Greetings from Lancaster, Pennsylvania! My name is Sonia Weaver and I am a MindFreedom member who has survived a lot of drugs, shocks, and lies in the psychiatric system.

As many of you already know, the American Psychiatric Association is having its annual meeting in Philadelphia, PA May 5-9, 2012. While this may seem like a long way off, it's actually less than two years away, and it's never too early to start planning bold, empowering, and creative ways to resist psychiatric oppression, especially when the opportunity to protest the APA is involved!

I recently saw online an article by an event promoter for Philadelphia which called the APA "the voice and conscience of modern psychiatry." To me that was yet another call that we need to lift our voices and appeal to the conscience of the world about what's being done to people in the name of modern psychiatry.

Let's use this forum to brainstorm about ideas for OUR Philadelphia 2012--protests, vigils, teach-ins, civil and cultural disobedience, how to get LOTS of media coverage, how to get LOTS of folks to events, classic tactics and brand new strategies that reflect a changing world . . .

I personally am very shy about posting on these types of forums, but I am doing it anyway because I think the opportunity to communicate like this is worth overcoming the discomfort. I hope everyone who reads this will feel called to contribute their opinions whether they post like this often or would be doing it for the first time. It doesn't matter if you think you can get to Philly or not, please let us know with anything from a single word to a well-crafted essay what are your ideas for Philadelphia!

It might also be helpful to know that MindFreedom has a new Level 1 affiliate, MindFreedom Eastern Pennsylvania, which includes the Philly area. If you, or anyone you know, is in or near Eastern PA, please make yourselves known by emailing east-pa@mindfreedom.org. I have volunteered to serve as the contact person for the affiliate and I look forward to hearing from you!