Mother's Day Protest of Electroshock in Ireland, Toronto and Montreal.

From Mindfreedom

Protests were held on Mothers Day, 13 May 2007, in Ireland, Toronto and Montreal. Here are photos and reports from all three.

For report and photo from Toronto protest click here.

For report and photo from Montreal click here.

Here is report and photo from Ireland:

by Mary Maddock, MindFreedom Ireland

The first ever public demonstration against electro-convulsive therapy (ECT) in Cork, Ireland took place on Sunday, 13 May 2007 at Daunt Square.

Organised by MindFreedom Ireland, who campaign for a non-violent revolution in the mental health system, the demonstration was in solidarity with similar demonstrations in Montreal and Toronto Canada which also took place on Sunday, May 13th. For background information on the Toronto protest including news conference and poster click here.

The day is Mothers Day in the U.S. and Canada and was selected to mark the fact that the greatest number of recipients of ECT are mothers and grandmothers.

ECT has been in use since 1938. It involves passing an electric current through the brain of a depressed person who has been anaesthetised, resulting in a ‘grand mal’ seizure. It has always been a controversial treatment. Its proponents claim it helps in cases of severe depression but its critics argue that it causes permanent brain damage and memory loss and is often ‘threatened’ on a patient or administered without proper informed consent. Every year, over 1000 people are given ECT in Ireland.

The demonstration heard first hand testimonies from a number of recipients of ECT, including Mary Maddock, founder-member of MindFreedom Ireland. Other speakers were Kathy Sinnott, independent MEP, Dan Boyle TD and John McCarthy, independent health candidate in the upcoming election.