Abuse and Neglect
Shock Therapy is Still Legal. It’s Time to #StopTheShock.
The Judge Rotenberg Center, an educational and residential facility in Canton, Massachusetts, says it has a “near zero rejection policy,” accepting autistic people and those with developmental disabilities and mental health conditions whose families say they have nowhere…
We Need to Break Through the Silence on Abuses of Institutionalized Children
Content note: this post discusses psychiatric hospitalization and sexual abuse. When I was thirteen years old, I was sexually abused by a staff member in a psychiatric hospital. The first time she abused me, she took me into the examination…
Is Strip-Searching a Form of Sexual Abuse?
This blog post is part of a series in partnership with the Disability Visibility Project® to bring attention to the omission of disability from larger conversations taking place within the #MeToo Movement. Trigger warning: this post discusses institutionalization and sexual…
We Cannot Ignore the Connection Between Disability and Intimate Partner Abuse
This blog post is part of a series in partnership with the Disability Visibility Project® to bring attention to the omission of disability from larger conversations taking place within the #MeToo Movement. Trigger warning: this post discusses abuse, violence, and…
Why We Need More Research on How Substance Abuse Impacts the Autistic Community
I will always remember the first few times I tried an alcoholic beverage. I was around the age of eighteen, and at first found the feeling very uncomfortable. Even a slight buzz—just a partial alcoholic beverage—changes my perception and how …
Lawsuit alleges cruel and unusual punishment at Montana State Hospital
Ryan Bragg is a 21-year-old man with mental illness who is civilly committed at Montana State Hospital. Frustrated by the lack of running water in his room, Bragg broke off the fire sprinkler from the ceiling on June 16, partially…
Class action status sought in school abuse complaint
The Disability Rights Legal Center filed a motion July 11 to expand a lawsuit in federal court, first filed in October, accusing a California school district of systematically excluding students with intellectual disabilities from its services by failing to…
Florida newspapers win Pulitzer Prize for investigation of Florida mental health system
The Tampa Bay Times and Saratoga Herald-Tribune were awarded the Pulitzer Prize for investigative journalism April 18 for its year-long investigation into Florida’s network of state-run mental health hospitals. “Florida’s state-funded mental hospitals are supposed to be safe…