Will Rape Shut the Shock School?

When I wrote recently about the Judge Rotenberg Center -- the facility for autistic kids and other children with "behavior problems" that uses electric shock to gain compliance -- I asked rhetorically what it might take to shut it down. If the latest incident doesn't do it, I simply cannot imagine what would.

Of course, you would think exposure of its methods would be enough. Especially given our increasing knowledge about oversensitivity in autism and the fact that many "inappropriate behaviors" are actually attempts by people with autism to soothe themselves when overwhelmed. Brilliant treatment, this is: take a kid who is distressed and trying to soothe herself-- and punish her with more distress to try to make her stop.

Ok, so that's not enough for the state regulators. How about the fact that a former inmate of the program can call in and order employees to shock other kids -- for no reason -- and the employees comply, replicating Milgrim's chilling "obedience" experiment? That's the one where ordinary people become "good Nazi's" simply by being told what to do.

Oh yeah, that didn't do it. Comes now word that a staff member allegedly raped another staff member at a Rotenberg facility. Police were called to the site just after the incident -- and the rape apparently occurred in a bathroom.

Can we please, please spend the $200,000 a year states give to this program each year per child instead on evidence-based, nurturing treatment at home? I mean, for that money, you could hire a psychiatrist full-time to see only your child.

It's time to turn the page on this shameful chapter in the history of treating troubled children.

Comments

[Alexius]

All is can say is "Wow" it's obvious the author of this blog is grasping for straws to even imply that this alleged rape has anything to do with the Judge Rotenberg Center, other than the information that the alleged incident occurred on the center's property it has nothing to do with the center. In fact, from the article that I read it suggests that the center cooperated fully with investigators.

If the incident did indeed happen as the woman stated, let us hope that there is enough evidence to prosecute the perpetrator of the crime to the full extent of the law and show him that rape is not tolerated in the US.

Let us also be sensitive to the fact that this poor woman may have been raped and jumping on the "headline of the day" to draw people to a blog, to boost lagging book sales or both strikes me as insensitive to say the least.

[AlisonHymes]

Work at JRC or have a kid there "Alexius"? It's not relevant that JRC hired someone who was capable of rape as a staff member to work with children? Really? What if it turns out JRC didn't do a criminal background check on the alleged rapist? Than will it be relevant? Or can JRC do no wrong in your opinion as a stockholder in the company that owns JRC, parent of a resident or staff member?

[Idytme]

You are assuming that you can look at a rapist and know that he is a rapist. The typical rapist is white, 21 years old and married. If they have a criminal record, many only have petty, non felony crimes. One of the biggest prejudices people have is that women should have know that the person they were dating/gave a ride home/working with should have known of his bad intentions. This gives the victim both a lot of outside prejudice and inner guilt.

[jalowe1957]

What would you expect from nimrods with severe curvature of their moral and ethical spines?

What next? Taser guns and pepper spray?

All this gives the term "suffer the little children" a whole new meaning.

[AlisonHymes]

Since the Massachusetts legislature just refused to pass a law banning the use of aversives, I seriously doubt anyone in power in Mass. is going to close down this snakepit just because a staff person was raped. I doubt they would close it down if a student/resident/hostage was raped. This place is owned by people with a lot of money, similar to Whisper Ridge in Charlottesville, Virginia where I live which was not closed down after teenage residents Were raped among hundreds of other violations.

We need to overcome ablist attitudes and the profit motive in residential settings before anything will really change as well as enforcement of Olmstead instead of the "massive resistance" by all 50 states to Olmstead we have now.
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