In March of 2014 Nora Zylstra, a young mother suffering from postpartum psychosis, took the life of her baby son. Immediately after, she tried to commit suicide, but did not succeed.

If she had done this in Illinois or Massachusetts, or more than two dozen countries, including Canada, Nora would have gone to a mental health facility. Instead, it happened in Wisconsin. Nora was sentenced to 25 years in maximum security prison with women and staff who abuse her and call her "baby killer."

It's estimated that 50% of women suffer mental distress during pregnancy, birth, or following the birth of a child. For most, it goes away on its own. For a few, it gets much, much worse.

When Nora became lucid enough to realize what she’d done, she was devastated. She is still devastated, but with time, medication, and a mother who did not give up on her, she is finding her way back to life and love.

Like too many mothers in the United States, Nora deserved better. Women with postpartum disorders deserve mental healthcare before they arrive at a crisis point, not punishment. They deserve compassion, mercy, and a place to go to heal and find peace, where their families can visit freely to support them. It's inhumane that state citizenship prohibits any mother from that.

Please sign this petition and share with others so that we can present it to state legislators who have the power to change laws for women suffering from perinatal or postpartum mood and anxiety disorders (PMAD).