A Chapter-by-chapter Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (RAINS - Part Two)



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

This extended Entry over five pages traces the establishment and history of the RAINS organisation, belief in the SRA Myth in the UK and its impact on Child Protection policies and practises in Great Britain since 1989.

The four sub-pages under this page are dedicated to a chapter-by-chapter analysis of the book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (Routledge, now Informa PLC, 1994).

The main pages in this extended entry are strongly related to the (also) lengthy but more general discussion about the SRA (Satanic Ritual Abuse) Myth that dominates US and UK contemporary social history to be found at Beatrix Campbell (OBE)

Part One is listed under Dr. Sandra Buck, principally because it investigates the RAINS organisation, using Dr. Buck's written history as the primary source.

Part Two (this page) is an analysis of the 1994-published book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, and is therefore titled under the name of its editor, Dr. Valerie Sinason, one of the primary advocates in the United Kingdom for the SRA Myth after 1994. It is split into four sub-pages, to ease readability.

Part Three and Part Four discuss the nature and extent of belief in the SRA Myth in the early 21st century in the United Kingdom, with particular emphasis on the psychotherapy/psychoanalysis profession in the UK. It is titled under Dr. Sinason and David Icke, the two primary public faces of belief in the SRA Myth in the UK.

Part Five extends Part Four to another page, whilst investigating the subject of Recovered Memory Therapy.

The Index editors would like to extend their thanks to a number of British academics, NHS staff, mental health professionals, serving police officers and social workers who have contributed specific information and opinions for this Entry.

The Main Pages are detailed below;

Go to the first page;
Go to the third page
Go to the fourth page
Go to the fifth page


 Valerie Sinason

Valerie Sinason (Dr.)

British psychoanalyst and psychotherapist, conspiracy theorist, campaigner, poet, author and editor.



Section headings

  • Part One - the SRA Myth in England & Wales and RAINS

  • Introduction
  • The SRA Myth, MPD/DID and RMT
  • Satanic Ritual Abuse indicators
  • The SRA Myth arrives in England & Wales
  • Broxtowe
  • Pembroke
  • The Shieldfield Scandal
  • Scotland
  • The importance of 'Michelle Remembers'
  • Dr. Sandra Buck's history of RAINS
  • RAINS consolidates
  • RAINS & fundamentalism
  • Rochdale
  • Conflict with The Jet Report
  • Mind Control - the SRA Myth takes a new turn
  • Professor La Fontaine's Report
  • The Evil, Satanic Poor - Part One

  • Part Two (this page) - A Chapter-by-chapter Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (Routledge, now Informa PLC, 1994)

  • The essay contributors - then & now
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Page 1
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Page 2
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Page 3
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Page 4


  • Individual section headings for the Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse are detailed further down on this page.

    Part Three - The Nature & Extent of belief in the SRA Myth in Great Britain in the early 21st century

  • Individual and Institutional members of RAINS
  • Wolverhampton City PCT and RAINS
  • The Metropolitan Police & RAINS
  • The burden on RAINS members
  • SRA Myth True Believers in the public eye - Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke
  • The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy
  • Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder - taking psychotherapy to a new academic low
  • Dr. Ellen P. Lacter - American witch-hunter
  • The Institutions of psychiatry, psychology, psychotherapy/psychoanalysis & the SRA Myth
  • psychotherapy/psychoanalysis
  • The regulation of psychotherapy
  • Psychiatry, Psychology and the SRA Myth
  • Psychotherapy/psychoanalysis and its submission to David Icke
  • The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain

  • Part Four - The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain (continued)

  • The Department of Health and Dr. Sinason
  • Trauma, disability, attachment and the promotion of the SRA Myth
  • The Centre for Child Mental Health & the SRA Myth
  • The Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability
  • The 8th European Congress of Mental Health in Intellectual Disability
  • The Paracelsus Trust
  • Treating 'survivors'


  • Part Five - The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain (further continued)

  • The London Safeguarding Children Conference and Valerie Sinason
  • The Metropolitan Police and Valerie Sinason
  • The Carol Felstead scandal
  • The BBC and Valerie Sinason
  • The CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) and Dr. Valerie Sinason
  • The SRA Myth and the destruction of John Bowlby's legacy
  • Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs (Karnac Books, March 2011)
  • Attachment Therapy
  • Recovered memories, body memories and the pseudoscience of the future
  • 'special pleading' - a Letter to The Guardian, January 23rd 2012
  • End piece


  • A Chapter-by-chapter Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Routledge, (now Informa PLC), 1994



    Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse


    Contents for the sub-pages and this Main page;

  • The essay contributors - then & now




  • Representing Routledge, now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, itself a division of Informa PLC, the editor Edwina Welham originally oversaw the publication of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, which was launched at The House of Lords in February 1994. As such it is certain she will have checked the manuscript for accuracy and professional integrity at the time. As the book continues to be distributed by Informa PLC is would be safe to assume that a periodic review of it is conducted by the current Senior or Managing Editor of Routledge Mental Health.

    Informa PLC continue to publish books advocating for the SRA Myth. A chapter-by-chapter analysis of Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity: Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder 2nd edition, edited by Valerie Sinason (Routledge - Informa PLC, 2010) will be added to this web site in 2012, whilst a chapter-by-chapter analysis of the most recent 'Myth-promoting book from Informa PLC - the similarly-titled Trauma, Dissociation and Multiplicity: Working on Identity and Selves, edited by Valerie Sinason (October 2011) is anticipated to be added late 2012, early 2013.

    The essay contributors - then & now

    Valerie Sinason was successful in attracting what was in 1994 the cream of Britain's psychotherapy, psychology and child protection social worker professions to write for her book. American equivalents of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse have never been able to employ contributors of the same standing as Dr. Sinason's publication. Although in his review, fellow psychoanalyst and poet David M. Black detailed that Dr. Sinason had written in her Introduction there were plenty of other contributors queuing to have their essay added to Treating', the comment wasn't actually true; Dr. Sinason made no such mention, and it has to be presumed that Dr. Black was reviewing an early draft.

    Nonetheless there is nothing to suggest that Dr. Sinason's supply of essayists had been exhausted when it came to publication time, though bearing-in-mind the essays from Professor Joan Bicknell and Joan Coleman (see the grouped section Chasing Witches - An analysis of Chapters 16, 17, 28, 29 and 18) it is unclear what the criteria would be for rejecting an essay.

    Because of the nature of the contributors to Treating and their influence on the future strategy of both child protection policy in Great Britain and the provision of mental health services, notably to vulnerable women, throughout the remainder of the 1990s and into the 21st century, it would be useful to trace the then-and-future careers of the essayists. Most wrote about satanic ritual abuse again, and many would become the core of True Believers in the SRA Myth within British psychotherapy and related professions, such as Dr. Joan Coleman, Professor Nigel Beail, Valerie Sinason herself and Professor Brett Kahr. These individuals continue to this day in actively promoting the SRA Myth, together with its 'bolt-on' devices - Multiple Personality Disorder/DID, Recovered memory Therapy and Mind Control.

    It is certain is that during the early-to-mid 1990s there existed a core of psychotherapists, some psychologists and psychiatrists, plus some social workers, in Great Britain, who believed passionately in the existence of Satanic Ritual Abuse and the existence of malevolent child-killing witches and witches covens. It appears that the socially disadvantaged/excluded were regarded as the primary source of satanists, witches, and their victims.

    Nine of the contributors to Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse either worked, or had worked at The Tavistock Clinic, in London. The Clinic is now no more, having been incorporated into the The Tavistock & Portman NHS Foundation Trust. At-the-time-of-publication, in 1994, the Tavistock Clinic was one of two primary sites of Belief in a satanic and/or witches coven's conspiracy across Great Britain. Future management and a reappraisal of the financial, ethical and legal risks to the Tavistock & Portman NHS Trust have ensured that for the most part, True Believers are not easy-to-find amongst the staff of the Trust.

    The other site of a concentration of True Believers amongst professionals in Great Britain was Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital. There, a combination of religious fundamentalist and feminist agenda's had combined to promote the SRA Myth to a wider body of skilled childcare staff across Great Britain. Once again firm management and selective early retirements ensured that these groups were relatively well-controlled, though some trace of the former obsessions of times past still resides in 2012 at the Children's Hospital, notably in the Traumatic Stress Clinic.

    From Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse we can discern that the accepted and conventional contemporary social history of the United Kingdom is but a thin veneer over a more disturbing account. Although the term witch-hunt is often over-used, unfortunately, with the evidence clearly stated in their own words, it becomes apparent that some members of Britain's mental health and child protection services were engaged in precisely that - a literal witch-hunt.

    The table below provides a listing of the essayists, their roles and positions as stated in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse at the time-of-publication, and a brief summary of their current roles and key career highlights where known.

    As some visitors may read these copious pages in the order presented - i.e. this page and then the four subsequent sub-pages, the final section on Page 4 is dedicated to discussing the critical reaction and opinions relating both to the book and its individual essays.

    Introduction - by Valerie Sinason

    Author Name
    Chapter No & TitleE
    Role(s) on Publication
    Current or Recent roles
    Still active promoting SRA Myth? yes/no
    Valerie Sinason Chapter 1 Going through the fifth window Consultant Child Psychotherapist at the Tavistock Clinic, St Georges Hospital and the Anna Freud Centre, London Member of the Advisory Council of Norwood, a British learning disabilities charity.
    Co-founder and current President of the Institute of Psychotherapy & Disability
    Director of the Clinic for Dissociative Studies
    Honorary Consultant psychotherapist to the Cape Town Child Guidance Clinic, University of Cape Town Psychology Department.
    External Consultant Supervisor to Respond.
    Yes - extensive
    Anders Svensson Chapter 1 Going through the fifth window Clinical Psychologist in Sweden Not known and no history of a clinical psychologist called Anders Svensson in Sweden No
    Patrick Casement Chapter Two - The Wish Not to Know Psychoanalyst Retired
    Contributed Objective fact and psychological truth: some thoughts on "recovered memory" to Memory in Dispute edited by Valerie Sinason, Karnac Books, 1998
    No
    Jane Pooley Chapter Three - Rituals The power to damage and the power to heal CQSW family therapist and senior clinical social worker at the Hemel Hempstead Child and Family Therapy and Consultation Clinic Formerly Principal Consultant at The Tavistock Consultancy Service, Director of the executive coaching training programme at TCS. Current role not known (may have retired) No
    David Wood Chapter Three - Rituals The power to damage and the power to heal MRCPsych Consultant Child and Family Psychiatrist at the Hemel Hempstead Child and Family Therapy and Consultation Clinic and member of the Institute of Group Analysis Not known, may have previously been at the Rhodes Farm Clinic in Mill Hill, London (eating disorders). May have retired. No
    Jean M. Goodwin Chapter Four - Sadistic abuse - Definition, recognition and treatment MD, MPh - Professor of Psychiatry in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas Practising psychiatry from Fort Crockett Boulevard, Galveston, Texas
    Member of the Editorial Board of the (ISSTD Journal of Trauma & Dissociation)
    Contributed Snow White and the seven diagnoses to Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity: Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder 2nd edition, edited by Valerie Sinason (Routledge - Informa PLC, 2010)
    Yes - extensive
    Brett Kahr Chapter Five - The historical foundations of ritual abuse - An excavation of ancient infanticide Lecturer in Psychotherapy, Regent's College, London Academic Consultant to Confer Senior Clinical Research Fellow in Psychotherapy & Mental Health at Institute of Psychotherapy & Disability
    Chair of the British Society of Couple Psychotherapists
    Chair of the Professional Association of the Tavistock Centre for Couple Relationships
    Ambassador to the School of Life, Holborn, London
    Director of the School of Life's psychotherapy service
    Consultant for Dynamic Change Consultants, London NW3
    Consultant and narrator for mental health issues for BBC television and BBC Radio, including being the Resident Psychotherapist for Radio 2
    Trustee of the Institute of Psychotherapy & Disability
    Contributed The psychoanalytic concept of repression: historical and empirical perspectives to Memory in Dispute edited by Valerie Sinason, Karnac Books, 1998.
    Contributed Multiple personality disorder and schizophrenia: an interview with Professor Flora Rheta Schreiber to Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity: Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder 2nd edition, edited by Valerie Sinason (Routledge - Informa PLC, 2010)
    Has appeared on TV in shows such as Esther, Trisha, ITN News, Channel 4 News and BBC 1's Breakfast
    He was the consultant psychotherapist for the first four seasons of Big Brother for Channel 4.
    He was the on-screen commentator for I.T.N for their live coverage of the funeral of Princess Diana.
    In addition he has served as Consultant Psychotherapist for BBC 1's Doctors and Channel 4's Wife Swap amongst other programs.
    Yes - extensive
    Gwen Adshead Chapter Six - Looking For Clues Prof. Lecturer in Victimology, Forensic Psychiatry Traumatic Stress Project, Institute of Psychiatry, The Maudsley Hospital
    Consultant forensic psychotherapist at Broadmoor Hospital
    Guest on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs, 16 July 2010
    Formerly a panellist for the GMC Fitness to Practice Committee
    Honorary member of the Institute of Medical Ethics (2009-2011)
    Consultant to the Clinic for Professional boundaries studies
    Contributed Flying by twilight: when adults recover memories of abuse in childhood to Memory in Dispute edited by Valerie Sinason, Karnac Books, 1998
    Yes
    Pamela S. Hudson Chapter Seven - The clinician's experience MSSW licensed clinical social worker and child therapist in California Believed still a resident of Mendocino, California, but may have retired No
    Catherine O'Driscoll Chapter Eight - 'Daddy eats poo' - Work with a ritually abused boy Senior Registrar in Child Psychiatry at the Tavistock Clinic and Child Guidance Clinic Consultant Psychiatrist, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, East London NHS Foundation Trust No
    Leslie Ironside Chapter Nine - Psychotherapy with a ritually abused 3-year-old Senior Child Psychotherapist in Sussex Child and adolescent psychotherapist and Director at The Centre for Emotional Development , 35 Claremont Terrace, Brighton, UK
    Contributed Serving two masters: a patient, a therapist, and an allegation of sexual abuse to Memory in Dispute edited by Valerie Sinason, Karnac Books, 1998
    Yes
    Mary Kelsall Chapter Ten - Fostering a ritually abused child Foster parent Not known (no professional qualifications) No
    Arnon Bentovim Chapter Eleven - A systemic approach Consultant Child Psychiatrist, Family Therapist and Psychoanalyst at the Hospital for Sick Children, Great Ormond Street and the Tavistock Clinic Director and founder of the Child and Family Practice, Wimpole Street, London.
    Contributed "Children are liars aren't they?" - an exploration of denial processes in child abuse to Memory in Dispute edited by Valerie Sinason, Karnac Books, 1998
    Contributed Undoing the effects of complex trauma - creating a lifespan trauma narrative with children and young people to Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity: Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder 2nd edition, edited by Valerie Sinason (Routledge - Informa PLC, 2010)
    Yes - extensive
    Marianne Tranter Chapter Eleven - A systemic approach Social Worker and Family Therapist in the Great Ormond Street Sexual Abuse Team Now Marienne Bentovim, Director and founder of the Child and Family Practice, Wimpole Street, London No
    Kingsley Norton Chapter Twelve - In-patient psychotherapy at the Henderson Hospital Consultant Psychiatrist and Medical Director of the Henderson Hospital Clinical Personality Disorder Lead' at the Personality Disorder Service - Ealing, in the John Connolly Wing of St Bernard's Hospital Yes (believed up-to 2005 at least)
    Alan Cooklin Chapter Thirteen - The shattered picture of the family - Encountering new dimensions of human relations, of the family and of therapy Consultant in Family Psychiatry, Marlborough Family Service
    Honorary Senior Lecturer, University College London & Birbeck College London.
    Clinical Director, Children and Families Psychotherapy Directorate
    Consultant to the Family Project for Major Mental Illness for Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust
    Honorary Senior Lecturer at University College London
    Previously consultant in charge Paediatric Liaison Services for UCL Hospitals
    No
    Gill Gorell Barnes Chapter Thirteen - The shattered picture of the family - Encountering new dimensions of human relations, of the family and of therapy Senior Clinical Lecturer in Social Work, Tavistock Clinic, Honorary Senior Lecturer Birbeck College, Consultant for Training Institute of Family Therapy Still believed to be working at The Tavistock No
    Stephen Colver Chapter Fourteen - Cutting the cord - The resolution of a symbiotic relationship and the untwisting of desire Member of the Guild of Psychotherapists Captain and psychoanalytic psychotherapist in the Church Army
    Registered in 2001 as a Captain and psychoanalytic psychotherapist in Sheffield, north England
    Believed to now be retired and suffering from ME
    No
    Phil Mollon Chapter Fifteen - the impact of evil Consultant Clinical Psychologist and Psychotherapist at the Lister Hospital, Stevenage In private practice.
    Contributed Terror in the consulting room - memory, trauma, and dissociation to Memory in Dispute edited by Valerie Sinason, Karnac Books, 1998
    Contributed Dark dimensions of multiple personality to to Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity: Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder 2nd edition, edited by Valerie Sinason (Routledge - Informa PLC, 2010)
    Contributed The Foreclosure of Dissociation within Psychoanalysis to Trauma, Dissociation and Multiplicity working on identity and selves edited by Valerie Sinason (Routledge/Informa PLC October 2011)
    Yes - extensive
    Anne McDonald Chapter Sixteen - A brief word Acting Clinical Services manager, Consultant Psychiatrist with special responsibility for Forensic Psychiatry and a Psychoanalytical Psychotherapist in Glasgow Previously Consultant in Forensic Psychiatry
    Non-Executive Board Member of the Risk Management Authority
    Retired October 2011
    No
    Joan Bicknell Chapter Seventeen - Learning disability and ritualistic child abuse - Introductory issues (retired) Professor Emeritus in the Psychiatry of Learning Disability, St Georges Hospital medical School, University of London
    Patron - Institute of Psychotherapy & Disability
    still retired No
    Nigel Beail Chapter Eighteen - 'Fire, coffins and skeletons' Consultant Clinical Psychologist, Barnsley Community and Priority Services NHS Trust and Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Sheffield President of the European Association for Mental Health in Intellectual Disability
    Head of Psychological Services for NHS Barnsley
    Head of Psychological Services for People who have intellectual disabilities for Barnsley Learning Disability Services
    Professor and Clinical lecturer at the Clinical Psychology Unit, Department of Psychology at the University of Sheffield
    Trustee and former Secretary of the Institute of Psychotherapy & Disability
    Trustee of the British Institute for Learning Disabilities
    Committee Member of the British Psychological Society's Faculty for Learning Disability
    Government adviser on provision of mental health services
    Yes - extensive
    Steve Morris Chapter Nineteen - You will only hear half of it and you won't believe it' - Counselling with a woman with a mild learning disability Director of Respond (and founder)
    Also a counsellor, freelance consultant and psychotherapist in training
    Director of Forensic Therapies (formerly Counselling in Prison) charity (may no longer be trading after allegations of fraud (see Whistle-blowing model sacked for revealing £300,000 'theft' from jail charity, the Daily Mail, 17th January 2011 No
    Neil Charleson Chapter Twenty - A birthday to remember Detailed as having been assessed with a mild learning disability at the age of 4 No trace in 2011 No
    Al Corbett (may be 'Alan Corbett') Chapter Twenty - A birthday to remember (no specific current job or qualifications quoted) If "Alan Corbett" now a Trustee for the Institute of Psychotherapy & Disability and psychotherapist Yes - extensive
    Hereward Harrison Chapter Twenty-one - ChildLine, UK - How children and young people communicate their experiences by telephone Director of Counselling for ChildLine UK Psychotherapist at the Child and Family Practice Ltd, Wimpole Street London No
    Olave Snelling Chapter Twenty-two - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse, 19 February 1992, and a helpline after the transmission of the programme TV Producer CEO of the Christian Broadcasting Council Chairman of African Enterprise No
    Sara Scott Chapter Twenty-two - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse, 19 February 1992, and a helpline after the transmission of the programme Manager of Broadcasting Support Services (Manchester) Founder and Director of DMSS Research and Consultancy
    Consultant to the British Government, European Union and British agencies for child protection & development
    Yes - extensive
    Tim Tate Chapter Twenty-three - Press, politics and pedophilia - A practitioner's guide to the media Writer and television producer Now a television producer for his independent production company. His last documentary commissioned was Terror Tourists broadcast on BBC Two on Sunday 7 December 2003
    He was also the creator, producer and director of ITV's hit 'adult' docu-soap series, Pleasure Island, which featured extensive pre-watershed nudity on-screen.
    In 2007 he assisted Roger Cook in a 90-minute TV special entitled Roger Cook's Greatest Hits which revisited some of reporter Roger Cook's previous The Cook Report investigations. The SRA Myth episode The Devil's Work broadcast in 1988 wasn't one of those investigated.
    In 2009 the semi-autobiographical/pornography book Slave Girl was published, co-written with Sarah Forsyth
    No
    No author or editor name given Chapter Twenty-four Questions survivors and professionals ask the police N/A N/A N/A
    Judith Trowell Chapter Twenty-five - Ritual organised abuse - Management issues Consultant Child Psychiatrist and Psychoanalyst in the Tavistock Clinic Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist at the Child and Family Department of the Tavistock Clinic
    Professor of Child Mental Health at the West Midlands NIMHE/CSIP
    No
    Catherine Doran Chapter Twenty-six - A Service Manager's perspective Service Manager of Child Protection in the London Borough of Haringey, seconded as a Child Protection Consultant to the London Region of the Social Services Inspectorate Corporate Director of Children's Services for the London Borough of Harrow
    previously Assistant Director for Children, Schools and Families at Camden Council and head of Psycho-Social Services at Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital
    No
    Chris Hobbs Chapter Twenty-seven - Treating satanist abuse survivors - The Leeds experience Consultant Community Paediatrician in the Department of Community Paediatrics and Child Health, St James University Hospital and Clarendon Wing, Leeds General Infirmary, Leeds Consultant Paediatrician and Designated Doctor (Child Protection) St James University Hospital, Leeds No
    Jane Wynne Chapter Twenty-seven - Treating satanist abuse survivors - The Leeds experience Consultant Community Paediatrician in the Department of Community Paediatrics and Child Health, St James University Hospital and Clarendon Wing, Leeds General Infirmary, Leeds Deceased N/A
    Mary Sue Moore Chapter Twenty-eight - Common characteristics in the drawings of ritually abused children and adults Clinical psychologist and psychotherapist. Consultant Psychologist at Boulder Mental Health Center in Boulder and the Psychology Department at the University of the Colorado in Boulder On sabbatical until July 2012 from Boulder Institute of Psychotherapy & Research as a clinical psychologist, psychotherapist, educator and counsellor.
    Also in private practice
    Contributed How can we remember but be unable to recall? The complex functions of multi-modular memory to Memory in Dispute edited by Valerie Sinason, Karnac Books, 1998
    Contributed Children's Art and the Dissociative Brain to Trauma, Dissociation and Multiplicity working on identity and selves edited by Valerie Sinason (Routledge/Informa PLC October 2011)
    Yes - extensive
    Joan Coleman Chapter Twenty-nine - Satanic cult practices Associate Specialist in Psychiatry at HeathlandMental Health Services, Surrey Retired, still leading co-ordinator for RAINS.
    Contributed Dissociative disorders: recognition within psychiatry to Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity: Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder 2nd edition, edited by Valerie Sinason (Routledge - Informa PLC, 2010)
    Yes - extensive
    Ashley Conway Chapter Thirty - Trans-formations of abuse Honorary Psychologist at Charing Cross Hospital and in private practice In private practice in Harley Street, London
    Contributed Recovered memories, shooting the messenger to Memory in Dispute edited by Valerie Sinason, Karnac Books, 1998
    Yes
    Su Burrell Chapter Thirty-one - A personal view of the literature Specialist Clinical Lecturer in Social Work/Child Protection int he CHildren and Families Department of the Tavistock Clinic
    Founder member of the standing Committee on Sexually Abused Children (SCOSAC)
    'established child protection trainer'
    Not known, disappeared after 1996 No
    Rob Hale Chapter Thirty-two - Internal and external reality Consultant Psychotherapist, Psychiatrist and Adult Psychoanalyst at the Tavistock Clinic Previously on the Confidentiality Working Group, Royal College of Psychiatrists
    Fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists.
    Delivered the 2009 Nina Coltart Memorial Lecture 'Psychotherapy and Borderline Personality Disorder As a Defence Against Psychosis'
    Honorary Consultant Psychotherapist at the Portman Clinic
    Triangle Trust 1949 Fund Trustee
    No - not since 2000
    Valerie Sinason Chapter Thirty-two - Internal and external reality See Chapter One See Chapter One Yes - extensive
    Sandra L. Bloom Chapter Thirty-three - Creating sanctuary - ritual abuse and complex post-traumatic stress disorder Medical Director, The Sanctuary, Northwestern Institute of Psychiatry, Forty Washington, Pennsylvania and President, The Alliance for Creative Development Associate Professor, Department of Health Management and Policy, Drexel University School of Public Health Yes
    Sheila C. Youngson Chapter Thirty-four - Ritual abuse - The personal and professional cost for workers Consultant Clinical Psychologist, Counselling and Therapy Services (Children and Adolescents), Wakefield and Pontefract Community Health NHS Trust Senior Associate Lecturer and Deputy Clinical Director, Clinical Psychology Training Programme at the University of Leeds in North England No



    Go to Page Three



Site logo
Close window [X]   
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind



This site is an Index of the key individuals concerned with Family Justice and Child Protection over the last three decades. The data provided is predominantly concerned with English and Welsh contemporary social history, but incorporates an increasingly number of entries relevant to other nations, notably the USA.

The Index has been created and maintained to act as an initial reference guide for the public, journalists, historians and biographers, together with professionals, politicians and those whose lives have been impacted in the last 30 years and beyond through the traumas of English and Welsh child and family social policy. It should not be regarded as a primary source of data, and for that reason copious references to other data sources are made throughout.

Some visitors may discern a weighty coverage of the satanic ritual abuse 'crazy' years of the 1980s and 90s. This was never originally intended and the subject has crept-up on the Editors and subsequently been reflected in the Index, simply because of its prominence in child protection history. The 'SRA Myth' years included probably the most significant social history events in the US, UK, Canada and Australia in the last three decades, and any contemporary academic history texts for any of the respective nations that skip the subject are quite likely rendered useless. The SRA Myth, typified by the release of the West Memphis Three in 2011 continues to haunt Western societies, and will probably continue to do so until a process of truth and reconciliation is commenced.

The Dramatis Personae website is hosted, administered and edited in the United States, by US citizens - though contributors from other nations are welcome. The site attempts to be informative and as accurate as possible in the presentation of any views, opinions or interpretations made.

This site is not determined to encourage denigration of individuals, though some entries, particularly discussing the SRA (Satanic Ritual Abuse) Myth and its aftermath do take a less-than-conciliatary approach. The site maintains a Right of Reply page. This details the sites' commitment to accuracy and an open invitation to contribute material and counter-arguments or even complete essays in opposition to the primary Index entry. Contact with the Editors can be made through the email address on each page, or the Get In Contact form.

New and appended entries for - February 2012



New Entries (to date)

'special pleading' - a Letter to The Guardian, January 23rd 2012.
The above new section has been incorporated into the RAINS history and refers to an unfortunate blunder by the British newspaper The Guardian in January 2012.

