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Letters from Judge Rotenberg Center students to the Judge Rotenberg Center telling the ways in which it improved their lives (though giving tantalizing hints about the ways it made their lives worse):

Middle Ages

The Middle Ages form the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three "ages": the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages and Modern Times. The idea of such a periodisation is attributed to Flavio Biondo, an Italian Renaissance humanist historian.

The Middle Ages are commonly dated from the fall of the Western Roman Empire (or by some scholars, before that) in the 5th century to the beginning of the Early Modern Period in the 16th century, marked by the rise of nation-states, the division of Christianity in the Reformation, the rise of humanism in the Italian Renaissance, and the beginnings of European overseas expansion which allowed for the Columbian Exchange. There is some variation in the dating of the edges of these periods which is due mainly to differences in specialization and focus of individual scholars. Commonly seen periodization ranges span the years ca. 400–476 AD (the sackings of Rome by the Visigoths to the deposing of Romulus Augustus)[1] to ca. 1453–1517 (the Fall of Constantinople to the Protestant reformation begun with Martin Luther's 95 theses). Dates are approximate, and are based upon nuanced arguments; for other dating schemes and the reasoning behind them, see "periodisation issues", below.

The Middle Ages witnessed the first sustained urbanization of northern and western Europe. Modern European states owe their origins to events unfolding in the Middle Ages; present European political boundaries are, in many regards, the result of the military and dynastic achievements in this tumultuous period.

Terminology

The Middle Ages are referred to as the "medieval period" (sometimes spelled "mediaeval" or "mediæval"). The name is from the Latin medium (middle) and ævum (age).[2][3]

Some early historians have described non-European countries as "medieval" when those countries show characteristics of "feudal" organization. The pre-Westernisation period in the history of Japan, and the pre-colonial period in developed parts of sub-Saharan Africa, are also sometimes termed "mediaeval." These terms have fallen out of favour, as modern historians are reluctant to try to fit the history of other regions to the European model.

Origins: The later Roman Empire

The Roman empire reached its greatest territorial extent during the 2nd century. The following two centuries witnessed the slow decline of Roman control over its outlying territories. The Emperor Diocletian split the empire into separately administered eastern and western halves in 285. Under his arrangement, the western Roman empire was governed from Ravenna by a lesser emperor, and the region was considered subordinate to the wealthier east. The division between east and west was encouraged by Constantine, who refounded the city of Byzantium as the new capital, Constantinople, in 330.

Military expenses increased steadily during the 4th century, even as Rome’s neighbours became restless and increasingly powerful. Tribes who previously had contact with the Romans as trading partners, rivals, or mercenaries had sought entrance to the empire and access to its wealth throughout the 4th century. Diocletian’s reforms had created a strong governmental bureaucracy, reformed taxation, and strengthened the army.[1] These changes bought the Empire time, but these reforms demanded money. Rome’s declining revenue left it dangerously dependent on tax revenue. Future setbacks forced Rome to pour ever more wealth into its armies, spreading the empire’s wealth thinly into its border regions. In periods of expansion, this would not be a critical problem. The defeat in 378 at the Battle of Adrianople, however, destroyed much of the Roman army, leaving the western empire undefended.[1] Without a strong army in the west, and with no promise of salvation coming from the emperor in Constantinople, the western Empire sought compromise.

Known in traditional historiography collectively as the “barbarian invasions”, the Migration Period, or the Volkerwanderung ("wandering of the peoples") specifically by German historians, this migration of peoples was a complicated and gradual process. Some early historians have given this period the epithet of "Dark Ages". [4] Recent research and archaeology have also revealed complex cultures persisting throughout the period. Some of these "barbarian" tribes rejected the classical culture of Rome, while others admired and aspired to it. Theodoric the Great of the Ostrogoths, as only one example, had been raised in Constantinople and considered himself an heir to its culture, employing erudite Roman ministers like Cassiodorus. Other prominent tribal groups that migrated into Roman territory were the Huns, Bulgars, Avars and Magyars, along with a large number of Germanic, and later Slavic peoples. Some tribes settled in the empire’s territory with the approval of the Roman senate or emperor. In return for land to farm and, in some regions, the right to collect tax revenues for the state, federated tribes provided military support to the empire. Other incursions were small-scale military invasions of tribal groups assembled to gather plunder. The most famous invasion culminated in the sack of Rome by the Visigoths in 410.

By the end of the 5th century, Roman institutions were crumbling. The final independent, ethnically Roman emperor in the west, Romulus Augustulus, was deposed by the barbarian king Odoacer in 476.[1] The Eastern Roman Empire (conventionally referred to as the "Byzantine Empire" after the fall of its western counterpart) maintained its order by abandoning the west to its fate. Even though Byzantine emperors maintained a claim over the territory, and no barbarian king dared to elevate himself to the position of emperor of the west, attempts to reassert Byzantine control over the west failed. For the next three centuries, the western empire would be without a legitimate emperor. It was, instead, ruled by kings who enjoyed the support of the largely barbarian armies. Some kings ruled as regents for titular emperors, and some ruled in their own name. Throughout the 5th century, cities throughout the empire declined, receding inside heavily fortified walls. The western empire, particularly, experienced the decay of infrastructure which was not adequately maintained by the central government. Where civic functions and infrastructure such as chariot races, aqueducts, and roads were maintained, the work was frequently done at the expense of city officials and bishops. Augustine of Hippo is an example of a bishop who acted as an able administrator. One scholar, Thomas Cahill, has dubbed Augustine the last of the classical men and the first of medieval men.


Early Middle Ages

The end of the 8th century found the former western Roman empire an overwhelmingly rural and decentralized region that had lost its privileged position as the centre of a great power. Between the 5th and 8th centuries, new peoples and powerful individuals filled the political void left by Roman centralized government. Germanic tribes established regional hegemonies within the former boundaries of the Empire, creating divided, decentralized kingdoms like those of the Ostrogoths in Italy, the Visigoths in Hispania, the Franks and Burgundians in Gaul and western Germany, the Angles and the Saxons in Britain, and the Vandals in North Africa. The social effects of the fracture of the Roman state were manifold. Cities and merchants lost the economic benefits of safe conditions for trade and manufacture, and intellectual development suffered from the loss of a unified cultural and educational milieu of far-ranging connections.

The breakdown of Roman society was dramatic. As it became unsafe to travel or carry goods over any distance, there was a collapse in trade and manufacture for export. The major industries that depended on long-distance trade, such as large-scale pottery manufacture, vanished almost overnight in places like Britain.

The Muslim conquests of the 7th and 8th centuries, which conquered the Persian Empire, Roman Syria, Roman Egypt, Roman North Africa, Visigothic Spain and Portugal, and other parts of the Mediterranean, including Sicily and southern Italy, increased localisation by halting much of what remained of seaborne commerce.[dubious – discuss] Thus, whereas sites like Tintagel in Cornwall had managed to obtain supplies of Mediterranean luxury goods well into the 6th century, this connection was now lost.

