3 Letters published by the Washington City Paper in response to "The Sick and the Dead"

3 Letters published by theWashington City Paper in response to"The Sick and the Dead"
Note: In the letter just below, the paper's editors changed words slightly and shortened the list of signees to 5 names. We print the original version sent to the paper.Letter submitted by Leah Harris, Washington DC and Laura Van Tosh, Silver Spring MD, with 31 endorsing signees July 15, 2003Erik WempleEditorWashington City Paper2390 Champlain Street, NWWashington, DC 20009Dear Mr. Wemple:As individuals and representatives of organizations working for self-determination and empowerment for people labeled with mental illness, we are writing to express our extreme dismay at the Washington City Paper's stigmatizing coverage of people diagnosed with mental illness in the District of Columbia in "The Sick and the Dead" by Stephanie Mencimer (July 11-17, 2003).Ms. Mencimer's article does a great disservice to people with psychiatric disabilities and to the public at large by reinforcing harmful and defamatory stereotypes of people diagnosed with mental illness as violent criminals. Ms. Mencimer uses disrespectful and irresponsible language such as "nut case" and "lunatic" on several occasions when referring to people diagnosed with mental illness. Would your publication refer to people with physical disabilities as "crips" or "gimps?" This terminology is offensive to the disability community, and we demand an apology from the Washington City Paper for the use of such irresponsible, hateful, and discriminatory language.The article also employs a dangerous form of doublespeak, categorizing people with mental illness as potentially violent criminals, while the MacArthur Foundation study, cited within the article, contradicts this assertion. When the results of the MacArthur study are considered, Ms. Mencimer's statements such as "[T]he mentally ill are wreaking an untold amount of misery," or "[T]hese tragedies are part of an epidemic that unfolds before us daily," become irresponsible exaggerations not based on a rational evaluation of the facts, but on journalistic sensationalism.In fact, a study by researchers at North Carolina State University and Duke University (Hiday, et al. Psych. Serv. 1999 Jan; 50(1):62-68) has found that people with severe mental illness - schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or psychosis - are more likely to be the victims of violent crime than the perpetrators. The study found that they are 2½ times more likely to be attacked, raped or mugged than the general population.The crimes committed by people such as Russell Weston, Sharon Williams, Jeffrey Daniels, John Hinckley, Jr., and et. al, are indeed horrific; however, these cases are the tragic exception, not the rule. To imply otherwise is misleading, irresponsible, and serves to reinforce stigma and discrimination against people diagnosed with mental illness.Because we believe it is important to educate the media about mental health issues, we request a meeting with the editor and publisher of the Washington City Paper, which we hope that Ms. Mencimer will also attend.Sincerely,Jean Arnold, National Stigma Clearinghouse, New York, NYKelly Bagby, Legal Director, University Legal Services Protection and Advocacy Program, Washington, DCLarry Belcher, CEO, West Virginia Mental Health Consumers Association/CONTAC, Charleston, WVMary M. Blake, Advocate, Washington, DCRandall Bosin, Advocate, Chevy Chase, MDBarbara C. Cody, RN, Committee for Truth in Psychiatry, NYMichael Finkle, Baltimore, MDDan Fisher, MD, Ph.D., Executive Director, National Empowerment Center, Lawrence, MAPhil Fornaci and Laura Cain, Maryland Disability Law Center, Baltimore, MDSylvia A. George, Director of Elderly Ministries, Community Ministries of Rockville, MDHoward H. Goldman, MD, Ph.D., Potomac, MDWayne M. Goldstein, Kensington, MDWill Hall, Freedom Center, Northampton, MALeah Harris, MA, Board Member, National Association of Rights Protection and Advocacy, Washington, DCNancy Lee Head, Board member, D.C. Mental Health Consumers League*, Washington, DCMichael Hetchkop, Rockville, MDAndrew J. Imparato, President and CEO, American Association of People with Disabilities, Washington, DCSteve Johnson, Baltimore, MDThomas L. Jones, Ph.D., Silver Spring, MDMartha Knisley, Director, Department of Mental Health, Washington, DCDarby Penney, President, The Community Consortium, Inc., Albany, NYLarry Plumlee, National Capital Area Advocates, Bethesda, MDJoseph A. Rogers, Executive Director, National Mental Health Consumers' Self-Help Clearinghouse, Philadelphia, PAHarvey Rosenthal, Executive Director, New York Association of Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services, Albany, NYErik Roskes, MD, Psychiatrist, Baltimore, MDRobin Stearn, On Our Own of Montgomery County, Inc.Laura Van Tosh, Silver Spring, MDJim Ward, Executive Director, ADAWatch and National Coalition for Disability Rights, Washington, DCMiriam L. Yarmolinsky, Silver Spring, MD__________________________________