Nicky Ali Jackson

Appended Entries

The section The promotion of Attachment Therapy in the UK on the Candace Newmaker page has details of new historic revelations on the subject, kindly provided by a UK social worker.

The entry for Myra Riddell has moved to its own page and has been further updated with new information received, both in January and early February. Next to the RAINS history, the entries for Norma Howes and Candace Newmaker, this page is the recipient of the most information received from Visitors. This page is due to be expanded further, thanks in-part to some fantastic information being provided regularly by members of the US gay community. Although never planned, the page appears to have struck a nerve and is revealing an aspect of US contemporary history not normally discussed, or even recognised widely up until recently.

Related to the Dr. Myra Riddell page, the now-on-its-dedicated-page entry for Gloria Steinem has been updated, once again due to some terrific contributions from Visitors. The new material includes details of a speech in 2009 that the Editors hadn't previously been aware-of. The page incorporates quite a lot of video clips, for those bored of the text-heavy content on this Web site.

The next 'major' update is scheduled for April 2012.





This site is an Index of the key individuals concerned with Family Justice and Child Protection over the last three decades. The data provided is predominantly concerned with English and Welsh contemporary social history, but incorporates an increasingly number of entries relevant to other nations, notably the USA.

The Index has been created and maintained to act as an initial reference guide for the public, journalists, historians and biographers, together with professionals, politicians and those whose lives have been impacted in the last 30 years and beyond through the traumas of English and Welsh child and family social policy. It should not be regarded as a primary source of data, and for that reason copious references to other data sources are made throughout.

Some visitors may discern a weighty coverage of the satanic ritual abuse 'crazy' years of the 1980s and 90s. This was never originally intended and the subject has crept-up on the Editors and subsequently been reflected in the Index, simply because of its prominence in child protection history. The 'SRA Myth' years included probably the most significant social history events in the US, UK, Canada and Australia in the last three decades, and any contemporary academic history texts for any of the respective nations that skip the subject are quite likely rendered useless. The SRA Myth, typified by the release of the West Memphis Three in 2011 continues to haunt Western societies, and will probably continue to do so until a process of truth and reconciliation is commenced.

The Dramatis Personae website is hosted, administered and edited in the United States, by US citizens - though contributors from other nations are welcome. The site attempts to be informative and as accurate as possible in the presentation of any views, opinions or interpretations made.

This site is not determined to encourage denigration of individuals, though some entries, particularly discussing the SRA (Satanic Ritual Abuse) Myth and its aftermath do take a less-than-conciliatary approach. The site maintains a Right of Reply page. This details the sites' commitment to accuracy and an open invitation to contribute material and counter-arguments or even complete essays in opposition to the primary Index entry. Contact with the Editors can be made through the email address on each page, or the Get In Contact form.

New and appended entries for - February 2012




New Entries (to date)

'special pleading' - a Letter to The Guardian, January 23rd 2012.
The above new section has been incorporated into the RAINS history and refers to an unfortunate blunder by the British newspaper The Guardian in January 2012.

Nicky Ali Jackson

Appended Entries

The section The promotion of Attachment Therapy in the UK on the Candace Newmaker page has details of new historic revelations on the subject, kindly provided by a UK social worker.

The entry for Myra Riddell has moved to its own page and has been further updated with new information received, both in January and early February. Next to the RAINS history, the entries for Norma Howes and Candace Newmaker, this page is the recipient of the most information received from Visitors. This page is due to be expanded further, thanks in-part to some fantastic information being provided regularly by members of the US gay community. Although never planned, the page appears to have struck a nerve and is revealing an aspect of US contemporary history not normally discussed, or even recognised widely up until recently.

Related to the Dr. Myra Riddell page, the now-on-its-dedicated-page entry for Gloria Steinem has been updated, once again due to some terrific contributions from Visitors. The new material includes details of a speech in 2009 that the Editors hadn't previously been aware-of. The page incorporates quite a lot of video clips, for those bored of the text-heavy content on this Web site.

The next 'major' update is scheduled for April 2012.



This site is an Index of the key individuals concerned with Family Justice and Child Protection over the last three decades. The data provided is predominantly concerned with English and Welsh contemporary social history, but incorporates an increasingly number of entries relevant to other nations, notably the USA.

The Index has been created and maintained to act as an initial reference guide for the public, journalists, historians and biographers, together with professionals, politicians and those whose lives have been impacted in the last 30 years and beyond through the traumas of English and Welsh child and family social policy. It should not be regarded as a primary source of data, and for that reason copious references to other data sources are made throughout.

Some visitors may discern a weighty coverage of the satanic ritual abuse 'crazy' years of the 1980s and 90s. This was never originally intended and the subject has crept-up on the Editors and subsequently been reflected in the Index, simply because of its prominence in child protection history. The 'SRA Myth' years included probably the most significant social history events in the US, UK, Canada and Australia in the last three decades, and any contemporary academic history texts for any of the respective nations that skip the subject are quite likely rendered useless. The SRA Myth, typified by the release of the West Memphis Three in 2011 continues to haunt Western societies, and will probably continue to do so until a process of truth and reconciliation is commenced.

The Dramatis Personae website is hosted, administered and edited in the United States, by US citizens - though contributors from other nations are welcome. The site attempts to be informative and as accurate as possible in the presentation of any views, opinions or interpretations made.

This site is not determined to encourage denigration of individuals, though some entries, particularly discussing the SRA (Satanic Ritual Abuse) Myth and its aftermath do take a less-than-conciliatary approach. The site maintains a Right of Reply page. This details the sites' commitment to accuracy and an open invitation to contribute material and counter-arguments or even complete essays in opposition to the primary Index entry. Contact with the Editors can be made through the email address on each page, or the Get In Contact form.

New and appended entries for - February 2012




New Entries (to date)

'special pleading' - a Letter to The Guardian, January 23rd 2012.
The above new section has been incorporated into the RAINS history and refers to an unfortunate blunder by the British newspaper The Guardian in January 2012.

Nicky Ali Jackson

Appended Entries

The section The promotion of Attachment Therapy in the UK on the Candace Newmaker page has details of new historic revelations on the subject, kindly provided by a UK social worker.

The entry for Myra Riddell has moved to its own page and has been further updated with new information received, both in January and early February. Next to the RAINS history, the entries for Norma Howes and Candace Newmaker, this page is the recipient of the most information received from Visitors. This page is due to be expanded further, thanks in-part to some fantastic information being provided regularly by members of the US gay community. Although never planned, the page appears to have struck a nerve and is revealing an aspect of US contemporary history not normally discussed, or even recognised widely up until recently.

Related to the Dr. Myra Riddell page, the now-on-its-dedicated-page entry for Gloria Steinem has been updated, once again due to some terrific contributions from Visitors. The new material includes details of a speech in 2009 that the Editors hadn't previously been aware-of. The page incorporates quite a lot of video clips, for those bored of the text-heavy content on this Web site.

The next 'major' update is scheduled for April 2012.


"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


Angela Wileman - Emotional Abuse & the forced removal of the children of domestic abuse victims



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

This entry discusses the subject of the use of the terms 'emotional abuse' and 'possibility of emotional abuse' in the context of the perceived punishment of women who are victims of domestic violence, by the forced removal of their children.

The subject of the treatement of victims of DV by child protection social workers is discussed in the context of both the US and England and Wales. In the UK though there is evidence that the policy is an official one.

The weight of material pertaining to this subject is such that a dedicated page has been allocated for the Entry, which is likely to expand substantially in the future.

A further Index entry on the subject of 'possible emotional abuse' can be found under Phillip K. Dick

Angela Wileman



In England and Wales a regular accusation made of the child protection profession is that it deliberately punishes women who seek protection from domestic violence perpetrated by partners, or that child professionals choose to seek the forced removal of a child or children from women who seek assistance from social services. The accusations are vehemently denied, but unfortunately there is substantial evidence that, particularly in the case of alleged domestic violence, whether it takes place or not, there appears to be a fixed tendency for some social workers to deliberately choose to try to forcibly remove children from the mother, even in cases where no harm is likely to come to the child. In such cases the term 'emotional abuse' or even 'possibility of future emotional abuse' are employed as the means to forcibly remove the child from a woman.

The case of Angela Wileman is perhaps the most extreme and well-publicised case of what appears to be institutionalised abuse of a woman by social workers in recent years in England and Wales. The scandal, and the term is accurate, because a genuine scandal took place, came to light only because proceedings were eventually dropped, and principally because Mrs. Wileman has proven herself to be a lucid and aggressive campaigner against systematic and endemic abuse of women using the 'emotional abuse' mechanism.

Sitting in the garden of her home, with toys strewn on the lawn, this English mother is still stunned that earlier this week she eventually triumphed against social workers planning to seize her son and hand him to new adoptive parents.

For two years she has played a cat-and-mouse game as the British authorities spent thousands of pounds chasing her around Europe, decrying her as a bad mother and threatening to put her in prison. An MP is now demanding an investigation into the waste of taxpayers' money by Devon social services. Safe at last: Angela Wileman with son Lucas, with whom she now lives in Ireland

Terrified of losing Lucas, Angela fled first to Spain and then Sweden. She now lives in County Wexford, Southern Ireland. The authorities in each of the countries deemed her a perfectly good mother to her son and let her keep him.

But it had been a very different story back in Britain, where Angela, 33, fell foul of a disturbing new tactic by social workers.

In the past ten years there has been a 50 per cent rise in the number of parents who, just like her, have been accused of 'emotionally harming' their children. A quarter of forced adoptions happen after social workers allege that the child has been the victim of emotional abuse - far more than instances of sexual abuse or cruelty.

Last year, 6,700 'emotionally harmed' children were placed on the protection register. There were 2,600 registrations for sexual abuse and 5,100 for physical abuse.

Parents who social workers say might shout at, or even loudly reprimand, their children in the future have been branded as potential emotional abusers and had their toddlers or newborn babies removed from them.

'Emotional harm' is the latest buzz phrase in the social workers' lexicon - one that can condemn almost any family. Yet it has no strict definition under British law.
(Source: This mother went on the run across Europe after social workers tried to snatch her son. Her crime? Letting him see her husband shout at her by Sue Reid, The Daily Mail, 16th August 2009)

The 'MP' was Rt. Hon. John Hemming MP. The temporary choice of Sweden was particularly notable as child protection social workers there employ EBP - Evidence-Based Practice and EBR - Evidence-Based Research as a methodology, whilst in England and Wales, personal opinion, established practice and sometimes political and/or religious dogma determine the decision-making process.

The scandal cost Devon County Council around £100,00 from its child protection budget, and involved a chase across Europe. The scandal drew attention to the activities of the International Child Abduction and Contact Unit in Chancery Lane, London, which was employed by the County Council to hunt down Mrs. Wileman, with a use of resource apparently not employed in cases of genuine neglect or abuse.

The abduction unit had traced Angela after she registered Lucas at a Spanish school and with a doctor.

The papers accused her of kidnapping Lucas and said that he should be sent back to England and into care. If she didn't comply, Devon social workers threatened to travel to Spain to seize him. Angela was warned that if she ever returned to Britain she would be arrested by police for child abduction.

She was also told to attend court the following Monday so the 'rights of custody and return of the child' could be enforced under European law.

Angela recalls: 'I went straight down to the police station. The officers apologised because, of course, the Spanish authorities had no concerns about me caring for my own son. Lucas could hear my conversation with the officers. He cried because he was frightened of being taken again.

'That night, back at our house, he had a nightmare. He was so scared. Why would anyone want to put a child through that when I am a strong, independent and loving mother and we were a happy single-parent family?'

Angela felt her only choice was to plan a second secret escape.

The next day she gave most of their possessions to friends and set off with five suitcases of the boys' clothes and toys. In the evening she crossed the border to France, before taking a flight to Sweden.

Once there, she sent a handwritten statement to the Spanish and English authorities stating: 'It makes no sense to fly my son with people he fears back into care with strangers. I still do not understand how my thriving son can be taken from me on the assumption that he might suffer emotional harm in the future. Dragging him into care caused him to suffer more emotional harm than anything he ever suffered at home.'

But soon Angela was penniless. She could not speak Swedish, so could not find work. And when she applied for a passport for baby Marco at the British Embassy in Stockholm the Devon social workers were soon on her trail again.

Realising that she would have to move quickly, she decided to try Ireland. So just before Christmas last year she moved on, again secretly.

Although she contacted the Irish authorities to claim child benefit, they never threatened to take Lucas or Marco away. 'In fact, they have done everything to keep us together,' she says.

But the British abduction unit and social services tracked her yet again because of the benefits claim.
(Source : This mother went on the run across Europe after social workers tried to snatch her son. Her crime? Letting him see her husband shout at her by Sue Reid, The Daily Mail, 16th August 2009)

As in Sweden and Spain, Irish authorities use EBR/EBP and have little time for English and Welsh 'wacko' theories of child protection. After assessing Mrs. Wileman and her son, the Irish court rejected any suggestion of Luke being at risk. Devon County Council finally dropped the case, but Mrs. Wileman has no trust in the Devon authorities and has chosen to remain in Eire.

Even after a year, the scandal was being referenced in other articles centering on concerns about the use of the 'emotional abuse' and the even more vague 'possibility of emotional abuse' monikers. Camilla Cavendish investigated how abuse of women by social workers is provoking them to flee Great Britain.

Unless courts drop the concept of ‘emotional abuse’ more mothers will be tempted to flee with their children

With the Government letting thugs out of prison because it can’t afford to keep them there, it was surprising to see a woman jailed for nine months last week for taking her seven-year-old son to Canada. “Abduction” conjures up an image of kidnap, not protection.

This woman feared that her son would be taken into care and then placed with his father who, he claimed, had hurt him. She told me last week that she had fled because she believed that her son was “in imminent danger. I was in despair. I didn’t know how to protect him.”

The woman had approached social services when the boy made allegations of a vaguely sexual nature about his dad, and said that he no longer wanted overnight contact visits with him. A psychologist decided that she had coached her son to lie, and was therefore causing him emotional harm, and that the boy should go into care. He has now been in care for 15 months. His mother is in prison. Even if the father is innocent, the “interests of the child”, that ubiquitous pretext, have been ill-served.

This case is part of a pattern. When Angela Wileman asked Devon County Council to help her alcoholic husband, social workers accused her of emotionally harming her son by letting him witness her husband’s violence. The boy was placed with foster parents, to be adopted. Ms Wileman fled with him to Spain, Sweden and then the Republic of Ireland, pursued at each stage by the Abduction Child and Contact Unit. In each country the authorities found her to be a good mother.

Devon has now withdrawn its case, which means she is free to speak out. Most are silenced. I am still not allowed to name a man who helped his wife and stepson to flee abroad three years ago. The boy packed his bag and, of his own accord, climbed out of a window at the foster home that he had repeatedly run away from. He was in care because of a catalogue of errors — which I cannot legally describe in any detail — after the mother had extricated herself from a violent marriage. The stepfather was jailed for 16 months for what many in his village saw as heroism, not abduction.

One campaigning MP knows of at least 15 other families on the run. One couple left the country soon after I watched an expert witness change her mind in court about a personality disorder that was said to afflict the mother. The expert changed her diagnosis to a different disorder which might, she thought, lead the mother to harm her child emotionally in the future. It was a staggering moment for me. But the court did not blink. The child remained in care.

You can believe, in each case, that the parents are evil or deeply flawed. The lack of information to which we are legally entitled means that this may be true. Or you can wonder whether the serious charge of abduction is being stretched awfully thin by a system that seeks to punish the victims of its own failures.

Common to all these cases is the belief that the children are at risk of “emotional harm”. Last year more children were placed on the at-risk register for emotional harm than for sexual abuse or physical abuse. Yet the term is nebulous. Spain does not recognise it at all. Ireland does, but only in extreme cases. Unlike the British authorities, those countries do not think that having had the misfortune to live with an alcoholic made Ms Wileman an unfit mother. The mother jailed last week told me how terrible it was that she could neither prove nor disprove the allegation that she had coached her son to lie.

Emotional abuse is not clear cut. There are no bruises, scars or cigarette burns. There does not even have to be evidence of neglect, such as lack of hygiene, nutrition or schooling. So cases hinge heavily on expert witness evidence about the mental state of the carers. Courts ask psychologists and psychiatrists to make fine judgments about relationships. Some simply do not spend enough time with the parties to justify the courts treating their subjective opinions as hard evidence. While many judges are assiduous readers of reports, the bald fact is that courts rarely refuse applications for care orders: only 20 were refused in 2008, out of more than 7,000.

There is concern within the profession. In a recent article for Family Law Week, a clinical psychologist at the Maudsley Hospital, London, wrote that he and his colleagues “frequently see cases in which there have already been conducted expert reports of extremely variable quality”. He suggested that “the mismatch in expectations between solicitors and clinicians” makes clinicians “feel under pressure to go beyond their usual service”. A senior psychiatrist expert witness recently told me that good judgments can be made only by examining patterns of behaviour over a long period, not by a one-time snapshot of a family. Yet the latter is what happens.
(Source: We can’t just trust experts on the risk to a child - by Camilla Cavendish - The Times 10th November 2010 - note The Times Web Site is a subscription-based facility should you wish to search and view the entire article)

The Sunday Telegraphs public affairs columnist has also identified that 'emotional abuse' as being an issue that appears to waste extraordinary resources in child protection departments, whilst concentrating resources on those that don't need intervention;

The central difficulty is that those involved in child protection literally do not know what they are supposed to be doing. Working Together, the document that is supposed to define their role, says their primary task is to “safeguard and promote the welfare of children”. The trouble is, nowhere in that 250-page document, or in the thousands of pages of material that elaborate it, is the notion of “the welfare of children” defined in a way that can guide the behaviour of social services officials in a clear and intelligible fashion.

This becomes glaringly obvious in relation to cases of “emotional abuse and neglect”. What is emotional abuse and neglect, and how can it be recognised? That critical question is not answered anywhere. The definition of what has become one of the most common reasons for taking children away from their parents is left to the judgment of individual psychologists and social workers. It means that the notion has become more or less arbitrary, dependent on whim rather than evidence.

Social workers lament that they are overworked and do not have the resources to investigate all the cases that they should. And it’s true: they don’t. But the situation is made much worse by the lack of any clear criteria for distinguishing those families which should be investigated. Result? Social workers spend far too much of their time investigating families they believe are guilty of “emotional abuse and neglect” — and it contributes significantly to their widespread propensity to miss cases, such as Baby P’s, where the abuse is real, and terrible.
(Source: Sharon Shoesmith is right about one thing... by Alasdair Palmer, Daily Telegraph 18th September 2010)

Although the Angela Wileman case is not specifically referenced, there is evidence that Devon Council Council Safeguarding Children Board has recognised that it's policies were need of review and change, and that its child protection provision was fundamentally flawed. The Board, chaired by Alan J. Wooderson, with representatives from various contributing agencies, including Helen Hyland (Designated Nurse Child Protection) Charles Holme (Designated Doctor Child Protection Devon) & Chris Dimmelow (Head of Safeguarding) received a report at it's board meeting of March 2009 (see Minutes of Devon Safeguarding Children Board.)

Mrs. Wileman has, as mentioned earlier, proven to be an adept and capable campaigner against the abuse of women and children by social workers through the use of the 'emotional abuse' mechanism. These are typified by her request for data about the subject with a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to Devon County Council in late September 2009;

Dear Sir or Madam,

Under the freedom of information act I would like to know numerical statistics during the period of 1998 to 2008 for the following;

1) How many children were taken into local authority care on interim care orders and emergency protection orders under the category of emotional harm during the above period? I do not wish you to include any children for any other categories of harm/abuse.

2) Out of these children who were taken into care for emotional harm how many of them were specifically for domestic violence between their parents? Again I do not wish you to include children who had violence directed at them as that would fall into a different category being physical abuse.

3) Out of these children who were put into care for domestic violence how many were returned to family or extended family ?

4) Out of these how many children were put on full care orders?

5) Of the children put on full care orders how many were adopted during these periods.

Yours faithfully,

Angela Wileman
(Source: Number of children taken into care for emotional harm as a result of domestic violence - FOI request to Devon County Council by Angela Wileman)

As it is Devon County Council, responded in late October 2009, saying that it does not keep specific records on the use of the ""emotional harm" category. The only Children in Need (CIN) category recorded is the generic "abuse or neglect" category. This is general problem in England and Wales, and doesn't appear to reflect the reality that emotional abuse and the 'possibility' version of the undefined term is now one of the primary causes for children to be forcibly removed from women, dwarfing even physical and sexual abuse, and bested only by 'neglect'. An example of the popularity of the term is visible in the statistics of Kingston (London) Safeguarding Children Board for 2008, who provide a superb example of a publictly-available and professionally-produced report of the activities of it's associated child protection teams, raising the question as why all SCB's can't produce the same for national statistics collation;

Kingston stats

(Source: From Child Protection Information for LSCB Meeting on 26/2/09. Information from 01/04/08 to 31/12/08. Kingston SCB Note: Statistics are specific to Kingston only and may not reflect national trends, and should not be construed as such).


Angela Wileman's unwillingness to be seen as a woman who simply accepted abuse, either from a violent husband or social services, was typified by her willingness to talk openly about the issues. Amongst the many forms of media she employed was YouTube, for a radio interview;


(Part Two of the same interview)



The issue of women abused by social workers seemingly desiring to punish them for either seeking to gain help or for the misguided application of 'emotional abuse' with respect to children in DV households (even if the DV is simply shouting matches, with no physical violence) isn't new. The controversy was long ago raised in the State of New York, where the tendency to remove children from women in cases of alleged DV got to such epidemic proportions that the State had to enact legislation to stop social workers removing children from women who were victim, with such enthusiasm. The Adoption and Safe Families Act had been a first attempt to address the issue, becoming law in November 1999 required;

1) courts must consider the presence of domestic violence in the home when determining if the need to place a child would be eliminated by an order of protection removing the abuser from the home, and 2) requires the Office of Children and Family Services to study the extent to which domestic violence victims have their children removed as a result of the abuser's conduct.

Conforms New York state law to the federal Adoption and Safe Families Act
(Source Legislative Summaries by Year 1999 New York State Domestic Violence and Related Laws)

But even in 2004, although New York State had improved, the tendency to automatically punish women victims of domestic violence by removing their children from them forcefully was in full swing in New York city. The Nicholson vs. Scoppetta private class action against New York City Administration for Children's Service (ACS) in October 2004, revealed that this was indeed a policy of the department;

The New York City Administration for Children's Service (ACS) was alleged to have had a policy dictating that children be removed from mothers who were victims of domestic violence. Federal District Court Judge Jack Weinstein characterised this claimed policy as a "pitiless double abuse": These women were forced to suffer the battering, first, and the loss of their children, second.

In a federal lawsuit brought on behalf of a class of mothers and their children, Judge Weinstein granted a preliminary injunction to stop the practice. He did so in part because he ruled there was a likelihood that constitutional violations would be proven at a trial on the merits.

...

Nearly five years ago, Sharwline Nicholson brought a federal lawsuit on behalf of herself and her two children under Section 1983 -- a federal statute that provides a private right of action for, among other things, violations of federal constitutional rights.

Nicholson's suit was later consolidated with others, and eventually certified as a class action. The class consisted of mothers and their children who were separated because the children were deemed neglected by virtue of their exposure to their mothers' being battered. The children in these cases had not themselves been battered, nor did they appear in danger of becoming abused. And in each case, ACS had done an "emergency" removal without any prior court authorisation.

The class action lawsuit revolved around the allegation that ACS, as a policy, removed children in this situation because the mothers, as victims, were alleged to have "engaged in domestic violence."

The federal district court found that ACS had routinely removed children from mothers who had engaged in no violence themselves and, worse still, it had failed to ensure that the victim-mother had access to necessary social services.

Other findings the court made included that the agency had failed to return children when ordered by a court; that it had provided inadequate training for case managers; that it had failed to consider alternatives short of removal that might have been less harmful to the children; and that it had been unable to reform the system in a timely fashion. One caseworker had testified that it was common for the agency to wait a few days after removal before going to court because "after a few days of the children being in foster care, the mother will usually agree to ACS's conditions for their return without the matter even going to court."

On these findings, the District Court found likely violations of constitutional rights. These rights were rooted in principles of substantive and procedural due process, as well as in the Fourth Amendment's protections against unreasonable search and seizure.
(Source: A New York High Court Decision on Domestic Violence: Can a Parent Be Guilty of Neglect Simply Because She Is Victimised in the Presence of Her Children? By Joanna Grossman, FindLaw, 28th December 2004)

In a rare intervention, some feminist groups in the US have campaigned for legislation to bring to a stop the tendency to remove children in cases of domestic violence. To some degree the activities have been successful, but the issue still causes enormous difficulty, partly because some child protection social workers are influenced by personal beliefs and discrimination. For instance some may object to a woman claiming that her husband or partner has assaulted her - because religious beliefs are such that the case worker believes that men should automatically have this right. Some feminist social workers determine to punish a woman for having engaged in a relationship with a violent partner, it being seen as perpetuating the 'patriarchal' society. In either case the forcible removal of the child from the mother is deemed appropriate, without necessarily resource to a court order. In addition some case workers may determine the fact that DV has occurred in any case to be good enough cause to forcibly remove a child.

CPS and Domestic Violence
When CPS workers get involved with children who have witnessed domestic violence, their main concern is the interests of the children. Critics have charged that CPS further penalises battered women by taking away their children when their partners have abused the children. Stephanie Walton, who tracks domestic violence for the National Conference of State Legislatures, observed that experts on domestic violence and child welfare like Jeffrey L. Edleson have noted that "fragmented treatment systems" stand in the way of solving the problems of domestic violence and co-occurring child maltreatment ("When Violence Hits Home," State Legislatures, vol. 29, issue 6, June 2003). Walton added that child welfare workers and domestic violence agencies work against each other, with the former blaming the mother for exposing the child to her partner's violence and the latter protecting the mother from prosecution for failure to protect her child.

According to Thomas D. Morton, president and chief executive officer of Child Welfare Institute, child welfare agencies need to hold the batterers accountable for their actions (Failure to Protect? Child Welfare Institute, Duluth, GA, February 2002). Morton noted that some CPS caseworkers may equate a mother's victimisation to her inability to protect her child, consequently removing the child from the home. CPS and/or state legislatures should clarify certain CPS practices, including what course of action to take when a non-related caregiver in a household is the child abuser. The author asked whether or not CPS should pursue family preservation (keeping the family together) if the abuser is not legally related to the child. He also raised such questions as to whether CPS may require the biological parent to end a relationship with the nonbiological caretaker as a requirement for keeping the child in the family.
(Source: Reporting Child Abuse - Cps System Under Siege - Children, Welfare, Substance, Foster, Parents, and Services, Library Index, - author unknown)

In the UK, notably England and Wales, the situation is far far worse than in the US. As detailed in the Angela Wileman scandal, the widespread use of the term 'emotional abuse' and the even vague 'possibility of emotional abuse' has resulted in a virtual clear run for social workers who wish to remove a child or children from a woman who has been a victim of domestic abuse. And that abuse can be very mild; nothing more than a shouting match with a partner on a Sunday morning, or it can be the genuine violence - the attacker barred from the home, or the victim fleeing with their children. Under the guise of protecting a child from being emotionally abused by witnessing mum and dad having a row, sufficient justification can be found to have a secret court forcibly place the child or children for adoption.

