Fwd: DENDRITE: CALIFORNIA Big Battle Over Forced Psychiatry -
Graeme Bacque (gbacque@idirect.com)
Wed, 10 Nov 1999 22:27:31 -0500
----------forwarded message----------
Subject: DENDRITE: CALIFORNIA Big Battle Over Forced Psychiatry -
Forums/Bill on "Fast Track"
From: "Support Coalition International" <dendron@efn.org>
To: DENDRITE human rights <dendrite@efn.org>
DENDRITE HUMAN RIGHTS ALERT -- November 10, 1999
Copy/post to appropriate places on & off Internet.
Win human rights in the "mental health system"!
A free project of Support Coalition International.
http://www.MindFreedom.org <dendron@efn.org>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CALIFORNIA IS CENTER OF STORM IN
STRUGGLE TO TURN BACK RISE OF
FORCED PSYCHIATRY!
RESISTANCE GEARS UP FOR INTENSE FIGHT.
MENTAL HEALTH AGENCIES ARE RAPIDLY HOLDING
PUBLIC FORUMS ABOUT CHANGING COMMITMENT LAWS.
MANY FORUMS ARE BEING ANNOUNCED WEEKLY
WITH **VERY** LITTLE LEAD TIME: BE PREPARED!
ACTION: SPREAD THE MESSAGE
TO EVERYONE IN CALIFORNIA --
"GET READY TO FIGHT FOR YOUR
LIVES AND FREEDOM!"
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA: Hundreds of psychiatric
survivors and mental health consumers gathered
here this past weekend. There was one theme that
permeated the workshops, speeches, posters,
buttons, conversations and even t-shirts:
"STOP THE EXPANSION OF FORCED PSYCHIATRY!!"
Over and over, participants united in
expressing their concerns, their fears, and
especially their angry determination to fight
back and not give up.
The gathering was a conference of the
California Network of Mental Health Clients,
one of four organizations uniting to create a
new "Mental Health Rights Coalition" (MHRC).
Fueling this human rights activity is serious
concern about the rise of forced psychiatry
and forced outpatient psychiatric drugging
nationally. The "forces for force" have
arrived in California, but they will face
resistance.
MHRC is gearing up to strike back because of a
new bill expected to be filed in early January in
the California legislature by former psychiatric
nurse Helen Thompson, now a state legislator
representing Davis, Calif.
While the public has not yet seen the bill, based
on preliminary material the bill could be
one of the worst attacks on human rights in
psychiatry in a long time. The bill promoters are
evidently playing their cards close to their
chest, and refusing to disclose details of their
bill until the last minute, maybe to minimize
the amount of time available to express outrage.
So how bad could the secret bill be? At this point
we can only guess and speculate, based on what
an extremist in the Los Angeles branch of
the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill --
NAMI's Carla Jacobs -- has been lobbying for.
If early rumors turn out true, then the bill
could allow nearly any Californian to be kidnapped
for a "mental health evaluation," even simply
for denying they have a "mental illness" or
refusing psychiatric drugs. That evaluation
time could be doubled from 14 to 28 days. And
during that month in captivity, the individual
could be presented with a horrible choice:
* Leave by signing a paper agreeing to a year
of forced outpatient psychiatric drugging.
* Or stay locked up for the whole month, as
a penalty for refusing to sign that paper.
If such a bill passed, it would also mean Calif.
would become one of the more than 40 states
allowing judges to order citizens to take
powerful psychiatric drugs against their will,
even if they are living at home in the community.
Again, the bill may only exist in the computers
of Jacobs, Thompson, and a few others, so it's
impossible to say for sure what it says.
New York State recently passed a new law that
the _New York Times_ [8/4/99] estimated will
result next year in 4,000 more citizens in
New York State experiencing involuntary psychiatric
treatment in their community, even their own homes.
California is the next bulls-eye for authoritarian
lobbying groups like the "Treatment Advocacy Center."
ACTIONS **YOU** CAN TAKE
TO HELP THE RESISTANCE GROW!!
Events are happening very fast:
ALERT EVERYONE YOU KNOW IN CALIFORNIA both on
and off the Internet, about this campaign. Tell
them to sign up for these free DENDRITE public
alerts to get future notices (see very bottom
of DENDRITE for how to subscribe or unsubscribe).
The Mental Health Rights Coalition will be
launching a new web site. When material is posted,
which they said is soon, you will be able to view
it by clicking on: http://www.camhpra.org, and
then clicking on MHRC. Try it later this month.
