NAMI StigmaBusters
December 23, 2002
NAMI StigmaBusters are dedicated to fighting ignorance, prejudice and
discrimination surrounding mental illnesses—while commending media leaders who
communicate accurate messages to the public. Stigma discourages people from
getting help when they need it. It dehumanizes individuals. It contributes to
the lack of investment in the mental healthcare system, with catastrophic costs
and consequences. The time to act is now. NAMI StigmaBusters number almost
10,000. Numbers count, so let your voice be heard as part of NAMI’s Campaign for
the Mind of America!
Contact: smarch@nami.org
CONTENTS:
• Harry Potter's Offensive Secret (Update)
• Northern Sun Listens
• Insanity Test Dropped
• Lunatix Online
• Out of Our Inbox
=======================================
HARRY POTTER'S OFFENSIVE SECRET
NAMI has continued to receive complaints about the final scene in the movie
"Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets," in which after the credits, a
stereotyped image of mental illness appears. Professor Gilderoy Lockhart--a
pompous, fraudulent, and cowardly wizard--early in the movie tries to cast a
"memory charm" to cause people to forget. When it backfires, he "loses his mind"
and can't remember his own name. The final scene shows the cover of Lockhart’s
latest book, entitled "Who Am I?" with a picture of him in a straitjacket.
Because pictures in Harry Potter's magical world move and talk, Lockhart also is
shown wiggling and mumbling aimlessly.
www.Tolerance.org, a Web project of the
Southern Poverty Law Center, which focuses broadly on prejudice and
discrimination issues, has joined NAMI in encouraging protests of the scene. See
e.g.,
www.tolerance.org/news/article_tol.jsp?id=651. The movie’s distributor,
Warner Brothers (WB), has not yet decided whether to respond.
StigmaBusters are asked to renew and continue contacting WB over the holidays,
emphasizing the following points:
• Both President Bush and the U.S. Surgeon General have spoken out strongly
about the need to eliminate stigma.
• Straitjackets are stereotyped symbols of mental illness that actually
represent profound pain and suffering. The scene is an insult to anyone with
schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or dementia.
• It is especially disturbing because the movie is targeted to young audiences
whose attitudes often are greatly influenced by such stereotypes, and yet also
are greatly at risk of mental illness.
• The scene tarnishes WB’s reputation for sensitivity or compassion concerning
mental illness, such as the six episodes in 2001 of the television series ER,
starring Sally Field as a character with bipolar disorder, which received one of
NAMI’s Outstanding Media Awards.
• The scene is completely unnecessary to the plot of the movie. NAMI calls not
for censorship of the creative arts, but for exercise of corporate social
responsibility. Ask that WB voluntarily remove the scene, and any related
outtakes, from the video and DVD versions of the movie that still have not yet
be released.
Contact: Barry Meyer, Chairman & CEO
Warner Brothers
4000 Warner Boulevard
Burbank CA 91522
Phone: 818-977-7900
Fax: 818-954-6523
=======================================
NORTHERN SUN LISTENS
Northern Sun is located in Minneapolis, where NAMI will hold its next national
convention on June 28- July 2, 2003. Its catalogue featured a T-shirt with the
message: "I can’t go to work today." The Voices said stay home and clean the
guns. After NAMI explained that the message promoted stigma by linking mental
illness (specifically auditory hallucinations) with violence, CEO Scott Cramer
decided to discontinue its production. He welcomes suggestions by NAMI
StigmaBusters of inoffensive, humorous messages. If any are used, he will pay
the contributor a royalty fees. This could be a unique opportunity for creative
consumers and family members who long have harbored ideas for antistigma
messages of hope, pride and recovery.
Please send a message thanking Northern Sun for listening and responding to
NAMI’s concerns. If only all individuals and businesses were as open- minded!
(To demonstrate gratitude even more dramatically, consider ordering something
from the catalogue). See
www.northernsun.com. Click on "Rewards" for information about how to submit
an idea or design.
Contact: Scott Cramer, CEO
Northern Sun
2916 East Lake Street
Minneapolis, MN 55406
Phone: 1-800-258-8579 or
612-729-2001
Fax: 612-729-0149
info@northernsun.com
=======================================
INSANITY TEST DROPPED
In response to StigmaBuster concerns, Spark Notes LLB has dropped the "Insanity
Test" from www.thespark.com, a commercial
Website that targets high school and college students. Please send a message of
appreciation and ask that they remain alert to stigma issues and the mental
health crisis that affects many young people today.
