We Will Carry on Your Mad Pride, John McCarthy!

by David W. Oaks

 

John, you’ve gone and done it now, my friend. 

Now you’ve gone and done it.

You, the champion of the normality of madness, you are now exploring what is perhaps most normal about all of us who are alive: 

We die. 

John was a poet, a friend, a psychiatric survivor, an activist, and – as he called himself – a sales person for the idea of Mad Pride. He felt that all we humans had madness, that madness was normal, and that we ought to be proud. 

The movement for deep change in the mental health system has often had a problem reaching out to the public. 

John found a solution: 

Celebration. Creativity. Music. Festivity. Costumes. Family-friendly free events. Sometimes his events would reach thousands. 

John, one way to remember you is to carry on, and to let others know about your work. 

Whether or not people knew you, they can celebrate what you have done. I hope those who knew and loved you will share their memories. 

My thoughts and prayers to John’s family. John is survived by his wife Liz, his children David and Jill, and grandchildren.

Here are just a few YouTube videos of John McCarthy and Mad Pride Ireland. 

 

John McCarthy & Mad Pride Ireland Remembered

 

MadPride FineCut1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RfRXOOyMJxI

 

John McCarthy of Mad Pride Ireland on Lunchtime

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qySFcsLTSb8

 

Mad Pride Tullamore 2011

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2Tb-5csiwc

 

Mad Pride Ballydehob  2011 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E77ljPyJkqo

 

Mad Pride Cork 2009

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2EKaP-vBzg

 

John McCarthy & Mad Pride Ireland 2008

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WF2laquT2wc

 

Normality of Madness (Ballad tribute for John – RIP – by Terry Lingwood)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veiQNXlmgZQ

 

Interview with John on MindFreedom’s Live Free Mad Pride Radio, download the MP3 here:

https://mindfreedom.org/campaign/media/mfradio/archived-shows/john-mccarthy-mfi-radio.mp3/view

 

Interview with John on Will Hall’s Madness Radio:

http://www.madnessradio.net/madness-radio-john-mccarthy-irish-mental-health-advocacy

 

John McCarthy beautiful essay on bereavement:

http://www.madprideireland.ie/index.php/site/latestnewsindividual/bereavement2/

 

John on his work in United Nations when he represented MindFreedom International in 2006:

https://mindfreedom.org/kb/mental-health-global/john-mccarthy-un 

 

John comparing a diagnosis of a serious physical illness with a psychiatric label, in a 2009 essay in Cork Independent: 

https://mindfreedom.org/as/act-archives/inter/mfire/cancer-psychiatry

 

Critical Voices Network has a tribute to John here, including links to audio interviews, and a transcript you can download [updated item July 2012]

http://www.criticalvoicesnetwork.com/john-mccarthy-remembered.html

 

More & related info

 

More about Mad Pride Ireland, click here:

http://www.madprideireland.ie/

 

More about Mad Pride campaigns click here:

https://mindfreedom.org/campaign/madpride

 

More about Boycott Normal click here:

http://www.boycottnormal.org/

 

INITIAL NEWS ARTICLES about John’s death:

RTE News Ireland

http://www.rte.ie/news/2012/0110/mccarthyj.html

 

Cork Independent, Ireland

http://corkindependent.com/stories/item/6850/2012-2/Death-of-Mad-Pride-founder

 

Cork Independent reports that “tributes pour in”:

http://corkindependent.com/stories/item/6857/2012-2/Tributes-pour-in-for-John-McCarthy

 

To get updates and free public alerts about Mad Pride events and other mad movement activities, sign up here:

http://lists.mindfreedom.org/lists/listinfo/mindfreedom-news