RALEIGH, N.C. — The spirit of “Dorothea Dix” says too many mentally ill people are still waiting for help from the state – or getting little like when she first visited North Carolina 163 years ago.
“Dix” was actually Wake County activist Ann Akland, wearing a long, 19th century-style dress while playing the role of the public mental health pioneer in front of microphones and TV cameras. She pleaded on behalf of Dix workers, advocates and patients for state officials not to close the state psychiatric hospital bearing Dix’s name.
