Rayo is a worker-led, democratically organized community mental health center.

We have a horizontal structure and work collectively, collaborating on tasks and making decisions through discussion and by consensus. Each member takes responsibility for themselves and together, we share responsibility for the whole.

Community Agreements guide behavioral norms and expectations, while conflicts and infractions are handled through a transformative and restorative justice framework.

We believe every person reserves the right to determine what their mental health treatment looks like.

We don’t make decisions on behalf of our clients, nor do we assume we know best what they need. We encourage clients to create Psychiatric Medical Directives, are upfront about our policies regarding emergency services & involuntary commitment, and always provide services free from coercion.

We stand with the World Health Organiation and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) that forced medication and treatment is akin to torture.

Read more about it here:

• World Health Organization’s Guidance on Community Mental Health Services: Promoting Person-Centered and Rights-Based Approaches

• World Health Organization’s Mental Health, Human Rights, and Legislation: Guidance and Practice

Rayo centers the voices of those who identify as having lived experience of severe psychological distress (peers).

Peers and clinicians work along side each other to build the community mental health center of our dreams, with lived experience mapping out what mental health response at Rayo looks like, feels like and operates like.

Rayo’s Peer Space, overseen by Peer Services Coordinator Ren Gilbert, is a clinician-free zone for and by people with lived experience. 

While Rayo clinicians may also have lived experience with severe psychological distress, our Peer Space recognizes the importance of having spaces for collective engagement free from the clinical gaze.

In this way, our Peer Space embodies the collective and autonomous principles at the heart of Rayo.

Activist and abolitionist Mariame Kaba defines abolition as: "a vision of a restructured society where we have everything that we need to live dignified lives."

We work towards this vision by offering a healing space that speaks to the root causes of psychological distress, including trauma, loneliness, lack of resources, paranoia and fear.

Our staff, programming and physical space are trauma-informed; we offer a variety of community building opportunities, from 1:1 peer support to community meals and more; our case management and client needs fund supports resource building; and transparency with regards to everything we do is readily available to clients, community members and beyond.