This failure to respond correctly to the needs of both victims of domestic violence and their children, on both sides of the Atlantic is, to the credit of many, one that various agencies are attempting to correct. The Family Justice Council, Home Office and the Ministry of Justice in England and Wales have persevered to ensure that advice is provided both for victims and to professionals in how to correctly deal with domestic violence cases. DV Courts have been enabled to try to ensure that the needs for safety are addressed, whilst ensuring that effective plans for reconciliation, mediation and even therapy and training for the abuser and victims are available.

The problem is, such initiatives are fighting a wave of training and indoctrination into the use of the 'emotional abuse' term by social workers. In the US, there is every evidence that academia and feminist groups have responded to the realisation that past obsessions with removing children at every opportunity, were doing nothing more than abusing the children themselves, and double-punishing the (invariably) woman. Unfortunately though, feminist groups in particular had lobbied for the 'moral panic' obsessions with child abuse to the degree it has now gripped the US, UK and many other Western countries. Rather than protecting children, many of the resultant policies are injuring women. In England and Wales the situation is even worse, as there are no recognised individuals who would identify themselves as either being feminist or working on behalf of women who have any substantisl interest in the subject. Indeed the former Labour Government Minister for Women, Harriett Harman appears to have contributed to what appears to now be an official policy to abuse victims of domestic viollence. This will be discussed later.

VICTIMS CHARGED WITH CHILD ENDANGERMENT
Reforms are also exposing latent tensions between the needs of two seemingly aligned groups - victims of domestic violence and their children and their respective advocates. All too often, female victims of domestic violence are aware, or perhaps more accurately, they should be aware of physical or sexual abuse of minor children. Not surprisingly, abused women who bring their assailants to the attention of the police are frequently subject to criminal claims that they have "failed to protect" their children. Many have had their children removed from their custody for such reasons or have been prosecuted. In some cases, the "failure to protect" charges appear to be a thinly veiled attempt by prosecutors to retain leverage over the victim, in effect coercing her to support criminal charges against her attacker (D. Epstein, 1999).

One recent commentator noted that in New York State, the legal system has become a source of implicit danger to battered mothers rather than a source of assistance. This came from a recent trend to hold mothers strictly accountable for their actions of their spouse towards their children (e.g., it was common for mothers filing for a civil protective order to face a criminal charge of child neglect for " exposing their children to domestic violence": Lemon, 2000). In other words, even if the child had not been victimised, the mere exposure of violence towards the mother allegedly constituted a crime committed by the mother.
(Source: Pages 203 and 204 of Domestic violence: the criminal response by Eva Schlesinger Buzawa and Carl Buzawa - 2003)

Additional policies, including 'no-drop' provisions, ensure that women are less likely to approach the authorities if they are the victims of domestic violence, and those that do are unlikely to get a good response.

As mentioned, the situation in the UK is far worse, not least because the policy of removing children form women who were victims of domestic violence was enacted as official policy, at a time when the Working Together to Safeguard Children documentation was already formulating child protection policies that would see the mechanism of false allegations of MSBP built-into official guidance (see Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, Bruno Bettelheim). In mid-2002, under pressure from the NSPCC, and backed by then Solicitor General Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP, the policy became enshrined into amendments in the Adoption and Children Bill, ensuring that the policy became an official one for the Government, and a key plank in Labour Party policy towards women for the remainder of their time in office;

Children who witness domestic violence could be taken into care under new powers for local authorities.

Courts will also take into consideration whether domestic violence has taken place when granting access orders to separated parents.

There is a greater risk of child abuse in homes where domestic violence happens, but campaign groups like the NSPCC argue that just witnessing it can significantly harm children.
The new moves are covered in amendments to the Adoption and Children Bill, which is currently going through Parliament.
Ninety per cent of incidents of domestic violence take place when the child is in the same or next room, according to research cited by the NSPCC.
The charity says children who grow up in homes where domestic violence takes place are themselves at greater risk of abuse.
Other research suggests that one in three children protection cases shows a history of domestic violence for the mother.

In a report published in May, the NSPCC said 8 out of 10 young people who had suffered serious physical abuse had also experienced domestic violence.
For nearly half of these, the domestic violence was constant or frequent.

"Domestic violence often follows a pattern where the male partner seeks to control every aspect of the life of the mother and children, including their thinking and freedom of expression," the report says.

Harriet Harman: Wants changes to domestic violence laws
"The violence is unpredictable, with mothers and children often treading on egg-shells because they cannot tell what will provoke new violence.
"As a result children often live in a climate of fear and uncertainty, which terrorises children even if they are not directly assaulted.
"Mothers' and children's fears for each other are exploited and used as weapons to control both."

Under the proposed changes to the Bill, local authorities will be able to use domestic violence as a reason to inquire into a child's welfare. The legal definition of what causes a child "significant harm" will be changed to include the suffering experienced by witnessing domestic violence.

When a child is at risk of "significant harm", intervention by local authorities will be compulsory.

"We have to get these kids away from this quickly," said an NSPCC spokeswoman.
(Source: Children 'to be taken' from violent homes, BBC News web site, 5th July 2002)

Even worse, in signing-up to the creed expressed in the Working Together... guidance, notably that of mandatory reporting, under the Common Assessment Framework, other groups, notably Women's Aid have engaged in the abuse of women and children themselves. In her essay, Charity Matters solicitor and senior lecturer in law at Sheffield Hallam University Finola May discusses the pressure for charities, like Women's Aid, to become quasi-government departments, enacting government policy, even to the detriment of the women and children they claim to protect from the impact of domestic violence;

Women’s Aid has recently increased its campaigning and educating activities in support of the government’s initiative to end domestic violence. It joined forces with the NSPCC to produce a powerful political force to extend the definition of “harm” in the Children’s Act 1989 to now include “impairment suffered from seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of another”.

As a consequence “harm”, for the purposes of satisfying the threshold criteria in care proceedings, is statutorily diluted to “ill-treatment”, which can include such nebulous concepts as witnessing the “emotional or financial abuse of another”.

So where does this leave a parent suffering from domestic violence?

Once Women’s Aid was independent of the state and the NSPCC, helping physically abused women by providing temporary and then permanent accommodation away from a violent partner, now it is a campaigning and educating charity that wishes to increase its role in society by promoting the existence of the emotional abuse of children by domestic violence.

The number of women being accommodated in Women’s Aid refuges appears to have fallen in recent years, yet the number of children taken into care, based on present or future emotional abuse, due to domestic violence, has increased to 30% of all care applications.

Women’s Aid now assesses such abuse under the Common Assessment Framework, having become government and public educators in all aspects of domestic violence.

Fifteen years ago it was unlikely that a social worker would have been able to gain access to a Women’s Aid refuge, such was the residents and charity’s fear of care proceedings. Rather than helping the vulnerable, this change in the law and Women’s Aid’s charitable role could result in women not reporting domestic violence, nor fleeing to a refuge, for fear of losing their children.
(Source: Charity Matters, by Finola May, New Law Journal, 8th January 2010)

Thus it becomes difficult to identify who to blame for the current situation in England and Wales. Ultimately social workers, some of whom are employing the mechanism of 'emotional abuse' to abuse women, appear to be following a policy determined by the Labour Party, supported by a number of sources, including the NSPCC. Unable to find evidence for 'significant harm' it appears that 'emotional abuse' will suffice. The reasons for the policy can only be speculated-at; a simple extension of the 'moral panic' about child abuse may well suffice to explain it, and thanks to the entrieties of the NSPCC (who had encouraged the SRA Myth of the late 80s and early 1990s) it may simply be a case of over-enthusiasm. However the lack of enthusiasm is challenging the policy may be explained as being indicative that many, particularly in the feminist movement in England and Wales, actually agree with it. Certainly that are few other ways to explain Women's Aid engagement with the punishment of victims of DV.

The scandal of how women are treated should they suffer from violent partners provides evidence that in effect the abuse of women by the secret courts has become officially sanctioned and institutionalised.

A discussion about the use of 'possible emotional abuse' can be found under the entry for Phillip K. Dick

Angela Wileman is now a forthright campaigner for reform of child protection procedures and policies and the secret courts in England and Wales. Her Angelawileman's Blog discusses not just her case, but also the other similar cases that come to attention. It also incorporates numerous photographs from her race across Europe. She has also indicated that she is writing a book.

(See also Bob Geldof (Robert), Fran Lyon, Eileen Munro (Prof.), Tim Loughton (MP))
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


Beatrix Campbell (OBE) & the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth - Part 1



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

Please note this entry, examining the career of the British journalist, campaigner and activist Bea Campbell OBE, was originally located in the Surnames C Index page. It's length, thanks to the enormous amount of submitted material to the Site, has required it to be moved to its own section, and it is now split across three pages, only the first of which is shown in the menu.

This entry is also a placeholder to discuss the nature of the SRA Myth and the apparent collusion of feminists and religious fundamentalists during the 'Myth years of the late 1980s and 1990s, to recent times. This isn't the only dedicated page devoted to Ms. Campbell and the subject of SRA - see also Sample of Beatrix Campbell's Writings about Satanic Ritual Abuse

Another extended Index entry, concerned with the history of the RAINS - Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support organisation in England and Wales can be found under Dr. Sandra Buck. This provides more detail about the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth allegations that were made in England and Wales from 1987 to the early 1990's, and in 2003 in Scotland.

This is 'living' Index entry, and is often updated by a number of individuals as new data is received and added.


Beatrix (Bea) Campbell (Mary Lorrimer, OBE - Order of the British Empire)



Section headings



Introduction

Prominent feminist, campaigner and columnist, born in Carlisle, North West England. Ms. Campbell is probably most famously known for her involvement in the Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) Myth of the late 1980's and early 1990's - often referred-to as a modern 'moral panic.' In contemporary history 'moral panics' have encompassed subjects as diverse as public concerns about 'Mods and Rockers', US troops and airmen based in England during the Second World War, the influence of West Indian immigrants on British society in the 1950's and the Prohibition Movement in the US during the 1920's. The history of moral panics though extends far back through time - the most notable of which was the perceived prevalence of witches in Europe, including England, Scotland and the then American Colonies, including New England, from the 1300's to the 1690's, typified by the Salem Massachusetts witch trials, and those in Lowestoft, eastern England. The nature of the modern moral panic known as the 'SRA Myth' is described in this entry.

This entry also discusses the impact and influence the SRA Myth has had on the British Left and its enduring impact on the progressive and liberal elite. The last known SRA Myth scandal in the British Isles was the Island of Lewis scandal of 2003, though this had been preceded by a substantial gap going back to the early 1990's.

Ms. Campbell has published numerous articles on the subjects of family law and child protection scandals in England and Wales, notably for The Guardian newspaper. She has also played an active part in a number of the scandals that have been inflicted on the English and Welsh child protection professions in the last three decades. She has also contributed unwittingly to the debate over impartiality in modern journalism.

Since 1987 she has written in support of RAD (Reflex Anal Dilation) testing in Cleveland (the 1987 Cleveland Scandal), when an medical instrument is introduced to the rectum of a child to determine if he or she has been sexually abused, and in support of Dr. David Southall and the theory of Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy (MSBP) routinely condemned as being a legacy from 17th century witchcraft allegations against women.

In 1988 Ms. Campbell wrote the article Child sexual abuse and the pro-family State in Britain published in Radical America Vol 21:4 that detailed her long-standing belief that the family is an institution primarily conceived for the mass abuse of children. Her 1988 book Unofficial Secrets: Child Sexual Abuse - The Cleveland Case details her 'take' on the Cleveland RAD Scandal, and contrasts heavily with local Labour MP Stuart Bells account of the same events detailed in When Salem Came to the Boro, The True Story of the Cleveland Child Abuse Crisis (also 1988). The 1987 Cleveland Scandal is regarded by many observers as being the 'tipping' moment at which child protection in England and Wales diverted from the normal standards of professionalism seen elsewhere in Europe, and at that time, even in the US. The Cleveland Scandal though incorporated no elements of religious fundamentalism. Following the Cleveland Scandal, allegations of mass child abuse in England and Wales would originate from rhetoric derived from right-wing religious fundamentalists.

This thirteen page article by Beatrix Campbell...concerns mostly the Cleveland Mass Lift case. Beatrix begins by insisting that the paediatricians and social workers were 'right' despite the findings of the Butler Sloss enquiry and then moves on to posit what appears to be a convoluted political ideology of endemic sexual abuse linked to male-dominated, right-wing family structures which are protected by the police and the judiciary at the expense of the victims, the children.
(Source: http://www.saff.ukhq.co.uk/bcamp.htm)

Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth advocacy

Ms. Campbell's conviction that Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) was rife throughout England and Wales saw her write numerous articles on the subject for newspapers and magazines, most notably for the now-defunct Marxism Today and New Statesman. Her perceived persona as a militant lesbian Marxist radical feminist can cause some confusion when it clashes with her seeming promotion of right-wing Christian fundamentalist "anti Satanist" misogynist campaigns. During the SRA Myth years, the moral craze of the SRA Myth had gripped many editors, leading to formerly left-wing and liberal publications being willing to publish in support of a movement derived from religious fanaticism.

This seeming dualism was highlighted in 1999 when Ms. Campbell and her partner Judith (Dawson) Jones tried to publish their book Stolen Voices - The People and Politics Behind the Campaign to Discredit Childhood Testimony which concerned an alleged conspiracy against those who espoused "recovered memory" therapy. RMT was another obsession driven initially by fundamentalist Christian therapists and psychologists who pushed the theory to justify the concept that satanic abuse was rife. In the shadow of numerous threatened libel writs the book was withdrawn by publishers a day before publication, was pulped and is no longer available.

Even though this therapy has been debunked and recovered memory therapists have been sued for damages inflicted through this kind of therapy, Epstein warns that "according to the director of the False Memory Syndrome Foundation, recovered memory therapy is still being practiced." And, indeed, it is! Christian counsellors continue to use various forms of inner healing, recovered memory therapy, and what is called "Theophostic Prayer Ministry," which is a form of regressive therapy in which people experience their recreated past in the misguided hope of psychological-spiritual healing.
(Source: Psychology's misguided ideas - PyschoHeresies Ministries, 2005)

A British court decision about the use of recovered memory therapy can be found here.

Although she has vehemently denied being influenced by Christian Fundamentalism, Ms. Campbell was, and is still largely associated with the language and rhetoric of religious fanaticism from the 1980's and 1990's. Even in modern times, she has declined to discuss the subject of her belief in the SRA Myth and RMT at any length, and remains thus attached to the SRA Myth to the point that a Google search 'Bea Campbell SRA' will return more results with her name than with any other subject associated with her. Her history of association with religious fundamentalism was emphasised by her appearance on television with such militants as former fundamentalist Social Services Director Andrew Croall and her working closely in-hand with Fundamentalist Christian social worker Christine Johnson/Johnstone

It must have slipped Campbell's mind that she sat next to Andy Croall, the former director of Social Services at Nottingham on the TV program After Dark, which discussed the 'prevalence' of Satanic Ritual Abuse and during which Croall made his infamous statement about abortion being a form of ritual abuse. Croall made his Christian fundamentalist world-view clear to all viewers.
(Source: Sample of Beatrix Campbell's Writings about Satanic Ritual Abuse)

Mr. Croall never made any effort to hide his allegiance to fundamentalist views;

The three-day meeting at a Christian centre in Swanwick, a Derbyshire village, has been organised by Christians In Caring Professions (CICP), a group of evangelical Christians who believe in the devil. A confidential letter advising members about the conference, Light After Dark, lays down an entry requirement that delegates should `demonstrate their current involvement in this area (of satanic ritual abuse)'. It is described as an `area of ministry'.

`As you are no doubt aware, the number of reported cases of satanic ritual abuse is on the increase. This kind of abuse is evil in the extreme and, as Christians, we want to be equipped to bring God's healing to those who have been damaged in this way,' it says.

The letter was sent on behalf of Andy Croall, the CICP's general secretary and the former deputy director of Nottingham social services, scene of one of the first satanic abuse inquiries involving 23 children in 1988. He was suspended in 1991 after a televised comment that abortion was the biggest form of child abuse.
(Source: Evangelists plot to keep alive myth of satanic child abuse by Liz Lightfoot, the Sunday Times, 5th June 1994)

Croall's comments about abortion though revealed too much about his beliefs, and he was suspended from his post. Although support by fundamentalist groups he received no support from his professional colleagues, and thus left to join a christian roadshow organisation.

In a bizarre answer to a question in a public debate about whether religion has a role to play in the future of 'progressive' politics, made years after the SRA Myth 'crazy' times, Ms. Campbell OBE makes it even more difficult to understand how she had backed the cause of religious fundamentalists, when later she determines religion has no such role to play in progressiveness. This even though she has probably contributed more to the merger of progressive politics with religious fundamentalism more than any other individual in British history;

In their five minute speeches, not one of them talked about what role religions would play in that progressive future so my hand shot up as soon as the chair, Guardian journalist John Harris, opened the debate to the floor.

Only Beatrix got to answer my question - and that was only because John pushed her. Sadly, her perspective was downbeat and, for the large part, dated. "Religion is about patriarchal domination," she said. "I have great unease about organised religions playing a role in the future."
(Source: Does religion have a role to play in the progressive future? (2008 eb forum submission by 'Willow').

The Broxtowe SRA Myth Scandal

Broxtowe, a village near the city of Nottingham, England, was the location of the first major SRA scandal in the UK. During a joint investigation of multi-generational incest in a family, involving police and social workers working together, the social work team involved, named Team 4, became obsessed with the idea that they were dealing with a case of satanic ritual abuse. The police detectives though remained skeptical, to the point that the relationship between police and social work teams broke down. Prosecutions against the adults for the incest allegations were though successfully pursued, resulting in court convictions.

The Broxtowe Scandal was notable not just for being the first SRA Myth false allegation instance to be seen on British shores; it also established the 'template' against which other SRA Myth allegations in the UK would be made against - notably the families that attracted a false allegation on being satanists were almost always poor or socially deprived and lived in poor housing conditions. The allegations also incorporated a 'fantastic' element, requiring the SRA Myth advocates to believe in magic, or paranormal powers, or the influence of Satan himself.

Ms. Campbell OBE took an active part in promoting the allegations, as well as writing about the events. She was present with social workers involved in the case, before events before the relationship between the police officers and social workers jointly working on the initial investigation fall apart. The entry for Margaret Jervis details the Broxtowe Scandal in detail, and also provides a summary of the subsequent JET enquiry report, that attempted to identify how things had gone awry and what lessons could be learned from the case. Although Ms. Campbell OBE denies that the social worker Team 4 was fundamentalist, it didn't stop her working closely with the Christian Fundamentalist leader of the team, Christine Johnson, as ascertained in an interview (with a solicitor present) with one of the "witches" discovered by the discredited Channel 4 Dispatches documentary;

JOURNALIST: Do you remember the interview with Bea Campbell? The one that was filmed for the Channel 4 program?

JEAN: Yes.

JOURNALIST: So, are you a witch?

JEAN: No. I’ve never been into ought like that.

JOURNALIST: Then why did you tell Bea Campbell that you were?

JEAN: She came to see me at work. She had Chris Johnstone the social worker in tow. I was really angry about it. I’d only just got the job and the last thing I needed were social workers turning up and asking to speak to me. I told them I didn’t want to be in their program.

JOURNALIST: What happened then?

JEAN: Chris Johnstone said that if I didn’t do the interview and say that I’d been a witch, I’d never see me kids again. I was trying to get them out of care at the time. So I agreed to do it. I just thought I’d get me kids back.

JOURNALIST: So then you did the interview?

JEAN: First Bea Campbell took me to a bank and cashed a cheque and gave me £150.

JOURNALIST: If you lied for Bea Campbell, why should we believe what you are saying now?

JEAN: Because now I know the truth. Chris [Johnstone] lied to me about getting me kids back. I was never going to get me kids back. And I were never a witch.
(Source: Broxtowe| Media & The Myth)

Christian Fundamentalism and the SRA Myth

The Christian Fundamentalist obsession with satanic ritual abuse had begun in the late 1960's, expanding into the 1970s and early 1980s with the development of the 'charismatic' church sects. The insistence that Satan himself was walking the Earth, and was being encouraged to present himself in rituals involving the wholesale ritualistic sexual abuse of children, was enhanced from the late 1960s through sensationalist literature, often pornographic, and from modern media, typified by adaptation of Ira Levin's bestselling novel Rosemary's Baby(1967) into a movie directed by Roman Polanski, in which an innocent wife is impregnated after being raped by Satan in a ritual. The obsession grew in intensity during the 1980's when literature from christian fundamentalists in the US was exported to fundamentalist groups in the UK. The US itself had experienced a spasm of moral panic, through it's own SRA Myth, with the adoption of beliefs that Vast Conspiracies of satanists were organised across the nation, sexually abusing children on a huge scale.

A feature of most SRA Myth allegations, notably in the US and later in the UK, is that they incorporate an element of the fantastic, magical, or paranormal. The SRA Myth was partly driven by the Believe The Children movement of the late 1980s and early '90s, requiring SRA Myth advocates to believe absolutely everything and anything a child said. Accordingly SRA Myth 'evidence' ensured that it's adult advocates believed, or felt compelled to say they did, statements that satanists possessed access to spacecraft, jet aircraft, hot-air balloons, teleportation devices, civil engineering equipment not yet invented, the means to resurrect the dead, to inflict terrible injuries without causing death, trauma, or even the victim noticing, to command animals like intelligent sharks and lions, and to be instantaneously in two or more places at once. In the second decade of the twenty-first century such beliefs attract ridicule, but during the 'crazy years' advocates for the 'myth, including numerous academics and newspaper and journal editors, were willing to adopt them.

For the right-wing Christian Fundamentalist lobby, there was no doubt that the satanists and witches covens were world-wide;


After I led Harry, the former high priest of Satanism, to Christ, I began to learn from talking with him more about the extent and organisation of Satanism. He told me that he was not a priest in a local coven, but a member of the council of 50 in a worldwide coven. He shared with me that the organisational structure in Satanism corresponds to the four-level hierarchy of demonic rule under Satan mentioned in Ephesians 6:12. “Rulers” is linked to the royal court of Satanism. There are seven major covens in the world which are presented on the royal court. “Powers” corresponds to host-level priests, and “world forces” to legion-level priests. “Spiritual forces” identifies the circle covens or local covens.

The Satanist organisation is massive and extremely secretive. When you hear of satanic priests or rituals, you are hearing only about activities at the level of the circle coven. However, you need not concern yourself too much with what you see or hear, since the Satanist activity which you read about in the newspapers or which is recorded in most police reports is usually the activity of mere dabblers. It’s what you don’t see that is pulling the strings and arranging events in Satanism. I have counselled enough victims of Satanism to know that there are breeders (producing children expressly for sacrifice or for development into leaders) and infiltrators committed to infiltrating and disrupting Christian ministry.

To illustrate how human and spiritual forces of wickedness work together, ask any group of committed Christians this question: “How many of you have been awakened for no apparent reason at 3:00 A.M.?”...Satanists meet from 12:00 to 3:00 A.M., and part of their ritual is to summon and send demons. Three in the morning is the prime time for demon activity, and if you have awakened at that time it may be that you have been targeted. I have been targeted by demons numerous times.
(Source: The Bondage Breaker by Neil T. Anderson (1990))


The beginnings of collusion between religious fundamentalists & feminism

In the late 1980's the obsessions of right-wing Christian Fundamentalists and previously thought-of-as-Marxist feminism collided gently together. Feminists, since the 1970s had been pursuing their own moral crusade against pornography. In the 1980s the focus changed to the theory that incest - most often between paedophile fathers, and their daughters, was rife within the family. The Cleveland Scandal of 1987, after a few previous false starts, became the focus of such obsessions. The Scandal, in the North East of England, saw professionals - paediatricians, social workers and other medical staff convinced that over a hundred children were being systematically sodomised by their fathers and other males. Extrapolating the number of children who were being taken-into-care (112 in total from just one town) across the nation would have suggested that a sizeable minority of children throughout the United Kingdom were being buggered, exclusively in a family environment, and by males, but with none of the children disclosing it, no-one admitting to it, no mothers or female parents finding out and subsequently killing or seriously injuring their spouses, and no child being taken to hospital suffering from internal injuries as a result. Even without the influence of the religious fundamentalist lobby, the Cleveland RAD Scandal required advocates for the RAD diagnosis to believe in a conspiracy of stupendous proportions.

The Cleveland Scandal depended utterly on a single, controversial theory that by examining a child's anus - with a medical instrument, either by 'brushing' the child's anus or by inserting an object into it - often by force, a paediatrician who believed in the theory could determine by way of the response, whilst observing the rectum, if the child had been buggered in the past. A 'feature' of the The Cleveland Scandal was that, in the case of young girls, it was being postulated by the two paediatricians who promoted the diagnosis, that vaginal rape was of no interest to the fathers and male carers, who preferred instead to anally rape their daughters. The Cleveland Scandal, perhaps predictably, ended with no adults convicted, and a public hearing that mildly criticised the activities of the 'RAD'-obsessed paediatricians (see Dr. Marietta Higgs). £1 million was paid to the community in compensation, with children mentally scarred by the experience of being forcibly removed from their families for a non-existent offence. On occasions, having been sent to foster care, the doctors obsessed with the belief in RAD, continued to visit the children in care, examined them, and determined the foster family, notably the males present, were also continuing the anal rapes, seeking them arrested too.

In December 2008 in a Guardian article, Ms. Campbell reiterated her conviction in the RAD theory, even when she wrote at odds with conventional thought itself published earlier in the same newspaper. She repeated the fact that Dame Butler-Sloss did not conclude that the RAD theory was invalid. Her article also introduced the concept of a huge government conspiracy to explain the failure to secure convictions, a mechanism that even today is routinely used by conspiracy theorists of the Left and Right;


Suggest early intervention and people respond: "But we don't want another Cleveland!" What do they mean? The Guardian said this week that wrong diagnosis was the cause of Britain's biggest child abuse controversy in 1987, in Cleveland.

The Guardian is wrong. The official Butler-Sloss inquiry report into the crisis said there was no reason to doubt the diagnosis. A report signed off by the current chief medical officer of health, Sir Liam Donaldson, reckoned that there was a higher than average rate of diagnostic accuracy by the Cleveland doctors. That report was dropped into drawer at the Department of Health and was never allowed to enlighten us. Official policy is to not know.
(Source: The shame we will not name by Beatrix Campbell, The Guardian 6th December 2008)

The idea that fathers and other males were and are repeatedly and routinely buggering their children did indeed drop into a pond. If Ms. Campbell's OBE's words are to be believed then a sizeable number of children in the UK have been abused in this fashion and continue to be. Indeed it can be assumed that of the hundreds of women sitting as MP's in Parliament at present, a sizeable minority of them were so abused (as the paediatricians examined principally young girls) by their father. To date though they don't appear to have yet quite got around to saying so. As well as MP's, we have to believe that many business women, female journalists, Ms. Campbell OBE's fellow campaigners, and indeed a sizeable minority of all women have been so abused, but once again, haven't as yet reported it.

RAD pretty much died a death after Cleveland. It continued to be practised in Leeds and the West Yorkshire county of England, by its "inventor" Dr. Christopher Hobbs, apparently with the knowledge of various politicians (and it can be presumed Dame Butler-Sloss). During the 1980's numerous criminal convictions were secured throughout West Yorkshire in England, employing RAD. Since Cleveland though no criminal convictions are known to have transpired from its use, and it appears RAD has been relegated to use in the secret Family Courts, where experts are not subjected to peer review, and where medical concepts that would be unable to survive in the wider world of peer review, are able to persist.

