MEDIA ADVISORY
NYS Faith Leaders Call for a Mental Health Budget Deal That
Focuses on Fixing Not Forcing Services, “Housing Not Handcuffs”
April 15, 2025 11 am Million Dollar Staircase NYS Capitol
A group of faith leaders from across State will join representatives of mental health, disability rights, independent living and criminal justice reform advocacy groups at the Capitol today to call on Governor Hochul and the Legislature to build on their respective proposals to expand the use of a continuum of proven voluntary services in place of expanding the use of involuntary treatment.
The religious leaders will emphasize that “we can’t heal people and communities by repeating patterns that cause harm. We must invest in what uplifts and that promote human dignity and health.”
They will call on State and City policymakers to
- Expand the use of State funded specialized outreach teams and crisis stabilization services rather than the use of police driven mental hygiene arrests and involuntary hospitalizations for distressed individuals who are seeking food, shelter and clothing
- Expand access to the 2,000 to 4,000 empty City funded supportive housing units and convert them into Housing First programs with intensive supports
- Strengthen hospital discharge plans that feature the use of peer-to-peer community discharge and follow up services including clubhouse programs
- Mandate the use of incident review panels to investigate and take action to ensure improved service access, coordination and accountability when episodes involving violence occur
The groups will also decry the highly disproportionate application of coercive mental health treatment and solitary confinement on ers of color.
Speakers
- Harvey Rosenthal, Luke Sikinyi, Alliance for Rights and Recovery
- Assembly Mental Health Committee Chair Jo Ann Simon
- Senate Mental Health Committee Chair Samra Brouk
- Chair of the Mental Health Committee of the Black Legislative Task Force. Monique Chandler-Waterman
- Rev. Jim Ketcham, NYS Council of Churches
- Father Robert Haskell of the Episcopal diocese of Albany
- Chaplain Dr Victoria A Phillips
- Russell Stence, Family Alliance
- Robert Dodge, Alliance for Rights and Recovery
- Glenn Liebman, Mental Health Association in State
- Ismael Diaz, Jr. (CCA), Center for Community Alternatives
- Ruth Lowenkron, Lawyers for the Public Interest
- Heidi Siegfried, NY Association on Independent Living
Contact: Luke Sikinyi, 518-703-0264; Harvey Rosenthal, 518-527-0564