SPRING CITY, PENNSYLVANIA— Mental health and disability advocates around the country are expressing deep outrage at the inappropriateness of a Halloween attraction at the site of Pennhurst State Hospital, a former hospital and school for individuals with psychiatric and other disabilities located near Philadelphia. In years past, similar events have taken place the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum in Weston, West Virginia, the Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield, Ohio, and the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia.
Pennhurst opened in 1908 but closed in 1987 following investigations revealing shocking levels of neglect and abuse. The Pennhurst Memorial and Preservation Alliance, a group whose membership includes individuals who once lived in various institutional settings, seeks to preserve the institution as a “catalyst for awareness”.
Mike Fitzpatrick, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness says, "This whole sort of trend to have haunted asylums is both discouraging and very, very inappropriate", while the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia said “… this haunted house threatens to exploit the tragedy at Pennhurst for cheap thrills”. J. Bruce Hulick, who is the executive director of ARC of Philadelphia, wants Pennhurst to be “… a dignified remembrance, not an amusement."
In defense of the haunted house, Pennhurst Acquisition—the investment group that has owned the property since 2008— says, "By no means is our event a mockery of that. ... I would think the youth is smart enough to distinguish between the make-believe and the other.”
Haunted ‘Asylum’ At Site Of Former Institution Has Disability Advocates Cringing
http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2010/09/15/haunted-house/10219/
HAUNTED ASYLUM: Mental health pros boo attraction at Pa. institution
http://thetandd.com/lifestyles/health-med-fit/article_391952fa-cffa-11df-877b-001cc4c03286.html
Pennhurst Asylum Haunted House:
22 comments:
The advocates against the asylum being used for a haunted house are correct, people should not profit of others devastating experiences of abuse and neglect. I was really concerned, but it does not surprise me the media such as Hollywood has always been vested in using these types of settings to create movies for entertainment. These places should be protected from such cheap thrills. There should be some type of rights or laws that protect such institutions. If I were a person who was in one of these institutions or a family member of one, I would be otraged to see that all these experiences of neglect or abuse would just be diminished by some simple act. The advocates have the right to protest because from their point of view these places should be seen as methods of awareness, that all human beings deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.
I cease to understand why anybody would use a location where abuse and neglect was reportedly occurring to individuals with physical and mental disabilities. This is just one of the reasons why there is so much stigma behind people with disabilities. There are many people who view individuals with disabilities as being “scary” or “frightening”, when really they are individuals with feelings and emotions just like everybody else. The individuals who are promoting this haunted house should have found a different location where there isn’t so much history of torture and neglect. It is truly a shame to see what people would do for money. There were so many individuals who suffered in this asylum, and this place shouldn’t be used as a mockery of what happened to them so many years ago.
To begin with, I highly doubt that anyone who is going to this former State Hospital for this Halloween attraction is going to willingly remember the neglect and abuse done towards the individuals who were receiving treatment there. I do feel that using a building which was primarily used for the care of people with mental illnesses is wrong when informing crowds that the people in the attraction illustrate mentally ill patients. I can agree with the whole “cheep thrill” statement. Cheap thrills are over rated these days but cheap thrills make money. Would these board members argue/advocate if they new that the funds raised will go towards the preservation of the building? Would they argue/advocate if a 5 min. educational summary was given to the crowds about the historical building before every tour? Not only would it educate people about the building but also keep it maintained. Before each tour a guide could easily state the attraction does not depict mental illness. I also find it extremely difficult for the ARC President to expect this place to bee seen as a dignified remembrance when its pt.’s didn’t/don’t remember it that way, how sad.
Using the Pennhurst State Hospital for an “inappropriate Halloween attraction” is has its pros and cons. If people only knew the situation behind its downfall and what it was used for, then could it be used for something else. As long as there is some awareness about the abuse and neglect that the individuals who were treated there went through, then could it be used. My idea of this Halloween attraction would be to let the public attend only if they sign a petition letter against the abuse and neglect that caused for this hospital to be closed in 1987. This way, there is advocacy going on and there is entertainment as a result. This gives the public reason to attend and advocates reason to let it happen. The cons of this entertainment would be if people completely disregard what the hospital was used for and why it was shut down. The key idea is to bring awareness about these hospitals and the people with disabilities who had to stopped being treated because of neglect and abuse.
Since I was little, I remember watching movies or previews of movies that were of terror. They would usually link the terror with someone that had a deformity on their face or body. They would also use someone that had schizophrenia or a learning disability. Now I come to the conclusion that is why many people that do not know about the disabilities see them as unacceptable, specially now with this advertisement.
