El Centro de Salud Mental

What is their story?

“Of All the Forms of Inequality, Injustice in Health is the Most Shocking and Inhumane.”  Martin Luther King, Jr.

During the early 1970’s, the Fruitvale area of East Oakland, and all of the communities surrounding it, were socially and politically enriched with the formation of a number of nonprofit community-based service agencies - including Centro de Salud Mental (Mental Health Center). The programs that were created and run by these organizations were intended to uplift the wellbeing of the local community and served as examples for many other Chicano/a and Latino/a communities throughout California.

Centro de Salud Mental stemmed from the efforts of La Clinica de La Raza, which was one of the first nonprofit community health centers in Oakland. Together, they provided an accessible medical and mental health service model for the Fruitvale residents. It was clear that a civil rights-driven response to Dr. King’s call for action had sprouted in the Fruitvale.

All of these early efforts were driven by the “Si Se Puede” (Yes It Can Be Done) energy and creative powers of Chicano/a and Latino/a activists.