The annual Bell Let’s Talk Day mental health initiative is back. This time around, Bell says if you donate first, they will match donations.
Until midnight today, Bell says for every $5 donation you make, they will match it (up to $1 million in total). You can donate by texting YOUTH to 45678. Your wireless bill will be charged $5.
Bell says 100% of the proceeds are going to the following youth mental health organizations:
“Join us in helping young people in Canada get the support they need,” said Bell. This year the company will $10 million towards mental health. Since 2010, the company’s total investments for the program are $184 million.
In previous years, Bell would donate 5 cents based on the number of social media interactions. But that ended in 2023, with Bell moving to a lump sum donation instead.
The Bell Let’s Talk campaign has support from corporate and local partners (all those warm and fuzzy posts on social media), but not everyone is jumping on board.
Some have criticized the campaign as sensationalizing mental health, while in the past, ill-time job cuts by Bell after the campaign didn’t help the situation (like last year). Let’s see if any job cuts are going to be announced in February or March.
Some examples of people disagreeing with the Bell Let’s Talk campaign are below:
It’s #BellLetsTalk day!! A 🧵!
Let’s talk about how CTV destroyed my mental health & fired me after being harassed by two producers!
I used to be a television director for CTV out west — here’s me directing CTV Saskatchewan’s Telemiracle telethon, a highlight of my TV career pic.twitter.com/TTvlMlpu75
— Bryan Passifiume (@BryanPassifiume) January 22, 2025
Today might be Bell’s “Let’s Talk Day,” but they don’t prioritize their employees’ mental well-being. Instead, they make cost-cutting measures that negatively impact their employees, all in the name of increasing the board of directors’ wealth.
— Dusty 🏒🥅 (@mcduster705) January 22, 2025
Hmmm not loving how Bell Let’s Talk isn’t donating based on tweets/posts but relying on other ppl to make donations and then matching it. We used to be a proper society sending out hundreds to tweets on Bell Let’s Talk day
— Vipra (@itsveeps) January 22, 2025
Bell: Let’s talk.
Employees: Okay.
Bell: You’re fired.
Employees: Good talk. https://t.co/DLDckl04XM— Fred Engstrom (@FredEngstromONT) January 22, 2025
“Since the launch of Bell Let’s Talk in 2010, Canadians have moved the national conversation on mental health forward and taken meaningful action to create positive change. Despite this significant progress, there is more to be done to help Canadians in need. Today we can all make a difference in helping to create a brighter, healthier future for young people by supporting mental health organizations that help youth across Canada every day,” said Mirko Bibic, President and CEO of Bell Canada and BCE, in a statement.
Are you planning to donate today as part of the Bell Let’s Talk campaign?
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