Whilst Cleveland was a distinct failure for the obsessional child protection lobby, the next year saw the dual obsessions of the religious fundamentalist minority, sure in their conviction than Satan was abroad, and witches again posed a threat to the moral rectitude of the nation, married up with the obsession amongst the feminist community that incest was rife in British families. The two causes - both having been imported from the US, gently collided, and became one. Ms. Campbell OBE once again became a key advocate for this new conspiracy theory.

A snapshot of the British feminist lobby at the very cusp of its willing collusion with religous fundamentalism, just as the Cleveland RAD Scandal was taking place can be found at the end of the entry for Catherine Itzin (Prof.)

The collusion between religious fanatics and feminists - two groups who would otherwise be expected to be at each others throats - such is the perception of their hatred of one another, came together in 1987-1988 in the UK, and from 1983 in the US. Such a combination required a mechanism for 'linking' - key individuals who could interpret the rhetoric of the right-wing Christian Fundamentalists, and rework it into a form that might appeal to secularists, including people who would willingly describe themselves as liberal or 'left-wing'. Bea Campbell OBE is widely recognised as one such - though not the only one - person, who performed that role.

In recent years, interest in the SRA Myth, and Ms. Campbell OBE's contribution in advocating it has expanded hugely. The increased popularity of the World Wide Web has made it difficult for Ms. Campbell OBE to avoid adverse attention, as can be seen in the Comments section of the URL's for articles published online during recent years in The Guardian newspaper. This had led to a perceived policy of censoring reader responses to her articles by The Guardian web moderators - thus making a mockery of the newspapers concept of "Comment Is Free" and its former reputation as a bastion of liberal radical thought. Many of the censored entries apparently linked her involvement in former scandals and her (perhaps unintended) connections with Christian Fundamentalism. Knowledge of her involvement in the Nottingham Satanic Ritual Abuse Scandal, and her continued support for RAD and other child protection investigation scandals of the last few decades is widely known and easily found through a Google search. There is even, as mentioned at the header of this entry, an internet resource dedicated to the analysis of her pro-SRA articles at Sample of Beatrix Campbell's Writings about Satanic Abuse

There is though no doubting Ms. Campbell OBE's importance in the debate over child protection and family justice in England and Wales over the last few decades. Through her activities and writings, she has contributed, probably quite unintentionally, to the minority view increasingly prevalent in certain sections of society that all women are intrinsically mad, and often the source of "pure evil", and the perception that the State has every right to remove children from mothers, even through force, using theories that are at the wrong end of scientific or moral certainty.

The theory of "pure evil", a key element in both the Cleveland Scandal and the SRA Myth, can trace its heritage too to Christian Fundamentalism. It is a sobering thought that mothers have for many centuries been victims of religious persecution, not least because the bond between a mother and child has traditionally mystified and enraged religious authorities. That very same bond appears to mystify and enrage many feminists, unable to comprehend the bond and emotion between child and woman that they openly detest and regard an obscenity.

The SRA Myth revealed middle-class discrimination against the socially disadvantaged still existed amongst the left-wing and radical elite in the UK. Perhaps not surprisingly it was white, working class families who bore the brunt of the regime of false allegations that the 'Myth years produced. From 1988 to around 1992, eighty-five allegations of the SRA Myth were pursued by social services departments in England and Wales, with or without police involvement. Not a single one resulted in convictions that retained a 'ritual abuse' element in the evidence.

Prof. Jean La Fontaine commissioned to report on the SRA Myth for the then-Conservative government (her report was submitted in 1994) wrote of the relative ease with which an allegation of child abuse can be magnified into the realms of fundamentalist conviction;


People are reluctant to accept that parents, even those classed as social failures, will harm their own children, and even invite others to do so, but involvement with the devil explains it. The notion that unknown, powerful leaders control the cult revives an old myth of dangerous strangers. Demonising the marginal poor and linking them to unknown satanists turns intractable cases of abuse into manifestations of evil
(Source Extent and Nature of Organised Ritual Abuse - by Prof. Jean La Fontaine)

Although ostensibly regarded as an outrageous misogynist (male hater), Ms. Campbell OBE's peculiar combination of radical feminist thought entwined with theories associated with right-wing Christian Fundamentalism to some degree reflect the manner in which the Left Wing and liberal elite in the UK have changed markedly in recent years. Indeed it is often difficult to determine who Ms. Campbell hates more - males or mothers. Invariably it is women who are subjected to her most intense vitriol, invariably mixed-in with a middle-class-driven contempt for those in poverty.

As a self-appointed "moral" voice of the former British Left, Ms. Campbell OBE unwittingly points the way to it's potential for a fundamentalist future. In the US this is manifested itself in the manner that conservative politicians and commentators are finding that they have to take the lead and stand on social issues, in areas of concern that the traditional Left normally dominated and excelled-in. Ms. Campbell OBE's ability to tip-toe between the seemingly intractable pillars of Marxist radical feminism and the Christian Fundamentalist passion for determining evil is perhaps her greatest achievement, and she has crossed those lines so regularly that it seems the border guards on either side take no notice of her. Although she makes no mention of her religion (if she has one) it has to be guessed that she is from a Protestant background, simply because the origins of the SRA Myth stemmed from militant Protestant elements in the US - though she generally writes in support of Republican causes.

An example of her facility for tip-towing between the two opposing pillars of thought, and for employing the language of one in the meaning of the other was demonstrated in her Marxism Today November 1990 article. Ms. Campbell OBE initially determined that fathers were the chief abusers of children and families nothing more than havens for such abuse (a familiar accusation from feminists, who also routinely accuse women with children of being psychotic).

Feminist politics has always linked the empowerment of women with the empowerment of children. But there's a flakey, nay rather fundamentalist feminism around, which has found it as hard as everyone else else to cope with the latest discoveries about the oppression of children. To defend the discovery that the biggest single category of child abuser is the child's father within the family, they and others deny the significance of new evidence which locates child abuse not only within the family but without.
(Source - Page 20 by Beatrix Campbell - Marxism Today (November 1990))

Ms. Campbell OBE's reference to "fundamentalism" was unfortunate at the time - this directed against skeptical feminists and others who weren't entirely willing to believe everything they were being told about non-existent satanic ritual abuse. Throughout the remainder of the Marxism Today article, and indeed in The Guardian and The New Statesman articles of those heady times she submitted, Ms. Campbell made repeated reference to the Broxtowe scandal, in which she had taken a distinct behind-the-scenes part, together with former Baptist minister-in-training and child abuse expert Ray Wyre. During the investigation and in the subsequent report from reports, the following "evidence" of satanic abuse was alleged;

  1. babies being cut out of the tummies of the female members of the family
  2. babies being taken from next door and from across the road and having their heads bashed on the floor babies being thrown on the bonfire
  3. a naughty policeman killing babies
  4. the family having dead babies hung around their necks
  5. a monster getting our babies
  6. babies being stabbed in a balloon and cooked in the oven
  7. a lady and little girl being shot, chopped up and put in the river in a bin (or variant - buried by the river)
  8. Jesus being chopped up and eaten off a silver pad
  9. a swimming pool with crocodiles, sharks and dragon that kill the children
  10. a member of the family putting on a cloak and flying, the children being turned into frogs by the witches
(Source: from the Wikipedia entry for Beatrix Campbell OBE)

All this went beyond the image of Satanic rituals promoted by fundamentalists on the 'run-up' to the SRA Myth. Now monsters and dragons dominated the tales of satanism being presented by social workers as 'evidence' - driven by the stated desire to believe every single thing that children spoke or wrote of, on the grounds that they never lied, never embellished, never imagined. In the US, the McMartin pre-school scandal (see Wikipedia McMartin trial summary) had commenced in 1983, and ran all the way to 1990. The case, which saw lurid allegations of organised ritualised abuse of young children, had also established the template that US allegations the SRA Myth would follow; incredible allegations of gross offences, none with any physical or forensic evidence, involving fantastic events and happenings that required a belief in magic, the paranormal or satanic.

In the US, feminists and other groups willingly combined and colluded with right-wing fundamentalists, plunging the US into a moral panic that impacted on thousands, scared millions, and saw US society and justice provision forever damaged.

(R)ritual abuse, however, throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s ritual abuse was one of the few issues in which premillenial fundamentalist Christians could not only find common ground with feminists who were normally their mortal enemies, but also cooperate on a day to day basis.
(Source: Interrelated Moral Panics and Counter-panics: The Cult Brainwashing Panic and The False Memory/Ritual Abuse Moral Panic by Martin H. Katchen published in Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century (2008) - page 216);

After six years of trials no convictions were achieved in the McMartin case - but by then the SRA Myth had expanded into use across the States, and had jumped across the Atlantic, driven by fundamentalist advocates, to the UK. Through training seminars and conferences, UK Christian Fundamentalists were trained in the discourse of the SRA Myth, which simply enhanced obsessions they themselves had harboured since the 1960's; that Satan was abroad in England and Wales. From the fundamentalist community, as in the US, first the feminist lobby and then professions such as psychiatrists and psychologists, and even some police, judiciary and politicians, joined the 'true believer' cabal. These people, initially numbering in the dozens attended training courses and seminars run by religious fundamentalists. In 1988 it was simply the case of waiting for when the first SRA Myth allegation in England or Wales would be made;


The notion of ritual abuse had surfaced in the United States in the aftermath of the McMartin school case of 1983, and which recurred in a number of other celebrated cases over the next two years, as in Jordan, Minnesota and Bakersfield, California. In essence, it was charged that organised groups of Satanists held ceremonies in which children played a major role. Children were raped and sodomised by large numbers of participants, both male and female, and some infants were mutilated or sacrificed (Jenkins and Maier-Katkin 1992; Hicks 1991). Sacrificial rituals might involve the drinking of a victim's blood or the eating of his flesh. Other rites involved the consumption of urine or faeces. The emphasis on defiling children was said to reflect the view that the most innocent victim was the most satisfying sacrifice to the Lord of Evil. One variant of the story held that women belonging to the cults acted as "breeders" or (the British term), "brood mares", who bred children specifically to be murdered.
(Source: The Devil Rides In - by Phillip Jenkins)

Now in the second decade of the 21st Century, such beliefs seem astounding, quoted surely from the 17th century. But in the late 1980's, indeed all the way through the 1990's, such beliefs were often the norm, including the fantastic tales of rocket-ships and hot-air balloons mentioned earlier, shared equally between religious fundamentalists and feminists. Some subtle differences existed; in the religious fanatics vision of SRA, Satan himself would appear - indeed in the fictional book Michelle Remembers (1980) by psychiatrist Dr. Lawrence Pazder, a book recognised to be a chief driving inspiration for many SRA advocates, readers are treated to poetry from Satan himself.

In the secular version of the 'Myth, sourced from the output produced by the religious fundamentalist community, references to Satan's personal appearance were removed, so are invariably quotes from the Bible. 'Recollections' of witches flying overhead, dragons, monsters, magic and paranormal powers though invariably remained, often to explain the somewhat glaring lack of any physical or forensic evidence.


The collusion intensifies

An interesting exercise whilst analysing the SRA "moral panic" scandal of the late 1980's and early 1990's is trying to discern who was "leading" it. Fundamentalist Christians had a part in indoctrinating secular professionals, but in the case of feminists, not much indoctrination seemed to be required. The Fundamentalist Christian literature of the time echoed much of what feminists were pushing out into the mainstream media, or was it the other way around? This, from Christian writers who were SRA skeptics, and highlighted the intense allegations being made at the time, from two years after Ms. Campbell's Marxism Today article;

A young teenage girl, impregnated during a Satanic ritual, is forcibly delivered of her nearly term baby, forced to ritually kill the child and then to cannibalise its heart as cult members watch. Another girl, a small child, is sealed inside the cavity of a disemboweled animal and "re-birthed" by her cultic captors during a ceremony. A preschool class is systematically sexually, emotionally and physically abused by part of a nationwide, nearly invincible network of Satanic pedophiles and pornographers. A young girl is thrown into an electrified cage with wolves and ritually tortured to deliberately produce a "wolf personality", part of her multiple personality disorder (MPD)
(Source: Bob Passantino Gretchen Passantino "Satanic Ritual Abuse in Popular Christian Literature, Why Christians Fall for a Lie Searching for the Truth" - Journal of Psychology & Theology 20, no 3 (1992))

The stanza above carries many references to terms used in modern child protection social work; "emotional abuse" (not then yet in widespread use, but hugely popular now) and Multiple Personality Disorder still hugely popular now and often employed today in child protection cases. Experts in English and Welsh secret courts have determined that MPD is caused by childhood sexual abuse (notably SRA) but, as its advocates will fight over, it can also be caused, such believers will testify, by alien abduction, or from experiments caused by the CIA/Jewish groups in the past.

The reference to the preschool class had echoes of the McMartin preschool scandal in California from 1983 England had its equivalent of the McMartin scandal, in the form of the Shieldfield Scandal that ruined the lives and careers of Dawn Reed and Christopher Lillie, and during which Ms. Campbell OBE's partner, Judith (Dawson) Jones had once again played a significant part in (though Ms. Campbell OBE neglected to mention this in her articles at the time or since).

Another "feature" of the collusion between feminism and religious fundamentalism referred to an obsession with Freemasonry, as in this extract when Ms. Campbell OBE displayed her willingness to use the same language as that of the fundamentalists;

If grown men are capable of dressing up in pinnies and sharing secret signs with each other in masonic lodges up and down the country, what is so hard about contemplating the prospect of grown men dressing up in daft costumes to invert the meanings of the dominant faith; organising rituals to penetrate any orifice available in troops of little children; to cut open rabbits, or cats, or people, and drink their blood; to shit on silver trays and make the children eat it?"
(Source: From page 21 Marxism Today - November 1990 Seen But Not Heard - by Bea Campbell)

A similar obsession citing Masonry as being the very core of SRA can be found on the contemporary fundamentalist/New World Order web site "The 7th Fire";

"Neil" This testimony by a SRA (Satanic Ritual Abuse) MPD (Multiple Personality Disorder) survivor should give us reason for concern about the possibility of a connection between Freemasonry and Satanic ritual abuse. What is even more compelling is the fact that this testimony is not unique. All over the United States victims are disclosing that Satanic ritual abuse is being perpetrated by Freemasons and that this type of abuse is taking place on Masonic properties.

There is now a rapidly growing awareness among therapists and Christian counter-cult ministries that high percentages of their victims have a connection with Freemasonry.

A Christian minister has worked with about 100 SRA MPD victims and reports that 90% of his victims claim that they were abused by Masonic perpetrators and that over 50% of the actual abuse took place on Masonic properties.

A practicing psychotherapist gives the following report:

I am a psychotherapist in private practice and treat mainly survivors of Satanic cult abuse. About half of the clients I treat report that their fathers were Masons. About half of the others report that a very close friend of the family's was a Mason. They recall going to parties and gatherings at the homes of Masons.

For some time now our ministry has been involved with warning the church about the cancerous anti-Christian menace of Freemasonry. We have also been compiling a record of statements from therapists and of victims like Neil who have testified to a direct connection between FREEMASONRY and SRA (SATANIC RITUAL ABUSE). These testimonies are becoming too numerous to ignore and the study of the Masonic connection in SRA could open up new areas of understanding and prevention.
(Source: the7thfire)

Explanations for the collusion

Which group drove the SRA Myth onwards is probably now impossible to unravel. It has to said though that the two groups weren't the only ones engaged in the process; 'expert' paediatricians and psychiatrists, police officers and newspaper editors also became obsessed with the Myth, whether possessing religious fundamentalist beliefs or not. But only feminism remained true to the alliance; as other groups dropped off, realising they had been duped by a huge moral panic completely devoid of any verifiable evidence whatsoever.

Sociologist Jeffrey S. Victor (Ph.D) studied the "moral panic" of the SRA Myth in detail, writing the bestselling and award-winning book Satanic Panic: The Creation of a Contemporary Legend (1992.) In his later paper "Moral panics and the social construction of deviant behaviour: a theory and application to the case of ritual child abuse." (published in Sociological Perspectives in the Fall edition 1998) he detailed how the two seemingly divergent groups - feminists and religious fundamentalists, managed to cross-pollinate and disseminate ideas between themselves, referencing D. McAdam and D. Rucht's seminal political science tract The cross-national diffusion of movement ideas;

A study of cross-national cultural diffusion between social movements by McAdam and Rucht (1993) offers useful theoretical principles for understanding the cultural diffusion of collective behaviour. McAdam and Rucht's study is particularly important, because moral panics are spread by social movements, at least in part. In the case of SRA accusations, Christian fundamentalist and feminist social movements played a central role. McAdam and Rucht emphasise that the transmission of new ideas from one society to another is more likely, the more similar the culture, social organisation and social roles in the recipient society. Particularly important for the transmission of new ideas between social movements are similarities in language, ideologies and the occupations of activists. Secondly, McAdam and Rucht suggest that there must exist social networks of contact and channels of communication between people playing similar institutional roles in the sending and recipient societies. More specifically, there must first be to be direct, interpersonal contacts. These direct contacts activate selective attention to indirect channels of communication, such as newspapers, magazines, television, radio, books, and professional journals.

A contrast with a culture where claims about satanic cult crime have not taken root is useful. In France, SRA accusations being made in American society and nearby England are regarded with ridicule, if they are known at all. Journalists and popular writers are often quite critical of the foibles of American culture and often resistant to what they consider to be cultural fads coming from America. In France, only 17% of the population believe in the existence of the Devil compared with 65% in the U.S., according to opinion polls (Gallup 1982:98). Fundamentalist Protestantism has no political significance. French feminism, which centers its demonology upon a critique of the capitalist elite and socioeconomic injustice, is ideologically quite different from Anglo-American feminism. It is likely that cross-national, personal contacts between people in the same occupations, such as medical doctors, psychotherapists and police, are relatively uncommon, due in part to language and cultural differences.
That difference - in the nature of say French feminism compared to Anglo-American feminism seemingly protected French women and their counterparts in other European countries (with the exception of the Netherlands) from the obsessions that saw British and American feminists fall so easily into the maw of religious fundamentalism. In addition, the narrowing of definition of people regarded by feminists as being 'good' saw evil in society being defined as not just men and male influence, but also women with children, women in relationships with males - indeed anyone who wasn't (and isn't) a true feminist (see Mary Davey).

Collusion between disparate groupings isn't unusual. During the 1970's and '80's the Northern Ireland Troubles saw Protestant paramilitary gangs colluding with the RUC (Royal Ulster Constabulary) in activities that saw the deaths of suspected Republicans. The collusion between right-wing Christian Fundamentalists and Left-Wing radical feminists (who claimed to be Marxists) didn't see anyone die during the SRA Myth period in the UK, and seeing as no babies or children had actually been sacrificed and/or eaten, there really weren't any deaths in the process at all. In the US, one father, accused of being a child-killing satanist (though with no evidence, no prosecution was attempted) was shot to death in his own backyard.

The collusion of feminist and religious fundamentalist is harder to explain than the temporary alliances made in Northern Ireland, where both sides involved were invariably of the same religious allegiance. Feminists, as mentioned before, could be rightly expected to be at the fundamentalists throats in all regards, any collusion nothing less than impossible. But collusion, substantial documented collusion, did occur, and continues to this day in one form or another. Phillip Jenkins, author of the seminal work on moral panics in Great Britain Intimate Enemies: Moral Panics in Contemporary Great Britain (Social Problems and Social Issues) (1992) discusses some possible explanations;

But the skeptics were to be in a minority over the next few controversial months, and a number of feminists supported the reality of the charges. They did so for a variety of reasons, but above all because of the sacrosanct tenet that children's evidence must be believed. In addition, failure to defend these charges would cast doubt on a generation of assertions about child sexual abuse in general. Without this, the movement would (lose) an effective rhetorical weapon against the unsavoury and dangerous patriarchal nuclear family. Radical feminists therefore formed an unlikely common front with the Charismatics and Evangelicals with whom they disagreed on so many other aspects of social policy.
(Source: From Intimate Enemies: Moral Panics in Contemporary Great Britain (Social Problems and Social Issues) by Phillip Jenkins (1992))

In the US, collusion between right-wing religious fundamentalists and feminists was equally apparent. In veteran journalist Alexander Cockburn's j'accuse article Katha's Silence published in CounterPunch magazine (which he edits) in October 1999, Cockburn takes issue with feminist The Nation journalist Katha Pollitt, and the perceived failure of herself, and feminists as a body corporate to address the collusion between themselves and fundamentalists, and questions how feminists could bring themselves to identify with satan-hunters and the very people who opposed all they stood for;

Katha, these were the years when a column by you in The Nation could have been enormously influential. Why? You know the answer perfectly well, though even today you cannot really bring yourself to admit it. In the coalition powering the satanic abuse persecutions feminists constituted a powerful component, most conspicuously in the form of Gloria Steinem and Ms. magazine. How did feminism, a movement that grew out of the radical passions of the l960s, navigate itself into this demonic alliance? Charges of perverse abuse of children seemed an inviting line of attack in the larger onslaught on patriarchy, sexual violence and harassment. Social workers and therapists--many of them feminists -- became the investigators and effective prosecutors.

Since you had belittled her work, Katha, perhaps you didn't bother, back in l995, to read Debbie Nathan and Michael Snedeker's definitive book Satan's Silence: Ritual Abuse and the Making of a Modern American Witch Hunt. You would have found some very acute analysis of feminism's crucial involvement in the hysteria, plus some well merited condemnation. "It is difficult to explain to justifiably indignant and frightened people that feminist theory and practice are not monolithic, and that many women's advocates abhor that part of the movement that demonises masculinity, forges alliances with the anti-feminist right, and communicates such profound fear and loathing of sexuality that -- as the ritual abuse cases demonstrate -- it is even willing to cast women as demons... It is ...obvious that the anti-pornographers and victimologists are feminism's main contributors to the ritual-abuse panic. Catharine MacKinnon, for instance, has publicly proclaimed her belief in the existence of widespread ritual sex abuse. So have Gloria Steinem and countless psychotherapists, social workers, doctors, lawyers, and writers who call themselves feminists. Indeed, during the past decade, belief in ritual abuse has become so ensconced in this wing of feminism that the arrest, trial by ordeal, and lifelong incarceration of accused women have occasioned hardly a blink from its proponents. They have remained silent as convicted mothers and teachers are sent to prison."
Quoting Debbie Nathan, who with Michael Snedeker, wrote a key book about the moral panic that gripped the US in the 1980s and '90s Satan's Silence: Ritual Abuse and the Making of a Modern American Witch Hunt (1995) Cockburn continued his stilleto-like attack;

"In the early 1990s, someone with Pollitt's progressive-feminist stature and steady national venue could have helped feminists and leftists claim a critical stance on this issue rather than yielding it to the right, who embraced it mainly because they don't like public child care, because they think children are parents' private property, and because they saw a very easy way to discredit feminism (a theoretical and political contributor to the hysteria). Pollitt could definitely have influenced MS. magazine and Gloria Steinem. She might also have saved some children and their caretakers -- many of them public school and childcare workers -- from hard time in bad therapy and behind bars."
(Source: Both quotes from Katha's Silence by Alexander Cockburn, published in CounterPoint, October 26th, 1999)

To Ms. Pollitt's credit, she would write on the subject of the SRA Myth moral panic regularly throughout the early years of the 21st century. Though too late to have had an influence on the actual events themselves, she has nonetheless strived to correct many of the continuing lengthy injustices that were spawned from those years, typified by her February 2002 article for The Nation Justice, Not So Swift. Yet she missed the boat, and had been in a position in the 1980s and 1990s to prevent or at least challenge the injustices and the return to the 'Salem' years.

Other American feminist or lesbian icons engaged with the far-right religious fundamentalists during the SRA Myth years, notably Myra Riddell.

Eight years before Cockburn's article was published, the academic Jeffrey S. Victor (Ph.D) previously mentioned, had also tried to make some sense of the collusion between feminists and religious fundamentalists, pointing-out that the two groups had combined together in the past on 'moral' issues;

The Role of Ideological Preconceptions
In the face of frightening claims about secret satanic cult conspiracies and allegations of ritual abuse, many people simply fall back on their ideological preconceptions and habitual modes of thinking. This is why religious fundamentalists and feminists have been drawn together into a moral crusade against ritual abuse. This unlikely alliance has occurred in the past, in the moral crusade against "white slavery" and in the Prohibition campaign.

Fundamentalists come from an ideological tradition which affirms the existence of secret conspiracies of evil doers, who do Satan's work. Therefore, they are receptive to claims about secret cults, which sexually abuse children in evil rituals designed to "brainwash" these children into the pursuit of evil.

Feminists, on their part, are very much aware of the past hidden victimisation of women and children, as was commonplace in cases of rape, incest and wife beating. They are receptive to claims that children are being victimised in secretive ways, and that their painful testimony is being discredited once again by people who are insensitive to the ways in which women and children have been so often victimised (Nathan, 1991).
(Source: The Satanic Cult Scare and Allegations of Ritual Child Abuse, by Jeffrey S. Victor, published in volume 3 (1991) of the IPT Journal)

Other feminists questioned how on earth the feminist lobby had come to collude with religious fanatics, and, with evidence to justify such collusion hopelessly lacking, had nonetheless entered into the collusion with such enthusiasm. The fundamentalists to a degree can be understood and forgiven; they had simply pursued the obsessions with demonology that they had done so for centuries. Feminists though have no such excuse, and with the collusion continuing even today, remain unable to justify their stance. Janice Haaken, in her tome that investigated the perils of memory and the perception that feminists sometimes have to 'over-egg' issues to get them recognised, was one who was unable to reconcile the collusion of US feminists and religious fundamentalists ;

A number of historians have described the recurring emergence of satanic conspiracies, which appear particularly during periods of social stress, and their deep roots in Christian demonology. Dominant or insider groups often accuse the outsider group of heretical practises that threaten the destruction of cherished societal values. When a dominant group is threatened by a competing worldview, such as those that beset the church during the late medieval period, accusations of demonic practises may reinvigorate institutional authority and revitalise the commitment and loyalty of followers.

While it is not difficult to grasp the function of demonology in such contexts, there has been little attention in the literature to the varying and complex political uses of such subversion legends. In the contemporary historical context, the SRA legend finds a ready receptivity in conservative Christian groups, with their preoccupation with the Prince of Darkness, defence of majoritarian religious values, and the advancement of right-wing politics. Accounts of ritual abuse survivors became standard fare on Christian talk shows in the 1980s, circulated through the expanding cable network channels. These tales of sexual perversion merged as the Christian pornography of the 1980s, riveting audiences with descriptions of moral degradation.