The patchwork of petty rulers was incapable of supporting the depth of civic infrastructure required to maintain libraries, public baths, arenas and major educational institutions. Any new building was on a far smaller scale than before. Roman landholders beyond the confines of city walls were also vulnerable to extreme changes, and they could not simply pack up their land and move elsewhere. Some were dispossessed and fled to Byzantine regions, others quickly pledged their allegiances to their new rulers. In areas like Spain and Italy, this often meant little more than acknowledging a new overlord, while Roman forms of law and religion could be maintained. In other areas where there was a greater weight of population movement, it might be necessary to adopt new modes of dress, language and custom.

The Catholic Church was the major unifying cultural influence, preserving its selection from Latin learning, maintaining the art of writing, and a centralised administration through its network of bishops. Some regions that were populated by Catholics were conquered by Arian rulers, which provoked much tension between Arian kings and the Catholic hierarchy. Clovis I of the Franks is a well-known example of a barbarian king who chose Catholic orthodoxy over Arianism. His conversion marked a turning point for the Frankish tribes of Gaul. Bishops were central to Middle Age society due to the literacy they possessed. As a result, they often played a significant role in governance. However beyond the core areas of Western Europe there remained many peoples with little or no contact with Christianity or with classical Roman culture. Martial societies such as the Avars and the Vikings were still capable of causing major disruption to the newly emerging societies of Western Europe.

The Early Middle Ages also witnessed the rise of monasticism within the west. Although the impulse to withdraw from society to focus upon a spiritual life is experienced by people of all cultures, the shape of European monasticism was determined by traditions and ideas that originated in the deserts of Egypt and Syria.[5] The style of monasticism that focuses on community experience of the spiritual life, called cenobitism, was pioneered by the saint Pachomius in the 4th century. Monastic ideals spread from Egypt to western Europe in the 5th and 6th centuries through hagiographical literature such as the Life of Saint Anthony.[5] Saint Benedict wrote the definitive Rule for western monasticism during the 6th century, detailing the administrative and spiritual responsibilities of a community of monks led by an abbot.[5] Monks and monasteries had a deep effect upon the religious and political life of the Early Middle Ages, in various cases acting as land trusts for powerful families, centres of propaganda and royal support in newly conquered regions, bases for mission and proselytization, or outposts of education and literacy.

Outside of Italy, building in stone was rarely attempted – until the 8th century, when a new form of architecture called the Romanesque, based on Roman forms, gradually developed. Celtic and Germanic barbarian forms were absorbed into Christian art, although the central impulse remained Roman and Byzantine. High quality jewellery and religious imagery were produced throughout Western Europe, Charlemagne and other monarchs provided patronage for religious artworks and books. Some of the principal artworks of the age were the fabulous Illuminated manuscripts produced by monks on vellum, using gold, silver and precious pigments to illustrate biblical narratives. Early examples include the Book of Kells and many Carolingian and Ottonian Frankish manuscripts.


Carolingians

A nucleus of power developed in a region of northern Gaul and developed into kingdoms called Austrasia and Neustria. These kingdoms were ruled for three centuries by a dynasty of kings called the Merovingians, after their mythical founder Merovech. The history of the Merovingian kingdoms is one of family politics that frequently erupted into civil warfare between the branches of the family. The legitimacy of the Merovingian throne was granted by a reverence for the bloodline, and even after powerful members of the Austrasian court, the mayors of the palace, took de facto power during the 7th century, the Merovingians were kept as ceremonial figureheads. The Merovingians engaged in trade with northern Europe through Baltic trade routes known to historians as the Northern Arc trade, and they are known to have minted small-denomination silver pennies called sceattae for circulation. Aspects of Merovingian culture could be described as "Romanized", such as the high value placed on Roman coinage as a symbol of rulership and the patronage of monasteries and bishoprics. Some have hypothesized that the Merovingians were in contact with Byzantium.[6] However, the Merovingians also buried the dead of their elite families in grave mounds and traced their lineage to a mythical sea beast called the Quinotaur.[6]

The 7th century was a tumultuous period of civil wars between Austrasia and Neustria. Such warfare was exploited by the patriarch of a family line, Pippin of Herstal, who curried favour with the Merovingians and had himself installed in the office of Mayor of the Palace at the service of the King. From this position of great influence, Pippin accrued wealth and supporters. Later members of his family line inherited the office, acting as advisors and regents. The dynasty took a new direction in 732, when Charles Martel won the Battle of Tours, halting the advance of Muslim armies across the Pyrenees. The Carolingian dynasty, as the successors to Charles Martel are known, officially took the reins of the kingdoms of Austrasia and Neustria in a coup of 753 led by Pippin III. A contemporary chronicle claims that Pippin sought, and gained, authority for this coup from the Pope.[7] Pippin's successful coup was reinforced with propaganda that portrayed the Merovingians as inept or cruel rulers and exalted the accomplishments of Charles Martel and circulated stories of the family's great piety. At the time of his death in 783, Pippin left his kingdoms in the hands of his two sons, Charles and Carloman. When Carloman died of natural causes, Charles blocked the succession of Carloman's minor son and installed himself as the king of the united Austrasia and Neustria. This Charles, known to his contemporaries as Charles the Great or Charlemagne, embarked in 774 upon a program of systematic expansion that would unify a large portion of Europe. In the wars that lasted just beyond 800, he rewarded loyal allies with war booty and command over parcels of land. Much of the nobility of the High Middle Ages was to claim its roots in the Carolingian nobility that was generated during this period of expansion.[7]

The Imperial Coronation of Charlemagne on Christmas day of 800 is frequently regarded as a turning-point in mediaeval history, because it filled a power vacancy that had existed since 476. It also marks a change in Charlemagne's leadership, which assumed a more imperial character and tackled difficult aspects of controlling a mediaeval empire. He established a system of diplomats who possessed imperial authority, the missi, who in theory provided access to imperial justice in the farthest corners of the empire.[8] He also sought to reform the Church in his domains, pushing for uniformity in liturgy and material culture.


Carolingian Renaissance

Charlemagne's court in Aachen was the centre of a cultural revival that is sometimes referred to as the "Carolingian Renaissance". This period witnessed an increase of literacy, developments in the arts, architecture, jurisprudence, as well as liturgical and scriptural studies. The English monk Alcuin was invited to Aachen, and brought with him the precise classical Latin education that was available in the monasteries of Northumbria. The return of this Latin proficiency to the kingdom of the Franks is regarded as an important step in the development of mediaeval Latin. Charlemagne's chancery made use of a type of script currently known as Carolingian minuscule, providing a common writing style that allowed for communication across most of Europe. After the decline of the Carolingian dynasty, the rise of the Saxon Dynasty in Germany was accompanied by the Ottonian Renaissance.

