Dozens of RCMP officers, military personnel and municipal government representatives marched through downtown Yellowknife Wednesday afternoon to raise awareness about mental health.
RCMP across Canada orchestrated similar marches as part of National Mental Health Awareness Week, which runs until Sunday.
Clad in green, police and community partners walked along downtown streets for approximately half an hour over the lunch hour.
“It’s important for us … to ensure that it’s not just our employees that are aware of mental health related-issues,” said chief superintendent Ron Smith, commanding officer of G Division RCMP.
“One in four Canadians will experience mental health-related challenges this year and one in five will experience it at work. It’s very important that we, as an employer, have a welcoming and supportive workplace.”
The theme for this year’s National Mental Health Awareness Week is ‘Get Ready To Get Loud.’
Smith says that means using your voice to raise awareness and building support for someone at work, at home or for yourself.
“By encouraging people to speak about mental health related-issues, that can certainly help us to lessen the stigma.
“In this day and age, nobody should be suffering alone. The most important thing you can do is speak to someone and then hopefully see a doctor who can give a referral to get you the help you need.
“We’ve always had and always will have employees that are willing to help and we always have helplines, materials and options for employees to turn to.”
