped.”
According to Singh, the provincial government has invested almost $140 million in youth mental health services since 2017 and has created new ways for young people to access care. In response to the pandemic, he said the province has invested $5 million in virtual mental health services during COVID-19 to provide expanded services to British Columbians, with specific services provided for children and youth.
“We've invested a lot into youth mental health, and we're going to continue to invest more,” he said. “We're continuing to work urgently to build a comprehensive system of care that works for everyone, with a strong focus on children and youth.”
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