'Less understandable is the receptivity to SRA accounts that flourished in grassroots feminist organisations during this same period. In crisis clinics throughout the country, materials began to circulate on ritual abuse, including elaborate glossaries, checklists of signs and symptoms, and intervention strategies. By 1990, ritual abuse was a standard part of staff training in many feminist crisis facilities throughout the United States. Initially distributed by the Los Angeles County Commission for Women through its task force on ritual abuse, these materials elicited no discernible critical response or skepticism among feminist practitioners. Given the large percentage of suspected female perpetrators of SRA, particularly day-care workers, and the number of feminist "witchcraft" practices implicated in ritual abuse cases, the enthusiastic participation of feminist organisations in circulating news of the "epidemic"is startling."
(Source: From: Pillar of Salt: Gender, Memory, and the Perils of Looking Back by Janice Haaken (2000) page 239, 2000)

Just how close the events of SRA Myth 'crazy years' paralleled the Witchcraft Trials of the 13-17th centuries is discussed elsewhere in this entry. The analogies are so clear that it becomes harder and harder, in particular for many scholars and genuine feminists, to understand how on earth feminists in the 1980s and 1990s in many Western, predominantly white and English-speaking countries, threw their lot in with religious fundamentalists, in a widespread collusion of ideas and actions that persists even today. Although feminist history incorporates periods when it was closely associated with both Fascism in the US and Western Europe, and even National Socialism - Nazism, since at least the early 1970s it was and has been routinely identified as a predominantly Marxist-influenced movement.

As Shermer (1997) has pointed out, the recent concern about satanic ritual abuse is a modern version of the medieval witch crazies. In such crazes, the intermeshing of psychological and social conditions become coupled with a feedback loop that feeds on peope's fears and drives legends and rumour panics in such a way that they come to have a life of their own. Although a variety of commonalities between historical witch crazes and modern SRA accusations have been noted in the literature, some of the most salient similarities include 1) the prevelence of allegations of sex or sexual abuse; 2) mere accusations become equated with factual guilt; 3) the denial of guilt is seen as proof of guilt; 4) single claims of victimization lead to an outbreak of similar claims; and 5) as the accused begin to fight back, the pendulum begins to swing the other way as the accusers sometimes become the accused, and the falsity of the accusations is demonstrated by skeptics (Shermer 1997).
(Source: The Social and Cultural Context of Satanic Ritual Abuse Allegations, by Susan P. Robbins, IPT Journal, volume 10, 1998)

With the colluson between feminism and religious fundamentalism laid bare for all to see, some feminists have desperately attempted to shift the blame for the SRA Myth years and the consequential RMT (Recovered Memory Therapy) scandals that scythed through a generation of American, Canadian, British and Australian middle-class white women in the 1990s. American feminist 'icon' Professor Diana E. H. Russell has taken a less-than-subtle approach, trying to absolve feminism of its responsibility and guilt, by simply blaming 'the therapists'.

Goldstein and Farmer (1993) are two false memory advocates who believe that “aspects of the radical feminist movement” have contributed to the development of “a milieu in which false memories can flourish,” although these authors fail to explain what aspects they are referring to (p. 7). My analysis of the major culpability for the development of false memories is very different from theirs. While these authors blame feminists, I share Armstrong's view that the major liability lies with therapists.
(Source: from the introduction to The Secret Trauma: Incest In The Lives Of Girls and Women, 2nd edition (1999) by Diana E. H Russell)

Unfortunately the amount of evidence facing the feminist community and its full-frontal engagement in the process of promoting the SRA Myth and RMT movement is compelling. The collusion between feminism and extreme far-right religious fundamentalism is well-documented, not helped by the willingness of the fundametalists themselves to repeatedly reference it. The continuing collusion, even into the second decade of the 21st century remains less intense, but equally inexplicable. One explanation, repeated from other sources in these pages, is that feminists desire to challenge the 'patriarchy' through the promotion of the theory that most men are pedophiles, and that the family structure exists only to enable fathers to rape their daughters (see a discussion on this subject under the entry for Catherine Itzin (Prof.)) ensured that the rhetoric of anti-satanism became too tempting for feminists, driving them into the arms of religious fanatics, with whom they were able to find common cause.

In her compelling essay on the impact of the SRA Myth and RMT on women, Canadian engineering professor Paula M. Tyroler examined how feminism, like a bad assassin, had aimed recklessly at men in general, but ended-up hitting women with the shot.

The recovered memory movement has victimized, in horrendous fashion, not only men, but mostly women, the latter group in the name of liberation, empowerment, and healing. Who are the major movers of this therapy gone amuck? When and why did the movement start and how did it proliferate? Above all, why did recovered memory therapy receive such enthusiastic approval from some feminist factions?

To start with, accusations based on supposedly repressed and recovered memories only began to appear in the mid-eighties, and reached epidemic proportions in the late eighties and early nineties. Prior to the mid-eighties, patients claiming that they had uncovered memories of childhood sexual trauma for which they had no previous awareness were rare or nonexistent (Goodyear-Smith, 1995). The outburst of allegations based solely on recovered memories coincided with the publication of several self-help memory-recovery books, all written by women (Bass & Davis, 1988; Blume, 1990; Courtois, 1988; Fredrickson, 1992; Maltz, 1992), and with proliferation of erroneous beliefs in massive repression. The Courage to Heal (Bass & Davis, 1988), the so-called bible of the recovered memory movement, was written by two women with no background in psychology or psychiatry. Probably the greatest irony is the fact that this openly anti-male hate literature encouraged therapy practices which have caused untold suffering to thousands of women.

In War Against the Family, Canadian writer W. D. Gairdner (1993) argues that radical feminism is essentially an antifamily movement. Grossly distorted sex abuse statistics, together with allegations originating in the offices of the recovered memory therapists, provide handy ammunition for the feminist fringes in their fight against the cornerstone of society — the traditional family of origin. Along the same line, Webster (1995) claims that the most disturbing feature of the recovered memory movement is the manner in which it encourages an attitude of emotional coldness and cruelty between generations. According to Ofshe and Watters (1994), recovering memories of abuse has proved a powerful metaphor for the larger goal of exposing the perceived unfairness of the patriarchal family structures of a male-dominated society. The defense of recovered memory therapy became synonymous with the defense of the women's movement.
(Source: from The Recovered Memory Movement: A Female Perpective, by Paula M. Tyroler, IPT Journal, volume 8, 1996, republished with kind permission from the IPT Journal)

A principal difficulty for modern feminists, in the predominantly white, English-speaking Western countries (the US and UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand) is that the SRA Myth and RMT just won't go away. If feminism as a body corporate hoped to sneak away from the controversies when it was being realised the damage that was being executed to women, both through false allegations of satanism and the debilitating impact of false allegations generated by RMT, then the effort was in vain; instead of sneaking 'over-the-wire' in the dead-of-night, feminism blundered into a minefield of undeniable quotes from books, magazines and speeches, whilst wearing a flourescent clown costume, with a klaxon running at full blast. Feminist writers Ellen Bass and Laura Davies's The Courage To Heal, now fully-adopted by the religious fundamentalist community probably did the most damage, and with every reprint causes even more damage to feminists attempt to deny their responsbility in history. Worse, even in the 21st century there are plenty of professionals, notably psychotherapists, still obsessed with the SRA Myth and RMT, finding white middle-aged and privilaged 'customers' to trade with. Their efforts only lead to more historical investigations into feminist collusion with the religious fundamentalists, ensuring the subject remains fresh. Rather than consider changing sides and becoming the focus of efforts to reappraise the RMT and SRA Myth movement, feminists, both in the past and even in modern times, try to absolve themselves of any responsbility, typified by Diana Russell's hopeless efforts to divert the blame.

Some feminists, particularly in the US, recognised the danger, even if they were unwilling to quite bring themselves around to querying the existence of SRA. In her compelling essay Feminism's Identity Crisis written in 1993, Wendy Kaminer railed against the 'victimology' obsession of then-modern feminism, which by then was repeatedly portraying women as weak and simple creatures. The threat of the Recovered Memory Movement was recognised by Ms. Kaminer, who acknowledged that feminism had already jumped-in with both feet in their collusion with advocates of RMT. In the spirit of the time though, even she had been taken-in by the rhetoric that SRA was related to pornography (though after three decades no trace of such pornography in any form of media has ever been found in any country). Whlst Diane Russell desperately attempted to deny feminism had had anything to do with the RMT movement, trying to pull the wool over peoples eyes in determining that the therapists had taken thngs a bit too far, Wendy Kaminer was willing to concede that feminists and therapists were working in concert together.

The marriage of feminism and the phenomenally popular recovery movement is arguably the most distrubing (and potentially influential) development in the feminist movement today. It's based on a shared concern about child abuse, nominally a left-wing analogue to right-wing anxiety about the family. There's an emerging alliance of anti-pornography and anti-violence feminists with therapists who diagnose and treat child abuse, including "ritual abuse and "satanism" (often said to be linked to pornography). Feminism is at risk of being implicated in the unsavoury business of hypnotizing suspected victims of abuse to help them "retrieve" their buried childhood memories. Gloria Steinhem has blithely praised the important work of therapists in this field without even a nod to the potential for, well, abuse when unhappy suggestible people who are angry at their parents are exposed to suggestive hypnotic techniques designed to uncover their histories of victimization.

But the involvement of some feminists in the memory-retrieval industry in only one manifestation of a broader ideological threat posed to feminism by the recovery movement. Recovery, with its absurdly broad definitions of addictions and abuse, encourages people to feel fragile and helpless. Parential insensitivity is classed as child abuse, along with parental violence, because all suffering is said to be equal (meaning entirely subjective); but that's appropriate only if all people are so terribly weak that a cross word inevitably has the destructive force of a blow. Put very simply, women need a feminist movement that makes them feel strong.
(Source: Feminism's Identity Crisis by Wendy Kaminer (1993) published in Public Women, Public Words: A documentary history of American Feminism, Volume III - 1960 to the Present, edited by Dawn Keetly and John Pettegrew (2005) page 464)

With feminism in the white, English-speaking nations 'up to its neck' in the RMT fiascos and SRA Myth scandals of the 1980s, 90s and even to the present day, some individual professions suffered body blows to their credibility and reputation.

British social work, traditionally seen as a haven for dyed-in-the-wool left-leaning activists, is also a career that harbours evangelical elements - both often presenting a toxic brew that manages to mix Marxism allied to a distinct view of right and wrong, good versus evil. The British Left, led by feminism, its most vocal 'division' willingly embraced the right-wing Christian Fundamentalist battle against Satan, backed in part through enthusiastic journalists and the editors of periodicals and newspapers like New Statesman, Marxism Today and The Guardian. Child protection social work, the very essence of all that is radical and all that (should) see human badness challenged, acted almost as an entire body politic to join the rush and obsession of the SRA Myth. By-passing the moderate side of modern Christianity, such as that from the various 'recognised' strands of Catholicism and moderate Protestantism - child protection social workers across Britain, arrowed in to associate themselves with the most furtive and fanatical elements it could find; ones that believed in witches, demons, and the prevalence on planet Earth of Satan himself - all in an effort to boost the public perception of the profession;

Jenkins has shown that the satanic ritual abuse panic that flared up in Britain in the late 1980's "offered ideological confirmation of the limitations of liberal theology. Since the 1960s, the dominant faction in British churches has emphasised social and political activism with a left/liberal slant. For Evangelicals and Charismatics, this was a lethal distraction from the critical issues of personal holiness and spiritual warfare. During the 1980s the point was reasserted by a new focus on black magic, cults, ancestral demons, and ritual abusers" (Jenkins, 1992, p.204). Not surprisingly, fundamentalists, evangelical, and charismatic Christian organisations have been at the forefront of the British (and American) satanic ritual abuse panic from its very inception. For the most part, liberal and mainstream Christians found incredible and implausible the charges of satanic ritual abuse that more conservative Christians regarded as believable. In this case, religious conservatives argued from a certain definition of reality - that satanism is alive and well in contemporary society and inflicting evil deeds on innocent children - which advances both their material and ideological interests.

In addition, in Britain in the 1980s, social workers too to gain from the satanic ritual abuse panic both in terms of status and as a result of an increase in public funding for social welfare services. "A child abuse crisis…let to perceptions of a major problem requiring the urgent allocation of new resources: A larger and more specialised child protection establishment would mean more investigation and detection and thus more concern. This spiral effect goes far towards explaining the overall growth [of the number of social workers in Britain] during the decade [of the 1980s]" (Jenkins, 1992, p201). Public opinion polls have found social workers to be at the bottom among all professions in prestige. "The only way to reaffirm the value of the profession was to show that social workers were dealing with truly menacing problems, which they were uniquely qualified to investigate and combat. Exposing a vast and unsuspected prevalence of child abuse thus fulfilled both ideological and professional needs, and fully justified the need for specialised social services agencies" (Jenkins 202).
(Source: Moral Panics: The Social Construction of Deviance (2009) page 68 By Erich Goode, Nachman Ben-Yehuda)

In her paper 'The Devil Goes Abroad': The Export of the Ritual Abuse Moral Panic presented in Volume 3 of The British Criminology Conference: Selected Proceedings, Mary deYoung described how the "child-savers" who instigated the SRA Myth kept the myth running, even in the face of an obvious lack of evidence. Managing to cross the Atlantic with their ideas, they created a mythology that Satanic Ritual abusers permeated every strata of society, in a similar way to how those who doubt the Moon landings have determined that American science and industry faked everything. In the Moon Landing and SRA Myth conspiracy theories, it was being postulated that industry and politics was stuffed full of conspirators willing to take their alleged secret all the way to the grave - even if faking what was being alleged would have been a greater technical undertaking than actually performing it. The "child-savers" skipped the requirements of evidence, or even common-sense, whilst trying to convince all that they were pursuing a genuine cause. Those that persisted in denying the existence of SRA were simply declared abusers or the protectors of abusers and satanists;


It is also true that the American child-savers often side-step the 'gender question' entirely by offering another version of the banality of evil explanation, a version that is especially influential in the European satanic ritual abuse cases that more often are discovered in family and neighbourhood settings than in day care facilities. In this version satanic ritual abusers are robed and hooded every-persons living everywhere: women and men, old and young, strangers and acquaintances, rich and poor, urban and rural, respectable and raffish. Satanic ritual abusers are 'normal looking and carry on normal lives,' insists Pazder (1989). 'They are members of every strata of society' (Pazder, 1989: 39). According to Sexton they also have infiltrated every profession and organisation in civilised society. 'We're not talking about the sleaze bag in the park,' he told a child-saving conference audience. 'We're talking about attorneys, ministers, high-ranking military people, Eagle Scouts' ('Satanic rites' 1998: A-3). This notion of the banality of evil is given an alliterative twist in the panic discourse of Braun(1988), one of the most prominent American child-savers, whose 'Rule of P's' reveals the public persona of secret satanic ritual abusers: physicians, psychiatrists, psychotherapists, principals and teachers, pallbearers, public workers, police, politicians and judges, priests and clergies of all religions, parents and providers of day care.
(Source: The Devil Goes Abroad': The Export of the Ritual Abuse Moral Panic by Mary deYoung)

The renunciation of common-sense, the pillorying of scepticism, and the belittling of those who questioned the incredible claims being made by SRA advocates, became a major feature of the SRA Myth, typified by the activities of former child protection social worker Diana Napolis and her supporters, and Ms. Campbell OBE herself.

The insistence by the likes of some police officers, Crown Prosecutors, forensic scientists and others to question the fantastic and routinely absurd stories they were being presented with - recollecting flying creatures, lions in parks, almost 'run-of-mill' murders, all without a trace of physical or forensic evidence, enraged fundamentalists and feminists alike. Action, not thought! was required by these advocates. Allegations, however absurd were to be taken at face value, not interpreted (as that would invite the possibility that imagination by children was in play) by the authorities. If Satan appeared in an account of a fantastical ritual, then that was what happened, and the alleged offenders should be arrested, charged with murder and more, and jailed at the first opportunity, preferably without the awkwardness of a jury who might wonder where the evidence was.


The return of Spectral Evidence

Although British and American feminism may have similarities, and thus the same vulnerability to religious fundamentalist causes, the legal systems in the two kingdoms was distinctly different. In the US the recovered memory fiascos of the 1990's, mixed together with the SRA Myth allowed for the use of spectral evidence in both civil and criminal courts to be used, on occasions exclusively, to convict or find against a defendant (in 65% of cases, a woman). Spectral evidence - the testimony of a victim or witness through dreams or visions ("I saw uncle Jack and Aunt Wilbur dressed in witches cloaks advancing towards me in my nightmare") harks back to its extensive use during the Salem witch trials of 1692. Spectral evidence was the primary source of evidence that ensured most of the women accused would be convicted in the normal court system of Massachusetts. By late 1692, nineteen women had been hanged and one man, Giles Cory, had been tortured to death for refusing to enter a plea, and there were dozens of men and women in prison awaiting their trials. The witchcraft trials finished when doubts were raised about the use of spectral evidence, with Increase Mather, an influential minister, making it clear he disagreed with its utter reliance. In the US there remain men and women incarcerated on the basis of spectral evidence collected and accepted during the SRA Myth and recovered memory craze of the 1990's.

Even though it is the historic home of spectral evidence, relating back to the times of the mass killings of women in the Bury St Edmonds witch trials, spectral evidence was not allowed to be used in England, Scotland and Wales during the SRA Myth craze, not even in the family court system, which, as today, has vastly reduced standards of allowable evidence.

Spectral evidence was collected on occasions by child protection police officers and social workers, most notably through the use of fundamentalist expert psychologists. In the Broxtowe Scandal, the diaries of the children were read by their foster carers and their dreams interpreted as evidence of involvement in satanic rituals with witches present. However in the absence of any corroborating evidence, the Police, Crown Prosecution Service and (in Scotland) the Crown Office, were reluctant to pursue prosecutions based on spectral evidence alone. It should be noted there is no statute law preventing the use of spectral evidence, just that it's use is severely limited because of the echoes with the witchcraft trials of centuries past.

Nonetheless a key element of the demands of the "child-savers" of years past and today is that the children should be heard - particularly that their dreams and visions, interviews under duress using suggestions and threats, or misinterpretations of simple childhood events - should be always accepted as being evidence of satanic abuse. Children who failed to provide such indications on demand, were simply designated as being too scared to come forth. For some child protection police officers and social workers, they felt were being hamstrung because their enemy was the supernatural;


Today's witch hunters also see themselves as seeking persons living in the visible world who draw upon the invisible. Lieutenant Larry Jones of the Boise, Idaho police, and very much a believer in the existence of a Satanic cult conspiracy, advises:

When confronting those criminals who are led or controlled by supernatural evil beings, philosophies or motivations, traditional police tools are not effective (Smith & Watalad, 1989, p. 100).

There are criminals of this world, according to Jones, who are so aided by supernatural beings of the invisible world that traditional police tools, even if previously proven effective, will not be effective against them.

This line of thinking seriously undermines public confidence in the ability of public authorities to investigate and ultimately solve crimes with Satanic overtones. Furthermore, it opens the door for employment of unproven or questionable methods in the search for the devil's own. The danger lies in that one finds what one seeks. The "success" of extraordinary or questionable methods to unmask previously unidentified servants of Satan helps explain the "failure" of more traditional methods to do so. This has the additional effect of legitimising the methods employed.
(Source: Burn The Witch! (If We're Wrong, We'll Apologise) by Terry L. Kern, Volume 7 1995 Journal for the Institute of Psychological Therapies

The investigative journalist Richard Webster's book The Secret of Bryn Estyn (2005) emphasised the manner in which social workers, traditionally viewed as secularists, were pursuing a religious cause, this time about a moral panic that about child sex abuse in care homes that engulfed first Wales, and then the rest of the UK;

(from the "blurb") Although both journalists and lawyers played a major role in driving this modern witch-hunt forwards, the ideas and fantasies out of which it grew developed within the profession of social work. The book traces the origins of these ideas and sets them in a much broader historical context, arguing that the modern child protection movement is a revivalist movement, rooted deeply, for all its apparent secularism, in an ancient religious tradition.
The "failure" to accept evidence from supernatural sources, and instead the insistence by prosecuting authorities and Courts in the UK that evidence be present of actual abuse having taken place in SRA cases proved to be the ultimate undoing of the SRA craze. Had the English, Welsh and Scottish courts been willing to accept spectral evidence, then the SRA Myth "moral panic" might have intensified even beyond even the most disturbed imagining's of feminists and Christian fundamentalists.

In the US, the willingness to accept the most bizarre stories and recollections, however unlikely, took hold amongst both feminists and liberal-leaning prosecutors and law enforcers. In the US, the Grand Jury system enables citizens to conduct investigations into alleged offences, widening the scope of opinion and enabling citizens to take part in initial investigations to uncover evidence for prosecution or otherwise. In 1991 the then San Diego Grand Jury investigated the nature of SRA Myth allegations, at that time causing obsessional behaviour amongst prosecutors and 'experts' in the region;

"In October, 1991, a Grand Juror was present at a meeting of the San Diego Commission on Children and Youth when a report on ritual abuse was adopted. This report, entitled Ritual Abuse Treatment, Intervention and Safety Guidelines, was the result of a task force effort and made numerous recommendations for handling ritual, and, of particular concern to the Jury, satanic abuse. The following definition of "satanic" appears in this report.

'Satanic - Satanists may infiltrate other types of cults, or remain separate. Satanic cults may range from an extra-familial collection of methamphetamine abuses who torture for excitement, to decades old, multi-national sects, with established political systems, revenue mechanisms, etc., which indulge in the deification of Satan. Numerous cults exist which have sophisticated suppliers of sacrificial persons, from kidnapers through "breeders" (women who bear children intended for sexual abuse and sacrifice).'

Within the week Jurors were present at a dependency proceeding where a referee was presented a detention petition involving allegations of satanic behavioural abuse. The referee followed the recommendations in the social study which were almost verbatim from the recommendations made for handling these cases in the Commission on Children and Youth report. The children named in the petition were placed in confidential placement with no family contact whatsoever. They were also placed with a therapist "well-versed" in ritual abuse.

Citizen complaints of social workers pursuing satanic ritual abuse cases began to come to the Jury. Four families were from the same church congregation; the other complaints were unrelated. In one case the County Counsel filed a petition actually alleging that the child would be sacrificed on his birthday. All of the cases tested rational credulity. Each involved the same set of social workers, therapists, and detectives. At this time, all cases with which the Jury is familiar have been terminated. The emotional cost to the children and families cannot be calculated. In at least two cases, lawsuits against the County have followed.

Jurors contacted expert witnesses across the country. The ritual abuse report was sent to various experts for evaluation.

Police detectives involved in these investigations, members of the task force who wrote the report and an involved therapist were interviewed. Jurors attended a conference workshop by another therapist who served on the task force which prepared the report and was being used as a recommended ritual abuse therapist. Witnesses were asked to provide a factual information or evidence they had available which would substantiate the existence of satanic ritual abuse in San Diego County or elsewhere. No such information or evidence was provided. The Jury found that there is no physical evidence of satanic ritual child abuse in San Diego County. There is evidence and considerable professional testimony that the existence of satanic ritual abuse is a contemporary myth perpetuated by a small number of social workers, therapists, and law enforcement members who have effected an influence which far belies their numbers. These "believers" cannot be dissuaded by a lack of physical evidence.

The Jury had extensive contact with Ken Lanning, head of the FBI Behavioural Sciences Investigation Unit. Mr. Lanning has spent ten years in nationwide search for reliable evidence of satanic ritual abuse. He has found none. It is his position that if satanic ritual abuse were occurring his unit would have found some concrete evidence during their exhaustive search.

Mr. Lanning advised jurors that epidemic allegations of satanic abuse frequently follow conferences where social workers and therapists are exposed to a "survivor" or speaker on the subject. Jurors attended one of these sessions at a national conference on child abuse held locally and coordinated by the Center for Child Protection. "Survivors" told about their abuse in detail. One "survivor" had memories of sexual abuse on the day she was born. This same survivor reported memories of her mother's attempts to abort her. Another "survivor" told a detailed story of satanic ritual abuse which included a large number of prominent citizens from her hometown .
....
The alleged satanic abuse cases which have surfaced nationwide during the past ten years share many common elements. No matter how incredible the allegations, the "believers" believe them. No physical evidence is found. The "believers" have complex theories to explain the absence of physical findings and evidence. The "evidence" presented is the testimony of children. The children testify to fantastic tales which can not be confirmed. The children have spent a considerable time with therapists. Most often, religious fundamentalism is an element. Frequently, a "survivor" or someone who has "memories" of having been ritually abused as a child is involved either as the therapist, the social worker, the prosecutor, or the reporting party. Criminal trial juries find it hard to believe that children can tell such incredible stories if nothing has happened to them. They find themselves faced with either believing the children are lying or the perpetrator is guilty. In some cases they have chosen to believe the children. Another option is to choose to believe that the child's narrative memory has been contaminated by the therapy.

Of particular interest is the information the Jury received about the Little Rascals pre-school case in North Carolina. Eighty-five percent of the percent of the children received therapy with three therapists in the town; all of these children eventually reported satanic abuse. Fifteen percent of the children were treated by different therapists in a neighbouring city; none of the children reported abuse of any kind after the same period of time in therapy.
(Source: San Diego Grand Jury Report on Childhood Ritual Abuse

Broxtowe, satanism, Salem & witchcraft

The allying of feminists with fundamentalists sometimes took a more direct course. By way of example, Bea Campbell OBE's partner, Judith (Dawson) Jones, and the former manager of Team 4, the social services child protection team who became obsessed with satanic ritual abuse during the legitimate child sex abuse enquiry in Broxtowe, Nottinghamshire apparently crossed from one group to another without hesitation;

Ms. Dawson does not refer to her own beliefs, if any, but she has appeared on a video-tape produced by the Evangelical Alliance, a fundamentalist Christian organisation with one million members in Britain. Published in July and called Doorways to Danger, the video warns adults and children of the dangers of dabbling in the occult, from Ouija boards and tarot cards to witchcraft and black magic.
...
The most enlightening insight into what happened in Nottingham, and possibly elsewhere, is contained in the 650-page report complied by in inquiry team of police and social workers set up by the Chief Constable and Director of Social Services. It is a damning indictment of the interviewing techniques and leading questions used by social workers.

Professors John and Elizabeth Newson, psychologists who were asked by assess the techniques used, concluded that one 17-year-old girl "was led to confabulate" a story that she had taken part in Satanic sacrifices. The girl later said the story was totally untrue and that "the only knowledge that she had, had come from social workers, that she had been pressurised, that the social workers would not take no for an answer".

The report concluded: "The social workers who already believed in Satanic abuse could by this method convince a child that she was a murderer and that she was guilty of cannibalism and Devil Worship...It is a sobering thought that in the 17th century [she] could have been burnt as a witch with inquisitors using identical methods."
(Source: Satanic inquisitors from the town hall - by Rosie Waterhouse, Independent On Sunday, 7th October 1990)

The 17-year-old was 'Mary' who was inflicted with three months of social work "therapy" in an effort to get her to confess to being a witch and taking part in satanic rites. In the mess of the social workers obsessions, they had confused witchcraft and satanism, and bundled them both together in a similar fashion to that practised by the accusers in Salem, at the end of the 17th century. In the extract from the JET Report a little further below, the desire to get a confession was such that all common sense and reason on the part of the social workers was dropped, as their obsessional beliefs in pursuing what they were convinced was a young woman before them who was a satanist and witch, took over all thought and reason.