These people are showing disrespect to the incident and making fun of it. Of course now the reputation is that people that had a disability are going to hunt you after their death, going back to what I mentioned at the beginning. We society are the ones that make other individual loose their credibility.
We as individuals that are learning about disabilities, we should always be advocates to people that had or has a disability.
By Matilde Barrera Alaniz
(I am having a hard time logging in so I have to do it this way :))
I believe that having a Halloween event in a former mental health institution would contribute to perpetuate the idea that people with mental disabilities are abnormal. Also, it would be disrespectful for the victims of abuse and neglect of this institution. However, if people still want to use this building to make money, they could organize an event to educate the public about mental disabilities, and raise awareness to promote respect and inclusion of people with mental disorders into mainstream society.
Isabel Corbi
I believe that having a Halloween event in a former mental health institution would contribute to perpetuate the idea that people with mental disabilities are abnormal. Also, it would be disrespectful for the victims of abuse and neglect of this institution. However, if people still want to use this building to make money, they could organize an event to educate the public about mental disabilities, and raise awareness to promote respect and inclusion of people with mental disorders into mainstream society.
Isabel Corbi
I believe that people with mental disorders are perceived as abnormal, abnormal situations are scary for the “normal” people. We can see the stereotypes of these individuals; they have problems with self-management skills or inappropriate social skills like difficulty with regulating volume of voice. They are impulsive person with difficulty in making judgments. Some shows short stature and microcephaly or macrocephaly dysmorphic face with sparse hair and sometimes convergent strabismus. These physical manifestations of their mental retardation make them victims of abuse and neglect by their parents or caregivers. This is not enough reason for people to use them and the places where they use to live to make money. This business people who want use old hospitals as haunted house should organize events to educate the public about mental disabilities to promote respect of people with mental disorders.
I disagree with the use of institutions like the Pennhurts State Hospital, Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Assylum, etc. as amusement for the public as Halloween attractions. I believe what needs to be exemplified of these institutions is the abuse and neglect that was done TO the patients. The problem is the lack of education about the history of these institutions which is why people continuously feed into the popularity of these places. The public does not understand that the patients were the victims of the staff not the other way around. The patients were probably not the ones to be feared; instead mankind in a position of authority, care and power over people with disabilities is what should be feared.
Very interesting concept to say the least. Why would one think that a facility that housed patients who were disabled somehow be haunted? Perhaps thoughts crossed their minds that mental health patients somehow are spooky. Unless some people were murdered there, which I doubt, then there might be suspicions about paranormal activities. My guess is folks keep looking for new and inventive ways to scare themselves. Nonetheless, it is inappropriate to entice people to a haunted house with the banner, 'mental institution haunted.' There are plenty of abandoned barns and warehouses that can be genned up to scare the wits out of most teens. However, this setting is very insensitive.
I would definitely be an advocate for something like this. I feel like it is disrespectful to use this place for attraction. Even though is happened so many years ago there was probably people who knew someone that was in that hospital during the operational years. There is a difference on having a haunted houses and being creative about it, but not when you actually do use a building that was known for people to be neglected and abused I guess the worse part of it is the way the hospital is labeled. Instead of properly educating people about the State Hospitals they seem to exploit it instead. Who allowed for the public to open this up as an attraction? The only good thing is that the money is going to restoring buildings at the site and donating part of money to a charity. However, the people running these types of entertainment should be a little more sensitive.
I believe that a mental disorder implies abnormal mental functioning. Individuals diagnosed with mental disabilities may have impaired social functioning causing mainstream society to pass judgment on that specific population. It is inappropriate for an group of investors to make a mockery of the tragedies that have unfolded at this particular asylum. It is without saying that there must be an attempt at the education of individuals with disabilities to help minimize the misunderstandings often placed in society. This story reminds me of an asylum nearby in Granjeno, Texas. Many youth visit and trespass illegally claiming it is a haunted attraction.
Most people tend to demonize or fear that which they do not understand. As a mental health professional, I find that this portrayal of psychiatric treatment is often distorted by the media or its own reasons. People continue to believe that inpatient psychiatric hospitals and their residents are to be feared and this notion is augmented in fiction.