Breakup of the Carolingian empire

While Charlemagne continued the Frankish tradition of dividing the regnum (kingdom) between all his heirs (at least those of age), the assumption of the imperium (imperial title) supplied a unifying force not available previously. Charlemagne was succeeded by his only legitimate son of adult age at his death, Louis the Pious.

Louis's long reign of 26 years was marked by numerous divisions of the empire among his sons and, after 829, numerous civil wars between various alliances of father and sons against other sons in an effort to determine a just division by battle. The final division was made at Crémieux in 838. The Emperor Louis recognised his eldest son Lothair I as emperor and confirmed him in the Regnum Italicum (Italy). He divided the rest of the empire between Lothair and Charles the Bald, his youngest son, giving Lothair the opportunity to choose his half. He chose East Francia, which comprised the empire on both banks of the Rhine and eastwards, leaving Charles West Francia, which comprised the empire to the west of the Rhineland and the Alps. Louis the German, the middle child, who had been rebellious to the last, was allowed to keep his subregnum of Bavaria under the suzerainty of his elder brother. The division was not undisputed. Pepin II of Aquitaine, the emperor's grandson, rebelled in a contest for Aquitaine while Louis the German tried to annex all of East Francia. In two final campaigns, the emperor defeated both his rebellious descendants and vindicated the division of Crémieux before dying in 840.


A three-year civil war followed his death. At the end of the conflict, Louis the German was in control of East Francia and Lothair was confined to Italy. By the Treaty of Verdun (843), a kingdom of Middle Francia was created for Lothair in the Low Countries and Burgundy and his imperial title was recognised. East Francia would eventually morph into the Kingdom of Germany and West Francia into the Kingdom of France, around both of which the history of Western Europe can largely be described as a contest for control of the middle kingdom. Charlemagne's grandsons and great-grandsons divided their kingdoms between their sons until all of the various regna and the imperial title fell into the hands of Charles the Fat by 884. He was deposed in 887 and died in 888, to be replaced in all his kingdoms but two (Lotharingia and East Francia) by non-Carolingian "petty kings." The Carolingian Empire was destroyed, though the imperial tradition would eventually give rise to the Holy Roman Empire in 962.

The breakup of the Carolingian Empire was accompanied by the invasions, migrations, and raids of external foes as not seen since the Migration Period. The Atlantic and northern shores were harassed by the Vikings, who forced Charles the Bald to issue the Edict of Pistres against them and who besieged Paris in 885–886. The eastern frontiers, especially Italy, were under constant Magyar assault until their great defeat at the Battle of the Lechfeld in 955. The Saracens also managed to establish bases at Garigliano and Fraxinetum and to conquer the islands of Corsica, Sardinia, and Sicily, and their pirates raided the Mediterranean coasts, as did the Vikings. The Christianisation of the pagan Vikings provided an end to that threat.

High Middle Ages

The High Middle Ages were characterized by the urbanization of Europe, military expansion, and intellectual revival that historians identify between the 11th century and the end of the 13th century. This revival was aided by the conversion of the raiding Scandinavians and Magyars to Christianity, as well as the assertion of power by castellans to fill the power vacuum left by the Carolingian decline. The High Middle Ages saw an explosion in population. This population flowed into towns, sought conquests abroad, or cleared land for cultivation. The cities of antiquity had been clustered around the Mediterranean. By 1200 the growing urban centres were in the centre of the continent, connected by roads or rivers. By the end of this period Paris might have had as many as 200,000 inhabitants.[9] In central and northern Italy and in Flanders the rise of towns that were self-governing to some degree within their territories stimulated the economy and created an environment for new types of religious and trade associations. Trading cities on the shores of the Baltic entered into agreements known as the Hanseatic League, and Italian city-states such as Venice, Genoa, and Pisa expanded their trade throughout the Mediterranean. This period marks a formative one in the history of the western state as we know it, for kings in France, England, and Spain consolidated their power during this time period, setting up lasting institutions to help them govern. The Papacy, which had long since created an ideology of independence from the secular kings, first asserted its claims to temporal authority over the entire Christian world. The entity that historians call the Papal Monarchy reached its apogee in the early 13th century under the pontificate of Innocent III. Northern Crusades and the advance of Christian kingdoms and military orders into previously pagan regions in the Baltic and Finnic northeast brought the forced assimilation of numerous native peoples to the European entity. With the brief exception of the Mongol invasions, major barbarian incursions ceased.

Crusades

The Crusades were, in some aspects, Europe's defense against Islamic expansion and aggression. These were armed pilgrimages intended to liberate Jerusalem from Muslim control. Jerusalem was part of the Muslim possessions won during a rapid military expansion in the 7th century through the Near East, Northern Africa, and Anatolia (in modern Turkey). The first Crusade was preached by Pope Urban II at the Council of Clermont in 1095 in response to a request from the Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos for aid against further advancement. Urban promised indulgence to any Christian who took the Crusader vow and set off for Jerusalem. The resulting fervour that swept through Europe mobilized tens of thousands of people from all levels of society, and resulted in the capture of Jerusalem in 1099 as well as other regions. The movement found its primary support in the Franks; it is by no coincidence that the Arabs referred to Crusaders generically as "Franj".[10] Although they were minorities within this region, the Crusaders tried to consolidate their conquests, as a number of Crusader states – the Kingdom of Jerusalem, as well as the County of Edessa, the Principality of Antioch, and the County of Tripoli (collectively Outremer). During the 12th century and 13th century there were a series of conflicts between these states and surrounding Islamic ones. Crusades were essentially resupply missions for these embattled kingdoms. Military orders such as the Knights Templar and the Knights Hospitaller were formed to play an integral role in this support.

By the end of the Middle Ages the Christian Crusaders had captured all the Islamic territories in modern Spain, Portugal and Southern Italy. Meanwhile, Islamic counter attacks had retaken all the Crusader possessions on the Asian mainland, leaving a de facto boundary between Islam and western Christianity that continued until modern times.

Substantial areas of northern Europe also remained outside Christian influence until the 12th century or later; these areas also became crusading venues during the expansionist High Middle Ages. Throughout this period the Byzantine Empire was in decline, having peaked in influence during the High Middle Ages. Beginning with the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, the empire underwent a cycle of decline and renewal, including the sacking of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade in 1204. Despite another short upswing following the recapture of Constantinople in 1261, the empire continued to deteriorate.


