Beckman Papers – Box 2 – Main Collection
1. A Proposal for a new MPA Structure: Idea’s on the Formation of Support Groups: Paper/speech written for the October MPA conference. Written by Lanny Beckman. Proposes the formation of closer-knit support groups to try and emulate the early days of the MPA.
2. A proposal to Train Ex-Patient Office and Research Coordinators: A proposal to increase the involvement of ex-patients in the MPA by having non-patient researchers and staff vacate their positions and train ex-patient replacements. Seems to be signed off by the people who will leave.
3. A Proposed Revision of the Mental Health Act of British Columbia: A proposed bill that would amend the Mental Health Act of BC to better protect the rights of “Mentally disturbed persons” and provide better, more community based care for said persons. It does not detail legislation for alcoholics or the mentally retarded. Comes with footnotes. No Date.
4. Are the Ranks Closed? Additional Social Distance and Mental Illness: Photocopy of article titled “Are the Ranks Closed? Attitudinal Social Distance and Mental Illness” from the American Journal of Psychiatry. Article talks about the perceived social bias against former mentally ill patients and attempts to refute it. Notes in margins, article dated March 1971.
5. Attitudes of Professional Non-psychiatric Nurses towards Mental Illness: Article titled “Attitudes of Professional Non-psychiatric Nurses Toward Mental Illness” by Ruth Murray dated May-June 1969.
6. Attitudes Toward the Physically Disabled: Article titled “Attitudes Toward the Physically Disabled: Report of a Research Program With Implications For Psychotherapy” by Russel Eiseman. Discusses how being rejected from society because of disability can have a negative mental effect and examines this in the context of other rejected groups, including the mentally ill.
7. Bulletin of Peace Proposals: Article titled “Essentials of Freedom Theory” by Christian Bay. Discusses freedom in democracy and the survival of mankind. Dated 1971.
8. Citizenship and Political Community: Article titled “Citizenship and Political Community” by Christian Bay, dated Nov 12, 1971. Talks about political consciousness and the participation of citizens in the democratic process.
9. Comparing opinions on Mental Illness (not useful): Article titled “Comparing Opinions About Mental Illness for Hospital Attendants and Practical Nursing Students”. Discusses how the social environment created by nurses has an effect on the treatment of patients.
10. Comparison of Inter- correlations of Scale Scores on the Mental Illness Scale: Article Titled “Comparison of Intercorrelations of Scale Scores From the Opinions About Mental Illness Scale” talks about how different opinions amongst psychiatric attendants on their patients are formed and how they differ specifically.
11. Comparisons Between Volunteers and Non-volunteers of Projected Social Distances in Response to Mental Patient Stimuli: Article that discusses the effects on patients from volunteer caregivers as opposed to non-volunteer caregivers.
12. Education Newsletter: Newsletter criticizing the Ministry of Education’s new Core and PLAP program (the process by which the ministry accommodates special needs students). It also criticizes the British Columbia Teacher’s Federation.
13. Election and Office Checklist: Outline of election speech as well as a handwritten list of things to do at the MPA office. Various phone numbers and addresses. Has note: Election Dec 5/73.
14. Essential Education Experiences: A paper drafted by the Professional Development Advisory Committee of the BC Teachers’ Federation. Seeks to define essential educational experiences for children and discusses the effects of standardized testing and schooling on children.
15. Establishment Polarity vs the Human Potential Movement: A letter and edited edition of the paper titled “On the Political and Economic Implications of Canadian Psychiatry” by Lanny Beckman. Letter is from the Editor of the Journal of Humanistic Psychology as discusses getting the article published. Dated March 8, 1974.
16. In Memorium: A paper written in memorium for the murder-suicide of a psychiatrist and her patient (patient killed the psychiatrist). Says that the incident happened because society rejected the patient and didn’t give the psychiatrist the tools to help him.
17. Leaflets etc MPA: Large collection (71 pages) of various leaflets, meeting agendas and discussions on a new MPA structure.
18. LEAP application final: Final application for a three year grant from the Local Employment Assistance Program. Final letter and enclosed application.
