Socio-political contexts have historically and currently disadvantage and exclude Black populations from reaching their full health potential. This includes oppression, colonialism, racism, and segregation, much of which extends to the experience of mental health care inequity today (Mental Health Commission of Canada, 2021).

These experiences have contributed to and have further exacerbated the mental health disparities of Black populations.  Cénat et al., 2023 found that 95.1% of Black people in Canada are subject to at least one traumatic event during their lifetime with those born in Canada experiencing an increased likelihood of being exposed to trauma as compared to those born outside Canada. 

Many studies over the years have reports that everyday racial discrimination is linked with mental health problems (Mental Health Commission of Canada, 2016) For instance, those experiencing a high level of racial discrimination were more than 36 times more likely to have severe depressive symptoms when compared to those reporting a low level of discrimination (Cénat et al., 2021).

Individuals from Black populations continue to face systemic inequities in terms of:

• Income - According to the 2021 census, despite Canadian-born Black population having similar educational attainment to the Canadian-born non-racialized population, they earn only $0.76 cents for every dollar earned by the latter (Wall & Wood 2023).
• Food insecurity – Among racialized groups, Black Canadians had the highest rate of food insecurity, with almost four in ten (38%) reporting being food insecure and those having a disability were the most at risk with more than one-half (55%) reporting food insecurity (Uppal, S. 2023)
• Social exclusion – Black individuals are disproportionately represented in correctional and forensic mental health settings.  Despite only representing 4% of adults in Canada, 9% of offenders under federal jurisdiction were Black (Statistics Canada, 2023).   

According to a 2020 Statistics Canada survey, 32% of individuals from Black communities compared to 24% White counterparts reported to experience symptoms of anxiety (Mental Health Commission of Canada, 2021).