It seems to us that the whole purpose of the therapy is to prove that [Mary] was involved in Satanism and to find out who further she would implicate. The questioning moves from establishing that she has killed and eaten babies and likes drinking human blood to questions about the adults involved and a Church, whether special days were used, whether special clothes were worn, whether prayers, words, or chants were used. It appears to be finally established to the social workers' satisfaction that all this has happened because [Mary]'s family are involved in 'Devil Worship'. The work appears to have all the elements of an interrogation; leading and limited choice questions (e.g. you killed at least one baby, more than one, 3?, 30? How many?) Statements make her believe that she had already admitted something, the sudden demand for 'a name' and "the Church", 'names' to catch her off guard are also employed. The questioner appears to have no doubt that the person being questioned is involved and the task is to make them "confess" by any means available. It is reminiscent of MacFarlaine's attitude in the McMartin trial when she calls for unconventional interviewing methods that "do whatever it takes to get children to talk". However, to believe [Mary], the social workers have to accept that seven murders and acts of cannibalism had taken place in the front room of a semi-detached house on a council estate to coincide with access visits without anybody noticing and that a social worker must have been implicated.


Crucially, it appears the social workers had confused satanism with witchcraft. Or had they merged the two deliberately? Ms. Campbell OBE herself had demanded to know if Mary was a witch, though rather than having her tortured on a rack, she simply offered money for a 'confession.' Yet the social workers in Team 4, through their interviews with children, and in their accusations, had seemingly stepped back in time to the 1690's. Witchcraft and Satan, they believed, abounded throughout the country, and it had to be addressed;


"I am particularly concerned that in the course of their disclosure interviews the social workers involved appear to have offered the children a whole vocabulary for describing their experiences which serves to transform their accounts into apparently plausible description of witchcraft practices".
(Source: both quotes from The JET Report, Part 4)

A feminism primer

Criminologist Phillip Jenkins, quoted earlier, wrote of how feminists and the liberal Press came to collude with the right-wing Christian Fundamentalist lobby, highlighting the assistance the right-wing religious fundamentalist community received from the former liberal-leaning Press;

(The Guardian) that at the height of the Rochdale controversy in 1990 published a sympathetic account of American therapist Pamela Hudson. This noted that since her pioneering work in southern California in 1984, no less than six cases had been proved in the United States, where ritual abuse rings had been preying on nursery schools. This statement appears to be simply groundless, as no such organised abuse has ever been accepted by an American court, but the claim is indicative of sympathy toward the ritual abuse theorists.
(Source: From Intimate Enemies: Moral Panics in Contemporary Great Britain (Social Problems and Social Issues) by Phillip Jenkins (1992))

The collusion persists

How far that 'feedback' would have continued is speculation only. By 1993 though in the UK, the hopeless lack of evidence to back the 'Myth was preying on too many professionals consciousnesses and their integrity. The need to accept magical events and paranormal powers, ranging from the ability to fly, possession of spacecraft and the means to turn inanimate objects into frogs and toads became too much for many, and quietly or not, they dropped off from the consensus in support of the 'Myth. Perversely some sections of society who would have been expected to realise they'd been 'had' remained to the death. With Directors of Social Services banning their staff from SRA training sessions, and from having anything to do with religious fundamentalist advocates of the 'Myth, and with virtually no police Chief Constable ever having been comfortable with the theory, only the editors of The Guardian, Community Care and more obscure publications were willing to advocate for the fundamentalist view.

Feminism stuck with it, never 'officially' breaking the collusion, to the point that the 2001 guide Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives edited by Pat Cox, Sheila Kershaw and Joy Trotter, incorporated the essay Satanic Ritual Abuse - The Challenge For Feminists by leading Edinburgh feminist and SRA Myth advocate Sarah Nelson. Dr. Nelson, a research fellow in the sociology department at Edinburgh University, contributed further to the attempts by the feminist and religious fundamentalist community to kick-start the SRA Myth, contributing another essay (The Orkney “Satanic Abuse Case:” Who Cared About the Children?) in support of the hopeless and embarrassing-for-the-authorities Orkney SRA blunder in the collection Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century: Psychological, Forensic, Social, and Political Considerations (2008) edited by Randy Noblitt and Pamela Perskin Noblitt. The volume included contributions fro secular, feminist and religious fundamentalists, including The Use of Prayer for Inner Healing of Memories and Deliverance with Ritual Abuse Survivors by pastoral counsellor and professor Thomas Michael Ball, Patterns in Mind-Control: A First Person Account by Trish Fotheringham, Out of the Shadows: Re-envisioning the Debate on Ritual Abuse by Michael Salter, an Australian social worker, and the gem Terrorism is the Ritual Abuse of the Twenty-first Century by Israeli psychotherapist Frances R. Yoeli and Greek psychologist Tessa Prattos.

Perhaps most importantly, Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century: Psychological, Forensic, Social, and Political Considerations includes Dr. Sandra Bucks history of the British RAINS (Ritual Abuse Information Network & Support) organisation, established by Ms. Campbell OBE's partner Judith (Dawson) Jones, fundamentalist Christine Johnson and others, to promote this new 'Myth to the remainder of Britain's social workers and other professions, after the Broxtowe scandal.

The SRA Myth though, in the face of a hopeless lack of evidence for it's existence, was to change. How it changed is discussed in the next section.

(See also Dianne Core, Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP, Ray Wyre, Rev. David Woodhouse, Dr. Lawrence Pazder, Dr. Sara Scott, Tim Tate, Linda Gordon, Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Christopher Booker, Joan Acocella", Dr. Darren Oldridge, Ken Livingstone, Colin Cramphorn, Lindsey Read)

The entry for Bea Campbell OBE continues on the following pages

Part 2

Part 3



"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind

Please note that on June 8th 2012, this site will be shutting-down. Our host service - hostcell.net will be shutting-down entirely, as its CEO Nahian Choudhury was involved in a serious car accident recently.

Dramatis Personae will resume on the Web in the near future when a new host is found (we have one in mind already).

Our thoughts are with Nahian and his family and the employees of hostcell.net.

Best regards - the editing team



Beatrix Campbell (OBE) & the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth - Part 3



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

Please note this entry, examining the career of the British journalist, campaigner and activist Bea Campbell OBE, was originally located in the Surnames C Index page. It's length, thanks to the enormous amount of submitted material to the Site, has required it to be moved to its own section, and it is now split across three pages, only the first of which is shown in the menu.

This entry is also a placeholder to discuss the nature of the SRA Myth and the apparent collusion of feminists and religious fundamentalists during the 'Myth years of the late 1980s and 1990s, to recent times. This isn't the only dedicated page devoted to Ms. Campbell and the subject of SRA - see also Sample of Beatrix Campbell's Writings about Satanic Ritual Abuse

Another extended Index entry, concerned with the history of the RAINS - Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support organisation in England and Wales can be found under Dr. Sandra Buck. This provides more detail about the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth allegations that were made in England and Wales from 1987 to the early 1990's, and in 2003 in Scotland.

This is 'living' Index entry, and is often updated by a number of individuals as new data is received and added.


Beatrix (Bea) Campbell (Mary Lorrimer, OBE - Order of the British Empire)



Section headings



A summary of three versions of the SRA Myth

The SRA Myth can be traced through both history and geography. For those who study the subject there appear to be three distinct strands of the 'Myth with subcategories to reflect national 'flavours'. Below is a summary of the three major versions of the Myth;

Classic SRA

This was the original incarnation of the Myth, which can trace it's history back through the 1960's and 1970's, and to a significant degree, all the way back to the end of the 17th century.

In the 1980's Christian fundamentalism found a willing listener through the agency of feminism, both in the US and UK, who from the 1970's onwards had been obsessed with the subjects of pornography and incest. There is no evidence though that US and UK feminists exchanged ideas in a formal fashion; rather it appears both groups received their rhetoric and indoctrination from their own nationalist religious fundamentalists. In the UK the organisation R.A.I.N.S (Ritual Abuse Information and Network and Support) obtained Christian fundamentalist material and rendered it available to social workers, police officers, psychologists and other 'experts' in an effort to boost belief in the Myth. R.A.I.N.S is still in operation in the UK (see Dr. Sandra Buck), staffed by religious fundamentalists and feminists, albeit with a smaller membership than in the 1990's. 'Classic' SRA was pushed through numerous academic journals and magazines and newspapers in the UK, including The Guardian (notably) Marxism Today, Community Care and The New Statesman. Skeptics were declared to be satanists and/or pedophiles.

In the US the Classic SRA Myth resulted in numerous arrests and even convictions, though in the total absence of physical and/or forensic evidence that anything criminal took place. Examples of the 'Classic' version of the SRA Myth include the Mcmartin day care scandal that resulted in the longest and costliest trial in US history, and still gained no convictions, and the prosecution of the Armirault family.

'Classic' SRA entails belief in some magical or paranormal abilities on the part of those accused by those who advocate for its existence. These abilities include teleportation, 'magical' healing, the ability to fly, reincarnate and turn inanimate objects into living creatures. In addition the alleged satanists were accused of having access to hot-air balloons, jet aircraft, spacecraft and ocean liners. Satanist also were alleged to command intelligent sharks and other creatures. On occasions the so-called satanists/pedophiles were attributed with the abilities to magically appear in two places at once - and indeed belief in this facility by prosecutors and investigators and even US juries was required when those accused had cast-iron alibis of not being somewhere where alleged satanism was taking place. Most of these allegations were generated as interrogated children were encouraged, or on occasions threatened, to construct allegations against the accused. In the absence of anything actually having happened (i.e. any abuse) such children felt compelled to employ their imagination to address the sometimes abusive interrogations. The Believe The Children movement of the 1980s and '90s ensured that absolutely anything, however absurd, would be believed. In addition the use of suggestive or 'leading' questioning of children was rife. In the US case of Kelly Michaels, believed by many to have been falsely accused and prosecuted solely because she was a lesbian, this form of questioning was rife;

INTERVIEWER: It would be okay to tell me the truth if she did try to bother you just so that you can show me how she might just try to hurt these other kids. 'Cause the more we know, the longer she will stay in jail. You understand...? What were some of the other stories that she used to scare the kids? That they wouldn't tell anybody. Did she tell them she would hurt their parents or something? Do you know if she said that?
CHILD: Yeah INTERVIEWER: You know that's not true...The police put her in jail. Because she was hurting you, you know. That's why I really need your help...And you will be helping to keep her in jail longer so that she doesn't hurt anybody else.
CHILD: It's scaring me.
INTERVIEWER: That's okay. Believe me, she's not going to coming out of jail. She's not going to be hurting you guys anymore...
CHILD: I didn't get hurt.
INTERVIEWER: No, maybe you didn't; maybe you fought her off. Maybe you really didn't hurt then. Maybe you saw your other friends getting hurt and you didn't like it very much, you know.
...
TREACY: Did Kelly ask the kids to look at her private parts, or to kiss her private parts?
CHILD: She made me. She made me, but I couldn't do it. So I didn't even really do it. I didn't do it.
TREACY: Did is smell good? CHILD: Shhhh. TREACY: Did it taste good. Did it taste like chocolate? CHILD: Ha, ha. No, I didn't even do it. TREACY: You Wee Care kids are so scared of her. CHILD: I wasn't. I'm not even... TREACY: But while you were there, were you real scared? CHILD: I don't know. TREACY: What was so frightening about her; what was so scary about her? CHILD: I don't know. Why don't you ask her? TREACY: Did she drink the pee-pee? CHILD: Please, that just sounds crazy. I don't remember about that. Really don't.
(Source: From The daycare ritual abuse moral panic pages 69-70 and page 73 2004 by Mary De Young)

A further feature of the Classic SRA Myth is that Satan also appears in person on occasions, typified by his appearances in the fictional book Michelle Remembers (1980) by psychologist Dr. Lawrence Pazder, believed by many religious fundamentalists, feminists and SRA 'survivors' to be word-for-word absolute truth.

A twist with the British 'Classic' SRA Myth is that the accused 'satanists' came almost exclusively from poor or disadvantaged communities. In the UK, the Myth was promoted heavily by professionals, notably social workers, priests, psychiatrists, therapists and police officers. The US version was more 'grass roots', driven by the Religious Right, and supported by liberal and leftist elements, notably from the feminist community.

In the US version, the magical or paranormal abilities are more pronounced. Satanists have access to rocket ships, and the normal rules of physics and medicine do not apply. As mentioned, alleged Satanists have the ability to be in two places at once, although rather than rob banks or overthrow nations they appear to only be interested in child sex abuse. The Classic version of the Myth, saw Spectral Evidence allowed by the US criminal courts resulting in prosecutions using this form of evidence. In the UK no convictions of alleged satanists were ever secured, although the Pembroke scandal incorporated elements of the Myth false allegations, the prosecution was unwilling to refer to it as a satanic ritual abuse case.

Quite early on the 'Classic' version of the SRA Myth was embellished with two further elements; RMT (Recovered Memory Therapy) and MPD/DID (Multiple Personality Disorder, known now as Dissociative Identity Disorder). This tacking-on of theories and additions to the SRA Myth were confined to the US version initially. Only with the take-up of the second version of the 'Myth below, did British advocates begin employing MPD/DID and RMT to patch the problems with physical or forensic evidence that was glaringly missing. None of the UK SRA Myth false allegation scandals - including Broxtowe, Ayr, Orkney (South Ronaldsway) Congleton, Bishop Auckland (see Dr. Camille de San Lazaro) and Rochdale contained any trace of RMT or MPD/DID, although in later years SRA Myth advocates would (and still do) claim that satanic rituals would see children's personalities fragment and split into separate (multiple) personalities. Further detail about the 'Brit' advocates for the SRA Myth with MPD/DID/RMT and Mind Control can be found in the extended entry for Dr. Sandra Buck.

The 'classic' version near enough died out after 1994 in the UK, but made a resurgence in 2003 with the Island of Lewis Scandal, that has remained the last recorded use of the SRA Myth by British social workers. In some institutions in Scotland, particularly at Edinburgh University, the Lewis Scandal is a source of great pride in the knowledge that Scotland was the last location for a false SRA Myth allegation in Europe. In the UK the primary sources for indoctrination into the SRA Myth came either from attending courses at the fundamentalist organisation The Reachout Trust (see Maureen Davies and Rev. David Woodhouse or through courses/seminars and conferences organised by the fundamentalist/feminist 'Myth promotion group R.A.I.N.S.

The Classic version of the 'Myth, once again minus RMT/MP/DID was exported to Australia and New Zealand through enthusiastic promotion from former trainee Baptist priest/sex therapist Ray Wyre. Michael Hills paper Satan's Excellent Adventure in the Antipodes - IPT Journal, volume 10 1998 documents the export of the Myth 'down under'.

The 'Brit sub-version of the 'Myth also made it to The Netherlands, Norway and notably, West Germany (see Rainer Möllers). Once again religious fundamentalists and feminists drove these national 'Myths, and in the case of West Germany, feminists acting on their own. It isn't immediately clear how these groups were indoctrinated into the SRA Myth.

Mind Control SRA

In this version, all of the attributes of 'Classic' SRA are retained, but with the addition of Mind Control. From 1992 onwards Multiple Personality Disorder/Dissociative Identity Disorder and RMT became deeply embedded into the 'Myth on both sides of the Atlantic. From the inception of the Mind Control version of the SRA Myth, 'official' involvement in the SRA Myth dropped off a cliff, as it became harder to find supporters willing to accept the increasingly wackier claims of it's advocates. The Mind Control version of SRA was again promoted by religious fanatics in the US, but this versions can trace its genesis from the profession of psychology.

The addition of the Mind Control element to the 'Myth had been around, in a peripheral form since the late 1980's, but in 1992, one particular obsessive crystallised the idea and sold it to likewise easily-convinced peers, leaving their profession forever associated with daftness;

Psychologist Corydon Hammond of the University of Utah has lectured on what he believes to be the Satanic techniques of mind control. He claims that a team of Nazi doctors had been conducting mind control experiments in concentration camps. They came to the US after the war to secretly continue their experiments for the CIA. They allegedly programmed and tortured children on army bases across the US. At this time, the CIA, NASA, the Mafia, Hollywood and some business leaders are part of a massive, tightly controlled Satanic network which is gearing up to rule the world. He asserts that children are programmed from age 3 to teenage years; this involves disorienting noise, flashing lights and electric shocks. He believes that alters are created to perform specific functions. Programmed is done in layers; some are:
  • Alpha layer is general programming
  • Beta controls sexual behaviour including knowledge to make kiddy-porn
  • Delta are assassins and are responsible for slashing
  • Theta are psychic killers; through mental energy, they can cause another person to develop a malignant brain tumour
  • Omega self-mutilate and commit suicide
  • Gamma provide misinformation and create confusion
  • Zeta has information to produce snuff films
(Source: Mind Control / Programming by Satanic Cults)

During the 1990's thousands of American women attended fundamentalist or feminist therapists who declared they had been satanically abused during their childhoods, and the trauma of the abuse had led to repressed memories. The healing of the apparently horrific injuries incurred was apparently put down to either Satan being so kind as to do this, or God, or the remarkable healing ability of young children. This version of the SRA Myth attempted to deal with the glaring lack of evidence for the Myth that the 'Classic' version was vulnerable-to, and in this regards it was very successful. In the end though a series of multi-million dollar civil lawsuits (see Court decisions about recovered memory therapy) by women who realised they had been manipulated by therapists resulted in it been driven into the backwoods of modern psychology and conspiracy theory dogma, though not before some criminal convictions were obtained. Most of these were later overturned on appeal, with the 'evidence' of recovered memories/spectral evidence being the sole means of convictions. As with the Classic version it was passed to US feminists and onto fundamentalists in the UK who in turn shared it with feminists there.

In the US, the CIA and American government were alleged to be the source of the huge Mind Control conspiracy, through alleged historic experiments going back decades. In the UK it was impossible to pursue this pretence, so the Mind Control originators were determined to be once again, poor and disadvantaged community members, performing their mind-control conspiracies on run-down council estates, in living rooms with paper-thin walls, whilst struggling to live on benefits.

Having been introduced as a new version of the SRA Myth, by fundamentalist therapists, the US feminist community took to the Mind Control theory extraordinarily easily, although once again the supposed cunning ability of the satanists has to be questioned if so many people are able to say they have been 'mind-controlled'. In the US, members of the government, the CIA, the Israeli secret service Mossad, Bob Hope, Henry Kissinger and many others were accused of being the leaders of and instigators of a huge mind control conspiracy.

Mind control is the cornerstone of ritual abuse, the key element in the subjugation and silencing of its victims. Victims of ritual abuse are subjected to a rigorously applied system of mind control designed to rob them of their sense of free will and to impose upon them the will of the cult and its leaders. Most often these ritually abusive cults are motivated by a satanic belief system [only on the surface.] The mind control is achieved through an elaborate system of brainwashing, programming, indoctrination, hypnosis, and the use of various mind-altering drugs. The purpose of the mind control is to compel ritual abuse victims to keep the secret of their abuse, to conform to the beliefs and behaviours of the cult, and to become functioning members who serve the cult by carrying out the directives of its leaders without being detected within society at large."
(Source: Report of the Ritual Abuse Task Force Los Angeles County Commission for Women)

The mind-control techniques alleged don't appear to be too swift. In 1992 the feminist-religious fundamentalist grouping that comprised the Ritual Abuse Task Force Los Angeles County Commission for Women alleged that they were being poisoned by satanists, whilst they met at county hall! See Some on Ritual Abuse Task Force Say Satanists Are Poisoning Them Government: Skeptics scoff at claims that subcommittee is being attacked with diazinon fumes--even in county meetings. By Aaron Curtiss, Los Angeles Times, December 1st 1992

This version persists, to the detriment of the 'Classic' version, and is the one most commonly encountered. It is preached to Metropolitan Police officers in the UK, and in organised courses for UK Local Authorities and social service departments, even in 2010, often entirely or part-paid from public tax-payers money. The most vocal of proponents for this version of the Myth in the UK are Valerie Sinason and Norma Howes. This conspiracy theory has made considerable headway into modern Left and liberal dogma in both the US and UK, although it's origins are distinctly right-wing. For the feminist lobby this version of the 'Myth was near-perfect, in that it assists the 'victimology' advocates who prefer to have women seen as doe-eyed, dopey perpetual victims of a huge patriarchal conspiracy inflicted upon them by wily evil/satanic males.

An Index entry about the two leading advocates for the Mind-Control version of the 'Myth in Great Britain in the early 21st century can be found at SRA Myth True Believers in the public eye - Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke"

In the US, the Left's belief in the Mind Control version of the SRA Myth is represented best by Alex Constantine, whose Web site Alex Constantine's Blacklist exhibits an overarching conspiracy theory that, well, the CIA are simply responsible for anything bad that happens in the world. Mr. Constantine, who has written for publications such as LA Weekly, Hustler, Z magazine and High Times is, like David Icke, a 'real' conspiracy-theory published author. His book The Covert War Against Rock (2000) determines that the CIA murdered near enough every rock star who has died in the past including Hendrix and Brian Jones, on the grounds that they were fearsomely anti-fascist, but had just kept such passions unannounced (and not apparently attracted by a life of easy access to drink and drugs). He is also the author of Psychic Dictatorship in the U.S.A. (1995) and it's sequel Virtual Government: CIA Mind Control Operations in America (1997). Such is the attraction of his conspiracy theories that he was contracted to present two BBC productions, one on the John Kennedy assassination and another on the death of Jimi Hendrix. Mr. Constantine also manages the The Anti-Fascist Encyclopaedia which incorporates a lengthy section on 'Satanism', much of which appears on ultra-right Christian Fundamentalist web sites that advocate for the SRA Myth.

In 'Constantine World' the CIA is engaged in a Vast Conspiracy to take over the world, and one of it's most cunning of cunning plans, easily able to match the most devious James Bond SPECTRE cunning plan, is to use Satanic Ritual Abuse to create legions of Mind Controlled children.

Ritual abuse, trauma-based mind control of young children, is real enough - but media that quote pedophile advocates and CIA mind control operatives without identifying them as such, all the while censoring out the victims and their supporters, filling the gap with libellous and cruel smears of both - aren't real at all.

For 20 years, the mere mention of RA has been sufficient grounds for "mainstream" media rejection of anything a victim has to say. The blackout on legitimate RA reporting has left the public completely ignorant of mind control issues.

Like others who have investigated RA, I've been forced to work around a press that remains completely one-sided and disingenuous in its support of child rapists and torturers. The cynical games played by the press to discredit victims of RA constitute an organised cover-up. It draws heavily on the tactics of Holocaust denial.
(Source: Alex Constantine Blacklist - Ritual Abuse)

In Constantine World the infamous McMartin Day Care trial, the longest and most expensive criminal trial in US history that resulted in no convictions, is actually part of the CIA Vast Conspiracy. For an unspecified reason the CIA decided that the best place to put a Mind Control centre, wasn't in some offshore location, or deep in Mid-West rural obscurity, but rather, on the very side of a busy US urban Highway, passed by 77,000 vehicles each day;

In January 1996, the full-grown director of a support group for ritually abused children in Los Angeles (she has worked closely with the families in the McMartin case) discovered firsthand what happened at the preschool when the local mind control team targeted her for torture from a remote source. The experience began with a splitting headache, "like needles" boring into her cranium. The attack continued for seven or eight hours. She was reduced to screaming and crying and took to bed. When she closed her eyes, her head was filled with images of figures in robes moving in a circle. She opened her eyes and the figures still swarmed in the darkness in front of her. She switched on the light. The image was still there.

She wasn't hallucinating. And the McMartin children weren't suffering "false memories." These days, the images -- frequently combined with an electronic form of hypnosis -- are projected to the brain's visual pathways, received with perfect clarity.
(Source: McMartin Preschool Revisited, Part Two, by Alex Constantine)

One of the reasons the McMartin false allegations had failed was the somewhat glaring lack of evidence. To get get around the problem that the abuse of over 300 preschool children in a daycare centre built on the side of a Highway was going to be difficult to explain in the face of parents routinely dropping by to leave or pick-up children, together with courier deliveries, the idea was promoted that the daycare centre was actually buttressed with a huge SPECTRE-like network of underground tunnels. Despite the fact that prosecutors had been unable to find any trace of tunnels, and despite the somewhat glaring problem that no apparently abused child had been able to simply point to the entrance, or that a child being picked-up would have inadvertently yelled "Mummy, mummy! Come and see the tunnel!" it was realised by SRA advocates, including some of the parents, that the tunnels would have to be found. As a result a UCLA archaeologist, Gary Stickel, Ph.D was contracted to search for the tunnels in 1990, aided by some of the parents, and apparently just before the site for the Daycare centre was to be demolished (which would conveniently prevent anyone else performing another similar survey).

The resulting report, from Dr. Stickel, informed the world that tunnels had been found (see McMartin Archaeological Investigation). Psychologist Dr. Roland Summit, also from UCLA, although not an engineer or archaeologist or anything vaguely connected with surveying or building work, determined that the report from Dr. Stickel was definite confirmation that the tunnels existed and so everything alleged in the Mcmartin case was true.

Advocates and skeptics about the SRA Myth looked forward to a comprehensive photographic history of the excavations. After all as an archaeologist and knowing that the excavations would settle the question about the tunnels once-and-for-all it was a given that he would have produced a superb montage of photographs. In addition the accompanying parents would have probably carried a range of cameras, ranging from simple instamatics to full-blown SLR's.

Regrettably Dr. Stickel apparently had forgot to secure that kind of evidence, and with the site demolished, it wasn't possible to go back and correct that error. Some photos were produced, to willing believers of the 'Myth, but in the two decades that have passed Dr. Stickel and other SRA Myth advocates have been unwilling to publish even these photos on the 'Web;

Unlike the SRS final report, Stickel's report lacks any indication that each step of the excavation process was sequentially photographed. The nearly total absence of this critical documentation makes it difficult or impossible to examine purportedly important and supposedly in situ (found as is) artifactual evidence to validate its authenticity. The few photographs of alleged artefacts that now exist are of such poor quality that their value as evidence vanishes.

¥ A purportedly in situ photograph of a sandwich wrapper with Walt Disney character on it, dated 1982/83, offered by Stickel as proof that a tunnel once existed under Ray Buckey's room and was later filled in after the McMartin case broke, does not actually show the wrapper in situ.

¥ An old rural mail box, allegedly found under classroom #4 by Stickel's excavators, and which purportedly came from a neighbouring house that was demolished in 1972, is also offered as strong evidence that the supposed "secret room" area was filled in by unknown persons after the construction of the school. No photograph of this item in situ is presented in Stickel's report.

¥ Four large pots full of artefacts dating long before the school was built, one of which Stickel refers to as like a "cauldron" and a "good Halloween prop," are not shown photographed in situ.

¥ A set of photos (Stickel, Fig. 32a, 32b) offered to illustrate soil variations (supposedly evidence of a filled in tunnel leading in the past to a hypothetical cavern under Ray's room) are too dark to pass as meaningful documentation. Stickel admitted to his APSAC conference audience in San Diego that the photos are too dark to show any soil variation but he uses them as evidence anyway.

¥ Another photo of the soil underneath a supposed concrete tunnel "arch," said to have been found beneath a wall foundation dividing classroom #4 from classroom #3, is also too dark for clear viewing. Yet Stickel states, "I wish you could see it better," and proceeds to offer it as evidence of incriminating soil variations.

¥ A set of photos (Stickel, Fig. 34a, 34b), taken at the end of one of the alleged, but purely hypothetical, tunnels under the classroom #3 next to Buckey's (Room 3, Trench 1S4) is presented to show soil differences. But no soil differences are apparent in the photos; one dark photo (Stickel, Fig. 34a) does contain apparent shadow intrusions, but the other (Stickel, 34b) is pitch dark.