Science and technology

During the early Middle Ages and the Islamic Golden Age, Islamic philosophy, science, and technology were more advanced than in Western Europe. Islamic scholars both preserved and built upon earlier traditions and also added their own inventions and innovations. Islamic al-Andalus passed much of this on to Europe. The replacement of Roman numerals with the decimal positional number system and the invention of algebra allowed more advanced mathematics. Another consequence was that the Latin-speaking world regained access to lost classical literature and philosophy. Latin translations of the 12th century fed a passion for Aristotelian philosophy and Islamic science that is frequently referred to as the Renaissance of the 12th century. Meanwhile, trade grew throughout Europe as the dangers of travel were reduced, and steady economic growth resumed. Cathedral schools and monasteries ceased to be the sole sources of education in the 11th century when universities were established in major European cities. Literacy became available to a wider class of people, and there were major advances in art, sculpture, music and architecture. Large cathedrals were built across Europe, first in the Romanesque, and later in the more decorative Gothic style.

During the 12th and 13th century in Europe there was a radical change in the rate of new inventions, innovations in the ways of managing traditional means of production, and economic growth. The period saw major technological advances, including the invention of cannon, spectacles, and artesian wells; and the cross-cultural introduction of gunpowder, silk, the compass, and the astrolabe from the east. There were also great improvements to ships and the clock. The latter advances made possible the dawn of the Age of Exploration. At the same time huge numbers of Greek and Arabic works on medicine and the sciences were translated and distributed throughout Europe. Aristotle especially became very important, his rational and logical approach to knowledge influencing the scholars at the newly forming universities which were absorbing and disseminating the new knowledge during the 12th Century Renaissance.


Religious and social change

Monastic reform became an important issue during the 11th century, when elites began to worry that monks were not adhering to their Rules with the discipline that was required for a good religious life. During this time, it was believed that monks were performing a very practical task by sending their prayers to God and inducing Him to make the world a better place for the virtuous. The time invested in this activity would be wasted, however, if the monks were not virtuous. The monastery of Cluny, founded in the Mâcon in 909, was founded as part of a larger movement of monastic reform in response to this fear.[11] It was a reformed monastery that quickly established a reputation for austerity and rigour. Cluny sought to maintain the high quality of spiritual life by electing its own abbot from within the cloister, and maintained an economic and political independence from local lords by placing itself under the protection of the Pope.[9] Cluny provided a popular solution to the problem of bad monastic codes, and in the 11th century its abbots were frequently called to participate in imperial politics as well as reform monasteries in France and Italy.

Monastic reform inspired change in the secular church, as well. The ideals that it was based upon were brought to the papacy by Pope Leo IX on his election in 1049, providing the ideology of clerical independence that fuelled the Investiture Controversy in the late 11th century. The Investiture Controversy involved Pope Gregory VII and Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor, who initially clashed over a specific bishop's appointment and turned into a battle over the ideas of investiture, clerical marriage, and simony. The Emperor, as a Christian ruler, saw the protection of the Church as one of his great rights and responsibilities. The Papacy, however, had begun insisting on its independence from secular lords. The open warfare ended with Henry IV's occupation of Rome in 1085, and the death of the Pope several months later, but the issues themselves remained unresolved even after the compromise of 1122 known as the Concordat of Worms. The conflict represents a significant stage in the creation of a papal monarchy separate from lay authorities. It also had the permanent consequence of empowering German princes at the expense of the German emperors.[9]

The High Middle Ages was a period of great religious movements. The Crusades, which have already been mentioned, have an undeniable religious aspect. Monastic reform was similarly a religious movement effected by monks and elites. Other groups sought to participate in new forms of religious life. Landed elites financed the construction of new parish churches in the European countryside, which increased the Church's impact upon the daily lives of peasants. Cathedral canons adopted monastic rules, groups of peasants and laypeople abandoned their possessions to live like the Apostles, and people formulated ideas about their religion that were deemed heretical. Although the success of the 12th century papacy in fashioning a Church that progressively affected the daily lives of everyday people cannot be denied, there are still indicators that the tail could wag the dog. The new religious groups called the Waldensians and the Humiliati were condemned for their refusal to accept a life of cloistered monasticism. In many aspects, however, they were not very different from the Franciscans and the Dominicans, who were approved by the papacy in the early 13th century. The picture that modern historians of the religious life present is one of great religious zeal welling up from the peasantry during the High Middle Ages, with clerical elites striving, only sometimes successfully, to understand and channel this power into familiar paths.


Late Middle Ages


A priest blesses victims of the Black Death.The Late Middle Ages were a period initiated by calamities and upheavals. During this time, agriculture was affected by a climate change that has been documented by climate historians, and was felt by contemporaries in the form of periodic famines, including the Great Famine of 1315-1317. The Black Death, a bacterial disease that spread among the malnourished populace like wildfire, killed as much as a third of the population in the mid-14th century, in some regions the toll was as high as one half of the population. Towns were especially hard-hit because of the crowded conditions. Large areas of land were left sparsely inhabited, and in some places fields were left unworked. As a consequence of the sudden decline in available labourers, the price of wages rose as landlords sought to entice workers to their fields. Workers also felt that they had a right to greater earnings, and popular uprisings broke out across Europe. This period of stress, paradoxically, witnessed creative social, economic, and technological responses that laid the groundwork for further great changes in the Early Modern Period. It was also a period when the Catholic Church was increasingly divided against itself. During the time of the Western Schism, the Church was led by as many as three popes at one time. The divisiveness of the Church undermined papal authority, and allowed the formation of national churches. The final fall of the The Roman Empire was the Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453. It had a great effect upon the European economy and intellectual and religious life.


State resurgence

The Late Middle Ages also witnessed the rise of strong, royalty-based nation-states, particularly the Kingdom of England, the Kingdom of France, and the Christian kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula (Aragon, Castile, Navarre and Portugal).

The long conflicts of this time, such as the Hundred Years' War fought between England and France, actually strengthened royal control over the kingdoms, even though they were extremely hard on the peasantry. Kings profited from warfare by gaining land.

France shows clear signs of a growth in royal power during the 14th century, from the active persecution of heretics and lepers, expulsion of the Jews, and the dissolution of the Knights Templar. In all of these cases, undertaken by Philip IV, the king confiscated land and wealth from these minority groups.[9] The conflict between Philip and Pope Boniface VIII, a conflict which began over Philip's unauthorized taxation of clergy, ended with the violent death of Boniface and the installation of Pope Clement V, a weak, French-controlled pope, in Avignon. This action enhanced French prestige, at the expense of the papacy.

England, too, began the 14th century with warfare and expansion. Edward I waged war against the Principality of Wales and the Kingdom of Scotland, with mixed success, to assert what he considered his right to the entire island of Great Britain.