Letter from the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law:To the Editor, Washington City Paper:Undoubtedly, a crisis exists in America's service system for people who have mental illnesses, and it is particularly acute in the District. Last week's cover story could have advanced public understanding of this crisis, but the Washington City Paper instead sensationalized the issue, propagating fear and reinforcing negative stereotypes of people diagnosed with mental illnesses (The Sick and the Dead," 7/11).Stephanie Mencimer's story seems more concerned with titillating readers than presenting the facts. She devotes nine pages to demonizing people with mental illnesses, makes a flawed case for violating the rights of some of America's most marginalized citizens and glosses over the core problem- a shortage of meaningful services for those seeking help.Mencimer is quick to draw a correlation between violence and mental illnesses, even as she acknowledges that the research to prove such a connection is tenuous at best. Several large-scale research projects (including the one she cites) find only a weak statistical association between violence and mental illnesses. The research also suggests that substance abuse, rather than mental illness, is a far likelier correlate to violent acts. "Serious violence by people with major mental disorders appears concentrated in a small fraction of the total number, and especially among those who use alcohol and other drugs," according to a report released last year by the Council of State Governments' Criminal Justice / Mental Health Consensus Project. In fact, seventy percent of jail inmates with mental illnesses are there for nonviolent offenses, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics.So if people with mental illnesses aren't inherently violent, why are so many ending up in the nation's jails and prisons? The dysfunctional mental health system is increasingly - and inappropriately - relying on the criminal justice system to fill in service gaps.Mencimer's assertion that forced treatment is the way to fix the system is shamefully misguided. All too often, people with mental illnesses have been discouraged from seeking help because the services they want and need are unavailable. Others are discouraged from participating in their own recovery by tactics they perceive as punitive. Some have suffered life-altering consequences from psychiatric medications, electro-convulsive therapy ("shock treatment") or the inappropriate use of restraint and seclusion in psychiatric facilities. Disregarding these legitimate concerns is wrong, not just because it discounts the rights of citizens with mental illnesses, but because it undermines the effectiveness of mental health services.Furthermore, mandating treatment doesn't solve the problem of availability or mean that someone with a mental illness will actually be able to get help. Individuals with mental illnesses already face long waits for limited services from overburdened public mental health systems. Pushing yet more people into the system and moving them to the front of the line with a court order only exacerbates the problem and diminishes access for those who already voluntarily seek services.Mencimer and the City Paper have done a tremendous disservice not only to people with mental illnesses, but also to the public. Mencimer's story may move papers, but its dangerous lack of insight does little to promote solutions.Sincerely,Robert Bernstein, Ph.D.Executive DirectorBazelon Center for Mental Health Law_______________________________
Letter from the National Stigma Clearinghouse"The Sick and the Dead" (7/11) blames people with mental illnesses for Washington's spike in the homicide rate, but this unlikely assertion is based on anecdotes and opinions.We recognize the source of much of author Stephanie Mencimer's information as the Treatment Advocacy Center (TAC) in Arlington, Virginia. Headed by Dr. E. Fuller Torrey, the TAC is well-known for its misuse of the research of others and its exaggerated emphasis on violence to win support for its controversial agenda.The article is inflammatory, and worse, it is inaccurate. For example, a statement about subway pushings in New York City misrepresents a 1992 research study. The true facts are that researchers Martell and Deitz identified 49 subway incidents over a 17-year period. They then honed in on assailants with symptoms of psychosis and determined that 19 had psychotic illnesses. This is a far cry from the article's description of subway assaults: "all but one of 20 people who had pushed or attempted to push a stranger in front of a train were severely mentally ill."The reference to the much-publicized Andrew Goldstein case in New York is an example of rewriting history. The article depicts Goldstein, who pushed Kendra Webdale to her death in 1999, as someone who refused treatment It is fortunate that ample evidence exists in the public record to prove that Goldstein tried but could not get the help he knew he needed. Two credible sources, the New York Times and the NY State Commission on Quality of Care, document Goldstein's months-long search for help prior to that terrible day in the subway.Jean ArnoldNational Stigma Clearinghouse