What is the BizOMadness Blog?

This blog is devoted to raising critical awareness of psychiatry generally. It is likewise devoted to the antipsychiatry research projects, publications, and related activities of Dr. Bonnie Burstow. Especially foregrounded are The Psychiatry Project, The Madness Project, and "Psychiatry and the Business of Madness". Related to one another, The Psychiatry Project and The Madness Project involve hundreds of interviews, a dozen focus groups, analysis of several hundred documents and their activation, and dedicated periods of institutional observation. The culmination of both as well as of decades of related interviews and activities is "Psychiatry and the Business of Madness" (timely updates on its publication will be provided)--a cutting edge book in which psychiatry is investigated from multiple angles and which begins to tackle the inevitable question: So if we get rid of psychiatry, where do we go from there?

For the Events page to find events related to this research or this book, see
http://bizomadnessevents.blogspot.ca/

To check out reviews of Psychiatry and the Business of Madness and related publications, see http://bizomadnessreviews.blogspot.ca/

Sunday, September 14, 2014

Book Launch for Psychiatry Disrupted a Smashing Success

On Friday, September 12, the much anticipated book launch for Psychiatry Disrupted (Eds. Burstow, LeFrançois, and Diamond) happened.  The launch was nothing short of magnificent.  A wonderful community event, with the reality and the presence of community palpable. Approximately 120 people were in attendance--the editors, contributors, activists, artists, academics, radical professionals.  The air was filled with excitement. Indeed, you could feel a certain something in the room.  Something that uplifted and joined us to one another.  Also a sense that those of us who oppose psychiatry had inherited the moment and were unstoppable.

Tables included material from all participating activist organizations. All eight speakers were inspiring, thoughtful, and reflective.  While the entire event was uplifting, moments that particularly stand out for me were:  Ambrose Kirby as he told those assembled that the worst thing about psychiatry for the trans community is "not what you think", is not the diagnoses or the bias, but the invitation not to trust one's own body and mind.  Susan Schellenberg as she reasserted the significance of art to resistance. My keen awareness of people behind the scenes like Liam, who had risen early in the morning, and equipped with his cart, stopped in at shops around the city, making sure that there would be sufficient there for everyone to eat. Don Weitz, now his 80s, present and presiding over the CAPA table and Rebecca Ballen, going to the microphone and explaining CAPA. The card for ailing Carla MacKague that so many people signed. Brenda arriving all way from Newfoundland. A. J Withers as they carefully and brilliantly articulated a radical disability critique.

All and all, a rare event.  Thank you to the hosts--CWSE, CAPA, and McGill-Queen's University Press.  Thank you everyone who participated, and otherwise made it possible.  And thank you those who thoughtfully sent us good wishes (and yes of course, we felt you there with us in spirit)


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1 comment:

  1. Sue Clark-WittenbergSeptember 14, 2014 at 9:19 AM

    Bonnie and Don and everyone at the CAPA event: Congratulations on the book launch :)

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