Both the Kings of France and the Kings of England of this period presided over effective states administered by literate bureaucrats and sought baronial consent for their decisions through early versions of parliamentary systems, called the Estates General in France and the Parliament in England. Towns and merchants allied with kings during the 15th century, allowing the kings to distance themselves further from the territorial lords. As a result of the power gained during the 14th and 15th centuries, late medieval kings built truly sovereign states, which were able to impose taxes, declare war, and create and enforce laws, all by the will of the king.[12] Kings encouraged cohesion in their administration by appointing ministers with broad ambitions and a loyalty to the state.[12] By the last half of the 15th century, kings like Henry VII of England and Louis XI of France were able to rule without much baronial interference.


Hundred Years' War


Statue of Giovanni Villani (c. 1276–1348), a victim of the Black Death and first great chronicler of Florence; although he focused upon the history of his own city, his work covered events in the Hundred Year's War, such as the Battle of Crécy.The Hundred Years' War was a conflict between France and England, lasting 116 years from 1337 to 1453. It was fought primarily over claims by the English kings to the French throne and was punctuated by several brief and two lengthy periods of peace before it finally ended in the expulsion of the English from France, with the exception of the Calais Pale. Thus, the war was in fact a series of conflicts and is commonly divided into three or four phases: the Edwardian War (1337-1360), the Caroline War (1369-1389), the Lancastrian War (1415-1429), and the slow decline of English fortunes after the appearance of Joan of Arc, (1429-1453). Though primarily a dynastic conflict, the war gave impetus to ideas of both French and English nationality. Militarily, it saw the introduction of new weapons and tactics, which eroded the older system of feudal armies dominated by heavy cavalry. The first standing armies in Western Europe since the time of the Western Roman Empire were introduced for the war, thus changing the role of the peasantry. For all this, as well as for its long duration, it is often viewed as one of the most significant conflicts in the history of mediaeval warfare.


Historiography

Middle Ages in history

After the Middle Ages ended subsequent generations imagined, portrayed and interpreted the Middle Ages in different ways. Every century has created its own vision of the Middle Ages; the 18th century view of the Middle Ages was entirely different from the 19th century which was different from the 16th century view. The reality of these images remains with us today in the form of film, architecture, literature, art and popular conception.


Medieval and Dark Ages

"Middle Age"
The term "Middle Age" (medium ævum) was first coined by Flavio Biondo, an Italian humanist, in the early 15th century. Until the Renaissance (and some time after) the standard scheme of history was to divide history into six ages, inspired by the biblical six days of creation, or four monarchies based on Daniel 2:40. The early Renaissance historians, in their glorification of all things classical, declared two periods in history, that of Ancient times and that of the period referred to as the "Dark Age". In the early 15th century it was believed history had evolved from the Dark Age to a new period with its revival of things classical so some scholars began to write about a middle period between the Ancient and Modern, which became known as the Middle Age. It was not until the late 17th century when German scholar Christoph Cellarius' published Universal History Divided into an Ancient, Medieval, and New Period that the tripartite periodization scheme began to be used more systemically.[13]

The plural form of the term, Middle Ages, is used in English, Dutch, Russian, Bulgarian and Icelandic while other European languages use the singular form (Italian medioevo, French le moyen âge, German das Mittelalter Spanish edad media). This difference originates in different Neo-Latin terms used for the Middle Ages before media aetas became the standard term. Some were singular (media aetas, media antiquitas, medium saeculum and media tempestas), others plural (media saecula and media tempora). There seem to be no simple reason why a particular language ended up with the singular or the plural form.[14] The term "mediaeval" (American: medieval) was first contracted from the Latin medium ævum, or more precisely "middle epoch", by Enlightenment thinkers as a pejorative descriptor of the Middle Ages.

The common subdivision into Early, High and Late Middle Ages came into use after World War I. It was caused by the works of Henri Pirenne (in particular the article "Les periodes de l'historie du capitalism" in Academie Royale de Belgique. Bulletin de la Classe des Lettres, 1914) and Johan Huizinga (The Autumn of the Middle Ages, 1919).

Dorothy Sayers, a noted scholar in medieval literature as well as a famous writer of detective books, strongly objected to the term. In the foreword to her translation of The Song of Roland, she writes "That new-washed world of clear sun and glittering colour, which we call the Middle Age (as though it were middle-aged), has perhaps a better right than the blown summer of the Renaissance to be called the Age of Re-Birth."


Periodisation issues

It is difficult to decide when the Middle Ages ended; in fact, scholars assign different dates in different parts of Europe. Most scholars who work in 15th century Italian history, for instance, consider themselves Renaissance, while anyone working elsewhere in Europe during the early 15th century is considered a mediaevalist. Others choose specific events, such as the Turkish capture of Constantinople or the end of the Anglo-French Hundred Years' War (both 1453), the invention of printing by Johann Gutenberg (around 1455), the fall of Muslim Spain or Christopher Columbus's voyage to America (both 1492), the Protestant Reformation starting 1517, or the Battle of Lepanto (1571) to mark the period's end. In England the change of monarchs which occurred on 22 August 1485 at the Battle of Bosworth is often considered to mark the end of the period, Richard III representing the old mediaeval world and the Tudors, a new royal house and a new historical period.[15]

Similar differences are now emerging in connection with the start of the period. Traditionally, the Middle Ages is said to have begun when the West Roman Empire formally ceased to exist in 476. However, that date is not important in itself, since the West Roman Empire had been very weak for some time, while Roman culture was to survive at least in Italy for yet a few decades or more. Today, some date the beginning of the Middle Ages to the division and Christianisation of the Roman Empire (4th century); others, like Henri Pirenne, see the period to the rise of Islam (7th century) as "late Classical". Another argument for a late beginning to the Middle Ages was presented by Peter Brown. Brown championed the idea of Late Antiquity, a period that was culturally distinct from both the preceding Empire and from the rest of the Middle Ages. Brown’s argument rests less on the economic changes within the Mediterranean than on social and religious change within the Empire between 300 and 750. To Brown, the slow collapse of the Empire allowed a period of great creativity and expressiveness in which Christianity flourished and became institutionalized.

The Middle Ages in Western Europe are often subdivided into three intervals. This includes an early period (sometimes called the "Dark Ages", at least from the fifth to eighth centuries) of shifting polities, a relatively low level of economic activity and successful incursions by non-Christian peoples (Slavs, Arabs, Scandinavians, Magyars). The middle period (the High Middle Ages) follows, a time of developed institutions of lordship and vassalage, castle-building and mounted warfare, and reviving urban and commercial life. The last span is a later period of growing royal power, the rise of commercial interests, and weakening customary ties of dependence, especially after the 14th century plague.


From wikipedia: Middle Ages

I'm interested in researching personality disorders, particulary pathological narcissim.
Frist things first:

April 2006:

To Whom It May Concern:

When our son Christopher was 15-years-old he was diagnosed with multiple disabilities. His behavior was extremely violent and on one occasion he went after is sister with a crowbar. When Chris had these outbursts, it would take at least 10 people to contain him. He destroyed many things in our home and refused to go to school some days, missing 51 days of school in one year’s time. We had to contact the truancy officer constantly. Chris was very easily led by the wrong people and was greatly influenced by the local gangs. We lived in constant fear for our lives and for the life of our son.

