The ice bucket challenge is back. This time, for mental health awareness
This is not a throwback—the Ice Bucket Challenge is happening again! Believe it or not, Blake Shelton, Scarlett Johansson, Carson Daly, Matt Bomer, and others are doing pouring ice water on themselves on TikTok.
Aiming to boost mental health awareness and support for student programs, the Mental Illness Needs Discussion club at the University of South Carolina has launched a #SpeakYourMIND campaign on Instagram in March and revived the viral 2014 challenge.
This initiative encourages participants to pour ice water on themselves, share their experience online, and nominate others, with an initial fundraising goal of $500 for Active Minds, a non-profit mental health advocacy group.
"Lasting change can only happen when we prioritize mental health," the description read. "The #SpeakYourMIND Ice Bucket Challenge is a launching point for us all to proudly commit our support to changing how mental health is viewed and prioritized in society and supporting the young people leading this crucial movement."
It said that through the donations, Active Minds can help "equip youth and young adults with the resources, training, and skills they need to advocate for lasting mental health change."
As of writing, the fundraiser has reached $280,914.
The rules are simple: Nominate 2-5 people by tagging them in your video. Then, make a donation via the Active Minds #SpeakYourMIND fundraising page. Share your video using the hashtags #SpeakYourMIND and #uscmind. Finally, challengers are encouraged to learn more about mental health by following @uscmind and @active_minds, and by visiting activeminds.org.
In 2014, the Ice Bucket Challenge was a viral fundraising campaign that raised millions for ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) research. It became a media frenzy ensued with friends, teachers, celebrities, athletes, billionaires and even former presidents dumping buckets of ice water over their head to raise funds and awareness for the progressive neurodegenerative disease.