¥ Another photo (Stickel, Fig. 35), of a supposed tunnel support post, is nothing but a large black space — nothing is visible where the post allegedly sat except pitch black. Stickel introduced this photo to his APSAC audience as evidence, stating "Boy, this one [photo] looks like a UFO photograph. . . . If you could see it a little bit better, and hopefully in the report — there is a post here. And this post was found precisely at this location (points to a map). . . . I think it was a support system for a crossways tunnel."
(Source: (page reproduced in it's entirety) Photographic Documentation of the MTP Archeological Procedures, IPT Journal, Volume 7, 1995)

In Constantine World, the little inconsistency of having no meaningful evidence to present is of no consequence; the allegation has been made, it must be true; allegations suffice for evidence - the evidence is the allegation itself.

As with Ms. Campbell OBE, Mr. Constantine's triumph is to be able to present ultra-right-wing conspiracy theories lifted from the Christian Right, to a willing and receptive Left-Wing audience. He hasn't though limited his support to just the extreme Religious Right; 'shit-house-rate-crazy' conspiracy theorists such as Diana Napolis, jailed for stalking Jennifer Love-Hewitt and Stephen Spielberg also receive his blessing (such as MIND CONTROL: EM "Non-Lethal" Weapons Target/Programmed Celebrity Stalker Diana Napolis vs Satanist Michael Aquino, San Diego Union-Tribune, etal.) and Mr. Constantine, like Ms. Napolis, reckons he's been under electronic attack for a decade. In addition he attempts to perform something that lay people struggle with; to present the CIA as being chock-full of cunning, all knowing, extraordinarily smart individuals, possessing advanced (and possibly Nazi-derived) high technology, who are able to conceal their nefarious activities in a world of digital mobile phones with cameras. This conflicts with the routine stories of daftness and lack of judgment, notably by senior CIA managers, that suggests the organisation is chock-full of dozy morons. Pushing the ultra-right's agenda though causes Mr. Constantine no sleepless nights. Even the MTP project, to find the hidden tunnels at Mcmartin, had some 'dodgy' connections that he was willing to ignore;

During the course of the MTP, Ted Gunderson, the former FBI agent who coordinated that project, had political ties to right-wing groups that espouse bizarre conspiracy theories to further their political agendas. Gunderson's credibility as an objective participant is severely diminished by a reported past history of questionable or false claims (see Conclusion). Gunderson's credibility is clouded further by an apparent conflict of interest due to a romantic association between himself and Jackie McGauley prior to and during the project.
(Source: Site Contamination By Manhattan Tunnel Project, IPT Journal, volume 7 1995)

Even a former FBI agent didn't quite get around to ensuring the 'findings' were sufficiently photographed.

Such concerns weren't going to trouble Mr. Constantine though, and anyone who doubts the 'evidence' is an obvious satanist and/or paedophile.

The opportunity came in April, 1990 with permission from the new owner of the preschool to search for the tunnels before he demolished the building and redeveloped the property. These soiled but solid citizens managed to find what the district attorney had disclaimed: solid, scientific evidence that someone had not only dug tunnels under the preschool, but also had taken the trouble to try to undo them.
(Source: Alex Constantin's Blacklist - Ritual Abuse)

The tunnels were't actually found, but Dr. Stickel reckons he found definitive evidence that tunnels were present, and it has to be assumed that either magic or Satan was involved in filling them in without any neighbours, who after the allegations about events at the abandoned Daycare Centre, would be expected to notice the presence of a mechanical digger that would have to be used for quite some time to fill in the numerous and substantial (but unfortunately un-photographed evidence of even the traces) tunnels that were alleged, let alone the somewhat vast quantities of soil that would have to be delivered.

Bearing in mind that many of the conspiracy theories promoted by Mr. Constantine are lifted directly from ultra-right sources, it might be conceived that the Left would, at least occasionally, perhaps protest that he doesn't represent modern Left thought.

Such though is the nature of the modern US Left, that Mind Control conspiracy theory has been almost entirely adopted by the modern Left elite as being absolutely and unquestionably true, and there is not a single instance of opposition to Mr. Constantine from any other significant individual who would identify themselves as being 'Leftist' or 'liberal'. Mr. Constantine's work in advocating for the SRA Myth is routinely reprinted on ultra-right Christian Fundamentalist web sites, such as HenryMakow.com - exposing feminism and the new world order. As with Ms. Campbell OBE, he has managed the seemingly impossible; to engage the Left with the ultra-right, so that ultra-right conspiracy theories pierce into the heart of the Left, burdening it with a baggage of religious-inspired paranoia that renders rational thought impossible and betrays the primary role of the Left - to challenge fascist thought and assaults on the socially disadvantaged.

Examples of how the paranoid delusions of conspiracy theories that first infected the Right wing, and then passed, effortlessly via conduits such as Ms. Campbell OBE and Alex Constantine on to the body politic of the Left, and then, enhanced, back to the ultra-Right can be found on the Henry Makow site mentioned above. Rather than having deconstructed the SRA Myth, the Left in the US and UK encouraged it to prosper, and in doing so, have fed the bizarre fantasies of a new generation of ultra-right True Believers, whose ranks seem to be forever growing and incorporate delusions that make even those of David Icke look (relatively) tame. On the Henry Makow site, amongst such 'creative' (sic) works as The Devil's Work: Feminism and the Elite Depopulation Agenda and the The Myth of Nazi Persecution of Gays is an article that perhaps crystallises the essence of what Mr. Constantine and Ms. Campbell OBE have managed to achieve.

In Is New Oz PM Head of Satanist Lodge? by Henry Makow (Ph.D) in true 'Nigel Tufnell' mode, everyone is "turned up to 11". Makow rages that new(ish) Welsh-born Australian Prime Minster Julia Gillard is a lesbian, Communist and Satanist, all in the same sentence, and equally worse "Gillard voted for legalising the abortion pill RU486 and for stem cell research, which both became law", which it seems, in ultra-right religious circles, is about as low as you can go.

And so, day by day, the bizarre world of Web-hosted conspiracy myths continues to grow, a visual legacy of Ms. Campbell OBE's work throughout the last three decades, and Mr. Constantines throughout the last two.

Belief in the Mind Control version of the SRA Myth entails taking-on belief in the entire worldview that accompanies it. In this world, 'victims' of the SRA Myth can be fully-programmable robots, easily tasked to turn into highly-trained killing machines, crack espionage spies, determined suicides, or simply enthusiastic sex slaves, with just a word. Accordingly SRA Myth therapists and advocates for the Myth reckon it is vital to avoid the risk of accidentally triggering a Mind Controlled subject; for fear that they will instantly turn into a mindless automation;

The Trigger-Word doctrine is perhaps the most pernicious of the rumours surrounding the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth. Anyone believing in SRAM must, perforce believe to an extent in 'trigger words'. Trigger words which enable Satanists to stop therapists from getting at truth which doesn't exist from children who don't know anything. Trigger Words which stop adult victim impostors from telling all the truth (and therefore justify their inability to provide checkable evidence to prove their fantasies). Trigger Words which stop pro-Sramists from talking to anyone who is not entirely aligned with their own beliefs in case they are struck dumb or insensible by 'Trigger-Words' from Satanic Sympathisers (leading to a complete rejection of any pro-Occult lobby information and a one-way passage of biased anti-Satanic data).

So prevalent has this ridiculous belief become that in the latest 2009 Satan Seminar one of the key pro-Sramists Sue Richardson, originator of CAUSE (a protection group for the clinicians who were publicly abominated for their idiotic and dangerous activities which caused the Cleveland Scandal in the mid 1980s and which was a fore-runner of the SRAM) and long-time member of RAIN (the Ritual Abuse Information Network) makes sure to pacify other believers by actually stating on the overview of her keynote lecture on Trigger Words and Mind Control that no actual examples of triggers would be used in her lecture. If she didn't give this assurance then of course no other pro-SRAMists would attend for fear of being turned into Satanic Zombies in their seats by exposure to them!

Their belief in the possibility of trigger-words means that one is constantly supposed to be susceptible to influence by conspirators whom one can't identify and by the very nature of the lies surrounding the SRAM could be colleagues, policemen, doctors, lawyers etc. These people may say or show you something which you cannot immediately identify as dangerous but which may turn out to be a 'trigger-word' or symbol which will not only bend your mind but may even lead you to your doom. And if any genuine occult group or association attempts to contradict a social worker then they consider that they have provoked one of the 'Satanic Outreach' organisations then their paranoia soars to new heights with every statement and action they take.
(Source: Satanic Trigger Words and Post Hypnotic Suggestion - SAFF)

For SRA Myth advocates and feminist and religious fundamentalist psychologists and therapists specialising in treating 'survivors', the cunning perpetrators of Mind Control appear to have a stunning range of options available - though the vast majority of those accused of SRA are socially deprived and invariably somewhat short short of finances;

Day Three: Recognising the Patriarchal Paedophile Cult;Recognising Spiritual Evil and how it interferes with the therapy process; Recognising Dissociated and Disembodied Foreign Human Spirits and Installed Personalities.

The therapist will be introduced to the Patriarchal Paedophile Cult [PPC] with a brief history, and understanding of basic theology, typical control of personalities and some guidelines for recognising PPC in a client. Since PPC is much more complex than either TSor MFC, considerable material will be given concerning the eradication of identity and the steps necessary to allow liberation from its control and point the path toward the co-creation of the self.

Differentiating between these various systems is necessary as most often more than one system exists within a client and each must be handled differently. What is helpful for the removal of one system may reinforce the control of another group and result in deeper bondage.

The therapist will be introduced to the fear-producing arena of spiritual evil within understanding that eliminates the terror of dealing with it. Understanding how it interferes with the client, the therapist and the therapy process is essential to diminishing its effect so the healing can continue.

The therapist will be introduced to the very complex field of dissociated and disembodied foreign human spirits including their level of attachment to the client, how they can interfere with therapy and ways in which they can be successfully disentangled from the authentic humanity.

The therapist will be introduced to installed personalities [programming alone in charge of the body without humanity involved], the types of them that have been encountered, how they are installed and guidelines on deactivating and removing them.

The therapist will be presented with a diagnostic tool to differentiate between authentic human personalities, spiritual evil taking over the body, foreign human spirits in possession of the body, and installed personalities.
(Source: Agenda for Mind Control Programming Seminars With Steve Oglevie, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia March 5th-8th, 2010)

Initially 'Mind control' and MPD/DID SRA advocates were generally hostile to alien abduction advocates who also employed the same rhetoric. However by the end of the 1990's the two groups had begun to combine, perhaps due to the influence of TV shows such as The X Files. This assisted in getting the current version of the SRA Myth, detailed below, to a wider audience. Once again anyone who denies or questions the existence of this version of the SRA Myth is declared a satanist/paedophile and/or government stooge. This version of the Myth has some supporters in the secret court judicial system in the UK, which allows testimony from 'experts' engaged in advocating for the SRA Myth, and MPD/DID. It isn't clear how many politicians, notably in the Labour Party, believe in it, or how many Metropolitan Police officers, who have attended training courses promoting it, actually come away with a thorough belief in its existence, or if any such belief extends into the alien mind-control variant of the Myth. Belief in the Mind Control version of the SRA Myth is believed to be rife amongst the social work community in the UK, typified by the publication of articles promoting the 'Myth in 2005 by the social workers online (previously in print) publication Community Care.

Having adopted the 'Classic' version, then the 'Mind Control' version, then (marginally) the alien abduction version of the SRA Myth, the next step-change in belief in the 'Myth would require a jump so high that the Left and liberal elite would struggle to demonstrate whole-hearted support. Realising that right-wing conspiracy theorist David Icke was in essence pursuing the same theories that he himself was presenting to the Left, even Alex Constantine tried to emphasise that he wasn't willing to follow the same route, though his support for Diana Napolis indicates he is more than halfway there already;

I have felt, since first hearing of Mr. Icke, that he was put out there to discredit me specifically. His conspiracist sci-fi confabulations, or "research," tracks my own themes (mind control, political assassinations, fascist globalism, etc.) in a grossly distorted form.

He boosted my writing on the Simpson case whole, for instance, and mixed it up, defiled my research, with "Lizard Aliens." He's a repulsive parody of myself ...

I've attempted to read the capricious, wrong-headed "research" of David "Jesus" Icke, and found it an amateurish omelette of used conspiracy theories concocted by the John Birch Society and other far-right groups to discredit legitimate research on fascism, which is inherently conspiratorial. Most people, dumbed down by "mainstream" media, can't tell the difference, and Icke takes advantage of that fact to peddle stupid, far-right conspiracy theories and "alien" invasions.

Icke - who took up conspiracy writing, c. 1990 - about the time the CIA silenced me with constant harassment, torture and death threats - is tailor-made to cast a pall on my own field, my own work, and he's been doing it for years. - AC
(Source: David Icke is a Neo-Nazi (Part Three): My Shadow, or the "Turd in the Punch Bowl" - Alex Constantine, 26 April 2009)

Through his copious support of the SRA Myth, Mr. Constantine can legitimately call himself a True Believer in the presence of Christian Fundamentalists.

And it is David Icke's (perhaps the 'spawn' of Alex Constantine and Ms. Campbell OBE taken to an inevitable conclusion) version of the SRA Myth that will be discussed next.

Lizard SRA

This is the 'full blown' version of SRA, with all of the attributes of the Classic and Mind Control Myth predecessors. In this version though the Mind Control is being performed by humans and aliens either by proxy, or, in its most extreme form, through full-sized 12' lizards (or reptiles to be precise). Major public figures are considered part of the 'Illuminati' and are part of a huge alien-driven conspiracy to enslave humans (it is never explained how anyone escapes to relate their stories). Satanists are being constantly battled-with in an enormous confrontation that somehow escapes the attention of those with camera-equipped mobile phones. Key public figures are either actual aliens or under their control, and engage in SRA either as tradition, or to inflict their control on children. Those accused include Tony Blair, George Bush Jnr, Barack Obama and Elton John. Satan also appears regularly, an ally to the aliens.

This version originated from within the alien/reptile conspiracy lobby beginning in the early 21st century, but the seeds for it came from the perception that the Mind Control version of the SRA Myth had been adopted so enthusiastically by the Left in both the US and UK, that really 'anything goes'. Diana Napolis can also be recognised as a facilitator for this theory, managing to first adopt the Classic SRA Myth, then the Mind Control version, before finally moving to the alien conspiracy version in all its glory. Many feminist web sites advocating the SRA Myth continue to refer to Ms. Napolis as an 'expert' in the field of SRA/Mind Control. The modern conspiracy theorists can trace their legacy to a combination of the long-standing Lunar Landing doubters, and the 9/11 conspiracy theorists, whose beliefs, particularly the anti-Semitism one of 9/11 being caused by a combination of the CIA and Mossad, have been enthusiastically endorsed by the modern Left. Indeed in the last two decades the Left has it appears, become more amenable to adopting a number of modern conspiracy theories whose origins began with the 'wing-nut' right-wing community, or directly from religious fundamentalism.

The 'lizard' version of SRA represents the first instance when the feminist conduit through which extreme right-wing conspiracy theories were able to pass effortlessly onto the general body of Leftist and liberal persuasion, may have encountered some resistance. The 'victimology' majority of the feminist community have, in the main, openly endorsed this version of the 'Myth, following preliminary preparation for it from sources such as feminist academic Jodi Dean, whose 1998 book Aliens in America: Conspiracy Cultures from Outer-space to Cyberspace allied 'shithouse rat crazy' theories as being genuine symbols for the fight against repression and patriarchy. Using the alien abduction/12'-high lizard version of the SRA Myth, 'victimologists' can portray women not only as victims of a patriarchal, male-dominated society, but also now as victims of a vast global and galactic, satanic alien conspiracy against them.

Once again anyone who denies or questions the existence of this version of the SRA Myth is declared a satanist/paedophile and/or alien or (additionally now) under the command of aliens/12'-high lizards. It should be noted though that the feminist community has little control over how this version of the Myth is generated and promoted, though it seems likely that the likes of David Icke will make some efforts to engage with them in the future, perhaps recognising that they are perhaps the most willing section of society to take on conspiracy theories from unusual sources.

And I got a call from a lady in America who is the head of Parents Against Ritual Abuse. And I was talking to her, again, not about shape-shifting reptilians, but about the ritual abuse of children in America, and she said during this conversation, "Do you know, about 12 of my clients have actually reported that, during the rituals, they've seen the participants turn into reptiles." And, she said, "I've always taken it to be that they're dressing up to confuse them."
(Source: The Biggest Secret - An Interview With David Icke - 1999)

Encouraged perhaps by the wild imaginings of the religious fundamentalists and feminists, the conspiracy theorists see no reason for restraint, enabling the SRA Myth to remain, as it was in the 1980's and 1990's, unchecked;

When the Chitauli gets sick this way, a young girl, a virgin, is usually kidnapped by the servant of the Chitauli and is brought to the underground place. There the girl is bound, hand and foot, and wrapped in a golden blanket, and is forced to lie next to the Chitauli, the sick Chitauli, week after week, being well fed and well cared for, but kept bound hand and foot, and only released at certain times to relieve herself. It is said that after the sick Chitauli shows signs of getting better, then the human girl is manipulated into trying to escape. She is given a chance to escape, a chance which is really not a chance. Then, when the girl escapes, she runs, but she is pursued over a long distance underground by flying creatures which are made of metal, and she is recaptured when she reaches the height of fear and exhaustion.

Then she is laid on an altar, usually a rough rock, flat on top. Then, she is cruelly sacrificed, sir, and her blood is drunk by the sick Chitauli, which then recovers. But, the girl must not be sacrificed until she is very, very, very frightened, because if she is not frightened, it is said that her blood will not save the sick Chitauli. It must be the blood of a very frightened human being, indeed.

Now, this habit of chasing a victim was also practiced by ordinary African cannibals, sir. In Zulu-land, in the last century, there were cannibals who used to eat people, and their descendants, even today, will tell you, if they trust you, that the flesh of the human being who has been frightened and made to run over a great distance, while trying to escape, tastes far better than the flesh of someone who was simply killed.

How do they do it? Well, sad to say, there are sexual rituals involving demonic beings known as sucubus and incubus. These reptilian beings densify during the slaughter of a young virgin girl, no older than 12, but menstruating. That's the reason for the growth hormones in milk - to produce more menstruating young women in western countries. It was getting tough - as the CIA continued its Satanic expansion of itself into every town, city, and hamlet in the North and Southern Americas, to fill the needs of the Beast. Plus, keeping their own undead here, requires a whole catalogue of young children.
(Source: Human sacrifice quotes - URL references removed)

Unlike the Mind Control version of the SRA Myth, the 'lizard' variant hasn't made any perceivable impact amongst the US and UK judiciary, politicians, or bodies such as the Metropolitan Police force in London. The themes of "Satanic child abuse Mind Control" though, promoted by both 'modern' feminists and religious fundamentalists has certainly been adopted by the lizard conspiracy theorists - and indeed David Icke has presented on the subject himself, with a lecture entitled Satanic Child Abuse Mind Control (14 YouTube videos);



A good example of the 'battle' with the seeming never-satisfied satanists from the current generation of advocates is detailed in the Internet posting below;

Closing Satanic Killing Fields

By Don Croft http://educate-yourself.org/dc/closingsatanicfields23oct03.shtml Oct. 23, 2003

Last week, Laozu came over to tell us that a lot of bad ch'i was coming off of Tomer Butte, which borders the southeast part of our valley. It's one of the peaks he can see from where he lives, ten miles to the west of us. Carol and I figured that the satanists, whom we'd driven away from all the other vortices in the region, were now going there to do their ritual murders.

We made arrangements with Diane Johnson, who owns the Latah County Landfill next to Tomer Butte and owns a cloud-buster, to access the little mountain from the landfill, as the butte was surrounded by private land. It's quite pretty and typical of many of the buttes in the American Northwest: long, gentle grassy slopes topped with a craggy, pine-covered peak.

I figured that we'd find some evidence of satanic activity somewhere near the top and I wasn't disappointed. There's a mound of earth and charcoal that Kelly said was the focal point and source of the strongest DOR and he buried several of his water-based, water-energised Towerbusters strategically to vector that energy back to it's pristine, vital state.

As far as we can tell, he's developed the best use for energised water to date. In each deployment he's brought vortices to a level of vitality that we've been unable to achieve with simple originate. It remains to be seen what relative effect his devices have when they are the primary gifting tech because in each case except yesterday's he's gifted vortices which others had already gifted with ordinary orgonite.

As we were walking back down the mountain to the truck Kelly could see that the two energies were vying with each other for dominance. I was a little surprised that there was so much resistance but then I realised that the now totally defeated satanists in Moscow were trying hard to maintain that DOR field. We'd taken away all of their other ritual sites and other real estate assets and freed most of the trapped spirits they were tapping for DOR.

By the time we'd gotten back to the paved road leading back to Moscow (not to be confused with the town of that name in Russia) he started laughing out loud and I knew that the vortex had entirely reverted to a healthy spin and was vital again. Kelly's a very reliable energy sensitive.

Carol was tracking our efforts from town and knew exactly when Kelly had done the trick. She said that particular mound of earth and charcoal near the summit is where they cremate the bodies of their victims. There'd been a fire there very recently.

I bet your town has as many of these murderous cretins per capita as ours does. The biggest concentration of satanic covens is in the Bible Belt, by the way, because fundamentalists, perhaps because they're 'already saved,' and have no discernible consciences frequently indulge in blood sacrifices when not spouting gibberish and resonating rhythmically against their pews.

As I see it, run of the mill satanists are bad enough to work directly for MI6/CIA and NSA but not disciplined enough and are usually dope addicts. Without an army of these mayhem generators in their thrall the secret police agencies would be dead in the water, so we all need to take care of business locally. Satanists are easy meat for even a Succor Punch, of course.

Do you have a clue how dirty this world order is? Now that Cbswork has joined us on EFF perhaps we'll get some fruitful lessons again.

~Don
(Source: Closing satanic killing fields by Don Croft)

A lengthy discussion about the continuing belief in the SRA Myth and dissociaton/MPD (Multiple Personality Disorder) which is claimed by almost exclusively white, middle-aged women born into privilage in the Wester World - and the psychotherapy professionals who foster such beliefs can be found at Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS Part Three, Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS Part Four and Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS Part Five

Does she still believe?

Does Ms. Campbell OBE still believe in the SRA Myth? That question can't be answered with certainty - she is unwilling to be interviewed on the subject and chooses her public engagements carefully. When she is interviewed by journalists, it must be presumed that either it is agreed beforehand that she will not respond to questions on the subject, or the interviewers are of a nature not to pursue the questions that virtually any other journalist in the world would give their eyeteeth to ask - such as Kirsty Wark. Ms. Campbell OBE is perhaps only too aware that a "question from the floor" might see someone only too versed in the collusion with religious fundamentalists.

One sizeable clue to the question though was provided in her August 2009 article for once again, The Guardian; Jaycee Lee Dugard and the kidnapper's narrative. Once again the article required severe censorship of the readers public commentators by The Guardian editors, but included some comments about both the poor quality of writing by Ms. Campbell OBE, the inherent racism displayed in the article, and the fact that The Guardian had ever commissioned the piece;

Is this, like, a bad example from a creative writing workshop at a community college?
...
It's a fucking abysmal article, written in an nanosecond, without thought or structure or any respect towards its readers' intellect or understanding, tagged together by an ego so far up its own arse it needs a soil stack out the eye socket to see if its raining or not.

You know it too don't you. It's fucking awful.
(Source: Sample of uncensored public comments about Jaycee Lee Dugard and the kidnapper's narrative by Beatrix Campbell, published in 'Comment is Free' The Guardian 28th August 2009)

Deep within the article though Ms. Campbell OBE wrote;

The great child psychiatrist Roland Summit once said that the only person besides the perpetrator who needs to keep the crime secret is the victim.
(Source: Jaycee Lee Dugard and the kidnapper's narrative by Beatrix Campbell, published in 'Comment is Free' The Guardian 28th August 2009)

The 'great' child psychiatrist Roland Summit was a leading advocate of the SRA Myth, having been involved in the scandal of the McMartin pre-school "test run" for false allegations of SRA in the USA. His principle contribution to the SRA Myth was to the Believe The Children campaign, which insisted that anything a child said, however preposterous, should be believed as being nothing other than truth - in effect mirroring the 'believe the children' obsession of the Salem witch-trial advocates;

Summit is a prime believer in organised widespread satanic ritual abuse. Despite the complete absence of any objective evidence from police investigation of the McMartin Pre-school case, and the acquittal of all accused, he has published articles arguing that satanism really was practiced there, and that the tunnels existed despite the police's inability to locate them. In the last decade he has been one of the primary professionals endorsing the viewpoint that "children never lie about abuse" and has close associations with the "Believe the Children" organisation.
(Source: Satanic Media Watch And News Exchange - Quotes on Roland Summit)

Referencing Roland Summit, so strongly associated with the SRA Myth, even in the knowledge that many online Guardian readers would indeed "google" his name, may not have been a wise decision. Yet it revealed both the continuing obsession by Ms. Campbell OBE with advocates of the SRA Myth, and perhaps more importantly the possibility that The Guardian editorial board and trustees are themselves still entranced by the religious fundamentalist obsession with SRA. There is no evidence that The Guardian monitor Ms. Campbell OBE's writing - for minimum journalistic standards, accuracy, and in particular to prevent The Guardian being used as a vehicle for pushing religious fundamentalist theories long proven false. Whilst Ms. Campbell had declared Professor La Fontaine and Dr. Elizabeth Newson as being willing promoters of paedophilia, due to their flimsy (and denied) association with the thoughts of a vague academic, how would Ms. Campbell OBE respond to the charge that she still trumpeted a child psychologist who had appeared in a video for a right-wing christian fundamentalist group, with a less than conventional attitude to the burnings and hangings of women in the witchcraft trials of the 13th-17th centuries? Her response isn't yet known.

An insight into how seemingly secular "experts" and feminists became entwined with the extremist religious fundamentalist community, in the case below including the aforementioned Roland Summit, was described at length by Keir Cuhulein (his real moniker being Canadian Police Officer and pagan Wiccan official Detective Constable Charles Ennis) who attended a huge presentation by leading Christian Fundamentalist pastor and media personality Bob Larson (he appeared on Oprey Winfrey's show when she was briefly a firm advocate for the SRA Myth) on the 27th of April, 1991, at the Glad Tidings Temple in Vancouver. It was billed as a screening of his new video In the Name of Satan.

In the past, Robert Larson, whose 'shows' were attended by feminists, recruited to give validity to his claims that Satan walked the Earth and was being helped by Satanist engaged in ritual abuse of children, had given an insight into the nature of the fundamentalists that the feminist community had chosen to collude with, in his 1989 book Larson's New Book of Cults:

"An estimated 9 million women and girls met death by fire between the years of 1300 and 1700 for practising witchcraft. In the eighteenth century, 19 suspected witches were killed in Salem, Massachusetts. Despite such extreme countermeasures, the occult rituals of witchcraft are widely practised today around the world. No longer threatened with death, witches enjoy a degree of respectability in America's lenient New Age society."


