Discussion Topics
- An overview of the movie
- What’s their main take-aways
- Their thoughts
- How they felt about the camp
- Opinions on the people in the documentary
- Have they ever heard of any of those people
- What my parents remember from that time period
- Did they every witness discrimination against the disabled community when they were younger
- Did they know anyone who had a sibling taken away or disappear
CRIP CAMP NOTES –
- 1971 – the Catskills, camp Jened
- “a utopia”
- Director of camp – Larry Allison
- Environment where kids can get away from stereotypes and discrimination
- Problems with parents
- Overprotective
- “Sometimes they are too great”
- At times they remind their kids that they are in wheelchairs or are handicapped
- Different treatment to various siblings
- Feel there is a major problem with privacy, alone time
- Were brothers and sisters there
- Took ideas home that their community wasn’t okay with
- “at camp I was in a whole different world”
- Judy Huemann
- President of Disabled in Action
- A political organization of the handicapped
- The status quo was not what it needed to be
- President of Disabled in Action
- Willowbrooks
- Horrifying
- 3 mins per child per feeding
- Consequence – death from ammonia
- One attendant to 50 kids
- Nixon vetoed The Rehabilitation Act in 1972
- section 504
- “Paraplegics stop traffic in Manhattan”
- 50 people
- Eventually, Nixon caved in to all the political pressure and he signs the Rehab Bill
- But does nothing to enforce section 504
- The Center for Independent Living
- Run by the handicapped for the handicapped
- Provided transportation, support, housing
- “Traveling Camp Jened Show”
- Accuse Califano of delaying progress of Rehab Act, Section 504
- Protest outside his office
- Sit-In at HEW headquarters
- Had supporters, Black Panthers
- Went to Washington
- Went to Califano’s house
- Protested outside White House
- New Laws
- regular schooling for everyone, aids, ramps, jobs
- public and private businesses/buildings
- took years
- Camp Jened
- 1951 – 1977, shut down due to financial difficulties