Have you ever heard a positive story about someone with mental illness on the news?  If you have, you are in a minority.  The news seems to target those with mental illness by choosing to publish/ air stories of the people with mental illness who have committed crimes, rather than targeting positive stories about those with mental illness.  Does this mean that more people with mental illness commit crimes?  Absolutely not. 

It is a proven fact that people with mental illness are more likely to be victims than perpitrators of crime.   So, why does our media insist on going for the stories that are about mentally ill people committing crimes?  Well, it would seem, that public interest has something to do with it.  Many people love to read a crime story like that just like they like to look at a car wreck on the road. 

How can we make the change?  Well, let's boycott!  If enough people stop buying magazines/ newspapers, etc where these things are written, that should help.  If we do not read about mentally ill people who commit crimes on blogs/ other internet sites, they will publish something different.  If we ignore newscasts of this kind, we will no longer see them on television. 

Do you really want skewed media that targets certain less fortunate populations and makes them look bad?  By making some simple changes in the type of media that you read/ watch, you can do your part to end mental illness stigma, and help those of us who have a mental illness but are contributing positively to the world to be heard!

Be Well.
~Emily