Dominion Post
The Issue
On 27 February 2010, the Dominion Post published an article entitle "Residents upset by 'nuthouse' project". It outlined the concerns of residents in Napier about a proposed residential centre for clients with experience of depression or bipolar disorder. The Whatever It Takes organisation (Wit) spokesman, Doug Banks, said he was appalled by the opposition to the project.
The Response
From Case Consulting
Dear Sir,
It was very disappointing to see the headline “Residents upset by ‘nuthouse’ project” in your newspaper for two reasons.
First, the use of the word “nuthouse” in the headline is highly offensive and normalises the use of discriminatory language against a vulnerable and stigmatised group of people, namely people with experience of mental illness. Second, the article highlights that the NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) syndrome is disappointingly alive and well in our communities.
The New Zealand Mental Health Survey (2006) showed that 46.6% of the population will meet the criteria for mental disorder at some time in their lives. With half the country’s population affected at any given time that means we all have friends, family, colleagues who will experience mental illness. When they need support and assistance, are they to be hidden away from our communities and locked up in the asylums of old?
The Like Minds, Like Mine programme has been educating people about the real experience of mental illness and challenging unhelpful stereotypes and attitudes towards those who experience it for 13 years. The current focus is on changing people’s behaviour by highlighting that “What You Do Makes the Difference”. Research shows the programme is working with people more open about discussing mental illness and more likely to step forward and support a friend or family member. As a country we are finally bringing mental illness out into the open at last.
Articles like this, which reinforce negative stereotypes that people with experience of mental illness are dangerous and violent, only serves to maintain the status quo of fear and ignorance.
Yours sincerely,
Darcey Jane
Like Minds, Like Mine Project Manager
Case Consulting
The Outcome
Real experience of mental illness (the letter as published)
You too can respond to media coverage that you believe is stigmatising or discriminatory. Visit our Media Watch section for a step-by-step guide on how to make a complaint.
