Anon,
This is Jennifer. I so appreciate your concern about what my dad said in his post. As a survivior, I know the sensitivity about divuldging information. I would be so upset with my dad had I not made the choice many years ago to go public with my abuse. I have posted on the Straight Testimony site about talking about both my molestation and rape in girls rap and then being ripped in group for lying about it and sat on the guys side for lying and the trauma that caused me. I have also posted threads here about it so that is why my dad was able to know that would not upset me. I speak publicly to rape survivor groups and child abuse orginazations. I was very lucky to have therapists who helped me understand I was not at fault and I try to convey that to others by speaking openly about it.
I have openly posted apologies on this site to the people I hurt in Straight and have had open dialogue with most of them and been able to listen, understand and support their feelings in regards to me and the program. I would never have found any healing about Straight had I not been able to vent and support others doing the same. I am a little embarrassed my dad went to such lenghts to even post here. I tried to explain to him I was not scared by any of the threats Timmy posted. I think he was more upset about the lies, especially that he and my mom had supported Straight after I was there and that I was only writing a book for profit. my parents were not in support of my choice to write about Straight - they were just fine with me being freelance, writing basically bs pieces for different things. They had known for a long time I wanted to write about Straight but had tremendous fear that it would be too consuming and painful. That it would cause too much upheaval of the work I had done to get past the place. I explained that it did not feel like a choice, it was something that I HAD to do, not the other way around. They are now in support, my dad is actually going to contribute about how they were sucked in and address your questions about what took so long and how they have dealt with their guilt after finding out what Straight did to all of us. Had I not worked personally with a cult deprogrammer to undue much of the bullshit put in my brain by Straight I would not understand either. They played on every dire emotion a parent had about the most important thing in most parents life, their child. As my dad said, I had always been an overachiever, straight A student, cheerleader, etc...until I was raped. That happened in December and in the following March I attempted suicide. I would not tell, could not bring myself to tell. I had been a virgin when it happened and I just did not see any hope past it. They took me to shrinks and I certainly was not going to tell some stranger. They told my parents my 'symptoms' smacked of drug use. At first my parents thought they were nuts but I just got worse and more depressed. Someone in our church had put their kid in Straight and convinced my parents to go meet with some executives who sold them on the "14 day evaluation" idea. I do believe my parents, they said hearing all the stories from parents in parents group about how their kids had done these 180's and were such great kids again, the whole family has to change made them think they had found the right answer. By the time, I started complying and made it to 2nd phase I was as convinced as they were and quite honestly, being home with my family was more than enough to push me over the edge past any doubts I may have had. I asked my dad to let me do this myself, that I so appreciated him taking up for me but that I did not want him trying to protect me by getting overly involved in this. He and my mom have done so much for me and this is something that as an adult I want to do myself. Ginger posted something to me about gathering information and sharing what she knows after all her research about current day programs and those involved which I plan to take her up on. I trust her and know that she will direct me in the correct way in regards to that. I know that my parents and other family members will support them in their fight, whether it be financially, by sharing their experience or what ever they deem appropriate.
Thanks again for your concern.
Jennifer