To leave messages and ask questions about
these issues, you will be able to reach MHRC
by phoning 1-800-776-5746 and asking for MHRC at
Extension 3300, and recording your message.
FORUMS HAPPENING THROUGHOUT STATE: SHORT NOTICE
Most urgently, find out about and tell people
and actually attend the "dialogues" listed below.
Background:
Five state-associated agencies said they are very
interested in public input on the subject of changing
the commitment law (in California that's called
"Lanterman-Petris-Short Act" or "LPS".)
So these agencies are funding mediated public
"dialogues" throughout California to allow anyone
who to, to speak out. Each "dialogue" is being
run by the local county mental health systems,
which are supposed to summarize the results.
Unfortunately, these counties are "fast tracking"
the "dialogues" because of Thompson's awful bill
that is on the horizon. And some counties are
negligently changing dates at the last minute, or
not announcing locations. Sometimes there's only a
few weeks between the announcement of the site,
and the actual "dialogue." That's short notice.
Our concern is that special interest groups with
fax and phone trees may be able to get turnout to
such rapid events. But "dialogues" serious about
hearing from and involving low income grassroots
people and groups need more time to get
announcements in newspapers and newsletters, put up
posters, arrange transportation, etc.
As a previous DENDRITE stated, the new issue of
_Mother Jones_ reveals that the psychiatric drug
industry gave NAMI $11.72 million on less than
three years. (See story at http://motherjones.com
click on top story "Prozac.org.")
HELP THE HUMAN RIGHTS TURN OUT TO THESE FORUMS!
Please read the below list carefully. It changes
every week. To get future updates about dialogues,
contact the part-time person hired by those
state-affiliated mental health agencies
to coordinate these forums. Her name is Laura L.
Mancuso. Her e-mail address is <mancuso@west.net>.
Her work phone number is 805-967-1716, where you
can record a message. Ask that you be notified of
new "dialogues" and changes every week.
A mental health agency has created a web site that
has a list of "dialogues" that is a few days older
than the one listed below: http://www.cimh.org
Below is the "dialogue" list Laura just sent us.
Unfortunately Laura sends these out as an "attached
Word document" which many people cannot read. We have
translated that to e-mail, but it will take extra
work to read. Ask her to disseminate this list in
an e-mail version, not just "attached Word document."
Laura says she asks one thing, "Please phone up the
local county organizer before you attend, because
sometimes there are last minute changes." We know.
In fact, in many counties where forums are just a
few days away, NO LOCATION or TIME is listed in the
grid. And this is a public forum process? Why?
DISCLAIMER: The below events are being organized by
each county mental health agency, NOT by human rights
groups, so please go, but go with your eyes wide open.
For instance, you can see in the below list that
Ventura County's mental health agency refused to hold
a "dialogue," supposedly because another forum was
already held. The reality is that a special interest
pro-force rally was held, unrelated to this "dialogue"
process. Sickeningly, even though approximately
25 mental health consumers spoke out, their testimony
was STRICKEN from the record! Silenced! So the reality
is that NO real "dialogue" was held in Ventura, but
apparently pro-force bureaucrats in Ventura are afraid
to engage the strong mental health consumers there, if
a mediated public forum was ever really held! Laura has
agreed to edit out the mental health county's insulting
lies and excuses for not having a real public dialogue.
Ventura County's mental health system blatant lie is
retraumatizing to survivors of human rights violations,
because speaking out is *crucial* for healing.
The below "dialogues" are supposed to have mediators to
assure all views are heard. In any case this could
be your chance to link up with like-minded people and
build *your* database for future resistance activity.
If your local "dialogue" was already held, call up the
organizer and demand that your written comments be
included in the "summary" they are writing.
HOW TO READ THE BELOW "DIALOGUE" LIST
The "dialogue" list has several sections, starting
with CONFIRMED FORUMS, then TENTATIVELY SCHEDULED,
then NO FORUMS then COMPLETED FORUMS. Some of these
forums combine counties so more than one county
may be listed, followed by "day/time," then
"location" if known, then "facilitator" and
"contact info" if any, then other "notes" if any.
Each hearing is then listed in the following way:
County
Organizer name & phone number [if any]
Date/Time/Location [if any]
Facilitator [if any]
Notes [if any]
COPY AND POST TO ALL PEOPLE IN CALIFORNIA!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MASTER LIST OF LPS DIALOGUE PROJECT
LOCAL FORUMS IN CALIFORNIA
Revised November 9, 1999
from Laura L. Mancuso
e-mail: <mancuso@west.net>
phone: 805-967-1716
*** CONFIRMED FORUMS ***
KERN
Nieves Rubio (661-868-6718)
11/12/99 afternoon
Ellen
confirmed
SANTA CRUZ
SAN BENITO
Neal Adams, MD (831-454-4767) and Michael Eipp, MH
Board (831-476-7248) both Santa Cruz
Fri, 11/12/99
3 to 7 pm
Currently deciding if they will use a facilitator. If
so, Marie is available.
