Well, NYU is definitelyt prompt with their replies! I got this email of response just last night:
Dean Robert Grossman, Michael Recanati, and Ira Statfeld forwarded your email to me, and I am responding on their behalf.
The NYU Child Study Center's "Ransom Notes" public service campaign is designed as a provocative wake up to create awareness and spark dialogue about childhood psychiatric disorders, one of America's last remaining silent public health epidemics. Twelve million American children and adolescents face daily battles with psychiatric disorders. Untreated, these children are at risk for academic failure, school dropout, substance abuse, suicide, unemployment, and imprisonment. Children who do receive appropriate treatment, however, can learn to function and thrive.
"Ransom Notes" may be shocking to some, but so are the statistics: suicide is the third leading cause of death among young people ages 15 to 24, and serious emotional problems affect one out of 10 young people, most of whom do not get help. The strong response to this campaign is evidence that our approach is working. We acknowledge the challenges faced by individuals with these disorders and their families. We hope to both generate a national dialogue that will end the stigma surrounding childhood psychiatric disorders and advance the science, giving children the help they need and deserve. We want this campaign to be a wake up call. Please join the dialogue.
- Harold S. Koplewicz, M.D.
Harold S. Koplewicz, M.D.
Director, NYU Child Study Center;
Arnold and Debbie Simon Professor and Chair,
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry;
Sr. Vice President and Vice Dean for External Affairs,
NYU Medical Center;
Professor of Pediatrics, NYU School of Medicine;
Director, Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry,
Bellevue Hospital Center;
Director, Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research
www.AboutOurKids.org <http://www.aboutourkids.org/> <http://www.abouto/>
While I am thankful for such a prompt reply, I still have a few questions.
First, with regard to suicide: Is this campaign making these children (and adults - let's not forget that children do grow up) any less likely to want to commit suicide?
These folks may see this as a "wake up call", but many of us just see this as just "another campaign against us" to make us look and feel even worse than we already do. I don't feel any better about being autistic looking at those things...does anyone else?
Perhaps I am just an autistic who doesn't understand NT psychology, but how is this helping to end the stigma that's already out there? To the average person, all they see are these nasty little notes everywhere which only contribute to the stigma, in my opinion.
Yes, the campaign is generating dialogue, most of it being how disgusting and medieval this kind of rhetoric is, but I hardly think this is the dialogue the creators of the campaign were aiming for...
*sigh*
I'm wondering when they will get their "wake up call" about how this affects us and how offensive it is? I thought I made myself pretty clear, but I guess it hasn't registered yet.
I often wonder who in this world really has the theory of mind problems? Autistics or certain university trained "professionals"? As someone who is studying to be a university trained professional one day, I sure hope something doesn't happen to me along the way where I might (Gods forbid) adopt this attitude!
My goal in life and my career is to help end this attitude, but I fear it is going to be a very tough battle....
