Is ANY publicity "good" publicity?

I am sorry I haven't been around to write about the the New York Child Study Center "Ransom Notes" Campaign until today. Here is some more reference to it. The Autism Acceptance Project has signed in support against this campaign with The Autistic Self Advocacy Network . The Gimp Parade , Not Dead Yet, Whose Planet Is It Anyway, Susan Senator, Autism Vox, Alex Bain, and others have written on this and I urge you to read, if you have not already, or click on Autism Hub to read more from other excellent bloggers.

I was even more stunned when one of our friends, upon stating her disappointment over the campaign received this letter from its board of directors:

Dean Robert Grossman, Michael Recanati, and Ira Statfeld forwarded your email to me, and I am responding on their behalf.

The NYU Child Study Center's "Ransom Notes" public service campaign is designed as a provocative wake up to create awareness and spark dialogue about childhood psychiatric disorders, one of America's last remaining silent public health epidemics. Twelve million American children and adolescents face daily battles with psychiatric disorders. Untreated, these children are at risk for academic failure, school dropout, substance abuse, suicide, unemployment, and imprisonment. Children who do receive appropriate treatment, however, can learn to function and thrive.

"Ransom Notes" may be shocking to some, but so are the statistics: suicide is the third leading cause of death among young people ages 15 to 24, and serious emotional problems affect one out of 10 young people, most of whom do not get help. The strong response to this campaign is evidence that our approach is working. We acknowledge the challenges faced by individuals with these disorders and their families. We hope to both generate a national dialogue that will end the stigma surrounding childhood psychiatric disorders and advance the science, giving children the help they need and deserve. We want this campaign to be a wake up call. Please join the dialogue.


Harold S. Koplewicz, M.D.
Director, NYU Child Study Center;
Arnold and Debbie Simon Professor and Chair,
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry;
Sr. Vice President and Vice Dean for External Affairs,

As the ASAN letter says,

While the “Ransom Notes” campaign was no doubt a well-intentioned effort to increase awareness and thus support for the disabilities it describes, the means through which it attempts this have the opposite effect. When a child with ADHD is described as “a detriment to himself and those around him,” it hurts the efforts of individuals, parents and families to ensure inclusion and equal access throughout society for people with disabilities. When individuals with diagnoses of autism and Asperger’s Syndrome are told that their capacities for social interaction and independent living are completely destroyed, it hurts their efforts for respect, inclusion, and necessary supports by spreading misleading and inaccurate information about these neurologies. While it is true that there are many difficulties associated with the disabilities you describe, individuals with those diagnostic categories do succeed – not necessarily by becoming indistinguishable from their non-disabled peers – but by finding ways to maximize their unique abilities and potential on their own terms.
and

Individuals with disabilities are not replacements for normal children that are stolen away by the disability in question. They are whole people, deserving of the same rights, respect, and dignity afforded their peers. Too often, the idea that children with disabilities are less than human lies at the heart of horrific crimes committed against them.

I urge everyone to sign the petition against this very dangerous campaign. Not all publicity is good publicity. All we have to remember are the recent mall, church and university shootings to know that. I also think that most of us agree when the rampage of negative campaigning does not reduce stigma -- it only increases ignorance and fear.

YOU CAN ALSO COMMENT HERE AT TODAY'S NYT ARTICLE