I wonder what would have happened if any of J.'s relatives had tracked him down before he died. I don't know that he would have felt one way or the other about it, but they might have realized what a man they lost. He was put into an institution for the insane at six months because he was too small to go into the institution for the mentally disabled, and his parents didn't want to keep him. When he was five he got transferred to the institution for the mentally disabled and stayed there until he was in his 30s, when he was sent to the system of group homes I worked for. He never spoke, though it's hard to say whether it was because his tongue was too large, because he lacked the mental capacity, or because he decided the world that abandoned him wasn't worth speaking to.
When I compare his lot with that of someone like Jamie Berube (PDF), it makes me grieve for all the lives wasted and grateful that we're finally waking up to these mistakes born of fear, shame, and preconceptions. Thank you for posting this link.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-08-01 06:52 pm (UTC)When I compare his lot with that of someone like Jamie Berube (PDF), it makes me grieve for all the lives wasted and grateful that we're finally waking up to these mistakes born of fear, shame, and preconceptions. Thank you for posting this link.