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NAMI StigmaBuster alert: July 1, 2005
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www.nami.org/stigma
Contact:
smarch@nami.org***************
Boos For Cruise
***************
Protests have grown steadily since actor Tom Cruise, while
promoting the movie, œThe War of the Worlds,? first
criticized actress Brooke Shields for taking
antidepressants for postpartum depression.
On June 24, Cruise finally crossed a line when in a TODAY
Show television interview, he declared: œThere is no such
thing as a chemical imbalance.? In an Entertainment Weekly
interview, he also compared psychiatry to Nazism.
Along with the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and
National Mental Health Association (NMHA), NAMI condemned
Cruise™s remarks in a formal statement released to the news
media. He is entitled to his personal point of view, but
not false facts”particularly when they perpetuate stigma
around the nature of mental illness and treatment.
http://www.nami.org/Templat....D=24249Some StigmaBusters have called for a symbolic boycott of
the new movie. Realistically, there™s little hope of making
a dent in the millions of dollars in profits it is expected
to rake in. But every individual can make a choice based on
personal conscience”and write letters to editors condemning
the irresponsibility of his remarks.
Cruise also has spread his views as part of a Paramount
Studios publicity tour for the movie. Don™t let the studio
off the hook. Please contact its head to make the following
points:
**Mental illnesses involve biological brain disorders, no
matter what Tom Cruise says. Medication and proper therapy
often make a difference between life and death.
**It is irresponsible for Paramount Studios and Mr. Cruise
to use a movie publicity tour to promote an ideological
view that deters people with mental illness from getting
the care they need”and adds to stigma.
**Paramount Studio should help undo the damage. Support
legitimate mental health organizations and public awareness
campaigns around mental illnesses.
Brad Grey
Chairman & CEO
Paramount Studios
5555 Melrose Avenue
Hollywood, California 90038
323-956-5000
323-862-1204 (fax)
Brad.Grey@paramountstudios.com*****************************
Batman Begins, Stigma Returns
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œBatman Begins,? could have been a great movie, except for
one horribly stigmatizing aspect of its plot that is based
on violent stereotypes.
One of the villains is a corrupt psychiatrist. He is part
of a conspiracy to put hallucinogens into Gotham City™s
water supply, which when vaporized, will cause people to
have psychotic episodes -- during which they will start
tearing each other apart, causing the city to destroy
itself. For the first wave of violence, inmates in the
insane asylum are unlocked and sent into the streets.
The ending suggests a second movie to come, with the Joker
as a villain.
Please write the studio:
**They ruined a great story by criminalizing mental illness
and perpetuating violent stereotypes.
**They have undermined the US Surgeon General™s and
President Bush's call for an end to stigma and support for
recovery.
**In the next Batman movie”if there is one”please instead
portray a hero with a mental illness; shown not for terror
or comedy; but as an example of courage and recovery.
Barry Meyer
Chairman and CEO
Warner Brothers Entertainment
Building 2, Executive Suite
4000 Warner Boulevard,
Burbank, CA 91522
818-954-6000
818-954-6794 (fax)
barry.meyer@warnerbros.comStella March, National Coordinator
NAMI StigmaBusters
NAMI StigmaBuster Alert: July 1, 2005, Boos For Cruise |
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Depression Forums - A Depression & Mental Health Community Support Group > DEPRESSION RELATED FORUMS > Psych Education 101 > Mental illness and stigma: Coping with the ridicule
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Jul 1 2005, 01:03 PM
