Author Topic: Why there will be a picket of Straight in Washington, DC Thu  (Read 1139 times)

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Offline wesfager

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In  1985 Straight, Inc. lost an appeal to pay a $220,000 civil judgment for falsely imprisoning an adult.  Fearing additional lawsuits, including personal suits against Straight board members,   Straight, Inc. changed its mission from treating druggie kids to educating the public  of the dangers of kids using drugs.  The name was changed to Straight Foundation, Inc.  A brand new organization was created to treat druggie kids.  It was called Straight, Inc.  Straight Foundation, Inc. had the money and property; Straight, Inc. leased property from the foundation.  In other words,  one might question whether Straight leased property from itself. The Foundation by-laws were amended to a. allow board members to use foundation funds to hire attorneys to defend them if they got sued personally and also to pay judgments if they lost.  They got their money from parents.  And now they authorized themselves to use the parents' money to defend themselves in case a parent sued them for abusing their child.  And they authorized themselves to use the parents' money to pay judgments in case they lost.  But their big protection would be to claim, don't sue me I work for the foundation, your kid claims he was abused in the treatment company.   In 1993 the last Straight, Inc. treatment program stopped operating.  In 1995 Straight Foundation, Inc. changed its name to Drug Free America Foundation (DFAF).   Straight, Inc. closed in 1993 because of mounting civil suits and criminal investigations, but as they closed,  many straight officers just opened up their own Straight-like programs.  One is SAFE.   On Aug 14, 1992 Straight - Orlando closed.  On Aug 14, 1992 Straight - Orlando's exec dir,  Michael Scalleta,  opened up SAFE in Orlando.  At breakfast the kids had been in Straight.  After lunch they were in SAFE. SAFE rented the building from Straight.   Through the years there have been allegations of abuse at SAFE.  On June 19,  we learned that  some parents and former SAFE clients were suing SAFE for child abuse.  And then a week later the US Supreme Court handed down a decision to allow for suspicionless drug testing of any child who participates in any school extra curricular activity.  Many people, including many Straight survivors,  feel this is a good decision because it protects kids form themselves.  Many feel it is a violation of Constitutional rights, which cannot be tolerated.  And there are many other arguments either way concerning this ruling.  

Regardless of your stand on the actual decision,  you need to know that Straight played a major role in helping the judges decide what to do.  We have a problem with the Amicus Curie Brief ( friends of the court)  that was filed with the court.  A lot of professional people in the drug policy establishment had signed the agreement. The brief was spearheaded in large part by the DFAF (Straight).  Many of the signers of the brief were from DFAF,  its divisions, or its associates.  Many of the signers were tied to the drug testing industry.  These men and women and companies had prevailed upon the court.  The more kids pee into a jar or submit to hair testing,  the more money some of them can potentially earn.  For example,  former White House Drug Czar Robert DuPont testified as an expert witness a few years ago in federal district court in a previous issue that made it to the US Supreme Court.  That involved suspicionless drug testing of a child athlete.  DuPont testified that school athletes should be required to submit to testing.  And he may be right.  But you need to understand that at some point Dr. DuPont became the head of the scientific advisory board for Psychemedics--the worlds premier hair-drug testing company.  So it turns out the more kids are forced to be drug tested,  it seems to me,  the more money Dr. DuPont could potentially make.  Dr. DuPont is a former paid consultant for Straight.  Today he is on the advisory board for DFAF.  Dr. DuPont testified as a witness for Straight in four civil suits.  He was paid handsomely per occurrence.   In passing,  Dr. DuPont is the former director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse.  During his tenure there, NIDA administered a $1 million contract to The Seed-Straight's predecessor.   Dr. DuPont is one example.  The signers of the Amicus Brief are very, very heavily tied to DFAF.  

For 17 years Straight abused kids.  That is criminal activity.  The principals should have been investigated for criminal child abuse.  Their experience with Straight does not uniquely qualify them to be a think tank to affect the nation's drug policy.   It needs to be brought out to the public, to the media, to the politicians about who these people behind American drug policy are.  It needs to be brought out that many of the  men and women who signed the brief for the court could potentially make money from the court's decision.  The decision was 5-4.  If one judge had voted the other way, it would not have passed.  But a close decision means that the justices themselves were unsure of the right answer.  So they had to go to the nation's experts  and ask them what should they do.

DATIA is an association that certifies drug testers.  They signed the brief.  They are having a Workshop in DC on July 18.  Almost as soon as the Supreme Court announced its decision,  DATIA changed its web page announcement for the workshop to say,

"Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has determined it is constitutional for schools to subject extracurricular participants to mandatory, suspicionless drug tests, DATIA is pleased host a comprehensive training workshop."

The workshop sponsors include: DFAF (e.g. Straight), Institute on Global Drug Policy (a division of DFAF), International Scientific and Medical Forum on Drug Abuse (a division of DFAF), Save Our Society From Drugs (SOS), a non-profit founded by Straight founder Betty Sembler; Legal Foundation Against Illicit Drugs (an organization helped founded by Calvina Fay of DFAF and SOS). Calvina Fay is the former director of Drug Watch International or DWI.  The International Drug Strategy Institute is a division of DWI and includes Straight's consultant Robert L. DuPont and his business partner Peter Bensinger, former drug czar and Straight's former national research director Donald Ian Macdonald, Straight's former national clinical director Miller Newton, Straight-Springfield's former research director Richard Schwartz,

Last week Straight survivors in Florida protested SAFE in solidarity with the parents and former clients who are currently suing SAFE.  Tomorrow we are going to protest the DATIA workshop from 5PM - 6PM.  Hand out some fliers to the attendees as they leave.  And then go to the Italian Embassy and hold a candle light vigil from 7PM - 8PM in remembrance of those former clients who are in mental hospitals and who are now dead--mostly from suicide.  Straight founder Mel Sembler is our ambassador to Italy. Four Straight survivors are coming up from Florida to join the protest.

Positive ways to tell the story of Straight abuses,  to stop the abuses,  and to warn the world about what is going on is to write and publish,  to go to the media and to put on peaceful demonstrations.  Help us if you can.  Go to the Picket Page at http://www.thestraights.com/pickets/

Wes Fager
http://www.thestraights.com
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by Guest »
es Fager
www.thestraights.com

\"If David Miscaviage can go to his deposition as Admiral Farragut, then Keith Henson can go as Bozo the Clown.\"  Wes Fager