Do You want to start a political group?

Question

I'm looking for people willing to start a
political group that will fight for the legal
rights of the Mentally ill.

There are lots of nationally known groups
that offer support and information about
mental illness however, none of them offer
any sort of advocacy for the mentally ill.

Government funded agencies are unreliable
and will almost always side with authorities
in a legal matter.

There are laws that protect the mentally ill
but no one willing to see that they are enforced.
This is where I want to go with this political group.

Pressuring law enforcement to learn about mental illness
and demand that laws protecting the mentally ill be upheld.
Stigma is no longer acceptable and neither is bias.

If you want to join me in this, contact me by e-mail at
[e-mail]

Answer 1

I completely agree with you, but there already is a major organization dedicated to advocating for the rights of the mentally ill. It's called the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR). Here's some info on CCHR from their website:

CCHR is a non-profit, public benefit organization dedicated to investigating and exposing psychiatric violations of human rights. It also ensures that criminal acts within the psychiatric industry are reported to the proper authorities and acted upon.

CCHR was founded in 1969 by the Church of Scientology and the internationally acclaimed author, Dr. Thomas Szasz, Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at the State University of New York, Syracuse. At that time, the victims of psychiatry were a forgotten minority group, warehoused under terrifying conditions in institutions around the world. Because of this, CCHR penned a Mental Health Declaration of Human Rights that has served as its guide for mental health reform.

Acknowledged by the Special Rapporteur to the United Nations Human Rights Commission as responsible for “many great reforms” that protect people from psychiatric abuse, CCHR has documented thousands of individual cases that demonstrate psychiatric drugs and often-brutal psychiatric practices create insanity and cause violence. A major cause of the drug problem worldwide is the psychiatrist, who for decades has used his influence as a medical doctor to push extremely dangerous and addictive mind-altering drugs on persons of all ages—some as young as one year old.

Since 1969, CCHR’s work has helped to save the lives of millions and prevented needless suffering for millions more. Many countries have now mandated informed consent for psychiatric treatment and the right to legal representation, advocacy, recourse and compensation for patients. In some countries, the use of psychosurgery and electroshock on children is banned.

While CCHR does not provide medical or legal advice, it works closely with attorneys and medical doctors and supports medical, but not psychiatric, practices.

One of CCHR’s primarily concerns with psychiatry is its unscientific diagnostic system. Unlike medical diagnosis, psychiatrists categorize symptoms only, not disease. Jeffrey A. Schaler, Ph.D., says, “The notion of scientific validity, though not an act, is related to fraud. Validity refers to the extent to which something represents or measures what it purports to represent or measure. When diagnostic measures do not represent what they purport to represent, we say that the measures lack validity...The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV) published by the American Psychiatric Association…is notorious for low scientific validity.”

Understanding this fraudulent diagnostic premise, we can see why psychiatry and psychology, entrusted with billions of dollars to eradicate the problems of the mind, have created and perpetuated them. Their drug panaceas cause senseless acts of violence, suicide, sexual dysfunction, irreversible nervous system damage, hallucinations, apathy, irritability, anxiousness, psychosis and death. And with virtually unrestrained psychiatric drugging of so many of our schoolchildren, it is no surprise that the largest age group of murderers today are our 15-to-19-year-olds.

CCHR’s members include prominent doctors, lawyers, artists, educators, civil and human rights representatives and professionals who see it as their duty to “expose and help abolish any and all physically damaging practices in the field of mental healing.” They work to accomplish these clearly stated aims with many like-minded individuals and groups, including politicians, teachers, health professionals, government and law enforcement officers and media.

Today, 133 chapters strong in 34 countries, CCHR has established itself as a powerful human rights advocacy group and each year presents its Human Rights Awards to individuals who display exemplary courage in the worldwide fight for the restoration of basic human rights in the mental health area.

Finally, because of the other comments on this page, I'd like to make clear that CCHR is NOT a front group for Scientology or anyone else. CCHR is proud to have been co-founded by the Church of Scientology and psychiatry professor Dr. Thomas Szasz (who is not a Scientologist). Isn't it interesting that when an organization is founded by Christians or Jews it's never called a front group for Christianity or Judaism, but if Scientologists found something people immediately call it a "front group." This is mainly because of anti-Scientology bigotry. The fact is that, believe it or not, there are non-Scientologists who are also concerned about psychiatric abuse. CCHR is composed of individuals from many religious backgrounds united in a desire to institute more humane treatment for those labeled "mentally ill"

Answer 2

Scotty--- he's trying to protect the mentally ill from the rest of society. NOT from their psychiatrists. Scientologists need to stop screwing up the mentally ill even more because you're making us afraid to get help! Health insurance doesn't cover "getting clear". Tom Cruise and the rest of you need to f off.

Answer 3

Yes good sentiments...

I am mainly here to warn you about the CCHR who are a front group for scientology, in order to denounce psychiatry in all its forms so that people will do scientology instead. Although it is known that scientology only makes mentally ill people much much worse. http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/JeremyPerkins/

See here about Scientologies front groups:
http://www.clambake.org/archive/infopack/9.htm
http://www.clambake.org/archive/infopack/12.htm

I hope you achieve all your aims and ambitions in life (just as long as it's a million miles from scientology)