THE LANCASTER SEMICOLON PROJECT
MANIFESTO
The Lancaster Semicolon Project is a campaign founded by a group of students in Lancaster University, in support of the American nonprofit organization known as ‘Project Semicolon'.
Data has shown that twenty-seven per cent of students in higher education have reported having mental health issues, with over 1,300 students committing suicide in the past ten years. We believe that suicide is preventable, and everyone can help make valuable contributions to save lives.
Get to know us and why we are doing what we are doing! We each have our own motivations and passions that we are bringing into the project. Stay tuned for more!
The wait is over! Here is the video from our real-life action. Again, a huge thank you to everyone who participated and helped us make this video possible😊
OUR INSPIRATION
Lancaster Mental Health Project - the inspiration for the Semicolon Project
Mental health is increasingly being brought into conversation in mainstream social media, as an effort of ‘breaking the stigma’ surrounding its discourse within the public sphere. Alongside this newfound attention aimed towards it, there is also an attempt to educate people on it, usually through targeting the different parts of society where issues are more prevalent; one of the latter is manifested within young adults between the ages of 18 to 25, with data showing that 27% of students in higher education reported having mental health issues (Aronin and Smith, 2016).
ABOUT US
Hey there! I am Clara, a 3rd-year media and cultural studies student. Being a part of this project means a lot to me as I’ve been struggling with my mental health since I was a teenager. I did not realize the importance of my mental health wellness, and growing from in a conservative society further restricted me from learning about it. I believe mental health as a topic should be one that everyone can talk about freely, instead of faking to be okay. I hope the project can encourage Lancaster University students to freely express their mental health and know that they do have proper assistance on campus, so no one has to go through alone.