Treatment Abuse, Behavior Modification, Thought Reform > Vision Quest

My VQ boot camp experience

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zer0sleep:

--- Quote from: "Judge Joe Brown" --- "It was so touching, I almost cried"
--- End quote ---

Thank you. We were not permitted to speak -- not ever, not even in a whisper -- to each other. I spent three months effectively mute. Interesting way to build a "team", no? This had the result of keeping us psychologically isolated even in a group. Despite my frequent psychiatric hospitalizations for bipolar disorder, I was denied medication for the duration.

When I was incarcerated it was the dead of winter. We were outside 14+ hours a day, and as punishment we were forced to sit in the snow without coats (sweatshirts only). We had to "duck walk" in circles around our barracks while male DIs gazed down from above, until our legs literally collapsed. We were woken in the middle of the night to drill outside in the dark. I still have occasional nightmares that I am back in that place, and it's been 14 years.

Che Gookin:
Where in the world did they get the staff for this place?

zer0sleep:
A member of this board, youthadvocate, worked there. He said:

"I worked there several years ago myself at the boot camp. And I know what you mean about the full circle "program." There's no program at all. And I definitely noticed the blase outlook of their staff. As far as doing something to get it shut down, I would suggest taking the advice of contacting agencies. You could contact DPW directly and tell them your concerns. I would not suggest secret video taping as it would breaking the confidentiality of the youth and would have serious legal implications for you as well as get you banned from working with kids in the future."

Another choice memory: when the staff discovered that I am bisexual, they took me aside for a little private powwow. Did I understand that I was not to sexually assault the other troopers? Was I attracted to any other girl in particular?? They discussed putting me in my own isolated barracks to sleep but decided against it. I imagine that they were afraid of a discrimination lawsuit. It was dehumanizing and humiliating. "You know you'll get in trouble if you have sexual contact riiiight?" Why did they only say that to *me* as opposed to simply making a statement to the entire platoon?

Our head DI ("Lieutenant") was a sadistic bastard. He made us haul railroad ties because he was angry at being assigned to a girls' platoon. He needed to "prove" that we could be as browbeaten...oops, I mean physically strong...as any male group. As a result I gained a twelve-inch scar down my calf from a sharp metal railroad tie being dropped on my leg.

The official reason I was sent to Ft. Charles Young was for driving without a license. The judge was tired of seeing me and rather than recognize that I had serious problems at home, chose to label me a "nuisance to the court". So I was forced into a far more severe punishment than my crime warranted. I remember one girl was there for lighting an elementary school on fire with kids inside, and another had been convicted of attempted murder for stabbing someone. Nobody believed me when I explained my reason for being there.

cmack:
Powerful stories, terrible experiences. Thanks for posting.

cindiford79:
Your experience sounds absolutely awful. I can't believe they let adults treat children that way. I work for a facility here in Oregon that is a shelter for foster kids and a juvenile detention. The oversight we have is crazy. If anything our facility is opposite, the kids are allowed to abuse the staff and we have little we can do to keep ourselves safe. In my opinion there is a need for some types of facilities even if these kids are in this position because their parents have failed, they still need a place to be. Adults should never be allowed to abuse the kids though. Thank you for sharing your experience.

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