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First Dr. Phil, Now NBC’s Brian Williams: Stigmatizing Mental Illness

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I’ve been warned that fighting stigma is a bit like tilting at windmills, but I find it difficult to keep silent when I see blatant examples. Dr. Phil’s comments about how “insane” individuals “suck on rocks and bark at the moon” were especially offensive since he is a psychologist. Last night, I flipped on the news and heard NBC Anchor Brian Williams make remarks that were just as stigmatizing.

Williams announced that Ariel Castro, the Cleveland kidnapper/rapist who held three women captive for a decade, was “arguably the face of mental illness.” 

Not content to toss millions of Americans who have mental health issues under the bus, Williams spoke with contempt about how Castro had given a rambling, difficult to hear speech, during which he justified his actions by  “appropriating the language of the addiction and treatment culture” and declaring himself “sick.”

What exactly is the “language of the addiction and treatment culture” Mr. Williams?

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Can Brain Scans Identify Criminal Tendencies?

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Courtesy of Adrian Raine

Courtesy of Adrian Raine

Several years ago, I attended a lunch discussion with the Nobel Prize winner, Eric Kandel, where we had a lively discussion about whether someone could be born missing a part of their brain that tells them the difference between right and wrong. Dr. Kandel predicted the use of brain scans would become commonplace in courtrooms in the future. They would be used by defense attorneys to explain violence.

I don’t like to reprint articles here but this Op Ed piece in The Washington Post is well worth your time.

Can Brain Scans Explain Crime?

By Adrian Raine and Sally Satel, Published: June 7 in The Washington Post.

University of Pennsylvania neuroscientist Adrian Raine, author of “The Anatomy of Violence,” believes that advances in brain imagery are helping to explain the biological roots of crime. American Enterprise Institute scholar and psychiatrist Sally Satel, co-author of “Brainwashed,” is wary of the seduction of brain scans. The Washington Post brought them together for a conversation about the promises and pitfalls of brain imagery. An abridged version of that conversation follows.

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White House Ignores Our Sons and Daughters In Jails and Prisons

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obama

I’m grateful to the Rev. Alan Johnson for writing yesterday about the White House summit on mental health. As you might imagine, I have a different take, as I explained in an editorial that USA TODAY posted online yesterday.

President Obama deserves credit for hosting a White House summit on mental health on Monday, but the White House forgot to invite the people who arguably deal daily with more mentally ill persons than anyone else.

No police officers, sheriff’s deputies, correctional officers, probation officers or judges spoke at the summit. No high ranking Justice Department official attended. Nor was there any detailed mention by the president or his hand-picked speakers about the recent mass murders committed by young men with diagnosed mental disorders in Newtown, Conn., Aurora, Colo., and Tucson or on the Virginia Tech campus.

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After Newtown: An Emotional Day Telling Congress About Mental Illness

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Emotions are difficult to control. You think you can keep them in check and most days you can, and then they rise up.

Seconds before I was scheduled to testify Tuesday before the U.S. House subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations at a public forum entitled: “After Newtown: A National Conversation on Violence and Severe Mental Illness,” I felt my emotions taking hold. Tears began welling in my eyes and my voice started to crack.

I was angry at my lack of self control.

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A Dangerous Tipping Point: Hurried Laws, Increased Stigma

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I want to thank everyone who has posted a comment here since Friday about what I should tell a congressional subcommittee when I speak tomorrow (Tuesday) on Capitol Hill. I’ve  received a number of detailed and thoughtful suggestions. As I was going through them, I was reminded of just how wise many of you are. It’s one reason why I enjoy writing this blog. I hope you will share your comments with your local, state,  and national elected leaders.

I was told over the weekend that I will be given a total of  three minutes to speak. The  subcommittee will then ask questions.  Obviously, I can only make a few key points in such a short period.  However, I will  be allowed to submit written testimony and  I intend to submit  most of the comments that you have posted. I want your voices heard!

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What Should I Tell Congress?

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I generally publish a blog from my files each Friday. However, I have been invited to participate in a forum entitled “After Newtown: A National Conversation on Violence and Severe Mental Illness” on March 5th, before an investigative subcommittee of the  U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

I mentioned in last Monday’s blog that Reps. Tim Murphy (R-Pa.) and Diana DeGette (D-Co.) are holding the forum and I’m thrilled to report that Pat and Debbie Milam also have been invited to give testimony. I wrote about the death of their son, Matthew,  in a blog entitled: A Father Grieves: No One Listened to Parents.

Along with my formal invitation came a list of potential questions that might be asked at the forum, which will begin at 10 a.m. in Room 2123 of the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington D.C. and is open to the public.  I don’t know if it will be covered by C-Span but hope it will.

Okay, now is your chance to sound off.  Here are the questions:

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