The tragic irony of appointing Robert Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services is that the man is truly unwell, and his failures will contribute to the stigmatization of mental illness. If his nomination is successful, the public will spend the next four years criticizing nearly everything he does. But it will be all too easy to dismiss him as an idiot, or a lunatic.
Some time around 2010 Kennedy became infected with a parasite that caused brain damage. Since then, he’s said a lot of crazy things. When he first entered the 2024 election his own family tried to talk him out of it, hoping to shield him from the public scrutiny that would follow as his bizarre ideas emerged. When that didn’t work, they made a point of letting the public know he speaks only for himself.
Kennedy is mentally ill. That’s not a criticism against him. It’s just a fact. Sadly, he’s being elevated to an extremely important government role, for which he is deeply unqualified, and will now be a legitimate target for scrutiny by the media. And scrutinize they should. Because the American people deserve a capable Secretary of Health and Human Services, regardless of one man’s personal health.
The potential damage to American public health won’t be limited to whatever may come from Kennedy’s incompetence. Mental health advocates will likely see their work set back years. What little progress has been made in the 21st century to normalize a recognition and understanding of mental illness will give way to familiar taunts, common bigotries, and tired tropes. Kennedy is likely to become the poster boy for the newest iteration of the misguided idea that mental illness equates to being a defective person.
A private citizen Robert Kennedy would deserve nothing but compassion for his illness. A Secretary Kennedy will only be able to receive scorn and ridicule, and he won’t even be able to truly understand why. As HHS Secretary Kennedy can only destroy the thing he needs most.
Leave a Reply