By Angelica BenekeStaff Writer
The criminalization of those with mental illness continues, even in 2017. Earlier this month, well-established news outlets such as ABC News and Fox News published several articles about the Las Vegas shooter. Allegedly, Stephen Paddock’s motive for the Las Vegas shooting stemmed from an undiagnosed mental illness according to sources who, oddly enough, were not named. These claims have since been debunked.
The sudden rise in mental illness discussion and labeling Paddock as representing a societal threat is, unfortunately, nothing new.
With every mass shooting comes the speculation the perpetrator suffered from mental illness. With that speculation come demands for reforming the mental health care system because there needs to be a reduction of events like these. With those demands come calls for screenings of interested gun buyers for possible mental illness.
This accusation does an enormous disservice to those who do have a mental illness, professionally diagnosed or not. It’s also incredibly dangerous.
The notion the mentally ill might commit mass murder contradicts studies saying they generally commit very little violence. And even if the mental health care system was to somehow be reformed in this country, there is no guarantee the number of mass shootings will decrease. In other words, mass shooters don’t happen solely because of terrible mental health care.
Yet, even with these findings, why is it that when a mass shooting does occur, the first thing politicians, such as Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, who do absolutely nothing for mental health in the first place, say is we need better mental health care?
Many folks belonging to organizations such as Behavioral Scientist and ThinkProgress believe this fixation on mental health after a mass shooting is a purposeful distraction from issues such as gun violence. While this is most likely true, especially since many politicians have prioritization issues, I think it’s also because we as a society still treat people with mental illness like criminals.
We might not lock them up by the thousands in cramped asylums as in the early 1900s – but, think about it: There are lists upon lists that cite states such as Texas and Minnesota for exceptional physical health care every year. Search “world famous mental health centers” in Google, however, and the first two results are “Best Hospitals for Psychiatry” and “The 10 Craziest Mental Asylums in America.” Why is the latter so prominent in this Google search if we weren’t still criminalizing or even dehumanizing people with mental illness?
We view our fellow citizens as if they were exhibits in museums or zoos. They can be close enough so we can see them, but they better keep their distance. Oh, we better not tick off someone with mental illness or they might shoot up the place later.
We treat people with mental illness as if they aren’t capable of being human.
And every time we judge a mass shooter as one suffering from mental illness, even when there has been no known history, we continue this cycle of judgement on our citizens who truly struggle with mental illness day in and day out, over and over and over again. Heck, we treat our own pets and other animals better than we treat people with mental illness.
People struggling with mental illness are not ticking time bombs. They’re not violent criminals beyond hope. They’re human just like you and me. Period.
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