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Download MFI Journal #48 As a PDF Spring 2008 www.MindFreedom.org Join a nonviolent revolution in mental health Support Youth Survivors of Mental Health Human Rights Violations! Mad Pride! Humane Alternatives to the Mental Health System! How Psychiatric photo by James Becker James by photo Drug Money Members of the MindFreedom Youth Committee. Dominates the From left: Ishi, Lotus, MindFreedom’s new Youth Coordinator Martin Rafferty, Iana, and Skye. Martin’s story is on page 3. Media! Table of Truth in Media • 4 Contents Affi liate Drive • 5 MFI Wins • 2 Wisdom House New Staff Welcomed • 2 Conference • 5 Much More News: Youth for Choice • 3 Poetic Justice • 6 Law & Activism • 3 Fundraising • 6 www.mindfreedom.org Mad Pride • 4 Diversity Welcomed • 7 www.MindFreedom.org Published byPAGE MFI • MFI Wins Campaigns for Human Rights and Alternatives in Mental Health Please join! MindFreedom International unites cooperation, MindFreedom Interna- thousands of individual members. tional leads a nonviolent revolution of www.MindFreedom.org The majority of MindFreedom’s mem- freedom, equality, truth, and human bership, board, and staff are psychiat- rights that unites people affected by [email protected] ric survivors. However, membership the mental health system with move- is open to everyone who supports ments for justice everywhere.” MindFreedom International our human rights goals. Advocates, If you are not yet a member, become 454 Willamette, Suite 216 mental health professionals, family a member or donate, now! If you are members, and the general public are P.O. Box 11284 already a member, consider an early all valued members and leaders in the Eugene, OR 97440-3484 U.S.A. renewal donation. MindFreedom is MindFreedom community. a non-profit organization under IRS phone: (541) 345-9106 MindFreedom International (MFI) 501(c)(3) and your donation is tax- toll free in USA: 1-877-MAD-PRIDE unites 100 grassroots organizations. deductible. (To join or donate, see fax: (541) 345-3737 Each Sponsor www.MindFreedom.org.) Group or Affiliate MOVING? Please provide your new You are also encouraged to has a liaison on the postal address. check out our Mad Market MFI Support Coalition of books and products at Advisory Council. Privacy: The MindFreedom database www.MadMarket.org. is private. MindFreedom organizers MFI is rooted in a global Proceeds support this may be given contact lists. If you movement to change the mental human rights work. prefer no contact, inform the office. health system. MFI is one of the few You can now also groups in the mental health field download a free copy of Copyright: Unless noted, you may that is independent with no funding our MindFreedom brochure! You can copy for non-commercial use. Please from or links to governments, mental then print it out and distribute it to in- credit www.MindFreedom.org © health providers, drug companies, tm. form people about MFI campaigns for 2008 MindFreedom religious organizations, etc. Funding human rights and humane alterna- is entirely from members like you, and tives in the mental health system. It is Conserve: Printed with soy-based a very few foundations. available at: www.mindfreedom.org/ ink on partly recycled paper. MFI’s mission: “In a spirit of mutual brochure. MindFreedom plants trees to help replace paper used. MFI Welcomes Martin Rafferty Thanks to donors and to members and Jeremy Bensman who volunteer through mailing parties, research, tips, writing, There were two new additions to the MindFree- editing and much more. dom office in 2007. Martin Rafferty joined the team in January and is currently both MindFreedom’s Office Board: Celia Brown (President), Ted Manager and Youth Coordinator. A psychiatric survi- Chabasinski, Judi Chamberlin, Krista vor – see this issue’s cover story! – Martin writes: “I am Erickson, Janet Foner, Al Galves, passionate about change, and passionate about includ- Mary Maddock, Matt Morrissey. ing youth in that change... I am excited about taking a Director of Staff: David Oaks (Director), Martin strong stance against the abuse that is happening in our Member Services Rafferty (Office Manager), Jeremy mental health care system. Taking that stance is impor- Jeremy Bensman Bensman (Director of Member tant work, even though so much more must be done.” And in September Jeremy Bensman became the new Director of Member Services). Services. Jeremy recently obtained an M.A. in philosophy from the Univer- Webmaster: Hal Noble NetCorps. sity of Oregon, where he studied social justice issues and the work of Michel Foucault. He writes: “It has been exciting to be able to meet and correspond Desktop publishing: mckenzieprint with so many talented people working with so much heart for human rights in [email protected] mental health. The world needs more independent voices like these! If you’re interested in finding out how to become more active in MindFreedom, let us ISSN 1537-5013 know at [email protected].” PAGE • www.MindFreedom.org would be very shallow. Assumptions