Photo Album: Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter at The Commonwealth Club of California

On Friday, August 13, former First Lady Rosalynn Carter spoke to The Commonwealth Club in San Francisco about an issue she's been working on for decades: mental health.

Ever gracious, Mrs. Carter also took time to meet with Club members and friends at the event, which was held at San Francisco's Herbst Theatre. The Commonwealth Club will post a complete transcript of the event in the future, but for now, enjoy these photos from the event.


Photos by Sonya Abrams.

Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter Tells SF Chronicle about Advances in Mental Health

Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, who will be speaking at The Commonwealth Club this Friday at noon, was interviewed by Julian Guthrie in today's San Francisco Chronicle. She tells the paper about her decades of involvement in mental health policy (which she discusses in her new book, Within Our Reach), and she also shares her first memories of being in San Francisco – and being told she and husband Jimmy looked too young to drink.

It's a charming interview. And don't forget to get your tickets to see her in-person this Friday.

Rosalynn Carter and the Mental Health Crisis

In mid-August, former First Lady Rosalynn Carter will speak at a special Commonwealth Club event, where she will talk about the "mental health crisis." A long-time advocate of reforming treatment and policy on mental illness in this country, Carter recently took her message to The Daily Show, where she was lauded by host Jon Stewart for her good work.

Mental health treatment has gotten considerable coverage in the news lately, as people have examined the recently passed health-care reform bill and found enhanced coverage of mental health issues.

You'll be able to see Carter for yourself August 13 in San Francisco. Until then, here's a taste of her story:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Rosalynn Carter
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

Rosalynn Carter's program is a part of The Commonwealth Club's month-long special series, The Ascent of Woman.

Rosalynn Carter Confirms Commonwealth Club Talk

There’s no doubt that you grow in the White House. The things that come to the White House are the problems. You learn about how many people have mental afflictions, how many people are poor, how many people are hungry. And the actions of our country affect the world. For me it was a place of great responsibility. I felt that I ought to do everything I could.

- Rosalynn Carter, The Commonwealth Club, September 27, 1985

 Mental health advocate and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter. (Photo by Wayne Perkins/The Carter Center)

Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter recently confirmed her plans to speak at The Commonwealth Club this August, marking the politically active campaigner, public figure and mental health advocate’s first visit to The Club since her speech at San Francisco’s Palace Hotel, almost 25 years ago.

It’s more than a little exciting for us. When she first spoke with a Club audience on September 27, 1985, she and Former President Jimmy Carter were only four years out of the White House, having recently established the Carter Center of Emory University and the Carter Presidential Library in Atlanta, GA. She’d already penned the autobiographical First Lady from Plains and established a commitment to public health issues ranging from smoking-related diseases to the prevention and treatment of mental illness.

Carter has been an honorary fellow of the American Psychiatric Association since 1984, and her Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism has played a major role in fighting incorrect, negative stereotypes of mental disorders in the media. In 2008, Congress passed legislation requiring the availability of mental illness treatments under health insurance plans, thanks in large part to Carter’s active campaigning the year before.

During her White House years, the former first lady saw the Middle East peace discussions that resulted in the Camp David Accords, the Iran Hostage Crisis, and 1980’s Chrysler Corporation bailout (all topics that sound familiar today, too). She regularly represented the president in discussing foreign affairs with world leaders and dignitaries, and she is the first First Lady to keep abreast of the nation’s pressing issues by regularly sitting in on Cabinet meetings.

It’s our honor to welcome Mrs. Carter to The Club again. We’ll post more information regarding her upcoming talk online as the date approaches – in the meantime, check out our web site at www.commonwealthclub.org to find out more about Club talks, speakers and special events.

--By Andrew Harrison