Re: Tragic story in Texas

[Guest guest]

If anyone is interested on following and supporting Hasseb's story or

better said to help many others here in Texas or anyone with special

needs undergoing through something like this.

Contact Jeff Tate at

communitynowfreedom@...

For all who would like to take some action, join the list as many of

us have.

There are screenings which Josh Tate and Zach Anner's amazing work of

producing the film " Forgotten Lives " , about Texas' state institutions.

This has past which Ivy had posted but wanted to repost it so that

y'all could read this information on the article published that was

posted on the Austin American Statesman.

Even though the screening has past, you all could still plan to invite

Jeff Tate by emailing to have a screening of the film shown near your

location or where the next screening will be at?

RE:

Here's the Statesman article on the award winning documentary,

Forgotten Lives, about Texas' state institutions. Please plan to see

it this coming Sunday evening, 12/9 at 7pm at the UT student union

theater. A q & a with participants in the film will take place

following the screening... See you there!

Ivy

A Coffee With ...

Tate and Zach Anner hope their film inspires Texans

By Corrie MacLaggan

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Tuesday, December 04, 2007

Tate is the serious one.

Part of a family that has long fought for the closure of state

institutions for people with mental retardation, the 21-year-old

filmmaker explores in a new project the political pressure that has

kept 13 such facilities, known as state schools, open in Texas. Many

other states have closed theirs.

Corrie MacLaggan

AMERICAN-STATESMAN

(enlarge photo)

Zach Anner (left) and Josh Tate at Clementine coffee bar on Manor Road.

Screening of 'Forgotten Lives,'

Where:Texas Union Theatre

2247 Guadalupe St.

When: 7 p.m. Sunday.

Cost: Free

Zach Anner, 23, is the comic.

Tate brought him on to add a light perspective to a dreary topic (a

federal report last year found unsafe, unsanitary conditions at

Lubbock State School). The creator of a student sketch comedy show,

Anner, who uses a wheelchair because of cerebral palsy, relies on

humor to encourage tolerance.

Together, the University of Texas undergraduate film students created

" Forgotten Lives, " a 45-minute documentary they're showing at college

campuses around the state (there's also a 20-minute version). Tate

visited state schools in San , Austin, Denton and Abilene to

tell stories such as that of Haseeb Chishty, a resident of Denton

State School who was paralyzed after being beaten by one of his

caretakers in 2002 (the caretaker, who pleaded guilty to injury to a

disabled individual, is now in prison).

The documentary, financed by Tate's father, recently won the college

division of the Cinema Touching Disability Film Festival, which was

held in Austin.

Over hot chocolate at Clementine Coffee Bar, Tate (the film's director

and an editor and producer) and Anner (a producer who is also a

subject of the documentary) talked about the message they want to

bring to a new generation.

American-Statesman: , your uncle (Jeff Garrison-Tate of Advocacy

Inc.) has been involved in this cause, but how did you personally get

interested?

Tate: The main thing that kind of sealed the deal ... was

reading the (Lubbock) report. It's just some horrible things. I just

couldn't believe that this was going on. That made me really think,

'I've got to try to do something about this,' at least to speak out to

my generation. A lot of people who are older than us believe that

people with disabilities belong in these places and that it's the

right thing to have them segregated from the community.

What was it about the report that really grabbed you?

Tate: The fact that 17 people had died. Stuff like (staff) leaving

them lying in urine-soaked diapers. Neglect is a big problem.

What would you say to the people who might say there's a side to this

story that is not really presented in the film? There are families who

insist their loved ones are well cared for in state schools.

Tate: The other side has been very, very vocal and in fact seems to be

the only voice being heard right now by the Texas Legislature.

Zach Anner: Everyone's trying to make the best choices possible for

the people that they love (even if) politicians aren't keeping the

best interests of the individuals at heart. I totally respect that

(people who want the institutions to stay open) feel that way. I still

have major disagreements with their positions because I think a lot of

times they are erasing an aspect of the humanity from the individual

and they're not putting emphasis on the resilience of the individual

and they're not giving people in these state schools enough credit to

make their own decisions.

What do you see yourself doing after college?

Tate: Probably going to grad school for film.

Anner:I want to be an advocate. I just want to be able to be funny and

in the process of that maybe expose people to things they may not have

paid attention to before.

Like what?

Anner: I've got this idea to do a travel show ... with an emphasis on

finding accessible places to go. Sort of like Man vs. Wild, but like

Man vs. Curb. Or Man vs. Stairs. Guides to these cities that would

have a slight emphasis on what you would do if you had a disability.

What do you hope people do when they see the documentary?

Tate:I hope they tell a lot of people.

Anner:And very loudly. We want one of those dialogues that gets into

heated debate and ... just really energizes people to do something.

Because the people in power will only listen if people are shouting.

Tate:They can come and join us with Community Now!, a new nonprofit

(communitynowfreedom.org).

Anner (joking):Or, you know, they could disable themselves. That would

be the ideal thing, to have lots of people who are falling down stairs

and getting hit by buses just to be part of the movement. That's what

I see for the future.

[Guest guest]

I didn't see the show, but doesn't surprise me. There is a Resd.

school in Wichita, KS called, Heartspring. By all appearances, it

looks like it would be a wonderful school, well maintained buildings,

fairly new.

But sadly it is a horrible school, children are fed food

that you wouldn't give to a dog. Children are left in soiled diapers

for hours, some are restrained in odd garments, some are allowed to

beat their heads and face without intervention.

Its poorly staffed with

medical staffing, children are left untreated sometimes for days.

I could go on but you get the picture. Oh and its not a cheap place

the rates are in the range of $250,000 - $300,000 a yr.

Some of their children come as far as Hawaii, so parents are clueless

how their children are being treated or lack of treatment.

In Texas-Autism-Advocacy , Carlson

wrote:

>

> Did anyone else see the expose on Geraldo about Texas and

the way our state treats the mentally disabled? He highlighted a

story of a boy (now a young man?) whose Mom put him in the Denton

State School for the purpose of him gaining skills to live in the

world. The videos they showed of him before the violent assault he

received by a caregiver, and the comments of the mother about his

behaviors before, lead me to believe he has autism. He is now

totally disabled and suffered severe brain damage. Though the

perpetrator is in prison, in an interview he stated that most of the

attendants do the same thing. They beat and abuse the residents.

Geraldo said we are the worst state for the mentally disabled and put

money into these evil institutions. The family has not received

adequate compensation and though the state told the media when this

happened they would help the family they haven't done so. If anything

can be done to stop the abuse of those with mental disabilities and

advocate for this family it should be us who have so much at stake

with the issue. I tried to find a transcript of the footage but

wasn't able to get it.

>

> C.

>