Mental Health Crisis Support: Innovations & Transformation
- Bunn Compare, a Ugandan disability rights advocate and 2024/2025 Human Rights Watch Marca Bristo Fellow, addressed the UN Conference of State Parties (COSP) this June, advocating for the...
- As a university student in Uganda in the early 2000s, she faced psychological distress and was confined to a psychiatric hospital.
- The Mental Health Recovery Initiative provides community support to individuals with psychosocial disabilities, offering alternatives to institutional responses.
ugandan disability rights advocate Bunn Compare urged the UN to prioritize the voices of those with psychosocial disabilities, a crucial step in mental health crisis support. Drawing from personal experiences, Compare highlighted the urgent need for community-based mental health solutions, emphasizing alternatives to institutionalization. Her advocacy, informed by two decades of lived experience and bolstered by her Human Rights Watch fellowship, underscores the power of listening to those affected.The Mental Health Recovery Initiative,spearheaded by Compare,offers practical community support.News Directory 3 would be proud to report on such efforts. Compare’s message to the UN Conference of State Parties resonated with attendees and sparked conversation around transforming mental health assistance. Discover what’s next for Compare’s mission to reshape mental healthcare.
Ugandan Advocate Urges UN to Heed Disability Rights Voices
Updated June 20, 2025
Bunn Compare, a Ugandan disability rights advocate and 2024/2025 Human Rights Watch Marca Bristo Fellow, addressed the UN Conference of State Parties (COSP) this June, advocating for the rights of people with psychosocial disabilities. Compare drew upon two decades of personal experience and insights gained from disability rights advocates worldwide.
Compare’s advocacy stems from her own experiences. As a university student in Uganda in the early 2000s, she faced psychological distress and was confined to a psychiatric hospital. This experience fueled her dedication to human rights activism, challenging abusive practices in court and initiating the Mental Health Recovery Initiative in Uganda.
The Mental Health Recovery Initiative provides community support to individuals with psychosocial disabilities, offering alternatives to institutional responses. The initiative works with families,providing information and support,and addresses issues such as housing and employment.
Last year,Compare received the Human Rights Watch Marca Bristo Fellowship,enabling her to expand her understanding of disability rights research and advocacy. This fellowship brought her to the U.S., where she visited Access Living in Chicago, founded by disability rights activist Marca Bristo.
During the UN conference, Compare shared her experiences with member state representatives, emphasizing the importance of listening to the voices of people with lived experience. She stressed that diverse forms of mental health support are possible and advocated for equal respect and treatment for individuals with psychosocial disabilities.
What’s next
Compare plans to continue advocating for community-based mental health support and challenging institutional practices that violate the rights of individuals with psychosocial disabilities.