National Empowerment Center Mourns the Newtown School Shooting,
Calls for UncouplingViolence and Mental Health Issues
WASHINGTON (12/20/12) – The National Empowerment Center () wishes to express deep sympathy to all the families and friends of thevictims of the unconscionable tragedy that occurred in Newtown, Conn., on Dec. 14, 2012.
“Words cannotconvey the horror of thesenseless loss of so many innocent young lives and the lives of the heroic adults who tried to save them,” said Daniel B. Fisher, M.D., Ph.D., a co-founder of the NEC. “There is an understandablenational outcry for answers, and demands for policy changes to preventmore such violent outbreaks in our society. Yet simplistic calls for more ‘mentalhealth’ treatment for individuals ignore the complexity of the problems we faceas anation,” Dr. Fisher said.
There is no evidence of increased violence among those with mentalhealth issues; indeed, individuals with mental health conditions are more likely to be than the perpetrators of violence. (One study found that, in a recent year, such individuals were nearly 12 times as likely as the general population to be the victims of violent crime.)
“Tragediessuch as Newtown’s are an outgrowth of a culture of violence in which guns are glorified inmediaand entertainment and weapons are accessed with ease,” Dr. Fisher said. “In addition, we viewthese acts as inextricably linked to the unraveling of our social fabric andthe disintegrationof communities and families. We believe that social andhealth policy should be aimed at community-based, peer-run programs supporting providers,families, and communitiesto address trauma and to promote connectedcommunities of support, tolerance, and understanding.”
Please see the links below for more criticalperspectives on the Newtown school shootings.
The mission of the National Empowerment Center is “to carry a message of recovery, empowerment, hope and healing to people with lived experience with mental health issues, trauma, and and/or extreme states.”
Contact: Daniel B. Fisher, M.D., Ph.D., 1-800-POWER2U (1-800-769-3728), info@power2u.org