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In my opinion, mental health consumers as a community have not yet reached the level of social prominence and acceptance that the gay/lesbian and Latino communities have reached in the United States.

In a recent conversation, someone mentioned that when a negative thing about gays is said in the media, he feels truly offended and angry. I thought about my feelings when that happens and said that I do not generally feel offended or angry by anti-gay things in the media because I know those opinions are probably among the minority. Even if they are not, gays as a community have many successes in this country, which overshadow any sporadic negativity in the media and in public opinion.

The gay community had the outspoken and unwavering support of Bill Clinton during his two terms as president of the United States. There are countless politicians at all levels of government, individuals that work in law enforcement, very popular and successful entertainers, prominent entrepreneurs, and powerful lobbying organizations at the local, state and national levels who support gay rights.

Gays today have a powerful voice that helps to shape public opinion. Negative things about us in the media are dealt with swiftly and decisively with the power of a robust and strong nationwide community.

The same can be said of the Latino community, which just recently attained the status of largest minority group in the country. Anti-Latino statements in the media are minimal. When some surface, those opinions are in the minority and dealt with in the same swift way that the gay community defends itself.

I don't think we can say the same about the mental health community. Public opinion is generally against us. And we do not have the same strong political structure that gays and Latinos have to counter the many negative portrayals of the mentally ill in the media.

As a gay and Latino individual I am at peace because I know that the gay and Latino communities have what it takes to prevail against the more serious attacks against us.

But when it comes to attacks against the mental health community, I am offended and angry because I know that our response level is not powerful enough or adequate enough to decisively influence or even change public opinion. The many celebrities and public figures that have come forward to speak favorably of their recovery from mental illness have not yet impacted the culture in the way that the gays and Latinos have. The local, state and national mental health advocacy and lobbying organizations do not yet have the decisive political or financial power of the gay and Latino communities.

In our culture and in public opinion, mental illness is still a negative term. There is no widespread understanding of the mental health community. And we all know of the attitude of some media outlets in New York, which can only be described as hostile.

To say "I am mentally ill" is oftentimes a curse that stigmatizes and demeans you to the level of a second class citizen or worse when you think of the way in which the constitutional rights of the mentally ill are violated in this country.

If I am asked, "Are you mentally ill?" I will answer "I have a mental illness which is in full remission." Or maybe the answer should be, "I have a mental condition." The terms "mental illness" are poisoned in the minds of the ignorant. "Mental condition" is probably not as negatively charged. And in this use of words there is an implied message that a mental condition is not the totality of an individual's personhood.