Diana Michele Capponi (February 22, 1953 – September 21, 2014) was a Canadian mental health activist,

psychiatric survivor The psychiatric survivors movement (more broadly consumer/survivor/ex-patient movement) is a diverse association of individuals who either currently access mental health services (known as consumers or service users), or who are survivors of interv ...

, and community leader.

Early life

Capponi was born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, the youngest sister of writer and activist Pat Capponi. Both sisters described an abusive home, which they left as young women. In 1984, she graduated from a police training program at Centennial College in Toronto. "Going to college was the most significant thing I could have done to change my life," she said later.

Career

Diana Capponi dropped out of school, traveled to India, and became addicted to

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...

. Back in Canada, she moved to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, where two of her sisters lived. Her sister Pat helped her find housing in Parkdale and rehabilitation. She worked at a women's shelter, and then at a cleaning service. She founded the Ontario Council of Alternative Businesses (OCAB), to create economic opportunities for psychiatric survivors. She served on the board of directors at the Gerstein Centre in Toronto. In 2003, Capponi became coordinator of the new Employment Works program at the

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH, pronounced , french: Centre de toxicomanie et de santé mentale) is a psychiatric teaching hospital located in Toronto and ten community locations throughout the province of Ontario, Canada. It re ...

(CAMH). In this position she continued her earlier work, building businesses and careers with survivors of addiction and mental illness. She consulted on similar projects and on mental health policy across Canada, and internationally. "Current research indicates that there is absolutely no correlation between a person's mental health diagnosis and their ability to work. If you can do the job, then you can do the job, period," she explained. Capponi appeared in a

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...

documentary, ''Working Like Crazy'' (1999), and in a television program, ''Second Chance: Making It Work'' (2005). In 2009, she testified about employment and mental health before a committee of the Canadian Parliament.

Personal life

Capponi identified herself as a

. She married Brenda Needham in 2003; they stopped living together in 2009, but remained close. Capponi died in 2014, from metastatic

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a re ...

, at age 61, in Toronto. In 2015 there was a tribute night held to raise funds for the Diana Capponi Education Fund.

References

External links

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David Reville David R. Reville (born April 19, 1943) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada, and an activist and educator active in Mad Pride, mad studies, and disability studies. Reville was a New Democratic member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario ...

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2009 interview with Diana Capponi
on YouTube. {{DEFAULTSORT:Capponi, Diana 1953 births 2014 deaths Anglophone Quebec people Deaths from breast cancer Deaths from cancer in Ontario Canadian disability rights activists Mental health activists Mental health in Canada Centennial College alumni Activists from Montreal Activists from Toronto Canadian women activists