• Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month Celebration

    Every July, we honor our co-founder's legacy with a celebration to increase mental health awareness in diverse communities. Scroll down to know her history or click to see some of our past celebrations.

  • Her Story

    "It’s not shameful to have a mental illness. Get treatment. Recovery is possible!"

    - Bebe Moore Campbell. 

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    Bebe Moore Campbell was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was the author of three New York Times bestsellers: Brothers and Sisters, Singing in the Comeback Choir, and What You Owe Me, which was also a Los Angeles Times "Best Book of 2001". Her other works include the novel Your Blues Ain't Like Mine, which was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year and the winner of the NAACP Image Award for Literature; her memoir, Sweet Summer: Growing Up With and Without My Dad; and her first nonfiction book, Successful Women, Angry Men: Backlash in the Two-Career Marriage. Her essays, articles, and excerpts appear in many anthologies.

     

    Campbell's interest in mental health was the catalyst for her first children's book, Sometimes My Mommy Gets Angry, which was published in September 2003. This book won the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Outstanding Literature Award for 2003. The book tells the story of how a little girl copes with being reared by her mentally ill mother. Her book 72 Hour Hold also deals with mental illness. Her first play, Even with the Madness, debuted in New York City in June 2003. This work revisited the theme of mental illness and the family.

     

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    In her early days she graduated from the Philadelphia High School for Girls and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education from the University of Pittsburgh. She was an honorary member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.

     

    She lived in Los Angeles, California, with her husband, Ellis Gordon Jr. They raised two children, a son, Ellis Gordon III, and a daughter, actress Maia Campbell, from Campbell's previous marriage to Tiko Campbell. Maia Campbell is best known for her role as "Tiffany" on In the House. Bebe Moore Campbell died from brain cancer, aged 56, on November 27, 2006, and was interred at Inglewood Park Cemetery, Inglewood, California. Her favorite quote on being a writer was: "Discipline is the servant of inspiration."

  • 2025 Bebe Moore Campbell Celebration

    For this year’s celebration, NAMI Urban LA wants to uplift the importance of connected to family, friends, community and resources. These connections can have a positive impact on our overall mental well-being.

    "Mental Wellness: Staying Connected" Speakers:

  • Rhonda Williams, MD

    Dr. Rhonda Williams is a Board-certified Psychiatrist and Medical Director of the Southern California region of Comprehensive Psychiatric Services (CPS). She had been the Lead Psychiatrist at the Women’s Clinic as well as a Staff Psychiatrist at the Sepulveda VA. Her clinical interests are Mood Disorders, Anxiety Disorders, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Women’s Mental Health. Dr. Williams is meticulously engaged with her patients and uses psychopharmacology as well as talk therapy to develop an individualized treatment plan. Ultimately, Dr. Williams utilizes an empathic, collaborative and mutually respectful approach to enable her patients to attain their treatment goals.

    Jorge Partida Del Toro, PsyD

    Dr. Jorge Partida is Chief of Psychology at LACDMH.  He is a clinical and research psychologist, specializing in addiction and trauma.  He is also an author, consultant and national speaker integrating Native Ancestral Teachings with traditional Western psychotherapy.  Dr. Partida has been a consultant on many national and international projects designing and implementing clinical programs to address addiction, education, health, community building, diversity, and spirituality.  He has worked with local and national governments to coordinate services for those most impacted by poverty, war and displacement. 

    Curley L. Bonds, MD

    Curley L. Bonds, MD is the Chief Medical Officer for the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health. He has held clinical leadership positions at Charles R. Drew University (CDU) and the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. He holds faculty appointments as Health Sciences Clinical Professor at UCLA and Professor at CDU.

    Dr. Bonds earned his BA in Sociology from Emory University and his MD from Indiana University. He completed a residency training at UCLA’s Semel Institute. Dr. Bonds is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and a Fellow of the Academy of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry. He is a past president of the Southern California Psychiatric Society (SCPS).

  • NAMI Urban LA 20th Anniversary Video Documentary July 2023

     

  • Bebe Moore Campbell Minority Mental Health Awareness Month Celebration

    2022 - Jul 24th

    Honoring Bebe Moore Campbell: Supporting Mental Health Needs in Diverse Communities

    - July 29, 2021

    NAMI Urban Los Angeles Cofounder Nancy Carter tells the story of how she and Bebe Moore Campbell started their NAMI affiliate and Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month.

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