SparkNotes LLB
76 9th Avenue, 9th Floor
New York, N.Y. 10011
Comments@staff.thespark.com
=======================================
LUNATIX ONLINE
We apologize for any confusion or misinformation that resulted from the October
Alert item about "Lunatix Online", which relied on information from the
Multiplayer Online Games Directory [
www.mpogd.com ] rather than the actual game or its owner. Unfortunately, we
also misspelled MPOGD’s Web address in the original Alert.
Lunatix Online is a relatively small game that has been around since 1995, with
only a few hundred regular subscribers. It is as much a close community of
friends--including consumers and family members--as people playing the roles of
mental patients "locked away in a wacky insane asylum in a crazy quest to
escape." It is not a major commercial enterprise and does not include any
advertisements.
Following StigmaBuster protests, NAMI engaged in a positive dialogue with the
game’s owner and several players. We have concluded that the game is not an
appropriate target for protest or public education. Lunatix Online’s owner and
players demonstrated genuine sensitivity to people with mental illnesses in our
discussions. The game is not intended to promote prejudice or to be taken
seriously. Instead, it is a deliberate parody of Hollywood stereotypes of mental
illness and insane asylums, combined with rampant silliness. The parody is the
central premise of the game. Changing it would require eliminating it, which
also would result in the dissolution of the genuine community that has developed
around it over many years. (In one case, a player even noted that she met her
fiancé playing the game). Consumers and family members particularly argued that
they see Lunatix Online as a source of social support and relaxation from the
challenges of their conditions.
"Lunatix" should be a fun game to play. No player should come here and feel as
though they are unwanted, is one of the game’s rules. In an effort to meet
NAMI’s concerns, the owner has volunteered to post a warning and disclaimer on
the Website: i.e., the game is not intended to be offensive, but it also may not
be for everyone. We consider that action a good faith, reasonable compromise.
For StigmaBusters, the case reinforces several points:
• Pick targets carefully and double-check sources
• Don’t assume bad intentions
• It’s important to keep a sense of humor and perspective. In some cases, it may
be difficult to determine exactly where humor ends and stigma begins (or vice
versa), which may be the case as much with "Harry Potter and the Chamber of
Secrets" and "Welcome to the Nut House" this month. That is why respectful
dialogue is important.
• Dialogue works, but it has to flow both ways. In the case of Lunatix Online,
we believe both sides were educated, and the lines of communication we
established may even serve broader, common concerns.
StigmaBusters wishes to thank NAMI Kansas and NAMI Wichita especially for their
support and advice in the Lunatix dialogue.
=======================================
OUT OF OUR INBOX
We receive many diverse messages each month, reports, complaints, questions, and
opinions. We cannot answer all messages because of the huge volume we receive;
however, we appreciate every report and evaluate them all. It also is important
for us to receive copies of replies that you may receive from any Alert targets.
They can be important in pursuing genuine dialogues.
We are grateful for our successes in 2002 and look forward to your continued
support in the new year ahead. A joyous holiday season to all!
Sincerely,
Stella March
NAMI StigmaBusters Coordinator
* * * * *
With more than 220,000 members and 1200 state and local
affiliates, NAMI is the nation's largest grassroots organization dedicated to
improving the lives of people with severe mental illnesses. Funding sources for
NAMI programs include hundreds of state and local governments and foundations;
ten of thousands of individual donors; and a growing number of corporations.
NAMI's greatest asset, however, is its volunteers—who donate an estimated $135
million worth of their time each year to education, support and advocacy. NAMI
does not endorse any specific medication or treatment.
NAMI StigmaBusters Alerts are electronic newsletters provided free of charge as
a public service. Contributions to support our work can be made online through
NAMI’s home page by clicking on "Give to NAMI," or via regular mail. Please make
check payable to NAMI and send to: P.O. Box 79972, Baltimore, MD 21279-0972, or
donate through the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC #0538).
Please forward this Alert if you know someone who might like to join us in
speaking out against stigma or be added to our mailing list. They can sign up
at:
http://www.nami.org/campaign/stigmabust.html.
Last Updated on
04/14/04
webmaster@namiscc.org