We filed a Person In Need of Supervision (PINS) Petition on Chris. The judge ordered him to attend Sagamore in Long Island. From previous experience with our other son, we were not expecting much. Needless to say, we were very disappointed with the care he received so we headed back to court. The judge then decided to place Chris at St. Mary’s, where he was diagnosed with Mental Retardation. Chris was placed on psychotropic medications and we were told by the Brentwood School District that Christopher would never be able to achieve anything more than a second grade reading level. They began looking for a school in New York and if that failed they were going to look out of state.

There were no programs in the state of New York that could meet his needs. We then received information of the Judge Rotenberg Center, the only school that would try to take Chris off of all of his psychotropic medications while introducing behavior modification. When we visited the school, we were told about all aspects of their program, including the aversives. The aversive program was new to us but we understood that it was used as a last resort, when all else proved to be ineffective and could only be implemented with parental and court approval. We decided that JRC was the best option for Chris.

Initially Chris did well at JRC. He began displaying major problematic behaviors a year into his stay. When we visited with Chris, he asked if could be on the Graduated Electronic Decelerator (GED) as he was having a difficult time controlling his behaviors. After discussing it and doing our research, I decided to try the localized skin shock device myself before allowing it to be used on our son. After realizing that the discomfort felt was minimal, much less that we had feared, we decided to consent to this form of treatment.

Chris will be graduating this June and we could not be happier with his progress. He has excelled at JRC, is now considered high functioning and was able to do achieve all of this without the use of psychotropic medication. Both his math and reading skills have improved tremendously and our son now has a job! Chris feels good about himself and now has hopes and dreams for his future. Without JRC, this would not have been possible. We would like to thank JRC and it many staff members for giving us our son back!

Sincerely,

Cindy and Tony Adonetto
Brentwood, NY

April 2006:

To Whom It May Concern:

My son is Nevin Bernardo. His diagnosis is Autistic with severe Mental Retardation.

The New York Public School, District 177Q gave up on Nevin despite an assigned one-on-one Para during school hours. His district was unable to keep my son contained or safe in the classroom setting. The New York School Bus Company who was assigned to transport Nevin to and from school refused to service my son despite the fact the school district assigned him a bus aide. To make things more frustrating for our family Nevin’s After School Program no longer wanted to accept him.

Nevin was taking four medications and none of the prescribed meds helped to control or eliminate his inappropriate behaviors. The most problematic behaviors Nevin displayed were frequently spitting and removing his clothes. Both behaviors are unacceptable socially in public. Nevin quite often banged his own head, bit him self and smeared feces. We all agree these behaviors are very health dangerous. Nevin aggressed towards others with biting and pulling their hair. A few destructive behaviors I must mention are tear clothing and throw objects. Nevin also touched himself inappropriately in public and made many loud sounds.

Thanks to Nevin’s admittance to Judge Rotenberg Center on July 5th, 2001 and the aversive treatment available in my son’s program. This behavior plan has stabilizes Nevin’s behaviors and socially he is more accepted. He does not take any medication and has lost weight (from 180 lbs. to 126 lbs.) He is doing extremely well at JRC. It is difficult to think what will happen if to Nevin without this program.

Nelson & Sonia Bernardo
Long Island City, NY

About Snake Venom

April 2006:

The Assan story In Support of Judge Rotenberg Educational Center.

It all began in 1987 when we decided to enroll our daughter Amanda in a daycare center at age 2. A couple of days later the matron of the facility called and told us that she had been trying to call Amanda without any response. She thought that was an indication of a problem. We realized right away that we had a problem that must be dealt with. The next six months to one year took us to our Pediatrician and finally to Long Island Jewish Hospital. After a battery of tests including hearing tests, she was diagnosed as having moderate mental retardation and autism. After 2 early age intervention schools, she made it to Queens District Public School. It was there that our problems got magnified. At this time Amanda’s situation has become unmanageable, and frustration had set in. She had become very aggressive, health dangerous, non-compliant and major destructive behaviors. As a result, the school system informed us that there was nothing they could do for Amanda, they wanted her out.

In February of 1997, Amanda was enrolled at Anderson School in Hyde Park near Poughkeepsie, New York. At Anderson School, Amanda has exhibited numerous aggressive destructive and non-compliant behaviors which led to many physical restraint interventions. Anderson School loaded Amanda with so much psychotropic medications including Seroquel, Catapres, Tegretol and Depakote. As parents we thought these medications would help ease off her aggression and frustrations, but instead exacerbated her situation. It became apparent that the medications were not working at all. In her 4th year she was doing so bad that they had to send her to St. Joseph Psychiatric Hospital to be detoxificated. After that they replaced old medications with new ones including Paxil, Thorazine, and Prozac. This batch of medications was intolerable that Amanda was deteriorating in front of our faces. She had become a compulsive eater, she would wake up in the middle of the night and eat anything she finds in the refrigerator. She was gaining weight like crazy and soon she would hit 250 lbs. from 135 lbs. and by the time she left Anderson School she weighed nearly 300 lbs. and her health was in extreme danger. Again her aggressive, destructive and non-compliant behaviors had escalated beyond content. Our dissatisfaction and the severity of Amanda’s behaviors was evidence by her residential placement outside New York.

These negative situations with Amanda prevented her from engaging in any social or community outings and further inhibited any academic progress. Upon arriving at Judge Rotenberg Educational Center, she was gradually taken off all psychotropic medications. She was then put on program base on rewards only. We signed a consent form and JRC was able to get permission from the courts to supplement Amanda’s positive programming with Level III aversives, including the Graduated Electric Decelerator (GED) which is a contingent skin shock device. Since the GED was incorporated into Amanda’s treatment program we have seen a remarkable deceleration of her dangerous behaviors. With the GED in place Amanda is able to flourish academically. She is thriving in her daily living skills and is able to work independently. Today she does mathematics, phonics and spelling programs.

For those of us who went to JRC as the last hope, there is nothing to compare and there are no alternative. We only wish we had known earlier that there was a place like JRC.

Looking at Amanda now, she had lost all the weight she gained through medication and she is looking marvelous. She is home with us on this Easter weekend, we will go to church together, and something we could not do before.

The turn around for Amanda could not have occurred if it wasn’t for the great programs instituted by Dr. Mathew Israel. He cared so much about the students and the family of JRC. We thank Dr. Israel for this unselfishness and the Assan family gives its full support.

Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Assan

call up people left4dead is coming at 1.12.2008

"Here are a few of the things the narcissist finds devastating:

Any statement or fact, which seems to contradict his inflated perception of his grandiose self. Any criticism, disagreement, exposure of fake achievements, belittling of 'talents and skills' which the narcissist fantasizes that he possesses, any hint that he is subordinated, subjugated, controlled, owned or dependent upon a third party. Any description of the narcissist as average and common, indistinguishable from many others. Any hint that the narcissist is weak, needy, dependent, deficient, slow, not intelligent, naive, gullible, susceptible, not in the know, manipulated, a victim.

The narcissist is likely to react with rage to all these and, in an effort to re-establish his fantastic grandiosity, he is likely to expose facts and stratagems he had no conscious intention of exposing.

The narcissist reacts with narcissistic rage, hatred, aggression, or violence to an infringement of what he perceives to be his entitlement.

Narcissists believe that they are so unique and that their lives are so cosmically significant that others should defer to their needs and cater to their every whim without ado. The narcissist feels entitled to special treatment by unique individuals, over and above the regular person.

Any insinuation, hint, intimation, or direct declaration that the narcissist is not special at all, that he is average, common, not even sufficiently idiosyncratic to warrant a fleeting interest will inflame the narcissist.

Add to this a negation of the narcissist's sense of entitlement - and the combustion is inevitable. Tell the narcissist that he does not deserve the best treatment, that his needs are not everyone's priority, that he is boring, that his needs can be catered to by an average practitioner (medical doctor, accountant, lawyer, psychiatrist), that he and his motives are transparent and can be easily gauged, that he will do what he is told, that his temper tantrums will not be tolerated, that no special concessions will be made to accommodate his inflated sense of self, that he is subject to court procedures, etc. - and the narcissist will lose control.

The narcissist believes that he is the cleverest, far above the madding crowd. If contradicted, exposed, humiliated, berated ('You are not as intelligent as you think you are', 'Who is really behind all this? It takes sophistication which you don't seem to have', 'So, you have no formal education', 'You are (mistake his age, make him much older) ... sorry, you are ... old', 'What did you do in your life? Did you study? Do you have a degree? Did you ever establish or run a business? Would you define yourself as a success?', 'Would your children share your view that you are a good father?', 'You were last seen with a Ms. ... who is (suppressed grin) a DOMESTIC (in demeaning disbelief)'.

I know that many of these questions cannot be asked outright in a court of law. But you can hurl these sentences at him during the breaks, inadvertently during the examination or deposition phase, etc."

To Whom It May Concern:

I have read two articles about the shock treatment at JRC. Today, in one of the articles it stated that the children were always being punished. This was stated by the person that heads the coalition of children with disabilities.

My daughter Amy was at JRC in the 1990's. She was transferred there from the Brown and Sullivan residential placement in Suffield, MA. While in Brown and Sullivan, she did what she wanted when she wanted. My husband and I had to go sue the Town of Thompson, Thompson, CT to get the help she needed. She had been in a number of residential placements in Maryland. When we won our case, a member of the finance board said that the Special Education Administer should tell the town who the people were that had this child that was costing the Town of Thompson $150,000.00. He was told that it would cost the town $10,000.00 fine. He then responded that it would be worth to release our names. Of course they did not. Amy was place at Brown and Sullivan in Enfield first. Her first one to one person who was taking care of her was found drunk. Amy was the one who called the person in charge. He was fired. Amy moved to a group home in Suffield,CT. The Town of Thompson was paying Brown and Sullivan $150,00.00 for 24 hour one to one care. I was getting calls left and right. Amy through a refrigator at the one in charge. She destroy the inside of the house more than once. She was suppose to get help with her education with a tutor coming in. This did not happen until the last few months she was there. She did not have food in the house. I got a phone call stating she got a tattoo. This is while she was with Browns daughter. One to one care. I had conservatorship over Amy and her estate. This means Amy had no right to make decisions on her own. Then I was promise this would not happen. Then I received the second call that she got a tattoo. Besides all this there was drugs being used. Amy had admitted to it and I have lab results stating it. The last straw came when I received a phone call stating she had sex with the man who was taking care of. Her one on one caretaker. My husband went to the police station and we were told by the District Attorney in Enfield that Amy was over 18 she could make her own decision whether to have sex or not. Now the State of CT is paying $150,000.00 a year for a caretaker to have sex with the person he is taking care of. The District Attorney does not know what a Conservatership meant. All this going on while I had major surgery and being treated for Breast Cancer. I informed the Thompson School system. They said that a place in Hartford would be the only place that could handle Amy. I called them. They said that they would not be able to. I worked at Frito Lay in Killingly, Ct. They had this Dependent Connection to help with different needs. I found Judge Rotenberg Center thru them. If it wasn't for Judge Rotenberg Center Amy would be in a intitution. While at Judge Rotenberg Center Amy received her GED. She has her drivers liciense now. She did work for Foxwoods Casino and Mohegan Sun Casino before being injured at work. She is now disabled. She recently had a gastric bypass. She went from 400 lbs down to 194 lbs. In July she will have her excess skin from her abdomon. She is going to the local community college and hopefully will be getting employment in the near future. I give all the credit to Judge Rotenberg Center and Dr. Israel. There needs to be more places like this.

Phyllis Birch
Dayville, CT

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To Whom It May Concern:

My name is Amjad N Siddiqi and I am father of Hamza N Siddiqi. Hamza is a nine years old boy who was born with a number of health problems and disabilities including cleft lip and palate, neurological abnormalities, late and delayed growth, autism, hyper activity, and cardiac problems. In 2003 South Huntington School District found a school in Berwyn, PA, after a long struggle. Hamza stayed in Melmark PA for well over two years but could not make a difference. In early 2005 Melmark school notified us and to the school district that they would not be able to serve Hamza any more because of his very complex health situation. It was not possible for them to keep him in the class with other students.

The school district started looking for another school for him and it took over six months to get Hamza enrolled in JRC. JRC was very careful to take Hamza because of his cardiac condition. JRC wanted Hamza's cardiologist to check every thing before allowing Hamza to join JRC. More over JRC's cardiologist was also involved in this process, after fully understanding the situation Hamza was permitted for admission to JRC.

JRC did not put Hamza on aversive treatment right away. They studied his behavior and then they put him on this treatment. After that we have noticed a great difference in his behavior. He is not dangerous to himself and to others any more, he listens and follow the instructions and his life is getting on the track. My wife, Robina and I are hoping a reasonable future for him now. He is 9 years old, very soon he will be 10 and soon he will be 18. We are very concerned about him about his future and the days when we will not be around. We desperately want him to be at his own to some extent and JRC is a hope for us.

Recently, this issue has become very hot. We hope that every one is trying to do good, but passing a law is absolutely not the solution. We strongly recommend that before doing any thing this program should be fully understood by every one involved. This wonderful and fruitful education program should not be eaten up by the media as food for news/stories. We request to the legislators to understand the benefits of this program before moving forward.

