What happens when a place meant to heal instead deepens the wounds?

The Silence They Wrote for Me is a powerful memoir of being Black, disabled, and institutionalised in the UK, tracing the author’s harrowing journey through psychiatric wards where care is often replaced by confinement, control, and erasure.

With piercing honesty, the book reveals how racism, ableism, and misogyny intertwine in mental health systems—while also showing the impact on racialised, under-resourced staff caught within cycles of harm. Through lived memory, recorded conversations, and letters, the narrative captures not only the trauma of institutionalisation but also the silence, stigma, and obstacles faced upon returning to everyday life.

More than a memoir, this is a demand for justice and a vision of care rooted in humanity and dignity. Ideal for courses in Disability Studies, Sociology, Social Work, Race and Ethnicity Studies, and for practitioners and activists committed to rethinking mental health systems.

Dr Abigal Muchecheti is a writer, researcher, and advocate whose work explores race, gender, and institutional exclusion in UK higher education.