UPDATE ON THE VIGIL FOR ESMIN GREEN

Demonstrate your support
Condemn human rights violations

Posted: July 23, 2008

WE THE PEOPLE
Contact: Lauren J. Tenney, MA, MPA, Psychiatric Survivor

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Cell: 516-319-4295
e-mail: lauren@theopalproject.org
website: www.theopalproject.org/vigil.html

A DEMONSTRATION AND CANDLE LIGHT VIGIL TO MOURN THE LOSS OF MS. ESMIN ELIZABETH GREEN AND CONDEMN HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS.

WE THE PEOPLE Call For An End Of Abuse, Torture, And Neglect In The Wake Of Ms. Green's Death On June 19, 2008, While Detained At Kings County Hospital Center's Psychiatric Emergency Room.

The death of Esmin Green is indicative of a failure in the system that was supposed to be there to care for her. The solution to protecting the lives and dignity of people with psychiatric histories is not simply to increase staff and services and/or to improve staff training. As evidenced by Ms. Green’s death, these measures are nothing more than temporary band-aids that consistently fail. Fully implementing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) is a real solution that will promote respect, human rights, and dignity of people who have a psychiatric history. The principles of the CRPD include respect for inherent dignity and individual autonomy including the freedom to make one’s own choices; non-discrimination; the respect for differences; and acceptance of persons with disabilities as part of human diversity and humanity. Clearly, several articles in the CRPD contain protections that might have saved Esmin Green’s life.

Other International law has been violated as well including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention Against Torture, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. (For more information about the CRPD and other protections see www.mindfreedom.org; www.theopalproject.org/vigil.html.)

Daniel Hazen, of the Law Project for Psychiatric Rights (PsychRights®) and Stop Force said, "This could only happen within a system that uniformly ignores complaints of physical problems by people who have been labeled with serious mental illness. This is particularly dangerous because of the extremely harmful nature of psychiatric drugs. Was Ms. Green's medical emergency in any way related to the toxic and debilitating psychiatric drugs she might have been taking, possibly through intimidation, coercion, or force? This seems likely in light of the known connection between such drugs and fatal leg blood clots. A thorough investigation is necessary."

The experience of involuntarily detainment in a psychiatric emergency room or in a psychiatric institution is tantamount to torture. Human rights and feminist activist Kate Millett during the negotiations on the UN Convention on the subject of forced treatment and confinement of persons with disabilities stated, “The power of an entire civilization massed against one lone individual. Every phone and lock and guard and drug . . . Everything conspires to make you completely alone and terrified. Malleable. These are the conditions of torture”.

David Gonzalez, founder and Senior Consultant of the Recovery x-Change and a former patient of the “G” Building at Kings County Hospital Center will be speaking at the demonstration. Gonzalez states, “What has brought Ms. Green’s appalling death to public scrutiny is not that it was unusual or uncommon in any way, but that it was caught on video. The lack of compassion, callous indifference, and subsequent cover-up exposes not only the hypocrisy which allows this type of systemic abuse to take place under the guise of treatment, but more importantly exposes the perversion of institutional psychiatry”.

On July 25, 2008, we invite all people to join us and stand united in support of the demand that everyone receive the full benefit of their human rights and the preservation of their liberty, dignity, and respect. There are vigils happening all over the world for Ms. Green on July 25, 2008 to stand in solidarity with New Yorkers. If you can attend the vigil or not, on Friday, July 25, 2008, call Governor Patterson (518) 474-8390, Mayor Bloomberg, (212) NEW-YORK, and your elected Representatives to express your outrage about Ms. Green's murder and insist that the City of New York stand in full compliance with International law and Human Rights.

Who: All People.

What: A demonstration and candle light vigil to mourn the loss of Ms. Esmin Elizabeth Green and condemn human rights violations.

Why: WE THE PEOPLE call for an end of abuse, torture, and neglect in the wake of Ms. Green's death on June 19, 2008, while detained at Kings County Hospital Center's Psychiatric Emergency Room.

Where: Kings County Hospital Center, Psychiatric Emergency Room, Building G. 606 Winthrop Street Brooklyn, NY 11203

Date: July 25, 2008

Time: Demonstration begins at 5 PM, Candle Light Vigil, 8:30 PM

Websites: www.theopalproject.org/vigil.html www.mindfreedom.org

If you would like to co-sponsor or endorse this demonstration, vigil, and its follow up forums, please contact us.

WE THE PEOPLE
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Special thanks to Myra Kovary, UN Representative of MindFreedom International, for drafting this press release For more information or to schedule an interview, please contact:

Contact: Lauren J. Tenney
Cell: 516-319-4295
e-mail: lauren@theopalproject.org
website: www.theopalproject.org/vigil.html

Contact: David W. Oaks
Phone: 541-345-9106
e-mail: office@mindfreedom.org
website: www.mindfreedom.org

(for information about co-sponsors, individual endorsers, and directions to the vigil, see here.)