THE DIGNITY PROJECT: A CALL TO ACTION TO END STIGMA

Presented by THE DIGNITY PROJECT

Cynthia Bittenbender

patreon.com/TheDignityProject

PETITION TO CONGRESS: END SYSTEMIC STIGMA AGAINST ADDICTION, MENTAL ILLNESS, HOMELESSNESS, AND POVERTY

We call on Congress to pass legislation that:

1. Recognizes stigma as a form of systemic discrimination and holds institutions accountable for policies that deny people access to healthcare, housing, or employment based on addiction, mental illness, homelessness, or poverty

2. Expands civil rights protections to include safeguards against stigma-driven discrimination in medical care, hiring practices, and public services

3. Ends the criminalization of homelessness and addiction by preventing cities from enforcing laws that punish people for their circumstances instead of addressing the root causes.

4. Mandates training for healthcare providers, employers, and law enforcement to eliminate bias and ensure fair treatment for all individuals, regardless of their struggles.

5. Provides legal recourse for those harmed by stigma, allowing individuals to seek justice when they are denied basic rights due to discriminatory attitudes and policies.

EXISTING CIVIL RIGHTS PROTECTIONS AGAINST DISCRIMINATION & STIGMA

1. Expand the ADA and Fair Housing Act to explicitly protect individuals facing homelessness, addiction (both active and in recovery), and untreated mental illness.

2. Amend the Civil Rights Act to create a Stigma Protection Clause, making it illegal to deny services, employment, or medical care based on addiction, homelessness, or poverty.

3. Strengthen the EEOC and healthcare discrimination laws to include addiction and homelessness as protected classes in hiring and medical treatment.

4. Enforce penalties on hospitals, landlords, employers, and law enforcement for engaging in stigma-based discrimination.

1. Expand Legal Protections: Broaden the scope of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Fair Housing Act to explicitly protect individuals experiencing homelessness, addiction (both active and in recovery), and untreated mental illness, ensuring their rights to housing, public accommodations, and equal opportunities.

2. Create a Stigma Protection Clause: Amend the Civil Rights Act to prohibit discrimination in services, employment, and medical care based on addiction, homelessness, or poverty, making stigma-driven exclusion unlawful.

3. Strengthen Workplace & Healthcare Protections: Expand the authority of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and reinforce healthcare anti-discrimination laws by designating addiction and homelessness as protected classes, ensuring fair treatment in hiring and medical care.

4. Enforce Accountability & Penalties: Implement strict penalties against hospitals, landlords, employers, and law enforcement for engaging in stigma-based discrimination, holding institutions and individuals accountable for actions that marginalize and vulnerable populations.

THIS IS A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH

Stigma kills. It prevents people from seeking treatment. It pushes families into the streets. It tells those struggling that they are less than human—that they are not worth saving. But we know the truth: every person deserves dignity, compassion, and a fair chance to rebuild their life.

 

Congress has the power to end this systemic injustice. The only question is—will you act?

 

Sign this petition. Stand against stigma. Demand justice.

 

 

THE POWER Of STIGMA—AND THE DAMAGE IT CAUSES

Stigma is one of the most destructive forces in our society, yet it remains largely invisible. It fuels homelessness, addiction, and poverty, trapping people in cycles of shame, exclusion, and systemic neglect. It is not just a social issue—it is a fundamental human rights failure.

Rather than addressing the root causes of addiction, crime, and homelessness, stigma shifts the blame onto those struggling, branding them as undeserving of help. It dehumanizes, isolates, and creates barriers to essential resources. Instead of solutions, we see punishment. Instead of compassion, we see rejection. The result? A society that perpetuates suffering rather than healing.

THE REALITY OF STIGMA

As someone who has been failed by foster care, lived through addiction, recovery, and the overwhelming challenges that come with being judged because of my past, I have seen firsthand how stigma can destroy lives. It is a barrier that stands in the way of healing, stability, and opportunity.

Across this country, people struggling with addiction, mental illness, homelessness, and poverty face rejection at every turn: 

Hospitals deny care, treating addiction and mental health as moral failings rather than medical conditions.

Landlords refuse housing, labeling people as “liabilities” instead of human beings in need of shelter.

Employers discriminate, rejecting job applicants based on their past instead of their potential.

Law enforcement punishes rather than protects, turning homelessness and addiction into crimes instead of addressing the root causes.

These injustices are not just cruel and inhumane—they are systemic failures that worsen the very issues they claim to address. Stigma is the barrier that keeps people trapped in poverty, addiction, and homelessness, no matter how hard they fight to escape. And it is time for Congress to break that barrier.

I have witnessed the devastating impact of stigma, and I have lived through the painful consequences of being rejected, judged, criminalized and overlooked because of where I came from and the mistakes I have made. Too many of us face barriers that make recovery, stability, and success feel impossible. But we know the truth: every person deserves dignity, compassion, and a fair chance to rebuild their life—no matter their past or their struggles.

This is not just a call for fairness—this is a matter of life and death. Stigma is what keeps people from seeking help, it is what keeps them isolated and alone. It is what keeps them trapped in cycles of suffering that are entirely preventable.

WHAT WE DEMAND

We call on Congress to pass legislation that:

1. Recognizes stigma as a form of systemic discrimination and holds institutions accountable for policies that deny people access to healthcare, housing, or employment based on addiction, mental illness, homelessness, or poverty.

2. Expands civil rights protections to include safeguards against stigma-driven discrimination in medical care, hiring practices, and public services.

3. Ends the criminalization of homelessness and addiction by preventing cities from enforcing laws that punish people for their circumstances instead of addressing the root causes.

4. Mandates training for healthcare providers, employers, and law enforcement to eliminate bias and ensure fair treatment for all individuals, regardless of their struggles.

5. Provides legal recourse for those harmed by stigma, allowing individuals to seek justice when they are del

THIS IS A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH

Stigma kills. It prevents people from seeking treatment. It pushes families into the streets. It tells those struggling that they are less than human—that they are not worth saving. But we know the truth: every person deserves dignity, compassion, and a fair chance to rebuild their life.

Congress has the power to end this systemic injustice.