To get the mumsnet Bandwagon to jump on this

[fairy1303]

Has anyone seen the Sun headline?

"1,200 killed by Mental patients"

I am disgusted - surely they can't be allowed to print this bullshit?

In light of the recent saga with ASDA and TESCOs, surely the sun have to apologise for this?

I normally don't give them the time of day but just can't believe they can print something like this.

anyway...

there is a Petition

Just sayin

[fairy1303]

If you looked hard enough you could probably find any number of coincidental facts linking a number of unrelated murders, e.g. 12,000 murders committed by obese/brown-haired/blue-eyed people etc etc. doesn't mean having brown hair or blue eyes makes you any more likely to commit murder...but that doesn't make good reading.

This.

[timidviper]

The Sun is a disgusting rag but, as long as pillocks buy it, they will keep on printing offensive crap. I would love to see it out of business

[fairy1303]

It makes me feel physically sick, to be honest.

It is just so irresponsible.

[Tiptops]

Good article on this sensationalist crap has been published by Mona Chaliba in the Guardian. Phone isn't letting me link to it but well worth a read. Disgusting that the sun would even dream of printing this. Sometimes I wonder if the stigma will ever end.

[kali110]

Im not offended in the slightest.

[Pigsmummy]

Kali I agree with you, I have had MH issues and I am not offended by this journalism, this is what the Sun newspaper does, publishes sensational articles that I choose not to read. I hate the Sun newspaper, won't ever buy it after Hillsborough. If it were the Daily Fail it would probably add another statistic about how many of the 1216 were foreign!

I found the stats that they were referring to in a simple Google search and have no issue with them. From this article no one is suggesting that you or I are suddenly more dangerous to the general public simply because you have had or are having treatment for a MH condition.

I am also unaware that anyone has to disclose a history of depression on a job application?

[MrsHelsBels74]

You may not be offended but the trouble with journalism like this is that some Sun readers will read it & take it as gospel, think all mentally ill people are potential killers and so the stigma continues.

[Mitzyme]

I signed the petition yesterday. I hate the Sun tho for lots of different reasons.

[fairy1303]

You might not be offended.

Would you be offended if the headline had been
"1,200 killed by Black people"

It is a misrepresentation, taking stats out of context.

It is just unacceptable.

[sashh]

Statistically children are much more likely to be killed by a parent or caregiver than a stranger.

If we locked up all parents and step parents there would be no more baby P or Hamzah deaths.

froken It's the implication that mental health causes people to be violent that is wrong, and you are an example of someone who has fallen for it.

I don't have children so I will never be found guilty of killing my child. Most people on here are parents and will never be found guilty of killing their child. I don't assume that because some parents abuse and kill their children that all parents will.

[froken]

froken It's the implication that mental health causes people to be violent that is wrong, and you are an example of someone who has fallen for it.

You have no right to say that I have fallen for these statistics. You know nothing about me and my experience with mental health issues.

I have one parent who is schizophrenic and one parent who is depressed. I know how shockingly lacking mental health care is in the UK. Neither of my parents have been violent ( apart from self harm) but they have both done things that they certainly would not have done if they were mentally healthy. If someone had either of the illnesses that my parents have and they happened to have a violent nature there would be a higher chance of them committing a violent crime because they would be likely to do things which society sees as wrong but their illness prevents them from seeing it as wrong.

For example I would fight as much as I physically could to protect my baby, if there was a person trying to take him or harm him I would kill or die to protect him. If a schizophrenic person believes that ( for example) the postman was trying to steal their baby they may harm tge postman not because they are a bad person but because they truly think it is the right thing to do. I believe that having a mental illness does sometimes give people a skewed idea of right and wrong, I in no way think all people with mh are dangerous but I think that there needs to be much more support for people with mh and violent tendencies issues to keep them safe and more importantlyto keep their families/friends and community safe.

[fairy1303]

froken

I agree that mental health services should be improved.
A big part of getting better when you have a mental health issue is being able to approach someone for help, and accept help - obviously unless a person has to be detained under the MH act.

If the media is allowed to publish stats, out of context like this, that perpetuate an unfounded stigma, those people will feel less and less able to approach professionals for support, will face more prejudice in society, and become more ostracised.

how is that helpful?

[Latara]

Well I suffered depression-related Psychosis last year and I can't honestly say that I would never have harmed anyone - I believed I was being spied on and plotted against, if I wasn't treated then who knows where it would have led to?

I still take the Anti-Psychotic meds and feel better, but when I forgot to take it recently I started to believe I was being spied on again.

Having said all that I think that the Sun is irresponsible to print that headline.

I work as an HCA but am normally a Staff Nurse - it's proving hard to get the managers to give me extra shifts let alone allow me to work as a Staff Nurse again.
It's not exactly discrimination - I know they know i'm capable of the job but they think I may not cope with the pressure and get ill again.
Yet.... people with other illnesses don't have the same treatment off the managers.

Papers like the Sun aren't helpful if you have MH probs and are trying to fight discrimination.

[Pigsmummy]

Fairy the source of the stats is a University report published in 2010, easily found on the webb, the vile tabloid quoted the published information and nothing new it seems. Gagging the media wouldn't prevent this information coming to light.

[fairy1303]

It is not 'information coming to light' though is it? It is a tabloid taking those statistics and sensationalising them and taking them out of context - that is the beauty of statistics - you can virtually make them say whatever you like - as pp said - I could find out how many of the murders carried out were by blue eyed people - "1,300 murders by blue eyed people"