19. Letter Aug 26, 1973: Draft of letter requesting a leave of absence due to stress and depression while working at the MPA. Discusses the need for a shakeup in the MPA and the “need for fresh eyes”. Dated August 26, 1973.
20. Letter to Cathy: Letter to MPA member Cathy Batton in response to a letter sent to the newspaper In a Nutshell about the amount of radicals within the MPA. Dated July 24, 1972. Incomplete.
21. Letter to Lanny: Letter sent to Lanny Beckman from Eve-Lynne Ruben about the OFY project and making separate applications for the publishing project.
22. Letter to Paul Kyba: Letter to Paul Kyba concerning last minute demands by the Manpower office for the renewal of the LEAP grant.
23. Letters from Lanny: Couple of hand-written letters to a Mr. Lindsay (Vice-President of J.B. Lippincott Company of Canada) and a Mr. Sanderson (of John Wiley and Sons) about getting publishing catalogues.
24. Letters to Newsletters: Letters between Christian Bay and Lanny Beckman and others concerning a letter that Lanny Beckman wrote to the SPSSI newsletter. Includes original letter to the newsletter. Original letter dated Nov 1972.
25. MPA Resolutions for NDP: A series of resolutions presented by the MPA to the NDP Burrard Constituency about getting support for mental programs.
26. Multiple Models and Mental Illness: Article from the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology titled “Multiple Models and Mental Illnesses”. It presents a critical analysis of the article “Failure of a Moral Enterprise: Attitudes of the Public toward Mental Illness” and presents alternate models for mental health.
27. News Articles on Education: Various news articles on the introduction of the core curriculum by the Ministry of Education and the conflict arising from that between the Ministry and the BC Teachers Federation.
28. News Clippings – Bob Hunter and Other: Various news articles and clippings including editorials from the Vancouver Sun by Bob Hunter about mental health and articles about housing in Vancouver. These are from around 1972. Has New York Times article about the incarceration of political prisoners in mental asylums in the USSR from 1970.
29. Newsletter – Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues: November, April 1972 Newsletters for the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues. Contain letters by Christian Bay. Multiple copies of each.
30. Notes for Long Paper: Hand written draft of a paper on mental illness and people’s attitudes towards it. Titled “for long paper” and dated 1/8/74.
31. Notes on ATT’s to MI Paper: Preliminary notes written for a paper titled “Att’s to MI”. (attitudes to mental ideology?) Contains potential references and thoughts. No date.
32. Notes on Education: Notes written for a paper on education in BC, criticizes the education ministries core curriculum plan and standardized testing.
33. On the Political and Economic Implications of Canadian Psychiatry: Paper titled “On the Political and Economic Implications of Canadian Psychiatry” that examines an article from the Dec 1973 Canadian Psychiatric Association Journal. The paper discusses the ‘propaganda’ of professional psychiatric literature. Dated January 1974.
34. Opinions about Mental Illness from the Personnel of Two Large Mental Hospitals: Article from the Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, dated 1962, titled “Opinions About Mental Illness In the Personnel of Two Large Mental Hospitals”. Talks about attitudes towards the mentally ill with respect to their previous encounters with psychiatric institutions.
35. Order forms – psychiatric articles and studies: An order from for psychiatric articles and studies with several articles/studies checked off. Has article summaries.
36. On the Political and Economic Implications of Canadian Psychiatry: 19 page of article titled “On the Political and Economic Implications of Canadian Psychiatry”.
37. Paper on Mental Health Lit: Initial draft for a paper on literature on the topic of mental illness and attitudes towards it.
38. Perceptions of Mental Illness Among High School Teachers: Article from the Sociology of Education titled “Perceptions of Mental Illness Among Public School Teachers” that suggests that teachers are better than the general public at identifying mental illness. Has notes in margins. Has results (handwritten) from survey done by MPA on topics similar to ones in the article. Article dated Fall 1969.
39. Psych Jargon and the Mystification of Unhappiness: Paper titled “Psychiatric Jargon and the Mystification of Unhappiness” that discusses the idea that psychiatric literature is purposely confusing so that people will leave it to the doctors/therapists. Dated September 1972.