SAN JOAQUIN
AMADOR
CALAVERAS
Roger Speed
(209-468-2082)
Sat 11/13
9 or 9:30 am
Stockton
Norma
confirmed
ALAMEDA
BERKELEY
Tina Casey (510-567-8269)
Mon, 11/15
1 to 4 pm
Alameda County Confce Center
125 12th Street, Oakland, CA
Room: _Hayward Union City_
Marie
confirmed
SACRAMENTO
EL DORADO
Tom Sullivan, Sacto (916-875-5521)
Barry Wasserman, El Dorado (530-621-6220)
Mon, 11/15/99
6 to 9 pm
Board of Supervisors Chamber, 700 H Street, Sacramento
Norma
confirmed
SAN FRANCISCO
Heleyna Brook (415-255-3473)
11/16/99
Tuesday
1 to 4:30 pm
Marie
confirmed
YOLO
Tom Pavao (916-375-6350)
Thur, Dec 2
6 pm
Norma
confirmed
SHASTA
TRINITY
SISKIYOU
Diana Clayton
w) 530-223-3344
h) 530-222-6070
or
Don Kingdom (530-225-5903)
Friday, Nov 19
1 to 4:30 pm
Redding
Brad
confirmed
SANTA BARBARA & SAN LUIS OBISPO
Merna McMillan, Director (805-681-5220) & Ann Eldridge,
MH Board (805-964-2375), Santa Barbara
Wednesday, 12/1/99 2 to 5:30 pm
Marriott Hotel in Buellton
Ellen
confirmed
SAN DIEGO
Esti Stevens, Analyst with MH Admin for San Diego Co
(619-692-8256)
Friday 12/3/99 and Monday 12/6/99
Ellen
confirmed
two forums due to large population
FRESNO
TULARE
KINGS
MADERA
Carol Nixon
(559-253-9501)
Thursday Dec 2 - 6 to 9:30 pm
Marie
confirmed
LASSEN
SIERRA
MODOC
PLUMAS
Jim Jackson, Lassen (530-251-8108); alt. Kathy Alberico
(530-251-8128)
Unclear whether it will be Dec 1 or Dec 2 - to be
determined
Susanville
Veterans' Hall
Brad
Laura to contact Plumas and Modoc on behalf of Lassen
Nevada and Sierra also invited
BUTTE
GLENN
TEHAMA
COLUSA
Ted Klemm or Patty Krause (530-891-2891), Butte County
Mon, Dec 6
6:30 to 9 pm
Chico
City Council Chambers
Marie
confirmed
ORANGE
Maria Marquez (714-834-5904)
Th Dec 9, evening
Fri Dec 10, morning
Ellen
confirmed
*** TENTATIVELY SCHEDULED: ***
PLACER
with NEVADA
per Diane Chenoweth ph 10/25
SAN BERNARDINO
Marsha Workman (909-421-9475)
requested info 11/8/99
MERCED
STANISLAUS
TUOLUMNE
MARIPOSA
*** NO FORUM: ***
VENTURA
they held a public forum on LPS a few months ago and
will not be repeating it
LOS ANGELES
per Steve Fox 10/28 based on his conversation with Marv
Southard
Santa Clara, Orange, and San Diego Counties have the
option of two facilitated forums, and Los Angeles has
the option of up to five.
*** COMPLETED FORUMS: ***
RIVERSIDE
Melinda Face
909-358-4603
Wed, 11/3/99, 3 to 6:30 pm
Ellen
confirmed
HUMBOLDT
DEL NORTE
John Anderson, Dep Dir, Humboldt County MH
(707-268-2990)
11/3/99
6:30 pm
Norma
confirmed
SAN MATEO
Nina Kulgein
650-573-2323
Wed
11/3/99
6 to 8 pm
SOLANO
Gale Bataille
(707-421-6602)
Thurs
11/4
5 to 8 pm
in Solano
Brad
confirmed
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY
Herb Putnam (hm 925-686-3071)
11/5/99
Friday
1:30 to 5 pm
Brad M
confirmed
- end of list from Laura Mancuso -
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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