Column: Drake's comments on Kid Cudi's mental health were egregious

As some of you might know, rappers Drake and Kid Cudi have been engulfed in a feud for the past month. It all started when Kid Cudi criticized Kanye West and Drake in a Twitter rant in September.

A few weeks later, Cudi announced that he was checking himself into rehab due to “depression and suicidal urges.”

It is clear that Cudi’s angst-filled Twitter tirade wasn’t just due to anger or jealousy; he needed professional help.

One would assume that after hearing this news, Drake would leave the situation alone. Wrong. He soon responded with a song called “Two Birds One Stone.”

In the song, he raps “You were the man on the moon/Now you just go through your phases,” and “Still never been on hiatus/You stay xanned and perked up/So when reality set in you don’t gotta face it,” referencing Cudi’s former drug use.

Not only did Drake not back off, but he said flagrant and egregious things to Cudi when he really didn’t deserve it.

You know what the worst thing about this is? Many people don’t even see an issue with it.

This situation is simply a microcosm of our greater society.

Too often, we make light of the mental health issues those around us might have. Sometimes we even go so far as to laugh and joke about it, as if mental health issues aren’t real and don’t affect real people.

This is especially the case for young, college-aged individuals.

We see ourselves — and those like us — as invincible, as if health concerns aren’t that bad, especially those we can’t see.

There is also still very much a stigma when it comes to talking about mental health. Sometimes we think that if we don’t talk about it, it’s not an issue. If we push it further and further into the back of our minds, we won’t have to face the reality of it.

Although we’ve made many advances in awareness of mental health, many of us still lack understanding of what mental health issues are and how they may affect us. This is the root of how people rationalize laughing at and criticizing individuals with mental health concerns.

Mental health issues affect millions of people everyday. Many of these cases go unnoticed or ignored, primarily because people don’t believe or know that it’s happening. Simply taking the time to learn more about these issues can save people a great deal of pain and anguish, and sometimes, quite possibly a life.

Even though I realize all of this, I’m complicit as well. I still struggle with taking concerns of mental health seriously. I sometimes make light of things that I see those around me experiencing. I realize just how offensive the term “crazy” is and still find myself using it in casual conversation.

In the future, my goal is to be more cognizant of the way that my actions and words affect others.