An Unfinished Journey:

Willowbrook and Pennhurst: Abuse and Neglect on National TV leads to Federal court action

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the inhumane conditions in institutions were revealed to the American public on national TV. A documentary called "Suffer the Little Children" aired in 1968, exposing conditions in the Pennhurst School in Pennsylvania. In February 1972, ABC news aired Geraldo Rivera's investigative report on conditions in the Willowbrook State School in New York.

In March 1972, parents of Willowbrook residents filed a class action lawsuit in federal court in New York. They alleged that Willowbrook violated their children's constitutional rights through:

• a failure to treat developmental and medical needs
• confinement in solitary settings
• overcrowded and understaffed facilities with no privacy or safety
• inadequate clothing, meals, and bathroom facilities

The case settled in 1975, when Judge Orrin G. Judd signed the Willowbrook Consent Judgment, which set guidelines and requirements for operating the institution, established new standards of care, and called for a ten-year phase down of the population.

In 1974, Halderman v. Pennhurst was filed in federal court in Pennsylvania on behalf of former and current residents seeking damages, the closing of Pennhurst, and education, training, and care in the community. In 1977, Judge Raymond J. Broderick found that Pennhurst was overcrowded and that unwarranted forms of restraints were used. He found that residents had three rights under the Constitution: a right to minimally adequate habilitation, a right to be free from harm, and a right to non-discriminatory habilitation, and that each of these rights had been violated.  

Photo: Black and white photo with dozens of beds in rows very close together with metal headboards and sheets, photo courtesy of William Bronston, MD.

Photo: Dozens of children, each with varying levels of physical and intellectual disabilities, are seated or lying in wooden carts designed for two occupants. These carts are arranged along a long wall. Photo courtesy of William Bronston, MD

Photo: Black and white photo of the profile of an individual with half of their hair shaven revealing a long cut that runs the length of the scalp. A hand is holding the individual's chin.  Photo courtesy of William Bronston, MD

Photo: Black and white photo of a male with short hair wearing no shirt, forehead is cut, and face is swollen and bruised. Photo courtesy of William Bronston, MD

Photo: Black and white photo of an individual wearing a skirt lying on the floor in front of a metal radiator below a window. The person's top half is hidden behind an open metal door, Photo courtesy of William Bronston, MD

Photo: Black and white photo of a black man lying on top of a metal radiator next to a window, barefoot and wearing dirty clothes. Photo courtesy of William Bronston, MD

Link to Dr. Bronston's book: https://www.publichostagepublicransom.org/