Canopy Roots, Public Safety Honoree

Via Here Is MPLS, August 2023

Following the murder of George Floyd and the thousands of other deaths caused by police officers in Minnesota and beyond, some Minneapolis residents have resolved to avoid calling 911 for fear of inciting yet another murder.

Yet in Minneapolis, calling 911 during a mental health crisis no longer necessarily invites police officers to the scene. After all, just as a burning building necessitates a crew of firefighters, a mental health crisis requires mental health care providers. 

Since 2021, the City of Minneapolis has contracted the Minneapolis-based mental health organization Canopy Roots to operate the Behavioral Crisis Response (BCR) program, through which 911 dispatchers can send unarmed mental health professionals and practitioners to de-escalate behavioral crises.

Canopy Roots’ executive director and co-owner, Candace Hanson, LPCC, says there is no universal definition of “behavioral crisis.” But for the BCR’s purposes, a behavioral crisis is when “a community member is in distress or there seems to be a problem out in the community that is related, potentially, to mental health.” 911 dispatchers are trained to recognize symptoms of mental illness such as talking to oneself, appearing disoriented or lost, and expressing distress via yelling or crying. If the dispatchers determine the presence of these symptoms and the apparent absence of any weapons, they will code the call to the BCR.

Since their launch in Dec. 2021, BCR workers have answered more than 12,000 calls and zero responders or community members have been injured during those responses. Last year, the City of Minneapolis increased the program’s funding, which allowed the BCR to staff a third van of responders projected for the end of 2024. And this July, the Minneapolis City Council voted to extend the Canopy Roots contract for another two years.

Most of Canopy Roots’ 29 behavioral crisis responders share some form of lived experience with the people they serve. Plus, they’re trained to connect with people rather than enforce or impose. Candace says, “In the mental health field, we don't have the view that the community—the people that we're serving—are generally dangerous or generally a threat to us. We are trained to de-escalate situations and provide people with support as opposed to being antagonistic.”

Following George Floyd’s murder, thousands of Minneapolis residents called for a new public safety program staffed by unarmed community members, and the issue of public safety became especially politically fraught. Candace, a Black woman who had already co-founded a majority-BIPOC therapy practice called Canopy Mental Health & Consulting, felt duty-bound to contribute. “Frankly, we decided to partner with the City because we were worried someone else would do it in a way that did not serve BIPOC residents,” she says.

Candace is motivated by a clear connection between her work and her family. “It's a part of my family history and legacy to be harmed by the public safety system,” she says. “I think if I can be a part of something that changes that, and I have the ability to? Yeah, I'm gonna do it.” 

She adds, “This is in line with our experience. This is in line with our expertise. This is in line with our values and our passions. And we got to jump in.”

Interested in shaping the future of unarmed mental health first response in Minneapolis? Join the Community Advisory Board with Canopy Roots.