Psychiatrist Blames Bad Gene Pool for Massive Drugging of Foster Care Children in Texas

Patricia Weathers
President
www.ablechild.org
(845) 677-8115

Sheila Matthews
National Vice President
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Does this indicate the Resurgence of Eugenics in America?

On October 4, 2004 in a Texas Committee hearing on Psychotropic Drugs and Foster Care Children, human and children rights advocates were stunned when psychiatrist, Joe Burkett, informed the committee that one of the main reasons so many foster kids need to be on psychotropic drugs is “they are very sick, from a Bad Gene pool”. Another psychiatrist, Dr.Sargent, re-emphasized how very sick these kids are, and how these children’s brains are wired differently, requiring them to receive “expert” psychiatric care.

“This Bad Gene Pool” and “sickness” belief system is very alarming to many child right advocates who look to find effective, healthy, non-drug solutions for children in state care; children who more than likely have experienced trauma and stress within their environment and have had natural reactions to such. John Breeding, founder of Texans for Safe Education and author of “The Wildest Colts Make the Best Horses”, and “True Nature and Great Misunderstandings” testified before the committee. Dr. Breeding challenged the Bad Gene Pool theory. “That is just not true. Once we label these children, we stop thinking of strategies to help them succeed and master the coping skills needed in society.” Dr. Breeding called for a seven-step approach to reform, which would include strengthening informed consent laws, thereby increasing the likelihood that accurate information regarding the subjective nature of the diagnoses, being all too eagerly assigned to children placed in state care, is given to childcare providers. This would also ensure that state childcare providers given all the information, would be less likely to discount the overwhelming risks associated with drug “treatment”.

Texas is not the first state that has initiated hearings, investigations, and litigation regarding widespread abuse, which includes the rampant drugging of children within state foster care.

• Massachusetts just this year launched an investigation into tracking how many of its children in state care are on psychiatric drugs. · Washington, California, Illinois, and Florida are just some of the other states that have tackled the overall systemic abuse as well.
• Last year, Connecticut was the first state to actually ban the use of two unapproved antidepressants on children in state care.

What is quite clear from this is that children in the foster care system nationwide are clearly unprotected on a human rights level, and with current “bad gene pool/sickness” ideology being spread publicly, there is little hope that the current nationwide crisis within state foster care programs will get any better.

Two psychiatrists spouting comments regarding “bad genes” is alarming to say the least, but what is more disturbing is the unanswered question: Does this indicate that the American Psychiatric Association condones such ideology? If so, is any hope lying ahead for children remanded into state care? Or, are these children designated “human research subjects” for popular and profitable drug “treatments”? Ideology espousing concepts of “bad genes” and inferiority among humans based on characteristics bares a striking resemblance to the science of Eugenics that deals with the improvement of races and breeds, especially the human race, through the control of hereditary factors. We can recall that Hitler employed this same ideology in Nazi Germany. What many do not recall however is that it was also used in our country in the early 20th century within mental asylums when experimentations were conducted on people deemed an inferior sect of human beings.

This mindset contrasts sharply with our country’s founded principals of democracy, which espouses that all men are created equal.

Ablechild’s National Vice President, Ms. Sheila Matthews stated that, “This Bad Gene Pool” comment is very damning to the entire psychiatric industry and should send a wake up call to all America! These children are clearly vulnerable and are fair game for drug research, with no accountability whatsoever. All who care for children should be distraught at this public display of disregard for these children’s health and safety.”

For more information regarding foster care abuse, mental health and children, please visit us at www.ablechild.org