Archiving Patient-Led Mad Activism in Canada, 1970s-2020

Efrat’s project is designed in two segments. The first segment involves the curation of mad-centered archival material not yet available in the public domain. The second is an original research segment, using critical discourse analysis of the archival material, that seeks to enhance understandings of the crucial and active role of mental patients in shaping mental health care. The project promises to create a new source of open access archival data and accompanying teaching and learning materials rooted in revisiting past mental health practices and philosophies through patient-led initiatives. Through community-engaged research, curation, and publication, she will focus on the intersections between mad activists and other disenfranchised groups, including queer/trans people, Indigenous organizers, and anti-racist activists. Once the archival series and accompanying teaching and learning materials are developed, Madness Canada/Folie Canada will coordinate the digitization and public display of the project.