SURPRISE ATTACK BEFORE HE GETS HIS
DAY IN COURT!
PAUL HENRI THOMAS IS SCHEDULED FOR ANOTHER
FORCED ELECTROSHOCK
*TOMORROW* -- Friday, February 23, 2001 GRASSROOTS
HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS PLEAD: "PLEASE
RE-DOUBLE YOUR OUTREACH TO NEW
YORK STATE ELECTED OFFICIALS!"
WEST BRENTWOOD, NEW YORK: Paul
Henri Thomas just phoned
the Support Coalition International office a few minutes
ago with surprise news that is now confirmed by grassroots
advocates in NY State, and Paul's attorneys.
Pilgrim Psychiatric Center plans to give Paul another involuntary
forced electroshock, over his expressed wishes, tomorrow,
in this state facility not far from New York City.
Paul is a 49-year-old black human rights activist, who has
been active in the psychiatric survivors movement.
Paul has already had several dozen forced electroshocks, including
earlier this month on February 9 and 12, 2001.
Paul has been locked up for nearly two years!
Paul now has new attorneys fighting for him, and they did
secure a court date for
Friday, March 2, 2001, one week from tomorrow, to
try to stop further forced electroshocks.
Pilgrim Psychiatric Center promised to suspend his forced electroshocks
so he could prepare for his hearing a week from tomorrow.
His lawyers accepted the verbal agreement in good faith.
But in a surprise move, Pilgrim Executive Director Alan
Weinstock decided to cave
in to his medical staff. Weinstock agreed to another forced
electroshock *before* Paul has even had his day in court!
ZAP BACK NOW!!!!!
Paul's attorneys are
desperately trying to file a temporary restraining
order, but court doesn't open until 9 am tomorrow.
This kind of threat is emotionally harmful.
Paul told us just now, "This is extremely strange in the
context of subtle
psychological torture. Do whatever is possible to stop
it."
Paul has been told how hundreds of you are now championing his
freedom, and contacting New York elected officials. The offices
of several elected officials have said they will investigate.
Paul said, "Thank you, I appreciate it. It's strange that
some people [at Pilgrim and
OMH] are not embarrassed at all."
There is now a "PAUL CAMPAIGN SITE" on the Support Coalition
International web site, where you can see the latest
alerts, photos of Paul and Pilgrim Psychiatric Center, Paul's
poem, smuggled out notes, and the list of 13 drug Paul is
prescribed -- many of them powerful forced psychiatric drugs.
See: http://mindfreedom.org/
ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE NOW!
1. E-MAIL NEW YORK STATE
ELECTED OFFICIALS NOW! (AGAIN!
AND AGAIN!)
Please go to the original alert
on Paul on Feb. 13, 2001, and e-mail
elected officials there. If you've already e-mailed them, please
E-MAIL THEM AGAIN. Here's the link:
http://mindfreedom.org/mindfreedom/news/010213_b.shtml
This is at the request of the grassroots group Paul belongs
to,
"Long Island Consumer/Survivors/Ex-Patients
Coalition."
(Please note a few of the e-mail addresses of NY elected
officials inside that alert
may bounce. We are editing that list, adding others, and
the new list should be included as a link inside the above
alert in just a few
minutes.)
Also note at the bottom of that alert are other actions you
can take, including
"zapping back" by making civil calls to internal phone
numbers of staff within the Office of Mental Health:
http://www.omh.state.ny.us/omhweb/aboutomh/central_office.html
An anonymous mental health professional inside the Office of
Mental Health has called to say that electroshock is widespread
within OMH, including coerced and forced electroshock.
This professional has seen it himself.
Another OMH official anonymously contacted us to say that
these alerts are *working* that hundreds are e-mailing,
and elected officials are contacting them.
DON'T QUIT! REDOUBLE YOUR
EFFORTS! KEEP IT UP!
2. CONTACT THE MEDIA!
The author Thomas Szasz
encourages you to break the mainstream
media silence about forced shock in the USA!
For example, you can contact the _New York Times_ and their
writers and editors by following instructions on this past
alert:
http://mindfreedom.org/mindfreedom/news/010218.shtml
Please also contact other media, and write letters to the
editor.
Update: Listen to the
national radio show "Natural Living with Gary Null" on
Monday, February 26, 2001. David Oaks, director of Support
Coalition International, will be focusing on global forced
psychiatry, especially Paul's forced electroshock.
The Gary Null show is available as a "regular" radio
show in selected radio
stations in Calif, District of Columbia, Indiana, Maine,
NY, ND, OK, VT, Virginia, State of Washington, and Wisc. The
show is broadcast at different times (such as at noon
eastern time on WBAI in New York City). For more info:
http://www.garynull.com/Null_on_the_Air.htm
The show is also broadcast on the Internet:
http://www.garynull.com/webcast.htm
3. HELP MAKE MORE IN-DEPTH
CONTACT WITH NEW YORK STATE
ELECTED OFFICIALS AND STAFF!
In just one week after Support
Coalition's original alert, several
offices for New York State elected officials say they will
investigate forced electroshock. KEEP UP THE PRESSURE!
You will be joining with many others -- together! Paul -- and all
of us -- are counting on you!
Below is a link to an alert especially for NEW YORK STATE
RESIDENTS.
http://mindfreedom.org/mindfreedom/reach_ny.shtml
Anyone can follow these directions from anywhere in the world.
Following these easy steps, you can personally get civil
messages to many New York State elected officials and their staff
-- by phone, fax, mail, etc. Keep it up. Every New York State
resident has *five* elected state and federal officials.
*** IF YOU KNOW ANYONE IN NEW
YORK STATE, PLEASE FORWARD
THIS TO THEM AND ASK THAT THEY CONTACT ALL
THEIR ELECTED OFFICIALS NOW!!! ***
Use mutual support, the engine
of social change in the psychiatric
human rights movement! How? You can....
BUDDY UP WITH OUT OF STATE FOLKS! If you are out of state, ask
people inside New York State if you can help them do their outreach
-- you can compose messages for them to e-mail and fax, etc.
You can help phone for them. You can follow-up to ask if they received
a response. Elected officials will often *only* answer inquiries
from constituents in their district. Keep it up!
DENDRITE is a public Internet
alert system about human rights in psychiatry, sponsored by
Support Coalition International, sending out notices to
thousands of concerned people, many of whom take ACTION NOW!
Support Coalition International is an independent non-profit
federation of more than 70 groups in 11 countries united to WIN
campaigns for human rights in the "mental health
system." For info on Support Coalition, see the web site: www.efn.org/~dendron
