The Crusade for Forgotten Souls: Reforming Minnesota’s Mental Institutions, 1946-1951 chronicles the remarkable campaign to reform the deplorable condition of mental institutions in Minnesota, inspired and carried forward by ordinary people under the leadership of Governor Luther Youngdahl. Author Susan Bartlett Foote will describe the efforts of the citizen activists who broke the stigma of silence surrounding mental illness. Their work resulted in the first legislative steps toward a modern mental health system that catapulted Minnesota to national leadership and empowered generations of activists for the mentally ill and developmentally disabled.