While the Hope Squad is a good thing in theory, there have been numerous problems occurring because of it. The job of the HS is to know the signs of suicide so they can help people at risk, as well as being a positive influence on others and someone trustworthy. That's where the job ends. The Hope Squad are not experts on mental health and need to stop acting like it. They're not in the position to tell someone they have a mental illness or disorder, nor are they in the position to tell someone they don't have a mental illness or disorder when they are diagnosed with one. It's extremely invalidating to those of us struggling.

In addition, the HS needs a better way to pick it's members. By nominating people, it turns into a popularity contest and people get picked as a joke. As a result, many of the members treat the HS like a joke, opposed to doing what they should be. Many students interested in the fields of psychology, therapy, and other mental health related studies have expressed interest in the HS but cannot be a part of it because they're not popular.

There have been too many cases of HS members making fun of those struggling with depression and/or anxiety, spreading false information about mental health, and treating the mental health of others like a joke. This has resulted in the HS giving the complete opposite affect of what it's original intentions were.

Here are the proposed changes we feel should be made

1. Make Hope Squad an optional thing that people can apply for. That way, those who are really interested and care of the opportunity to be a part of the group but you can still filter through and pick the best options. If for whatever reason this seems like a bad idea then at least give those nominated a chance to drop if they feel they're not a good fit or just don't care.
2. Teach the Hope Squad where their responsibilities end. Make it clear that they are not here to tell people if their mental health struggles are valid. After all, it seems the HS is big on the "Everyone's going through something and everyone's 'something' is hard in it's own way". They should be living up to this statement
3. Crack down on Hope Squad members that are taking their position as a joke, making jokes putting mental health in a negative light, and telling people things like 'you're overreacting'. That seems to be a reoccurring problem that puts the HS in a place it was never intended to be. Joking about things, and that means anything from homophobia to racism to mental health, normalizes the hate or inablitiy to take the subject seriously.
4. Find more ways for the Hope Squad to actually impact our students. Teach us about awareness, teach us to respect each other, and teach us what to do if we're ever in a situation where someone is at risk.

The Hope Squad touches on very heavy topics such as suicide and depression, and is currently making them seem light, something that is not okay and can be very hurtful to those personally affected. More action needs to be take so that this group does their job correctly and doesn't make the problem worse than it already is.