Conceived in the era of eugenics as a solution to what was termed the “problem of the feeble-minded,” state-operated institutions subjected people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to a life of compulsory incarceration. One of nearly 300 such facilities in the United States, Pennhurst State School and Hospital was initially hailed as a “model institution” but was later revealed to be a nightmare, where medical experimentation and physical and psychological abuse were rampant. At its peak, more than 3,500 residents were confined at Pennhurst, supervised by a staff of fewer than 600.
Beginning in the 1950s, parent-advocates, social workers, and attorneys joined forces to challenge the dehumanizing conditions at Pennhurst. As a result, Pennhurst became a symbolic force in the disability civil rights movement in America and around the world.
Dr. Dennis Downey is an Emeritus Professor of History at Millersville University and co-editor (with Dr. Jim Conroy) of the book "Pennhurst and the Struggle for Disability Rights."
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