Yeah, I don’t know that we can stand with solidarity against this because clearly not everyone is against it. I am personally feeling deadlocked with the information and speculation at hand
My read of Maia’s article, related Youth Right’s statements, Reddit TT threads and Fornits threads, still has me on the fence.
I’m not sure how I feel about this bill. My head spins as I read from one cogent argument to the next on the sides of for and against (mostly on the topic of HR911). There are good points on both sides. Foremost IMHO is that this issue is being finally brought to the fore where it had been largely ignored, by even having discussion about legislation. Then again, legislation without teeth to it bites in the bad way.
I would like to know if this piece of legislation addresses the *spiritual healing* that has left bruises and mental anguish on the children who have received mistreatment in Faith Based programs.
If this bill does have an impact on those programs that even CPS, has troubles paying calls upon, well that would be very compelling to be all yea about it.
Another issue was raised by Che Gookin and others re: who exactly will be charged with being the enforcer of this?
“I want to know what role SAMHSA will play in this
and any funding attached to the bill.
viewtopic.php?p=406177#p406177Discussion on that thread then gives the impression this (if passed) will fall under the domain of HHS. A post by N.O.S.O.B. shows
When I called Health and Human Services a couple weeks ago, they said they do not even take "quality of care complaints" meaning the whole of HHS, that is not even in the reality of HHS, it's totally up the states. My point is, there is nothing in place.That was the Human Rights Department, office of the Director..
Ursus raised a good point that the possibility of loopholes such as TBS being considered schools or probably more accurately in their terminology “specialty schools†or “alternative schools†and therefore not treated as treatment centers. This is no joke. I have both laughed and balked at even Daytop’s attempts to toe the waters of this angle for marketing purposes. If it works for strong arming school districts into picking up the tab on the supposedly ODD kids’ bill, the inverse of it could work for side stepping regulation, unless language is included which prevents that.
Then we get to what would regulation achieve and ugh! There’s some back and forth. The new Program Lite as Che Gookin put it, only while well put, it's really not so new and it's not so lite. On the one hand I look at this TTI like triage. It’s hard enough to reconcile the reality of the mindset of people who have the same voting rights as the next, with the realities of the fates suffered by kids in programs, JCCs or other – when you see calloused comments about those kids who died or were abused in custody posted by those citizen dumbasses. These usually are along the lines of “Those kids are a menace, sombody’s gotta learn em up right†“Break a few eggs to make an omelet†So, explaining programs which don’t have violence as a mainstay of their curriculum, but who do use humiliation tactics and coercion is a little difficult. Hence, Phoenix House getting government funding is a little thornier of an issue, when even places like JRC, are so difficult to affect change upon. Oregon may care that kids were being subjected to humiliations at MBA, but it’s been the standard of care at Daytop since its inception. Neither place (Aspen nor Daytop) consider these practices to be “emotionally abusiveâ€, in fact not participating in LEs or Haircuts etc. is expressly conveyed as being withholding and neglect of yourself or your peer according to Daytop. So, will this legislation define what is emotionally abusive treatment? Will this legislation of regulation normalize the mistreatment or eradicate it?
I can’t find the answers within what is supposed, but not certain to be in the bill and without being able to reach Miller’s office I’d like to see this Bill. Where/when will that be available?
Sorry this is rambling and confused, but that’s where I’m at tonight.