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"Within Our Reach: Ending the Mental Health Crisis," by Rosalynn Carter with Susan K. Golant and Kathryn E. Cade, published by Rodale Books. The book is available from the Jimmy Carter Library and Museum Shop (). Media appearances and book tour schedule at left. Click here to watch/read media coverage >

Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter has been deeply invested in mental health issues since her husband's gubernatorial campaign, when she saw firsthand the horrific, dehumanizing treatment of people with mental illnesses. Using stories from her 35 years of public service to discuss the larger issues at hand, Mrs. Carter crafts an intimate and powerful account of a subject previously shrouded in stigma and shadow that affects us all.

In "Within Our Reach: Ending the Mental Health Crisis," Mrs. Carter and co-authors Susan K. Golant and Kathryn E. Cade render an insightful, unsparing assessment of the state of mental health. Mrs. Carter describes a system that continues to fail those in need, despite recent breakthroughs in treatment that can help most people with mental illnesses lead productive lives.

"Within Our Reach" is a seminal, searing, and ultimately optimistic look at how far we've come since Mrs. Carter's days on the campaign trail and how far we have yet to go.

She writes: "Americans think of ourselves as decent, generous, and compassionate people, and for the most part we are. But we treat a large portion of our own population as if they are second-class citizens. Ultimately, the way we treat people with mental illnesses in our society is a moral issue-to neglect those, who through no fault of their own, are in need runs counter to our core principles-the values of decency and equality that we hold dear."

Credit: Carter Center/W. Harewood
(Click to enlarge)
Rosalynn Carter addresses participants during the Rosalynn
Carter Symposium on Mental Health Policy.
Learn more about Mrs. Carter's leadership in mental health >

"Rosalynn Carter and her co-authors have made a major contribution to better understanding of mental health in America today. With their compelling emphasis on the importance of sound science, the elimination of old stigma, and critical progress in public policy, they give us genuine cause for hope."
-Senator Tom Daschle

"Within Our Reach challenges us to look at how far we have come in our knowledge of how to treat mental illnesses but how far we have yet to go to address the mental health crisis in our society-a crisis that touches everyone."
-Dr. David Satcher, former U.S. surgeon general, director, Satcher Health Leadership Institute, Morehouse School of Medicine


"One day, I predict that mental illnesses will be treated no differently than other physical illnesses. When that wonderful new era finally arrives, it will be in significant measure due to Rosalynn Carter."
-Tom Johnson, former chairman and CEO of CNN

Mrs. Carter's Book Tour: Public Events and Media Appearances

Monday, May 3, 2010
Watch Mrs. Carter discuss her new book on NBC's  "" show, appearing live between 8 and 8:30 a.m. EST.  
Attend Mrs. Carter's public lecture on mental illness at , New York, N.Y., from 4 to 6 p.m. EST.
 
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Watch Mrs. Carter's live interview with Fox News's Gretchen Carlson on "," at 8:45 a.m. EST. 
Listen live via the Web to Mrs. Carter on WNYC's "" at noon EST.  

Watch Mrs. Carter's interview on Comedy Central's 11 p.m. EST. 
Wednesday, May 5, 2010 
Attend Mrs. Carter's remarks and book signing at, at 7:30 p.m. EST.
 
Friday, May 7, 2010
Attend Mrs. Carter's remarks and book signing at the Smithsonian Institution, , Kogod Courtyard, Washington, D.C., from 12 to 1:30 p.m. EST. Open to the public.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Watch Mrs. Carter's live interview with WAGA's "," at 8:30 a.m. EST. 

Attend Mrs. Carter's remarks and book-signing at Books A Million, Discover Mills, Lawrenceville, Ga., 7 p.m. EST.