J. Bruce Hulick said it best when he commented that he wants Pennhurst to be, “a dignified remembrance, not an amusement.” I completely agree with his sentiment. The Pennhurst Acquisition Company is attempting to justify its actions with fallacious logic. The company contends that its event is not a mockery of the individuals with psychiatric disabilities who suffered abuse at Pennhurst. A Halloween attraction is a make-believe environment. What is make-believe is something that is purely entertainment and not to be taken seriously. What is not to be taken seriously is something that is open to unscrupulous mockery. Hence, it is absurd to insinuate that this Halloween attraction is not an exploitative mockery of the tragedy that occurred at Pennhurst. I believe that the young and impressionable minds of today's youth may fall prey to inappropriate antics that are motivated by profit and being perpetuated by adults who they revere. For the aforementioned reasons, I would conclude that “Asylum” Haunted Houses are not appropriate for anyone at any age. They are simply not appropriate...period.
I am a horror movie and haunted house fanatic, however, having the site of Pennhurst State Hospital serve as a haunted house is disrespectful to the disability community, especially those that were institutionalized there. I support the Pennhurst Memorial and Preservation Alliance’s decision to have the Pennhurst State Hospital serve as a “catalyst of awareness.” We should learn from the event and not use it for entertainment. Thus, we should bring awareness to the community of the abuse and neglect that these individuals faced. We often see on television and in movies people with disabilities being made fun of. Then, we come across an event such as this. I strongly feel that this event further supports how society negatively views and thinks about people with disabilities. Instead of making a haunted house, this site should serve as a museum to provide correct information to the community about the experiences these individuals had. By making it into a haunted house, we are teaching society that the people in which once resided here or who reside in an institutionalized setting, are scary people when in fact they are not. People with disabilities are people and should be treated with respect.
These days, it seems that people get a kick out of haunted places and unfortunately learning of people's torture and horrifying experiences seem to add to their thrill. It is something that has become very popular especially around Halloween, but I agree that it is inappropriate especially since people who lived in such places were all people just like us.
I agree with the advocates against using the asylum as a haunted house attraction, especially an asylum with such a horrible past. I don't believe that the people hosting the haunted house are not trying to exploit the asylum to make money. I think that the people hosting the haunted house are banking on the horrible past of the asylum. Hosting a haunted house at an old asylum that was shut down for horrible cases of neglect and abuse makes the idea of a haunted house more appealing for those who are into that sort of thing. I think that an asylum which was shut down for such horrible treatment of it's patients should have a lock on the doors and that no one should be allowed in, certainly not someone hosting a haunted house there. All these people are doing is exploiting other's pain and suffering.
Exploitation is all that can be said. This location was once used to house individuals who were treated with neglect and in abusive manners and now people are treating it as a place of amusement. Whether it be a cheap thrill or not I completely disagree with the use of it for those reasons. In addition this can lead to people placing yet another negative stereotype on individuals with disabilities. Be that it is a historical monument now or not the doors to it should be locked and perhaps security should be on site.
When reading this article I got a picture in my mind: a circus. Even though the individuals who used to live in this asylum will not be part of the 'show' the horrific abuse they underwent will be played out in exchange for a couple of bucks and screams. Already asylums have been stereotyped to be 'spooky' places where the 'crazies' used to live in and to recreate events of abuse involving real people in a given time does a great disservice to the advancement of view of people with disabilities.
-Eliana Mendoza
I am a big scary cat so I am not a fan of horror movies and these haunted houses. I do not see why these haunted houses have to exploit any asylums. Honestly people know that everything is fake even if it is at a asylum or in any barn or warehouse. I think that using the catch phrase of "asylum" the owners know that they there will be more money and it's sad that our society contributes to it.
Melchora Gracia
To read and hear that individual would even concern of having done a movie to thrill other for money and fame is really upsetting. For people not to have any consideration for this individuals who where put through abuse and neglect is disgraceful. This just goes to show us that there are so many individuals who are not educated with the mean to honor people with disabilities and their families. I do not understand how one could even have this thought cross their mind. This is why there are advocates out there in the public advocating for individuals with disability. Now I know for sure why I choose to follow a career path in Rehabilitation. I would not want a hospital where my family had been held and abused to be publicized. According to my fellow classmate doing such thing does make a different and put stigma in the face of uneducated individuals.
I agree with the idea of not using asylums has haunted houses. It is very disrespectful and also it will be reinforcing the stereotype of people with mental illnesses related to "dangerous" and "scary" characters. I believe that a good use of the building could be as a school were people can learn more about people with mental illnesses as well as to be aware of the negligent treatment received by this population.
Alinka Del Castillo
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