US CRPD Advocacy
CHRUSP has played a role in the United States to raise awareness about the CRPD and implement the absolute prohibition of forced psychiatry notwithstanding US failure to ratify.
Advocacy for CRPD Ratification
In 2009, President Barack Obama signed the CRPD and sent it to the Senate for ratification, where it has never obtained the required 2/3 majority. Both Obama’s transmission of the CRPD to the Senate, and later Senate Foreign Relations Committee actions, attached numerous reservations, understandings and declarations (RUDs) intended to limit the scope of US obligations if the ratification passes. CHRUSP and allied organizations advocate ratification without the RUDs.
- CHRUSP Submission to Senate 2009
- CHRUSP and other Human Rights Defenders Oppose Declaration that U.S. law fulfills or exceeds treaty 2012 Letter
- Updated Signatures 2012 Letter
- 2nd Updated Signatures on 2012 Letter
- Petition opposing “exceptionalism” declaration 2012
- Tina Minkowitz blog post 2012
- RMHL Petition to ratify CRPD without RUDS
- 2013 CHRUSP and other human rights defenders Letter to Senate
- CHRUSP statement to NCD on CRPD Ratification and Implementation without RUDs 2013
- CHRUSP statement to Senate Foreign Relations Committee 2013
- International solidarity from people with disabilities and allies: Australia / UK / European Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry / Indonesia / Kenya / Australia / UK / Germany
Advocacy with UN Mechanisms about the United States
Universal Periodic Review of the US 2010
Joint disability community report and Summary by ADAPT, CHRUSP, Nationwide Organizing Call to Action: Stop Forced “Mental Health” Treatment, Not Dead Yet, Self Advocates Becoming Empowered, The Opal Project, and The U.S. Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry (2010)
Human Rights Committee Review of the US 2012-2013
- CHRUSP initial submission to Human Rights Committee (2012)
- Questions suggested by CHRUSP
- Summary of our submission in English and Spanish
- Presentation to Human Rights Committee March 18, 2013
- Human Rights Committee asked the United States to defend its practice of forced psychiatry, see question 15: List of Issues
- CHRUSP et al shadow report to Human Rights Committee on forced drugging in the US and Executive Summary (2013) – Submitted by: CHRUSP, Victorious Black Women, PsychRights, MindFreedom International, Campaign to Repeal Mental Health Laws, Intentional Peer Support, World Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry, International Disability Alliance
- Unfortunately the Concluding Observations were not compliant with the CRPD absolute prohibition of involuntary psychiatric interventions.
Committee on Elimination of Racial Discrimination 2014
- Report to the Committee on Elimination of Racial Discrimination on forced psychiatry and psychiatric abuse against African Americans as intersectional discrimination based on race and disability (2014) – Campaign to Repeal Mental Health Laws, M.O.M.S. – Movement Of Mothers and others Standing Together, Center for the Human Rights of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry, Law Project for Psychiatric Rights (PsychRights), Victorious Black Women, MindFreedom International, World Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry and International Disability Alliance
- See also reports of Stephanie Franklin, Esq. to CERD and Committee against Torture (CAT) on drugging of African American girls in foster care (2014)
Working Group on Arbitrary Detention Visit to US 2016
Advocacy for Our Human Rights and Against Forced Psychiatry
CHRUSP opposed expansion of outpatient commitment laws (forced interventions in the community) in New York and California (2012).
In response to proposals and publicity campaigns for gun control measures that single out users and survivors of psychiatry and stereotype us as violent, CHRUSP campaigned to Stop Psychiatric Profiling and sent a letter to President Obama (2013) explaining our opposition.
In 2025, CHRUSP endorsed the Abolish Forced Psychiatry principles, a campaign to coalesce support for abolition among US activists and mobilize awareness and action.