Personal tools
You are here: Home → MFI Blog → San Francisco protest shows: Corporate media is often part of the problem in mental health reform.
 

San Francisco protest shows: Corporate media is often part of the problem in mental health reform.

by David W. Oaks — last modified May 12, 2009 11:34 AM

Educating the public is a key goal of the "mad pride" movement. But the mainstream corporate media is part of the problem. We are protesting in San Francisco, and once more the media is showing the same signs.


I'm proud that I have helped organize a whole lot of peaceful protests in front of the Annual Meeting of the American Psychiatric Association, including about five in San Francisco, going back three decades!

One pattern I've seen is the way mainstream media is part of the problem.

The public has a right to know about people who have experienced human rights violations in the mental health system, and our allies who are speaking out for reform.

But consider that last time we protested in 2003, the mainstream media almost totally ignored our nonviolent protests. However, when a psychiatrist was attacked by one homeless individual (who was not related to the protests at all), that particular story got multiple articles. What that homeless individual did was wrong, but why did the mainstream media ignore the peaceful actions by 100 of us?

And now in 2009, we're seeing the same signs:

A major weekly in San Francisco Bay Area is already covering the American Psychiatric Association... but instead focusing elsewhere: The day before our protest, the Church of Scientology's group CCHR (made famous by Tom Cruise) is having a protest, and it turns out there will be a counter-protest of CCHR by people critical of Scientology who wears mask.

Now, we've already established that MindFreedom has zero connection to CCHR or Scientology. This statement is not meant as a criticism of anyone, just a statement of fact. We explain this in our Frequently Asked Questions.

But my point is, where is mainstream media about the real story, that people are being harmed and even killed by corruption in the psychiatric system? Instead, already, a major weekly is focusing on something unrelated to this story, a drama between two groups that don't like each other.

Inside the American Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting is a confluence of drug company that has taken over a large part of the mental health system, causing untold suffering, and denying people alternatives that work.

That's the real story.

And it's up to us now to create our own media to get out that word: At any "mad pride" type activity, please: Bring your digital camera and your own digital video cameras. The moment you complete an action, someone ought to write it up as a journalist while it is still "hot" and post it somewhere on the web, there are free blogs anywhere, and let people know.

Before we complain too much about the mainstream media, we ought to learn from our youth and act as our own media!



Document Actions

We are MFI



Rae Unzicker & Justin Dart

Rae (1948-2001) was a psychiatric survivor activist who was a key bridge-builder between the entire disability movement and our movement to change the mentalh health system. Rae championed the National Council on Disability (NCD) report, From Privileges to Rights: People Labeled with Psychiatric Disabilities Speaking For Themselves. Rae is shown here with her beloved Justin Dart (1930 - 2002), widely considered one of the key disability activists of the last century, and also a bridge builder between our movements. Both Rae and Justin were MFI members. (Photo by Cookie Gant)