Comments Off on Happy Groundhog Day! Friday, Feb 2, 2018, Win Human Rights in Mental Health!
Especially for those of you who live in Eugene, this Friday you are invited to join us at the LILA Peer Support Club, free. We will build MindFreedom Oregon and then have fun on the stage with folk singer David Rogers and others.
Who? David Rogers, folk singer. Chrissy Peirsol & David Oaks, revolutionary psychiatric survivor activists. You! Free, public, all ages welcome.
Before, you are invited to the 1:30 meeting at the back of LILA Peer Support Club, for the revival of MindFreedom Oregon.
After our indoors event, those of us who wish will then go to nearby Kesey Square, Broadway & Willamette, where Food Not Bombs (FNB) serves yummy, free, hot food every Friday afternoon!
This is a First Fri, so you can also celebrate Eugene’s art.
Comments Off on Eugene Men Who Survived Sexual Assault Now Have Free Weekly Support Meetup
Eugene, Oregon, USA.
Thankfully, the USA culture is discussing more than ever the hidden oppression of sexual assault against women. However, men who have had their lives disrupted by unwanted or abusive sexual experiences might not have felt the same level of support or not known where to turn. A local respected nonprofit here in Eugene, Oregon, Sexual Assault Support Services, has mainly worked with female survivors, but they have a resource for male survivors.
Many group meetings for counseling have a formal expectation for attending, but this meetup is more informal, and participants may decide to drop in at the last minute, and may attend any of the weekly gatherings or take a break. Their choice. The group has two experienced, thoughtful and supportive counselors to help the peer support be empowered but safe.
Below is from their flyer, the group is active now, January 2018. If you want to double check that the group is being held each week, check their website.
From the SASS flyer about the Eugene, Oregon weekly men’s meetup:
MEN’S MEET-UP
You are invited to be a part of a free & confidential mentoring group lead by trained facilitators who work to strategize with, & empower men who have experienced unwanted sexual contact at any point in their life. Come, be of support to others & find support for yourself!
This group is for self-identified males 18+
When: Thursday’s 4:30 to 6:00 PM
Where: 591 West 19th Ave. Eugene (Corner of 19th & Jefferson), Oregon. Call with questions, or just drop in! Door locks at 4:35 as no late arrivals allowed.
[To repeat, SASS is the respected sponsor of this free weekly meetup. MindFreedom Oregon and I are not organizers, but are strong endorsers and you can find our listing of this event on fb here: https://www.facebook.com/events/354136108328973/ ]
You are invited to a free celebration by David Oaks:
“It’s Been 5 Years Since My Accident!”
Where: Cuckoo’s Nest Stage
LILA Peer Support Club
990 Oak St, Eugene
(NW corner 8th & Oak)
Date: Friday, Dec 1, 2017
Time: Starts at 3 pm
Who? Confirmed: David Rogers, folk singer. Howard Falk, stand-up comedian. Sarah Smith, MindFreedom International. Chrissy Peirsol & David Oaks, revolutionary psychiatric survivor activists. Libbie Rascon, Office of Consumer Activities. Dale Kegley. Debra Nunez. Surprise guests. You! Free, public, peaceful, all ages welcome.
Before, you are invited to the 1:30 meeting at the back of LILA Peer Support Club, for the revival of MindFreedom Oregon. After our indoors celebration, those of us who wish will then go to nearby Kesey Square, Broadway & Willamette, where Food Not Bombs (FNB) serves yummy, free, hot food every Friday afternoon!
This is a First Friday, so you can also then celebrate Eugene’s art.
Comments Off on Celebrate a Victory! Kesey Square is now officially Kesey Square in Eugene, Oregon.
This Friday, November 3, 2017 at 3 pm we have a special free event planned, especially if you are in or near Eugene, Oregon. Celebrate the fact that the City Council has officially proclaimed that the center square in our city is Kesey Square, named after a wonderful writer and friend of our movement, Ken Kesey (1935-2001).
You are invited to a free celebration of
Kesey Square is now officially Kesey Square!
Where : Cuckoo’s Nest Stage
LILA Peer Support Club
990 Oak St, Eugene
(NW corner 8th & Oak)
Date : Friday, November 3, 2017
Time : Starts at 3 pm
Who ? David Rogers, folk singer. Sarah Smith, MindFreedom
International. David Oaks, revolutionary psychiatric survivor activist.
Libbie Rascon, Office of Consumer Activities. Lynne Mckinney.
Surprise guests. You! Free, public, peaceful, all ages welcome.
Celebrate a legacy of Ken Kesey, author of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s
Nest . The City of Eugene has officially named Kesey Square.
After our indoors celebration, those of us who wish will then go to nearby
Kesey Square, Broadway & Willamette, where Food Not Bombs (FNB)
serves yummy, free, hot food every Friday afternoon! Donations of
nonperishable food (no meat or dairy please) encouraged for FNB!
This is a First Friday, so you can also then celebrate Eugene’s art.
