Fornits

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An open discussion about the troubled parent industry

Hi. On another thread, I posted the suggestion that maybe those of us who felt strongly about the existing Seed copycat programs could take some action together.

I didn't mean that we should disrupt our lives or organize vast media campaigns, but perhaps we could at least take a few humble steps.

Some people on this site have done extensive and admirable research into the Seed clones and copycats that are in operation now. My wife told me yesterday that there are several in California; she knows this through a friend who works with teens.

My idea for the moment is something very simple. Target a few of the locales where clearly identified Seed-type programs exist and place simple letters to the editors of local papers signed by all of us who are willng to sign. The gist of such letters could be, "We are graduates of a program called the Seed, which operated out of South Florida in the 1970s, and which was similar in style and technique to [insert program name here]. We are now middle-aged, but we can never forget our experiences, and would not wish them to be visited on other teens. We simply want the community to understand what these programs involve: namely, systematic destruction of a teen's sense of self, through psychological and physical abuse, including sleep deprivation, highly restricted access to the bathroom, and constant verbal lashings by other group members and by program staff. The net effect of this treatment is to replace a teen's sense of identity with a new identity--the identity of the program. This may work for a while to get a teen to stop experimenting with drugs, but we feel strongly that in all but the most desperate cases, this kind of treatment does more damage--to self-esteem, ability to form relationships, ability to think clearly, etc.--than good. We only ask that parents and others who may be thinking of remanding their child to [program name] should consider that this decision could have unforeseen, and very undesirable, long-term consequences both to their child and to themselves.
Sincerely, etc."

and we could all sign.

Something like that. I don't know.

My thought is that even if we kept ONE child out of a Seed-like program, it would be worth it.

Or am I just pissing in the wind here? Reality check please.

I am so curious what became of some of the staff members. I'm thinking of a few in particular:

1. Suzie Connors. When I was in the Ft. Lauderdale Seed in 1972, I was 14 and Suzie was 19 and--like many of the boys, I think--I had a sort of masochistic crush on her. But really, she wasn't the meanest staff member then, though she was occasionally cruel.
Reading through this forum, I see that Suzie went on to be the head of the St. Pete Seed, and was pretty much a monster. I was talking about this with my wife (not an ex-Seedling, not from Florida), saying it didn't quite jibe with my memory of Suzie. My wife pointed out that Suzie probably became worse. It makes sense.

2. John Underwood. What a spooky, strange guy. Does anybody know what became of him and how long he stayed with the Seed?

3. Clay. Don't know Clay's last name. It sounded something like "Climb." He's the one I'm most interested in. He had graduated the Seed before my time, then had had to serve a jail sentence on an old rap (as in legal rap, not Seed rap), and he returned to the Seed--as a staff member--about a month before I graduated. Clay was unique. Of all the staff members, if you caught his eye during a rap, instead of glaring at you to insinuate that you should be PAYING ATTENTION TO THE RAP, he might wink or make a funny face. At least that's how he was with me.
Here comes the remarkable part. Clay pulled me aside one evening and said softly, "How would you like to go to the oldtimers' rap tonight?" meaning I had completed the program. I was thrilled of course. But asking around, I never heard of anybody else being informed that way that they had completed the program; everybody else I spoke to had gotten their name called in front of the group and there was all that celebratory applause. It is my belief to this day that Clay subverted normal channels on my behalf--that it was HIS decision that I should be finished. If any other senior Seed staff person were to have retracted that decision, this would have revealed division in the ranks, which was unthinkable.

4. Danny Ultamura, another interesting character who kinda disappeared before I was out of there. Mean to some, but very kind to me.

What became of these souls I wonder, I wonder.