We are a population of people with varying degrees of illnesses and illnesses themselves. Many times we are pushed aside and put in harms way because our illness cannot be seen through a microscope. We are stigmatized and misunderstood because of ignorance and fear.
This needs to stop. We are tired of finding ourselves on the streets, hospitalized or institutionalized because our outpatient services are cut to the bone. Many of our programs are hanging on by a thread.
These budget cuts negate the Olmstead Ruling giving us the right to live in the "least restrictive environment".
Find your voice, we need to ban together under a single banner "the ugly pin" and make a statement that stigma is wrong and budget cuts take away our rights.
