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Happy Mothers Day from Social Services
One Mom's
Story
Two women, Michelle Hammond and Lynn Sears and the sheriff drove up to the cabin in a government vehicle and a patrol car. Two women, wanted to see my son Arthur—alone. Arthur is 30, but disabled. My house is a cabin in a small subdivision. Most owners only vacation here. We live here full time to save money. Arthur needs full-time care. This is the only way I can provide that care and just barely survive. I work from home doing free-lance writing and an online radio show. The women asked Arthur if I abused him and if he was happy. They asked him if he used illegal drugs. They promised him he could go back to Santa Barbara. Arthur said he was sometimes lonely. But he would like to stay with his mother. There was a time when being poor did not make you fair game to predators like the people from Social Services. That time is past. Arthur and I have a happy relationship. He receives all the care I can afford. Hearing his voice makes the hardships of the last 10 years unimportant. He has his own computer and spends time on line. He attends church and Bible study each week. I drive him to events whenever possible. The presence of a deputy sheriff was intimidating and embarrassing. I am nearly 60. I have suffered two heart attacks. I am no threat to anyone. Over and over Hammond implied that I was “keeping Arthur from his friends.” She suggested he was not happy, and he had a “right” to make his own decisions as to where he lives. The well-paid workers assumed Arthur was on welfare or disability. When I told them he wasn’t, they asked me to apply. Arthur represents potential income of over $400,000 to the system. Why have so many families, already struggling been forced over the edge from agencies funded by our taxes? Why can they afford nice homes, goodies and pensions when so many of us are struggling to stay off the streets? Evidently, during their time alone with Arthur, they worked to persuade him that he would be happier living elsewhere. It is hard to imagine that they could have believed that a man with two major brain injuries is capable of making life-impacting decisions. Or that they, having known him for about 30 minutes, were better qualified than myself to do so. They demonstrated complete ignorance and indifference about brain injuries. They told me I would let him go if I cared about him. They were insulting, demeaning and verbally abusive to my son and me. I wonder what any of the three would do if someone trying to make their quota in human flesh arrived at their door with a gun and tried to intimidate them into handing over their child. What do you say about the moral fiber of people who profit from such a system? Americans need to know what bounty is put on each child or adult sucked into the system. They need to know what workers are paid. They need to know how many children and disabled adults die after being sucked into the system. Children and disabled adults present many possibilities to the greedy. DHS and CPS need to be charged and sued for damages they have done to lives at risk. Americans have a right to justice now.
Melinda Pillsbury-Foster
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Summer
2008