Sponsored by MindFreedom Oregon
Comments Off on Preparing for an Altered State: “Intensive Care Unit Psychosis”
David W. Oaks says “Honk 4 Revolution.”
Many people seem to think that only a parentage of folks ever experience extreme and overwhelming states of mind. Actually, thousands of everyday people go through the trauma of ICU and go through what is commonly called “madness.” I know, because since my fall in 2012 I have been through this a bunch. While I hope I never go through ICU again, even though everyone was nice, here are the ways I am preparing just in case I do.
Maybe you and everyone else should too?
I have a short video to myself to watch if I ever go through this again.
I have a great supported decision making team, both here in Eugene and internationally.
I also have a brief video to my team, in case I am ever considered unable to make a decision.
Yes, I have an advanced directive already that says that I only agree to voluntary mental health care ever, but the above help do more, especially support the people closest to me, who I so much love.
Everyone is always in an altered state, always. There is no normality. But we each need to be ready in case we enter especially vulnerable territory.
Comments Off on Eugene Weekly: Why I’m a Write-In Candidate to Replace Rep. Pete DeFazio (D-OR)
Rep. Pete DeFazio, a progressive who has represented us in Eugene, Oregon since 1987. I have supported him, even when he has been grumpy. Now I am a write-in candidate to replace Pete.
Update 22 October 2016: At the bottom you will now find a rebuttal from Rep. DeFazio.
The main alternative paper here in Eugene, Oregon ran my letter to the editor about why I am running (or rolling) as write-in candidate to replace Rep. Pete DeFazio.
Eugene Weekly, October 6, 2016:
MENTAL HEALTH LAWS
Rep. Pete DeFazio sadly co-sponsored the worst piece of mental health legislation I have seen in 42 years of human rights activism. HR 2646 is more than 100 pages long, so mainly lobbyists seem to know the details. The worst part is that this bill extends federal financial support for involuntary outpatient psychiatric treatment.
In other words, Americans living peacefully in their own homes could be court-ordered to take psychiatric drugs against their will. I call this approach the “Bill Cosby School of Mental Health.”
I have supported Pete for decades and interacted with Pete personally several times. He’s always been kind of grouchy. That is OK; everyone has a different style. But if Pete legislates for involuntary psychiatry despite many constituents trying to explain why this is horrifying, then we have the right to ask, “Has Pete ever had a mental health check-up himself?” If not, will he?
Those of us with psychiatric labels appear to be one of the last groups that get thrown under the bus, by both Democrats and Republicans. I hope the Senate stops the bill.
Following the revolutionary Micah White’s strategy, I have decided to place my name as a write-in candidate for Congress.
David Oaks, Eugene
Update News:
Your feedback, questions, support are encouraged via the public comment area at the end of this blog. Also, please use Rep. Pete DeFazio’s website to ask about this topic. Even though I hope much of mu blog is humorous, I do want to take the moral road about elections and mental health. Please ask Pete to do the same, because this bill will probably be back in some version or other.
By coincidence, today I was also on the teleconference for the National Counsel on Independent Living Mental Health Civil Rights Subcommittee. Thankfully, we heard a report that the US Senate has not acted to vote for this Murphy bill. The Senate has not taken pieces of the Murphy bill to become amendments in a new mental health bill, either.
Because of the election next month, Congress is highly unlikely to pass any big bill about mental health. Of course we should stay vigilant. But mainly we should be prepared for the new session in 2017.
I said on the teleconference that we need to move from a quiet, group-oriented, Washington D.C. beltway, Facebook-based campaign to a transparent, national, people-power approach. Remember our mantra: Nothing about us without us! We need to learn from past disability campaigns that we need thousands of folks all over the country to not only stop Murphy, but to also win ratification of the historic UN treaty for disability rights.
Here are more places to learn about some of these issues:
On October 20, Eugene Weekly published a response from Rep. DeFazio:
MENTAL HEALTH PROGRESS
In the Oct. 6 edition of EW, local activist David Oaks claimed that legislation that I co-sponsored, along with 207 other members of the U.S. House of Representatives, would force “Americans living peacefully in their own homes” to take psychiatric drugs under court order. This is simply not factually accurate. The bill, H.R. 2646, includes language that supports assisted outpatient therapy (AOT) programs for those within the community who are found to be mentally unstable and unwilling to seek voluntarily treatment, posing a serious threat to themselves and others. AOT is usually in the form of case management and personal therapy programs and does not necessarily require medical intervention. As I hope Mr. Oaks is aware, Oregon law already authorized AOT and Oregon’s statute is clear: AOT does not include forced medication. H.R. 2646 passed the House with a bi-partisan vote of 422-2. This common sense legislation was a huge step forward in improving our mental health system, and I’m proud to be a co-sponsor.
Peter DeFazio, 4th Congressional District Candidate, Eugene
Especially for those of you who live in Eugene, this Friday you are invited to join us at the LILA Peer Support Club, free. We will build MindFreedom Oregon and then have fun on the stage with folk singer David Rogers and others.
