Have you faced discrimination because of mental illness?

More than a dozen Canadians have been turned back at the American border this past year after records of their mental illness were shared with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Lois Kamenitz contacted the Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office in Toronto after she was blocked entry to the United States because U.S. officials knew she had attempted suicide. (Sarah Bridge/CBC)They took their complaints to the Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office in Toronto.

Stanley Stylianos, program manager at the organization, says Canadians should be outraged that people's mental health information is shared across the border.

"It is an intensely private matter for many individuals," he says.

Stylianos says his organization is lobbying for non-violent mental health incidents not to be included in the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) database or shared with Homeland Security as part of a routine border screening process.

In one case, a woman was stopped at customs because the CPIC database indicated that police had visited her home. Her partner had called 911 in 2006 after she attempted suicide.

"Police may have attended my home," says Lois Kamenitz, "but it was not for a criminal matter; it was a medical emergency."
    
Have you or someone you know faced discrimination because of mental illness? Tell us your story in the comments below or email us at yournews@cbc.ca .



(This survey is not scientific. Results are based on readers' responses.)