'Forgotten Lives'

By Jeff Walker
Features Editor

San Marcos November 16, 2007 10:45 am

— With Thanksgiving approaching, Jeff Garrison-Tate says he’s most grateful for his daughter’s well being. Even more so, because she has Down's Syndrome, he says he is thankful that she’s not stuck in one of the 13 Texas State Schools for people with mental retardation.
The policy services manager for a local advocacy group has spent the past several years observing these facilities and reporting on how the mentally retarded residents were being treated. His findings have been so “appalling,” he figured he needed to make a documentary about it.
Texas State University will hold a public screening of “Forgotten Lives” at 5 p.m. Nov. 19 in room 1007 of the Education Building. The film highlights “the horrific abuse and neglect perpetrated against residents of Texas State Schools for people with mental retardation.” It calls for freedom and justice for the people housed in these facilities, and Garrison-Tate hopes that people will take note of what they see presented and take action.
It’s certainly not a date movie, Garrison-Tate says, but the findings could be useful.
“I don’t believe the general public has a clue of what’s going on. It’s called ‘Forgotten Lives,’ we have forgotten about these people and they’re still there,” Garrison-Tate said. “It’s shameful. Somehow, in this state, we’ve gotten to a place where votes and money mean more than the freedom of our most vulnerable citizens.”
The advocacy group that Garrison-Tate works for first began an initiative last January, spurred by a 2005 investigation by the Department of Justice of the Lubbock State School. The department found, according to Garrison-Tate, horrific acts of abuse, horrible health care and sanitation and people not getting their medications.
Garrison-Tate’s own findings were parallel, and in some cases even worse.
“I went to six institutions in the state, and every time I was so appalled and disgusted. It was awful,” Garrison-Tate said. “I saw people being choked and being restrained in their own blood, I saw people being refused their meal, I had numerous people come up and report to me that they had been abused. I saw belt marks on people, I saw scratches and bruises on people.”
And in many cases, people there simply wanted out, he says.
“I had people coming up to me and saying ‘please get me out of here,’” Garrison-Tate said.
The film documents some of the residents stuck there. But it also shows hope. One San Marcos resident, Jackie, finally left an institution and is now living in a small home in San Marcos. Seeing these stories, Garrison-Tate says, when people are able to be productive citizens, gives him hope.
Soon after Jeff decided that his findings merited a documentary, he called upon his 21-year-old nephew, a University of Texas film student, to direct and shoot the film. Jeff brought together many of the people who appear in the film and set up the interviews. Nephew Josh took it from there, inspired by the cause that his uncle was fighting for.
“It was heartbreaking to hear these capable people begging to leave the state school. This is a civil rights issue,” Josh said. “These folks are locked up for no other reason than the fact that they have a disability and have no one but state employees in their lives.”
Jeff, Josh and Josh’s dad have started a non profit organization called Community Now to expand their advocacy to other projects that promote social justice. Much of the funds raised from this group, Jeff says, will go toward helping residents who leave these state schools assimilate into the “real world.”
For more information about Community Now visit www.communitynowfreedom.org.