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I would like to share with you what we are doing in New York City to get out the vote with the Mental Health Voter Empowerment Project (MHVEP). In the past, mental health consumers did not know that they could vote and no one ever asked them to do so. The MHVEP is trying to change all of that. Health care, housing, adult homes, incarceration of the mentally ill and parity are some of the political issues that need to be addressed. We are on the brink of a war and money will be tighter than ever. We cannot rely on the compassion of our politicians. We need laws to protect us. Remember: YOU VOTE, YOU COUNT.

The cut-off date to register voters in the general election is October 11th. Therefore, I am trying to go to as many consumer-serving agencies as I can to register consumer voters. I am going to at least two sites a week. Some of the New York City agencies I have gone to in the last two months were: the Federation of Employment Guidance Services (FEGS), Community Access' housing programs, the Institute for Community Living (ICL), Baltic Street Mental Health Board, and Brooklyn CLUBHOUSE. Registering consumer voters is not enough. We need to get people to the polls to vote.

At Community Access' supportive housing programs, plans are being discussed for us to go as a group to the polls. Clusters of supportive housing sites are ideal for this purpose because people can go in groups to a nearby polling site where the consumers live. My colleague Hector Samboy is also registering voters. He has gone to register consumers at The Bridge, Inc., Bentances and the William F Ryan Center. A reminder to vote will be sent out to the consumers we registered before the general election on November 5th. The Director of the Harlem Bay Network Clubhouse (HBNC), Ray Bolling, is completing a training manual that is the collaborated effort of Mr. Bolling, Mr. Samboy and myself. Presently, I am educating consumers on how to use voting machines in order to demystify the voting process. Also, I research information on the candidates for governor in New York State through Votesmart.com, a website you should visit.

When I register consumers to vote, I am also doing outreach to recruit volunteers and trainees. I have recruited one volunteer, Marvin Spieler, New York City Voices' Editor-at-large to register consumers.

Future goals:

1. To organize a practice voting day at HBNC and to train members to use the voting machines;

2. To encourage consumers to get to the polls;

3. To mail out reminders to vote;

4. To implement absentee ballots and;

5. To offer walking groups to go to the polls. Voting offers hope for those of us suffering from mental illness.

Together, we can form a powerful voting block, affecting change in policy to improve the quality of life for people with mental illness in New York State.