---------------------------- Original Message ----------------------------
Subject: Support the Gaza Community Mental Health Program
From: "Stephen Soldz" <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Wed, January 21, 2009 11:55 pm
To: [log in to unmask]
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Support
<http://psychoanalystsopposewar.org/blog/2009/01/21/support-the-gaza-communi
ty-mental-health-program/> the Gaza Community Mental Health Program
For those who would like to respond to the humanitarian disaster in Gaza,
one way is to offer financial support the Gaza Community Mental Health
Program. Psychologists for Social Responsibility <http://psysr.org/> has
issued the following appeal <http://psysr.org/alerts/gaza/gcmhp.php> for
support for the GCHP. We are also looking for other organizations to join a
Coalition to support this effort. So far, Div 39 S9 (Psychoanalysts for
Social Responsibility) and the Coalition for an Ethical Psychology have
joined.
Here is the PsySR call. Please give
<http://psysr.org/alerts/gaza/gcmhp.php> generously!
************
Psychologists for Social Responsibility (PsySR) urges our members and
friends to contribute to the Gaza Community Mental Health Project, a new
PsySR fundraising campaign to support the <http://www.gcmhp.net/> Gaza
Community Mental Health Program (GCMHP), which has suffered extensive damage
to its headquarters at a time of escalating demand for its services.
To Donate Now: <http://www.psysr.org/gaza> http://www.psysr.org/gaza
Psychologists for Social Responsibility joins with other advocates of peace,
social justice, and human rights in calling for an immediate, concerted, and
unrelenting effort to end the devastating violence and the tragic
humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
As an organization focused on psychology's contributions to positive social
change, PsySR is also painfully aware of the profound psychological impact
of the aerial and ground assault on the individuals, families, and
communities of Gaza. Several important short-term and long-term
psychological consequences of living in a war zone - which undoubtedly
describes Gaza today - are now well-documented. They include the following:
* Psychological distress in war zones is often as great as the
physical suffering that receives more widespread attention. For some,
including children, coping with issues of family separation, multiple
losses, and bereavement can be even more unbearable than other
health-related concerns.
* The adverse psychological effects of first-hand exposure to the
horrors of war are often exacerbated by pre-existing conditions. People
already under stress before an attack -from severe poverty, chronic exposure
to harsh imposed restrictions, and past bloodshed - are likely to have
stronger and more overwhelming reactions to violence.
* Prolonged fears of attack, powerful feelings of helplessness, and
deep worries about family and community heighten the damaging psychological
effects - such as depression and PTSD - of life-threatening events and can
contribute to ongoing cycles of violence.
* The magnitude of psychological suffering in war zones is determined
not only by exposure to life-threatening events but also by people's
immediate and continuing access to individual and family supports, along
with broader efforts that are locally, culturally, and
psychologically-informed.
Ultimately, a just and lasting peace and a brighter future for Palestinians
and Israelis alike will require that these psychological consequences and
considerations also receive serious and sustained attention.
It is within this context that the recently reported massive damage to the
headquarters of the Gaza Community Mental Health Program
<http://www.gcmhp.net/> is particularly distressing. With a special
emphasis on vulnerable groups such as children, women, and victims of
torture and human rights violations, the GCMHP's staff provides crucial and
irreplaceable mental health services to thousands of Gaza residents. These
services will be even more broadly and desperately needed in the days and
months immediately ahead. Throughout its history, the GCMHP has also been
firmly committed to nonviolent resistance and to working for a world where
Palestinians and Israelis can live together in peace.
In recognition of these urgent circumstances, PsySR has initiated a
fundraising campaign to provide support to the Gaza Community Mental Health
Program as it rebuilds and adapts to meet escalating needs. The GCMHP
receives funding from a consortium of the Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish
governments, but that funding is specifically targeted for programs favored
by the consortium. For years, independent groups such as the Gaza Mental
Health Foundation <http://www.gazamentalhealth.org/> in the U.S. and
Physicians for <http://www.phr.org.il/phr/lang.asp?lang=2> Human
Rights-Israel , have provided independent funding that can be used more
flexibly. Our initiative will supplement these efforts in this time of
heightened need.
Organizing help for the GCMHP is one way that we, as psychologists and
mental health providers, can counter the despair and hopelessness bred in
all parties by this renewed outbreak of seemingly irresolvable violence. In
so doing, we make a statement in support of human rights, mutual recognition
and security, and pathway to the reconciliation that must underlie a
sustainable peace in this region.
We strongly encourage other organizations and individuals to join us in this
effort. Today through March 1st, tax-deductible contributions can be made
online through our website at <http://www.psysr.org/gaza>
http://www.psysr.org/gaza or by check made out to "Grassroots International"
(please write "GCMHP" in the memo line) and mailed to PsySR's national
headquarters: PsySR, 208 "I" Street NE, Washington, DC 20002.
All donations will be processed through Grassroots
<http://grassrootsinternational.org/> International, which has received a
four-star rating from independent charity evaluator Charity Navigator, and
its online partner Democracy in Action. For more information, please email
our Project Coordinators at [log in to unmask] or contact PsySR's
executive director Colleen Cordes by phone at 202-543-5347.
PsySR gratefully acknowledges Psychoanalysts for Social Responsibility and
our other coalition partners in this fundraising campaign.
To Donate Now: <http://www.psysr.org/gaza> http://www.psysr.org/gaza
Stephen Soldz
Director, Center for Research, Evaluation, and Program Development
Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis
1581 Beacon St.
Brookline, MA 02446
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