We also like raise this very important point, what would happen to our child if this program would be stopped? Do you have an alternative program, where our child will get the same result he is getting from this program now? If you have an alternative program please send us the details. We are supporting JRC's program only because of the results we have seen, if you have an equivalently good or better program we will love to know about it and support it.

Amjad N Siddiqi (Father of Hamza N Siddiqi)
Robina Amjad (Mother)
South Huntington, NY

April 2006:

To Whom It May Concern:

I am the parent of a child residing at the Judge Rotenberg Center in Canton, Massachusetts. My daughter, Brittany has been at JRC for almost a year now. She has severe emotional and behavioral issues which made it impossible for her to remain at home. She became a danger to herself, and my family and I went through seven years of hell trying to find help for her. You name it, I did it. Unfortunately, being a resident of New York City, there aren't many options.

Only after numerous placements, which included group homes, state schools, and psychiatric hospitals, was I finally told about JRC. I had actually tried to get a loan for $50,000.00 for a one-year payment, to get Brittany in a behavior modification program that is only offered in Utah, Puerto Rico and Montana I believe it is. I was willing to do whatever I had to in order to help my daughter. I was only successful in getting her moved from school to school and from hospital to hospital. We have seen more psychologists and psychiatrists than I can count. I watched my daughter get so drugged up in these hospitals, that I didn't even recognize her. And you know what? Those drugs didn't do a thing for her. She still had her emotional outbursts and really only thought about how she could get away. Also, she is now diabetic, and studies are showing that these mood altering drugs are causing diabetes in children.

Hospitals are the only locked facilities available in New York State for children with problems. All other placements are in open-door facilities which of course, was like putting a kid in a candy shop when it came to Brittany. Every group home or school that she was sent to was nothing more than a momentary stop-over for her, for she ran away from all of them. At one point, she was missing for seven weeks - in the dead of winter - from a school upstate. I was out of my mind with worry and was even setting up one of those spots on ABC where they show a picture of a missing child and ask have you seen so and so. Luckily, I got her back alive and well. However, it didn't solve her problems.

She can't function in a "normal" environment. I'm hoping one day she might be able to, for she's not mentally ret*d or autistic as some of those at JRC are, but I firmly believe that she needs a behavioral modification program like JRC's to help her learn how to function in society. I have seen my daughter out of control and have to be taken down by 5 police officers, so I know how she can get when she's being aggressive towards others.

JRC believes in little to no drugs when it comes to kids like mine. The first thing they did when Brittany got there was to start weaning her off the six or seven different psychotropic drugs she was on. She has been completely off them for about 6 months now and looks and sounds so much better. I have definitely seen progress since she's been there. But for every 3 steps forward, unfortunately, she takes 2 steps back. It's a very slow process, but I definitely see and hear a change, which I completely credit to JRC and their staff. Brittany has been actually showing feelings of remorse and has expressed regret for her past. This is something that I never heard from her before. She told me that even when she has to be restrained, which is always because of her either trying to hurt someone else or herself, that she's grateful for the fact that she's not drugged up. For this gives her the opportunity to calm herself down on her own and to think about what she's done to cause her to have to be restrained. No school or hospital in New York State, that I know, affords that opportunity to children like mine. They are either drugged up in a hospital, or allowed to just take off and disappear from schools they are put in.

So far she has not had to have the aversive treatment; however, because of a cluster of weeks in the recent past, where she was physically lashing out at both students and staff, and threatening to harm herself, I gave JRC permission to petition the court for her to have that treatment. Brittany is fully aware of this, and does understand that she has pushed the envelope to this point. I don't feel that this treatment is abusive or that it has any long-term harmful effects. I do believe that it is an effective means of behavior modification, especially when you are dealing with someone who is out of control and will hurt either themselves or someone else.

I find it very unfortunate that Ms. Nicholson had to turn this into such a big circus. My understanding is that once she said to stop the aversive treatment, it was. I can't help but wonder if she's now just seeing dollar signs by launching her lawsuit. She has said herself that her son is still in residence at JRC because she can't find another facility for him. To me that only further reinforces how much we, here in New York City, need JRC.

I am writing to you today to ask that you not make any rash decisions for the future of all of these children that are at JRC. There are no alternative programs available for us. Right now all I know is I am very afraid for my daughter and my family, if we lose JRC as an option. I can honestly say that I think this would be a death sentence for Brittany.

Thank you very much for reading this.

Sincerely,
Linda Burke
Staten Island, NY




April 2006

To Whom It May Concern:

My daughter is diagnosed with Mental Retardation and was placed the Judge Rotenberg Center three years ago. At home it was very difficult living with her as she was out of control and irresponsible, putting herself in dangerous and life threatening situations by running away or disappearing for weeks at a time, until someone made a call to say that she was in their home. She was truant from school, breaking up and destroying furniture in the home, and also very non-compliant. The New York City school was not able to help her as she required supervision 24 hours a day.

Since coming to the Judge Rotenberg Center, she has changed a whole lot. She has blossomed into someone who is clam, able to concentrate on school work, happy to be at home, and listens to others. Her academic grades are better than in New York City public school and I can sleep at night knowing that she is being supervised and not running around the streets.

Thank God for the Judge Rotenberg Center; my daughter has become a better person.

Janice Butler
Brooklyn, NY




April 2006:

To Whom It May Concern:

I am Ana Carvajal, the mother of Noel Cortes. During the early 1990’s, Noel started primary school in the Bronx, attending special classes. Later on I started receiving letters and phone calls from teachers and school administrators stating my son’s behavior was disruptive and aggressive toward classmates. I was constantly leaving work to go to school to pick up Noel. I was afraid of losing my job. School administrators recommended Noel to be examined and evaluated by school psychiatrists; their findings conclude that my son has Attention Deficit Disorder.

He was placed on medication (Ritalin, then Tegritol) and continued attending special education classes; however, the medication had side effects, such as drowsiness and dizziness. It was also detrimental to his learning process. In other words, Noel went everyday to school to sleep in class most of the time.

Years passed and Noel was socially promoted from one grade to the next without learning anything. By the time he reached Junior High School his academic levels were still at second grade. As Noel reached puberty, he began to have epilepsy seizures and manic behavior episodes in school; additional medication was prescribed.

Due to his behavior Noel ended up at Four Winds Hospital. He was there for seven months. In the meantime, with the help of a social worker, the Board of Education placed my son at the Judge Rotenberg Center in Canton, Massachusetts.

For the past four years, my son has learned a great deal. I never dreamed that he would be able to pass his classes and learn to read and write. I am very pleased with the job well done by the staff at the Judge Rotenberg Center.

Sincerely,
Ana Carvajal
Bronx, NY

Does MPD/DID exist?

I like the mummy ones, I'm obssesed w/mummies!