MENTAL HEALTH AFFECTS ALL OF US

Mental health can challenge any of us. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, one in four American adults suffers from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year. In the current state of affairs, those who have money can afford care but the have-nots get poor treatment, if any. Regardless of financial resources, availability and quality of mental health treatment is meager in comparison to other diseases. The safety net we have created for those afflicted has gaping holes. We should not sit idly by knowing that there remain mentally afflicted citizens who are subject to abuse and neglect.

The civil rights movement, the women's rights movement, the gay rights movement--these familiar struggles have led to significant advances in the history of justice in our country. They shaped our culture and made us a better society. How did the brave individuals who pushed for these social changes accomplish their goals? They made their causes visible to the public. Whether through provocative pamphlets, marches, or news coverage, they made their concerns so salient that people could no longer ignore them. It is time for the plight of the mentally ill to enter our collective consciousness so we can make positive changes for them. Now is the time!

You can help us raise awareness through the making of films that promote mental health care reform and 100% of your donation will go toward the productions. The film will inform viewers and help them understand the challenges that the mentally ill endure. Isn't coping with a diseased mind enough? The mentally ill should not have to suffer the added stresses of coping with a system that has inadequate treatment and insufficient medical research. Acknowledging the rights and needs of the mentally ill will improve their condition. Once the public sees the widespread neglect and disregard for the mentally ill, it should not be able to look away. Reform and a better tomorrow for our mentally will then become inevitable.

Dr. Kenneth Rosenberg

The filmmaker, Dr. Kenneth Paul Rosenberg knows these problems up close and personal from his private psychiatric practice, and from his research and teaching as Associate Clinical Professor at Cornell Medical College University Departments of Public Health and Psychiatry. He also knows how to make films, having produced and directed numerous award-winning films for PBS and HBO which received international acclaim and distribution.

George Crawford

George Crawford, President of the Fiduciary Foundation which is backing this project, was formerly a professor at Stanford University; a White House staffer, Supreme Court law clerk, and a partner in Jones Day, the highly regarded international law firm. The Mission of the Fiduciary Foundation includes making educational films to help others help themselves, and promoting awareness of mental health can accomplish just that. The Fiduciary Foundation was established in 1993 in Incline Village, Nevada, and is included on the IRS list of 501(c) (3) charitable organizations. The support of the foundation for these films is conditioned on their educational nature and public benefit, and 100% of all contributions received for these films will be devoted to making them, without retaining any funds for administrative or other expenses of the foundation itself. George Crawford has never drawn any salary from the foundation.
www.fiduciaryfoundation.org