Advocacy  

Sharing Your Story

By sharing your mental health story, you can be a catalyst for change. As a NAMI affiliate, one of our missions is to fight stigma and advocate for a more responsive and inclusive mental health care system. Our members advocate in the municipalities that we serve, at the state level with NAMI Massachusetts, and with the NAMI national organization. NAMI members know more about the challenges of navigating the mental health system than anyone else. Sharing our stories with legislators and neighbors helps others understand the ways in which our mental health system could better serve those living with mental health conditions. Your voice matters.

Efforts at the State Level

The NAMI Massachusetts advocacy team can help you learn about advocating within the Massachusetts State Legislature. Visit the advocacy page of the NAMI Massachusetts website to learn how legislative bills work their way through the system, see our list of priority legislation for the current session, and read recent testimony.

Advocacy Day

Each year in April, NAMI members and mental health stakeholders gather for Advocacy Day to speak directly to our legislators. We listen to inspiring speakers via virtual conference and learn about current legislative efforts that support those with mental health conditions and improve our behavioral health care system. Then, bearing materials prepared by NAMI Massachusetts, we assemble in small virtual groups to meet with our state legislators.