40. Radical Therapist: Letters between Lanny and Phil Brown, associated with the ‘Radical Therapist’. Talk about getting an article published re the MPA.
41. Sex-Role Identity and Self-Esteem in Collage Women: Paper by Rosalie Tatiana Hawrylko titled “Sex-Role Identity and Self-Esteem” study based on a gender identity test done as if the opposite sex would do it, with a control group doing the test for their own gender. States that sex-role identity and self-esteem are closely related. Dated October 1972.
42. Shifting Ideologies Among Youth: Incomplete. Full scan is in: Shifting Ideologies Among Youth_0001.
43. Shifting Ideologies Among Youth_0001: Study by the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education titled “Shifting Ideologies Among Youth in Canada” by Jack Quarter, along with a letter from him to Lanny Beckman asking for a ‘hipness scale’ that Beckman used in an earlier study. Quarter’s study references Beckman’s. Letter dated April 3, 1973.
44. Social Class and Patients Perception of Mental Illness: Two articles. 1) Titled “Social Class and Patients’ Perceptions of Mental Illness” Divides society into 5 classes and discusses mental illness amongst them as well as they’re ideas on what causes mental illness. 2) Titled “Patients’ Attitudes Toward Society” discuses mans relationship to society as discussed by people like Freud and presents case studies of patients dreams through the lens of Freud.
45. Social Credit Over: Speech/paper written after NDP victory in 1972 against the BC Social Credit Party (Socreds). Praises NDP and talks about previous interactions between the MPA and the NDP and talks about how and what issues will be dealt with.
46. Some Thoughts on Government Funding Programs: Paper by Lanny Beckman titled “Some Thoughts on Government Funding Programs, Reformist Community Groups and Radical Politics” discusses his thoughts that “revolutionary change is necessary in Canada” and thinks this can be done by encouraging the emergence of local, one-issue groups like the MPA.
47. Struggle by oppressed: Paper/speech about the struggles of oppressed people and their resurgence in the last decade (Civil rights movement in America). Dated around January 1972.
48. The Human Potential Movement Therapy for the Middle Class: Paper titled “The Human Potential Movement: Liberal Therapy for the Leisure Class” that discusses the rise of group therapy and the Human Potential Movement Theory of psychiatry. Criticizes the movement for being ‘regressive’ and because it ‘glorifies the privatistic and the individualistic’. Dated July 9, 1972.
49. The Sexually Oppressed: Paper that discusses sexual oppression amongst different groups (the aged, homosexuals, etc) and has a section on the Hospitalized Mentally ill. Some notes in the margins. Dated March 1972.
50. They’re Coming to Take You Away Ha Ha: Paper by Lanny Beckman titled “They’re Coming to Take You Away, Ha, Ha (But will the mental patients have the last laugh?” Discuses involuntary commitment to psychiatric institutions and the differences between Private and Public care (for the rich and the poor respectively). Politicized and discusses abolishing mental hospitals.
51. Toward Politically Responsible Professional Associations: Paper by Christian Bay about why professional associations should take a political stance in the interests of ordinary citizens. No Date.
52. Two Letters from Lanny: Letter to ‘Brian/Janet/whoever’ about publishing an excerpt from an essay and provides an introduction for the excerpt. Another letter is to the Georgia Grape Collective (rival newspaper to the Georgia Straight newspaper which is mentioned in the letter) about an argument between the Grape and the Straight and Beckman’s support for the Grape.
53. Vancouver MPA: History and outline of the MPA and its activities and policies. Written by Lanny Beckman and Dick Betts.
54. Violence as a Negation of Freedom: Article by Christian Bay called “Violence as a Negation of Freedom” that talks about the different perceptions of violence as it is done by terrorists or by nation-states. Dated Autumn 1971. Printed by the United Chapters of Phi Beta Kappa.
55. Who Volunteers for Companionship with Mental Patients: Study by Edward H. Fischer about what type of people volunteer for assisting/befriending mental patients and their personalities and traits. Dated January 14 1971.