NY launches Web site about Willowbrook

From Staten Island Live in N.Y.:

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. --- Nearly four decades after Willowbrook State School was mandated shut by the state for the warehousing and inhumane treatment of developmentally disabled children and adults, New York is showcasing a new Web site about the infamous place amid questions about its timing.

A spokeswoman for the state's Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (OMRDD) said its launch of the site last week is not linked to the 38-year-old class action lawsuit, which is still in the courts, brought on behalf of the 6,000 people living at the sprawling facility on March 17, 1972 when the suit was filed.

However, the site was designed by OMRDD's Litigation Support Services.

Nicole Weinstein said the "Beyond Willowbrook" section of OMRDD's Web site "is part of an effort to reach out to those who are serving Willowbrook class members," as service providers and case workers, but would not address questions of, why now?

She said there about 3,000 members of the Willowbrook "class" of '72 still living in New York.

The class action landmark suit, brought by the New York Civil Liberties Union against the state, was instigated prior to the 1975 Willowbrook Consent Decree, which served as a catalyst for reforming treatment for the mentally ill nationwide.

Advocates for the disabled say the case remains in New York Eastern District Court to get the state to live up to its ongoing obligations to former residents in the areas of housing, employment and health care. However, Ms. Weinstein noted it is not an open matter on the court's docket.

In a statement, Ms. Weinstein said the "Web page provides documentation that will assist local Developmental Disabilities Services Offices and voluntary agency staff to comply with the Willowbrook Permanent Injunction," and to "share information" on issues such as aging, community inclusion, due process, guardianship, health care and housing.

Hal Kennedy of New Brighton, an attorney and advocate for the disabled, said he found the timing of the "Beyond Willowbrook" site "surprising."

Kennedy, who is not a party to the suit, also noted factual errors on the Web site, including terming the state school a "developmental center."

"Call it what it was," said Kennedy of the place where families left their severely mentally retarded children, who were then subjected to unspeakable physical and emotional mistreatment.

Still, added Kennedy, "One of my concerns is that the Willowbrook story could get lost. This will help to keep it alive."

Ms. Weinstein said "Beyond Willowbrook" is not meant to be a "historical initiative," but rather part of OMRDD's "ongoing work related to services for the members of the Willowbrook class."