Initially broadcast in October 2002, "Hope on the Street" profiles four homeless persons with mental illnesses, who struggle for recovery—with different degrees of success. National distribution of the documentary recently began through the American Public Television network and continues through June (check local listings). The documentary is intended in part to shatter the stigma that surrounds mental illness by telling real stories with human faces—and showing that recovery is possible.

This film sheds light on this difficult subject, showing how it impacts families, the personal battles it creates, and the resources available to those who suffer from it. We meet several people who have mental illnesses and who are homeless from time to time. One is Ray Guevarra, a Latino who survived an abusive childhood, gang-life as a homeless teen and a constant struggle with his bi-polar disorder. He overcame his illness with the support of his family and proper treatment, and is now an outreach worker and speaker at mental health conferences across the country. African-American Sandra Washington ran away from her family in Mississippi sixteen years ago. With the help of a social worker she recently reconnected with them. John Joseph suffers from schizophrenia and was homeless for five years until a flower vendor took a chance, gave him a job, and got him off the streets.

  This 19-minute videotape features a diverse group of over 25 employers, job developers, and employees with psychiatric disabilities. Through personal interviews, they speak of their experiences and offer sensitive and practical suggestions to help others achieve success joining or rejoining the workforce. Invisible Workforce presents a hopeful vision of recovery that will inspire employers, mental health professionals, educators, consumers and family members. This tape is also valuable for job developers and placement coordinators meeting with prospective employers. The first in a series on employment, this video is intended to stimulate dynamic and productive discussions about the major issues of the workplace for people with psychiatric disabilities.
In the video, nineteen mental health consumers, family members, providers, and administrators share their candid perspectives on the effects of stigma in their work and in their lives. “Stigma…in Our Work, in Our Lives” is an invaluable tool for continuing education in the health care professions. Educators will also find it an excellent resource in undergraduate and graduate settings. “Stigma…in Our Work, in Our Lives” was created by The Anti-Stigma Project of On Our Own of Maryland, Inc. and funded by the Center for Mental Health Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Department of Health and Human Services. This interactive workshop is designed to reduce stigmatizing behaviors, attitudes and practices within the mental health and addiction recovery communities. Participants identify stigmatizing behaviors and attitudes and their impact on the design, delivery, and receipt of services, and develop possible solutions and action steps. (3 hours)
"After I entered psychiatric training, I began to develop a curriculum for first or second year medical students who, during their careers, will treat people, who have mental illnesses, in medical clinics, surgery, and emergency rooms. After eight years of teaching this curriculum to second year Harvard medical students, I received funding from the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill to develop a one-hour module on the stigma of mental illness, for distribution free to medical educators. The format of the curriculum includes a quiz, viewing of a video, followed by discussion. The quiz is a six-minute survey of knowledge and attitudes about major mental illness. The facilitator collects the quizzes and starts the video, taking note of the most frequently missed questions, with an eye to including them in the discussion. The video is 15 minutes long, professionally produced, and includes: 1) media copy including cartoons, advertising, numerous film clips from children and adult films for stereotypical portrayals; 2) an organizational framework of stereotypes so students can recognize them in the future; 3) commentary by Kay Jamison, Lori Schiller, Mike Wallace, and others about the effect of stigma on their lives; 4) a rebuttal of these stereotypes; 5) brief modeling by myself, discussing the effect that stigma had on me as a child having a father with bipolar illness; 6) a brief review of how the viewer can impact this important social problem. Discussion follows with the focus on the students' responses to the video and quiz, and their reflections on their own experiences and fears about mental illnesses." This kit, “Developing a Stigma Reduction Initiative,” is designed to support the activities of those who plan to mount a statewide, regional, or local effort to address and counter stigma and discrimination. It is intended for use by local mental health advocates, consumers of mental health services and their family members, community leaders, and other organizations and individuals who have dedicated themselves to eliminating the barriers of stigma and discrimination faced by people with mental illnesses.
 SAMHSA's Resource Center to Promote Acceptance, Dignity, and Social Inclusion associated with Mental Health (ADS) provides factual information on research on the truth behind mental illness and violence which largely contributes to the discrimination and stigma associated with mental illness in the minds of the general public.