June 19 is the second anniversary of the death of Esmin Green. She sat in a waiting room of a New York Hospital for over 24 hours. She collapsed and laid on the floor for an hour and died– in full view of staff and patients…unhelped and unnoticed. She is the horror story of what it means to be labeled with an emotional illness in this country. Hers is not the only story. The real horror is that there are many, many more. I have a friend who was very suicidal. Her only option was to go to the state hospital. I will never forget what she told me….”I will die first before I go to that place….”
Please do not forget Esmin Green. She deserves better than that. And better yet speak up for all the Esmin Greens. We all deserve better than that.
(Thank you Larry Drain from the Hopeworks Community blog for reminding me)
Laura Tenney of the Opal Project has more information on the vigil here, and how to get there, and other PDF docs for download.
If you want to know why should we care- it's because what happened to Ms. Green should have never happened in the first place, and for those of us who have been to these hospitals- may it never happen again. RIP Ms. Green.
If you want to know why should we care- it's because what happened to Ms. Green should have never happened in the first place, and for those of us who have been to these hospitals- may it never happen again. RIP Ms. Green.
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5 comments:
This is shocking...truly shocking, and disgusting. The indifference of people makes me wanna cry sometimes. I know how it feels to be left alone...my father once collapsed in the middle of the street and no one did something even though I screamed for help...they just stared at me as though I was a lunatic. Even some passing paramedics didn't wanna help me they just told me: 'That's not our problem...call someone' On that day I lost most of my faith in other people...
Oh my goodness, I had never heard of this. What a horrible, horrible story. But I think the saddest thing is that it doesn't surprise me. Psych ERs and psych units have essentially become holding cells for people until they "get better," although I'm not terribly sure what that means.
This is obviously a tragedy that should not have happened and could have been avoided.
News from We the People
For more information contact: Lauren Tenney, 516-319-4295
Psychiatric Survivors and Allies Hold Demonstration and Vigil in Remembrance of Esmin Green
Survivors of Psychiatric Atrocities and Allies to Speak out and Hold a Vigil in Honor of Esmin Green Who Was Murdered-by-Neglect at the Kings County Hospital Center Psychiatric Emergency Room
BROOKLYN, NY (06/17/2010)(readMedia)-- WE THE PEOPLE began as an alliance of people who were accused of and treated for "mental illness". We have survived with our lives, unlike Ms. Green. However, our liberty, our health, and our futures continue to be under the threat of the therapeutic state - and so is yours.
Sanford Rubenstein, the attorney for the family of Ms. Green will be speaking at the press conference. He urges, "Only by people speaking out and remembering what happened to Esmin Green can we prevent others from suffering her fate".
Also speaking out will be people who survived commitment at Kings County Hospital Center and now work to make sure others do not have to experience what they were subjected to and Assemblyman Felix Ortiz, Chair of the Mental Health Committee (invited).On June 19 it will be two years since Esmin Green was murdered-by- neglect at the Kings County Hospital Center Psychiatric Emergency Room. In February 2010, it was reported by the media that a male "patient" was raped by an employee of Kings County who was charged for the crime. As recently as April 27, 2010 more citations of abuses were published in the news.
Not only does this abuse and torture happen - but it happens in the multi-million dollar new psychiatric building. This was supposed to end murder, abuse, rape, and torture of people confined within its walls - after the City agreed to court monitoring because of the abuses and torture that people were subjected to while detained in the facility.
SOME OF OUR QUESTIONS:
Department of Justice; Center for Medicaid/Medicare Services; Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration; Health and Hospitals Corporation; New York City Department of Mental Hygiene; New York State Office of Mental Health; Commission on Quality Care; --- where are you?
Why are independent external advocates still not allowed into this facility?
Why is the government paying for this with millions of tax-dollars pumped into this place?
Why is the NYPD Department of Investigations report siting multiple systemic problems being ignored?
When is the Grand Jury going to present a bill?
The experience of involuntarily detainment in a psychiatric emergency room or in a psychiatric institution is tantamount to torture.
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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This is so sad and totally inhumane. Why didn't someone help this poor woman?
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