like these reflect the Youth Voices oppression of youth in our culture. The Youth Voices For Choices campaign is countering this oppression by offer- For Choices ing new and exciting ways for youth to use their voice. Our international efforts will involve creating a more vibrant online community. Sites like YouTube and BY MARTIN RAFFERTY MySpace are very popular in the youth culture. Mind- Freedom has taken advantage of this by inspiring youth At the time MindFreedom launched its youth campaign, to create content around voice. You can already see some Youth Voices For Choices, I was twenty years old. As a examples of this on our website. Humorous skits and youth, I myself experienced forced drugging. A nurse actu- serious stories are given, as well as a complete conversa- ally shoved a stick in my mouth to make sure I swallowed tion with a group of seven youth with very diverse back- my pills. My voice as a youth was not heard. I said no, grounds. This is just part of our plan to create a presence they said yes. Eventually, when they gave me water to take for youth in our movement! the pills with, I started taping the pills under the paper cup. I had no idea that there was an organization like This year our youth campaign is also addressing mental MindFreedom fighting for my right to choose. health screening in public school systems. We will release a Teen Screen Manual to educate students, teachers, and Most people don’t believe that youth talk seriously parents about a system designed to put millions of chil- about this issue, or think that if they did the discussions dren on dangerous drugs. Mental Health Legal Advocacy & Activism Task Force Warns Forcing Psychiatric Drugs Can Increase Violence Promising to fight what they call often increase violence, rather than expertise for strategic litigation and pervasive and harmful violations decrease it. If people were warned the “people power” of MindFreedom of mental health clients who that both taking and withdrawing activists around the country will are involuntarily drugged and from these drugs can at times bring a synergy and geographic electroshocked in the United States, contribute to committing terrible reach to their demands for the Law Project for Psychiatric acts, they and their loved ones people’s legal and human Rights (PsychRights) and the can be alert to the possibility and rights. Daniel Hazen, MindFreedom Shield Campaign tragedies averted.” Northeast Coordinator with announced a joint Task Force on PsychRights, added, “In Mental Health Legal Advocacy & Krista Erickson, MFI the United States the Activism. The new partnership of board member and ‘mental health’ industry law and nonviolent direct action Chair of the MFI Shield is a labeling system has an initial focus in California, Campaign, said, “I’m that often dismisses Massachusetts, and New York. excited about MFI self-determination, and PsychRights legal capacity, PsychRights’ President Jim expanding our and alternatives. Gottstein declared, “People’s rights partnership and ‘Treatment’ can be forced in forced drugging proceedings focusing the combined power through the court systems. are ignored as a matter of course, of legal advocacy and activism on People ought to have their day in resulting in great harm to them and specific cases.” The MFI Shield court but this is often far from what decreased public safety.” David Campaign supports the wishes of actually occurs.” Oaks, Director of MindFreedom a member to be free of involuntary International, noted, “Violence by mental health intervention with an The Law Project for Psychiatric a few individuals labeled ‘mentally international “Solidarity Network” of Rights is a public interest law firm ill’ has led to a backlash calling advocates. The new Task Force plans devoted to the defense of people for a massive increase in forced to use both the court of law and the facing the “horrors of unwarranted psychiatric drugging.” court of public opinion. forced psychiatric drugging and Mr. Gottstein added, “Contrary other forced psychiatric procedures.” to public perception, forcing people Task Force organizers say the Find out more about PsychRights at to take psychiatric drugs can combination of PsychRights’ www.psychrights.org. www.MindFreedom.org PAGE • 3 AD RIDE MMindFreedom welcomesP Ruth Ruth of The Friendly Spike Theatre and John McCarthy of MindFreedom Ireland, as the new co-chairs of the Mad Pride 2008 campaign! Here are just a few highlights from Mad Pride events in 2007. More information about Mad Pride can be found online at: www.mindfreedom.org/campaign/ MindFreedom Ghana celebrates Mad Pride madpride/. The Great Escape through the center Accra amid South Africa music and dancing. We printed and Bed Push distributed T-shirts and caps to the For the first time this year, a Mad On Saturday, July 14, activists in marchers, and printed 3,000 fliers Pride event was held in Capetown, Canada and England participated that were distributed to people along South Africa.
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