Mentally Ill Students Marginalized and Trivialized

Upon opening October 3rd's Crimson, an article entitled "Sitcom Schizophrenia Seizez HRDC" caught my eye. I read the article carefully, so as not to jump to any conclusions. There is no mention of the mental illness schizophrenia in the article itself, only in the headline. The article dealt with a play about a family some of whose members have imaginary friends.

Imaginary friends are very different from the mental illness schizophrenia. As a mentally ill person I have had to deal with stigma, ignorance and blatant prejudice ever since my diagnosis three years ago. As a mentally ill undergrad at Harvard, I constantly deal with these issues as well and often feel marginalized because there is no peer group on campus, like there are for gender issues or rape or race, to which I can turn for support and understanding.

Every time mental illnesses are trivialized and made fun of I feel a slap in the face. I would appreciate it if The Crimson would make an effort to respect diversity at Harvard and in the world by not marginalizing myself and other mentally ill people again. --Allison D. Kent '99