Mental illness survive

An agency may have been less than simple with North Canton residents about plans for a building on N. Main Street. Will it house only low-income military veterans? Or will it also house people who have a mental illness? Officials of ICAN Housing Solutions say they want to convert the Harleigh Inn into apartments for veterans. Their website, however, refers only to people with mental health issues. This confusion caused a great deal of anxiety at a City Council meeting last week. Ultimately, though, that issue misses the point.

Some residents and city officials quickly assumed the nastiest about having people with mental illness as neighbors, predicting “the downfall of North Canton” and “a drain on city services,” presumably police. Have they seen the studies that disperse the stereotypes about mental illness and violence? Would they object to having a military veteran who is mentally ill as a neighbor? Would they rather see people with mental illness living on the street, or would they just prefer that they live in someone else’s community? While few people would consciously turn their backs on military veterans, why would they feel any less worry for the well-being of others with mental illness? Because stereotypes and stigmas die hard.