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The North Platte Telegraph
Emotions ran high at the North Platte Area Chamber and Development Corporation on Saturday. Representatives from the Family Advocacy Movement hosted a public meeting attended by people whose lives have been negatively affected by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.
Posters labeled "HHS - Not A Friend To Children" and "Children's Rights Should Include The 4th Amendment" hung throughout the room. Families were encouraged to band together, share their stories and fight for their rights. Topics ranged from how to survive the confiscation process to parental rights after children have been seized.
Melanie Williams-Smotherman, FAM executive director, said she's heard that Nebraska is on the cusp of changing something that hasn't been changed before.
"Things are happening differently than in the past because we're unifying families," she said. "We can move mountains. HHS is a mountain and an incredibly damaging one. Together, our collective commitment will make this change. When we show what we can do together, it will radiate throughout the country."
Williams-Smotherman said HHS is supposed to help keep children safe and support families, but she said the system is broken. She said senators often won't put themselves on the line to try to change a system until public opinion begins to sway.
"The answer is not about changing senators or judges," she said. "The answer is what's happening in this room. Sharing the information in this room is helpful. The only way the system stays intact is by keeping us all isolated. We've got to have families fighting for each other."
The meeting was videotaped. FAM is working on a series of documentaries both for its website, and so senators can put faces with stories.
Myla Sheppard of Lincoln talked about her family's experience with HHS and said she was at the meeting to share hope.
"What helped me the most was not hearing what I couldn't do," she said. "It was hearing what I could do. Anything you can find to do is positive. Blow it up in their face. Their mission is to beat you down mentally."
James Holt is a mental health practitioner in Lincoln and Omaha. He said every time a child is taken out of a home, the child's development is interrupted.
"This disease doesn't have a color," said Holt. "It picks on everyone."
He said there are a lot of therapists within the system who are not advocates for the parents, and several in the room echoed his comments by saying North Platte has a "good ol' boys" club.
"Empowerment is key," said Holt. "They want control of your life. They don't want you to be empowered because that threatens them."
James Russell has been a ward of the state since he was 12. He's now 18. He said that when he was 15, he lived in Scottsbluff and his caseworker told him to find an apartment near the school so he could wake up and go to class on time.
He said his current caseworker is his guardian. Russell listed several disorders he has been diagnosed with since entering the system, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and paranoia.
Russell said his ultimate goal is independent living, but said he's required to contact his caseworker before he does anything, including apply for a job. He said his caseworker has told him that he will be a failure, and said she's trying to get an extension so that he will age out of the system at 21 instead of 19.
Russell said he tried to get out from under her control, but she had him jailed for a month for making terroristic threats.
Holt asked Russell what kind of medication he is taking for his alleged illnesses and when Russell told him, Holt said not only had Russell been misdiagnosed, he is taking a medicine that can affect his liver.
Russell admitted that test results have shown his liver is compromised. He said he asked his doctor to take him off the medicine, but his doctor refused.
Williams-Smotherman said she is trying to put a delegation together that can travel to the state capitol and address senators. She asked Russell to be a part of the delegation.
"We are powerful people," said Williams-Smotherman. "We know the true stories behind our cases. When we're thrust into unjust situations, we have to step forward. HHS does not back up and does not apologize. We have this opening; we can't let it get swept under the rug."
Click on this story at nptelegraph.com to post your comments, or e-mail heather.johnson@nptelegraph.com.
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