It appears the feminists and secular "experts" such as the 'great' Roland Summit, who appeared in Larson's films were quite happy to appear, as long as it helped their own agendas;

Bonnie Bell, the backup host for Larson's Christian radio show "Talk Back", was the first person to appear on the stage, wearing a black dress with a pattern of pink hearts on it. Bell had worked for Larson for 5 and a half years at that time. It was Bell that started the ball rolling: Larson did not appear until after the video was shown, in order to capitalise on the tape and make a dramatic entrance. Bell began by announcing that this was Larson's 17th presentation of this movie on this tour. Bell then called up a volunteer from the audience, who displayed the following books and tapes by Bob Larson while Bell did a sales pitch for them:

  • Larson's video tape Metal Mania.
  • Larson's video tape In The Name of Satan.
  • A video tape of Bob Larson's latest Satanism Symposium.
  • The Bob Larson Live video tape.
  • Larson's book Tough Talk on Tough Issues.
  • The latest edition of Larson's Book of Cults.
  • Larson's book Satanism: The Seduction of America's Youth.
  • Larson's book Straight Answers on the New Age.
Bell informed the audience that these books and tapes were on sale in the lobby and joked that "Christians were supposed to buy books on Satanism," indicating Larson's books. I noted that Bell implied to us that the version of In the Name of Satan that we were about to see was an abbreviated version, stating that "the full length version will be on sale in the lobby." This proved interesting, in light of what happened later.

Next Bell introduced the sponsor of Larson's Vancouver appearance, the owner of radio station KARI, a Christian radio station based in Blaine, Washington.

Bell then stated:

"What you are about to see is not a theological statement on Satan. What you are about to see was designed and produced as a teaching video. Many of the police officers you will see in this video are not Christians. We don't want you looking for Satan behind every doorstep."

Bell then contradicted her opening line about theological statements by making the following pronouncement, which brought cheers from the audience:

"God is going to war, folks! There is a few skirmishes left!"

At this point they started the video In the Name of Satan. One of the most notable features of this In The Name of Satan, as compared with similar videos produced by other organisations, is that while in most others the name of the person speaking on screen is identified with subtitles at least once, this was not done in Larson's video. This would make it difficult for those unfamiliar with the speakers in this film to identify them and verify their stories. Most of them were easy for me to identify however. Besides Bob Larson, the following individuals appeared in this film:

  • Laurel Rose Wilson, better known as "Lauren Stratford," a notable fraud discussed elsewhere in this series. Wilson/Stratford, based in Bakersfield, California, is the author of the discredited book Satan's Underground.
  • Sergeant Randall Emon of the Baldwin Park (CA) PD. Randy's name has come up repeatedly in this series as he used to be very active in disseminating information on occult crime. He has since recanted and no longer supports Satanic conspiracy theories. Emon was the only police officer who appeared in this film, which is interesting if you recall Bonnie Bell's earlier remarks about the number of Christian police officers in this video. In this video he states: "Satanism is as addictive as a narcotic."
  • A "ritual abuse survivor" verbally identified as "Esther." I'm pretty sure that this was Esther Cantella, author of the tape "A Witness for Healing" who appeared on the 8 March 1990 "Inside Edition" television show. Cantella appeared in a seminar in Colorado on 6/7 October, 1989 with the next two individuals on this list.
  • Linda Young, RNC, BSN, a therapist at the Columbine Psychiatric Center who appears to be related to the next person on our list. Young appeared in the aforementioned seminar with Cantella and Dr. Young in 1989. In this video Linda makes the statement: "Most of the world won't believe these people. But I believe them."
  • Dr Walter C. Young, a psychiatrist at the Columbine Psychiatric Center. Walter appeared with Linda Young and Esther Cantella at the aforementioned Colorado seminar in 1989. Dr Young has appeared in films by Cavalcade Productions, who we discussed in an earlier article in this series.
  • Myra Riddell, vice president of the Los Angeles County Commission for Women and chairperson of the LACCW's Ritual Abuse Task Force. This "Task Force" includes in its membership such people as Lauren Stratford's therapist, Lyn Laboriel (who last I heard continues to believe Wilson even though she has been revealed to be a fake) and the next person on our list, Dr. Gould. Riddell states in Larson's video that she believes that Satanists are setting up preschools in order to recruit children.
  • Dr. Catherine Gould, a California based therapist who has authored a list entitled "Signs & Symptoms of Ritualistic Child Abuse" which has appeared in countless manuals on occult crime that I have seen over the years.
  • Dr. Roland Summit, a therapist who appeared in Geraldo Rivera's awful special "Exposing Satan's Underground" TV special. Summit is based in Torrance, California, at the HVD/UCLA Medical Center. Summit's name appeared on Larry Jones's "File 18" subscriber list and has appeared in two of "File 18's" newsletters. The LACCW, mentioned above, supports Summit.
(Source: Evangelists [4] published 11th November 2002 in Witchvox)

Though his empire has somewhat diminished, Bob Larson continues to preach, with a radio show and his own TV production company. Here he is, exorcising the 'demon of homosexuality' from a seemingly willing volunteer;



Another, perhaps reasonable means of evaluating if Bea Campbell OBE still believes in the SRA Myth, even in the 21st Century, is to determine if she still associates with its advocates. Two examples in recent years suggest that her continued belief in the religious fundamentalist vision of evil rife in the nation remains as consistent and strong as ever, despite the constant references to her association with the obsession in amongst comments from Guardian Online subscribers.

The 13 October 2006 saw an event sponsored by Community Care - no stranger to past advocacy for the SRA Myth, and reconstruct a charity with no previous known enthusiasm for the fundamentalist message. A New Era in Safeguarding Children? Research, debate and reflection was held at The Camden Centre, London. The list of speakers included;

  • Jan Horwath, profession of child welfare at Sheffield University
  • Beatrix Campbell, journalist and activist
  • Graham Hopkins, practice editor, Community Care
  • Camila Batmanghelidjh, director of Kids Company
  • Renuka Dent, director of The Bridge Consultancy
  • Barry Raynes, director of Reconstruct
  • Norma Howes, psychotherapist
(Source: A New Era in Safeguarding Children? Agenda)

The list over seven names contained about as distinct a contrast as could be reasonably expected; indeed it is difficult to understand how Camila Batmanghelidjh, who has highlighted the cover-ups that occur when children in care are abused, could have possibly have managed to be in the presence of Ms. Campbell OBE.

Nonetheless the list did have a bias in one particular fashion; it included two of the most public of supporters for the SRA Myth; Ms. Campbell OBE herself, and, discussed already Norma Howes. Ms. Howes commitment to the SRA Myth is extensively documented in publications and online. A example of her enthusiasm for pursuing 'satanists' is detailed in a summary by the Sub-culture Alternative Freedom Foundation (SAFF) of attenders of the 2001 'Satan Seminar' (actually called 'The Dark Side of the Rainbow - confronting ritual abuse in the twenty first century', held at Reading University in September 2001);

Ms. Howes was a key organiser in the first Satan Seminars in the early 1990s and is a leading member of RAINS. In Spring 1990 at the height of the Satan Scare she gave this professional opinion to a child protection unit involved in a case thought to have Satanic connections:

'It is now known that satanic practices involve the physical, emotional and sexual assault of children taken to meetings. If the family is involved in any way in these activities the children are clearly at risk'.

Outcome: The case was dropped. It turned out that the family concerned were completely innocent, the meetings they attended were for Morris Dancing!

Speaking about one of her first Satan Seminars, (also held in Reading) , Norma Howes gave an interview in March 1990 which was published in God's Word Now', a religious missionary tract intended for distribution in the street by members of Prophetic World Ministries, a wacky fundamentalist Christian group fronted at that time by Andrew Boyd (a key figure in the campaign to try to establish the idea of Satanic Ritual Abuse and regular contact of Valerie Sinason and Maureen Davies [ Maureen glowingly reviewed Boyd's book on Satanic Abuse in a fundamentalist activist's magazine] ). Under the headline CHILD VICTIMS OF BLACK MAGIC RITUALS, we are treated to a list of circumstantial evidence (all of which were disproven in the course of time) and then Howes, billed as 'the conference organiser' is reported as saying::

' The conference reacted with a sense of overwhelming horror. We were stunned.''
(Source: Quotes from The Keynote Speakers at the 2001 Satan Seminar)

It seems inconceivable that with a list of key speakers published in advance, Ms. Campbell OBE didn't both to check the nature of her co-attendees, or didn't think, 'hang on, how's this going to look?' Nor for that matter did Community Care, with it's past history of support for the religious fundamentalist-derived Myth have any misgivings of having the event feature two of the 'leading lights' of the SRA Myth.

In March 2010, having only recently slipped in a reference to the 'great' Roland Summit, Ms. Campbell OBE didn't hesitate in referencing another, more recent advocate of the SRA Myth; Dr. Liz Kelly, in an article dismissing the Stern report into the issues of rape convictions and the perceived problems with false allegations. Ms. Campbell OBE was dismissive of the report, quoting the Professor of Sexualised Violence at London Metropolitan University, and Director of the Child and Woman Abuse Studies Unit (CWASU);

She has done a disservice to the ministers. This could have been a great moment, says sexual violence expert Professor Liz Kelly – a moment to match Sir William Macpherson's critique of institutional racism in the police. It has been squandered.
(Source: Stern morphs into Pollyanna - The Guardian online, Comment is Free, by Beatrix Campbell OBE, 16 March 2010)

What Ms. Campbell OBE failed to mention was that Dr. Kelly too was an advocate for the SRA Myth, and has declined to date to retract her opinion. In 1997, by which time the only people still trumpeting the 'Myth were the most fanatical 'burn-the-witch!' elements from the religious fundamentalist community, and the most committed of colluding feminists, Dr. Kelly, together with Kate Cook had taken exception to a paper by health Director John Paley entitled ‘Satanist abuse and alien abduction: A comparative analysis theorising temporal lobe activity as a possible connection between anomalous memories’ that details parallels between SRA 'victims' and alien abduction 'victims' Unusually their response The Abduction of Credibility: A Reply to John Paley, was published in the same volume of The British Journal of Social Work at the very point in time that even that publications editors was starting to suspect that they'd been 'had' by the fundamentalists. The abstract for Dr Kelly's paper neatly summarises the author's views;


This response takes issue with John Paley's paper ‘Satanist Abuse and Alien Abduction’ (this issue) in a number of areas: his definition of Satanic ritual abuse (SRA); the parallels he draws between SRA and alien abduction; his assertions that there is no evidence of SRA and that accounts of SRA can be viewed as urban legends; and his ‘temporal lobe connection’ conclusion.
Naturally it would be unfair to state that Ms. Campbell OBE was even aware of Dr. Kelly and Ms. Cook's paper and their support (at least at the time, or anytime since) for the religious fundamentalist-driven obsession, and that she has never had any SRA-derived communication with Dr. Kelly, ever, in the past. If that is the (quite reasonable) case then it perhaps highlights the propensity the feminist community had during the SRA Myth years in colluding with the fundamentalist sector, and just how difficult it is to avoid referencing its supporters, even amongst academia.

Dr. Liz Kelly had previously co-authored the 1993 papers Organised abuse: a review of the literature and Demons, devils and denial: towards a feminist understanding of ritual/satanic abuse (Trouble and Strife, 22; 33-3) and Beyond Belief: Beyond Help? (Child Abuse Review Vol.4, No. 2. 1993)
all with leading 'Satan Hunter' Dr. Sara Scott whose collusion with religious fundamentalists at the time of the height of the SRA Myth craze was enthusiastic and anything but 'hands-free'.

After Broxtowe, Ms. Campbell OBE's partner, Judith (Dawson) Jones worked for a short time at the Child and Woman Abuse Studies Unit (CWASU), supervised by Dr. Kelly.

Journalism & facts

A frequent criticism of Ms. Campbell is that she frequently opinions without reference to facts. In November 2009 though she attempted to write an article that depended hugely on a specific document. For several decades she has written about Northern Ireland, notably with huge support of republican viewpoints. The ongoing peace process is overseen by the IMC - The Independent Monitoring Commission. The IMC produces regular reports of its activities and the progress of the parties that it monitors, notably paramilitary groups. In The Loyalist threat to Northern Ireland - by Beatrix Campbell, The Guardian 5th November 2009 Ms. Campbell determined that the IMC's most recent report had concluded;

So, is peace in Northern Ireland still threatened by the republicans?

No, says the IMC.
She then proceeded to write about how the report detailed that the republican paramilitary were no conceivable threat to the peace process.

Unfortunately the report said no such thing, and a host of Guardian online readers promptly took the time to examine the report and detail precisely what it said. Here about the republican paramilitary group, the Real Irish Republican Army;

2.35 We conclude from this that both factions of RIRA remain in a state of heightened activity; that they are at present determined and ruthless; and that they will not hesitate to use violence, particularly but not only against members of the security forces, and will not hesitate to kill. They are committed to undermining the peace process and community-based policing and present a very serious threat.
(Source: Page 14 of 22nd report of the IMC

Though Ms. Campbell attracted an huge amount of deadly-precise opposition, The Guardian, having seemingly allowed it's editorial and journalistic standards to decay so badly in publishing the article, came in for equal critical comment. Once again the commitment The Guardian has persisted-with in it's relationship with Ms. Campbell remains extraordinary, even when it seemingly leaves the newspaper in the gutter of news publishing. Whether by design or due to a technical snag, the Guardian CIF web site is only able to display 50 of the total 106 comments for this article, ensuring that the brief appearance of Ms. Campbell OBE herself, compelled to return to CIF, in a somewhat hopeless attempt to defend her work, is unavailable for viewing.

Ms. Campbell's brief dalliance with 'fact' has few precedents in the past. In her version of the 1987 Cleveland Scandal Unofficial Secrets (1988) - the moment perhaps when child protection in England and Wales took a turn for the worse it would never recover from, the 226 pages of the book are remarkably light on attributable facts. Indeed, lacking an Index and a Bibliography (two 'cardinal sins' for a journalist to commit) the book has a somewhat unastounding 20 notes in all, including one referring to one of Ms. Campbell's own articles, another to a Guardian article, that might have been written by her, and one ibid. Strangely, in the 'Acknowledgements' section, Ms. Campbell's claims the book draws from interviews and 'evidence from the Butler-Sloss inquiry' which should make the notes pages copious (you only need to quote the page number of the inquiry report, or the date and from whom the evidence was heard by the inquiry). For a book that discusses the nature of the facts in the then fresh-in-the-mind Cleveland Scandal, it seems remarkably light on references to...facts. To compound things, there are no footnote/note marks in the text, leaving the reader to try to guess which of the rare notes at the end of a chapter refers to which salient section they might have just read.

Although referring to sickening (and utterly manufactured and untruthful) allegations of mass sexual abuse by buggery of at least 110 Cleveland children, Unofficial Secrets does though paint a picture of a less complicated form of 'patriarchal' sex abuse, when it is simply to be taken on trust (in the absence of footnotes) that men are evil and the paediatricians in the case are true heroes. And even in 1987, with political power still nine years away, the Labour Party hadn't yet given away to the overpowering entreaties of the feminist/religious fundamentalist 'child save' lobby;

The local Labour Party, the dominant political presence in Cleveland, was divided between the traditionalists and the modernisers, the right and the left, and the split over sexual abuse mirrored that division. Middlesbrough MP Stuart Bell was building his constituency into a fortress against a radical wing emerging in the party. The campaigners against child abuse were associated with a challenge to unseat Bell, a right winger, from his safe Parliamentary sear. The local Labour Party never took the debate outside its own ranks, and the elected members of the Labour-controlled county council left the skirmishes to their employees in social services.


Within a year though and those lofty concerns about whether someone was 'left-wing' or 'right-wing' or a 'moderniser' or a 'traditionalist' went out-of-the-window. With the Broxtowe Scandal of that next year (see Judith (Dawson) Jones) then you were either against Satan or for Him.

And there was no middle ground, no 'I think I just need to study the evidence and make up my own mind'. The ceaseless flow of propaganda from right-wing fundamentalists in the US struck a chord, both within their counterparts across the Atlantic, but also with the feminist community; here finally was something that would prove one-and-for-all the inherent evil, no...the Satanic nature of males, families, and the women who had betrayed the feminist cause by continuing to live in such structures, continue to bear and bring-up children, and still, horror upon horrors, continued to live and fight and sometimes even like and love, males. For much of the time the Biblical elements were edited-out, but not always; it was possible for feminist and religious fundamentalist to work together, to root-out witches and satanists, and if sometimes the talk and writings of goblins, the Devil, pentagrams and witches made a few moderate fundamentalists a bit uncomfortable, then that was a fair price for rooting out Evil. Certainly the language of the 'true believers' leading the fight against SRA - namely the bulldozer-like nature of the Christian Fundamentalist Right Wing, never shied away from moderation. Throughout the 'Myth years, the religious fundamentalist community supported by its enthusiastic foot soldiers - the feminist community, who would otherwise have been expected to violently oppose any suggestion that they had become entranced by those who included amongst their number, fanatics who would be quite happy to see the smouldering remains of burnt women in each and every English and Welsh community marketplace.

Women as 'Perpetual Victims'

In 1998 at least one academic, Susan P. Robbins, saw the early signs that a new form of feminism - so-called '3rd wave' feminism that would address some of the burdens that Ms. Campbell OBE's generation of feminists had saddled women with. The feminist vision of females are being 'perpetual victims' - constantly bamboozled by wily 'satanic' males who run rings around them, as they desperately struggle against the evil machinations of the other sex who are constantly plotting to find more and varied ways of abusing them, was starting to grate on many feminists - who identified with the vision of women as dynamic, hugely capable and enterprising - and who weren't going to be either downtrodden or be seen to be downtrodden by the 'other sex'. The theory of MSBP sees a vision of simpering women, desperate to gain the attention from (mostly male) doctors, to the point that they will poison, injure or choke their children, or inflict diseases or conditions on them through means not yet understood by medical science (such as autism - see the entry for Bruno Bettelheim). In the secret court system, women are routinely accused of mental illness - but with no calls for mental health services to be expanded to accommodate for the seeming huge range of 'problems' that women seem prone to.

The bestselling book by leading feminists Laura Davis and Ellen Bass The Courage to Heal: A Guide for Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse (1994) had a fairly simple premise; if you were a woman and felt bad about yourself - then in all likelihood you had been sexually abused by your father when you were young, and you'd forgot all about it (and best to pop down to a therapist who would tell you this). Suddenly new generations of women who thought of themselves only as victims were generated, as feminists openly embraced Sigmund Freuds psychoanalysis in a manner that his advocates could never have imagined.

In the US, the vision of women as nothing more than 'easy' victims of abuse or guile has expanded into huge industries concerned with publishing guides, seminars and TV shows on how women should refer to themselves as 'victims'. University Women's Courses curriculums are predominantly obsessed with the presentation of history in the form only of women as being merely victims of cunning males, and rather than the image of women as being strong, determined, intelligent and brave, we are now presented with the widespread image of women as being 'woe is me'.

Yet the ideal of a '3rd-wave' of feminism was appealing;

More recently, a newer "third wave" of feminism has produced scathing critiques about feminist theory and practice that is rooted in the concept of victimisation (see Kaminer, 1995; Robbins, Chatterjee, & Canada, 1998). Requiring women to assume the role of the "victim," a person who is perpetually in recovery, has been criticised for being disempowering as well as being a suppression of women's rights to sexual, psychological, and economic freedom. Nonetheless, "victim feminism," as it has been dubbed, was an integral part of the recovery culture that emerged in the 1980s.
(Source: The Social and Cultural Context of Satanic Ritual Abuse Allegations - by Susan P. Robbins, IPT journal, Volume 10, 1998)

In reality 3rd-wave feminism never left the runway, and is today perhaps best described as 'feminism wearing a skirt'. The vulnerability to religious fundamentalist rhetoric remains as before. Instead, as a body corporate 'modern' feminism entered a spiral of decline - presenting women as just daft subordinates, dependent on 'positive discrimination' legislation to make it into any boardroom position, hopelessly unsuited to cope with the modern world because of the huge disadvantages patriarchal history has burdened them with.

In response many women, particularly those running their own businesses or engaged in the upper echelons of corporate life, find themselves unable to find anything appealing in modern feminism that isn't grossly insulting (see Naomi Wolf, Gloria Steinem). An alternative form of '3rd wave' feminism, that has managed to respond to the modern world, and perhaps managed to address feminisms increasingly well-documented collusion with religious extremism, has yet to emerge.

Marxism & religious fundamentalism

Throughout this Entry it hasn't perhaps been recognised that the question as to whether Ms. Campbell OBE believes in the SRA Myth, is essentially worthless. She may, quite rightly, believe whatever she wishes to believe, or not. That it be suggested that a supposed revolutionary Marxist be disallowed from advocating religious fundamentalist views is in itself an abuse of her rights, whether she genuinely shares such beliefs or not. Continuing belief by the feminist community in the SRA Myth is now so well embedded that few worry about the evidence issue. It seems unlikely the movement will be able to shake off it's continuing collusion with the religious fundamentalist factions, and the two elements of extremism will continue to cross-pollinate each other for the foreseeable future. Such is the embedded belief in the SRA Myth that 'feminist' publishers have no issue in advertising their support for it, mixing it in with subjects that might make religious fundamentalists blanch;

Press Gang Publishers
1723 Grant Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, V5L 2YC, CANADA; (604) 251-3315
"Publishers of lesbian and feminist writers...Founded in 1975, we take pride in the diversity of our books ranging from women's history to sexual politics, psychiatry to sexual and ritual abuse, censorship to lesbian erotica, women and the law to union organising and unlearning racism."
(Source: Women's Studies and Gender Studies Publishers - Women's Studies Section Association of College & Research Libraries American Library Association).

As in the 1980's and 1990's Women's Studies courses continue instructing women in the religious fundamentalist-derived SRA Myth, sometimes removing the Bible references and accounts of spacecraft owned by satanists or Satan turning-up for a public appearance, sometimes not.

An indicator as to how devotees to the SRA Myth continue to promote their beliefs using public facilities, you can simply visit the medical services offered to students. In Leeds, in the north of England, the Leeds Student Medical Practise provides the contact details for normal counselling organisations (rape, sexual health etc) plus;

SAFE 01722 410889 National helpline for survivors of ritual abuse (Mon-Sat 6-8pm)


As remains the case with all advocates of the SRA Myth, no one inside nearly three decades has been tempted to simply take a digital camera, a shotgun and a map, and drive to where one of these apparently regular satanic gatherings takes place, and gets some Pulitzer-Award-winning pictures. Despite her connections in the media, Ms. Campbell, just like Valerie Sinason referenced earlier in these Pages, felt compelled to write and speak on the subject, but was never quite compelled to address the skeptics and doubters in the only true way possible; with a photograph.

It may be sufficient to say that the collusion between feminists and religious fundamentalists was nothing more than a temporary expedient alliance that happens to have extended into modern times; a convenient merging of two otherwise disparate groups over a common cause. Feminists might say that a collusion that began in 1983 until now (2010) of 27 years length is hardly evidence of a permanent engagement. Fundamentalists were, and remain, convinced that Satan is abound in the world, and it is their lives' work to challenge Him when and wherever He is, or likely, to appear. Feminists believe, then and now, in the inherent evil of males, families, and women who engage in relationships with males, have children, and form and often lead, families. For a time, from 1988 to at least 2001, and perhaps all the way to modern times, both groups have agreed not to disagree on one aspect; that SRA is rife throughout the United Kingdom and US, and the somewhat glaring lack of evidence is nothing more than the work of Satan/a patriarchal conspiracy (delete where applicable). In the end, feminists, though a little sensitive about the subject, might say (though paraphrasing them is perhaps unjustified) that they 'saw a chance, and have gone for it' - that the collusion with religious fundamentalism was and is no more than a convenience. A cynic may say or write that on the subject of exposing the evil of the patriarchal system, radical feminists will do whatever is needed, conjoin with whoever and whatever, adopt any viewpoint, listen to any far-fetched tale or allegation, misrepresent any fact, produce any number of false statistics, engage with misogynists who wouldn't look out-of-place in the 17th century...do whatever it takes to win. On the basis on their documented collusion to date, that viewpoint is at least worth consideration. Conceivably it may explain the perceived tendency for feminists to decline to address the issues of the abuse of women in Islamic countries.

Gauging the nature of those people that the feminists collude with is easy to discern, what is harder to fathom is why on earth feminists would wish to have anything to do with them in the first place;

ABORTION
This subject seems to be in the news more and more. We are anti-abortion and pro-life. Unfortunately, there are many other sins beside abortion that can make a person have problems with their relationship with the Lord. Many ministries condemn those who commit abortion above other sins, yet never touch the other sins, such as gossip, lying, homosexuality, or membership in secret societies. We minister to survivors of Post-abortion depression and those suffering from the guilt from the sin.

One of the types of abortion, Partial birth abortion, has been in the news lately and we are thrilled that there has been some progress made in stopping it, but we have a long way to go so keep that issue in your prayers. 90% of babies aborted are normal. When an "oops" happens and the baby's head pops out, the doctor must deliver the baby alive, drown it, or let the child die from exposure or neglect. Many young mothers are lied to and do not know that they carry a live baby from conception and they are told it is just a "blob of tissue". As Christians we know otherwise. We also believe that a person can be forgiven for making the mistake of abortion if they go to Jesus with a sincere heart.

(Isaiah 44:24 KJV) Thus saith the LORD, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the LORD that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself;
(Source: Ritual Abuse Free)

Ultimately the SRA Myth is perceived as a failure by both groups, an opportunity lost. In the US hundreds were jailed, routinely with bizarre 'evidence' that in the vast majority of cases didn't survive appeals or the introduction of forensic technology such as DNA tests. Dozens though are still incarcerated, invariably those who were already too poor to pay for decent lawyers. Some are gay men, the original target group for the first advocates of the SRA Myth, before even the feminist community had become engaged.

By way of contrast though, in the UK, the institutions of the police, Crown Prosecution Service/Crown Office and criminal justice system proved themselves up to the task, and resisted the drive to a return to the 1690's. No individual was convicted throughout the SRA Myth years for satanic ritual abuse or any charge that incorporated such evidence of any such act. It isn't quite certain at what point the feminist community in the UK would have unshackled itself from the alliance; at what point it determined that things had gotten just too far out-of-hand. Although perhaps the establishment of the ISA counts as the ultimate victory for the colluding groups, the most extreme of fundamentalists never had the satisfaction of even managing to burn even one woman for witchcraft in some provincial English town square, and that that guilt, fortunately, doesn't rest upon the consiousnesses of either group.

Ms. Campbell OBE deserves recognition is that she has stuck to her beliefs and principles over the decades, even in the face of vitriolic opposition - which she and her supporters from either side of the dogmatic fence, might be inclined to say includes this Entry itself.

She has stuck to her principles, and her revolutionary and republican convictions.

Nearly all the time.

Order of the British Empire controversy

In June 2009 Ms. Campbell's Marxist credentials suffered when she chose to accept an OBE (Order of the British Empire) in what was the last batch of honours dished-out during New Labour's reign in office.

Trying desperately to justify how a supposedly Marxist lesbian, republican radical feminist came to accept an honour from a supposedly vicious, patriarchal and overwhelmingly white-male dominated Establishment, Ms. Campbell chose to write for The Guardian, with an online piece entitled Why I accepted my OBE on June 16th. The Guardian readers comments following the piece, as well as being copious, managed to mix vitriol directed against Ms. Campbell's "treason" and enormous humour- such as speculating if what every marxist lesbian republican really wanted was a "good frock" (in which to curtsy to The Queen). Perhaps not surprisingly the editor of the online edition of The Guardian chose to close the comments section rapidly as the vast majority of online visitors tore into the newspapers freelance writer in embarrassing fashion - but too late for her now to be routinely referred-to as "Duchess". Some commentators chided the Comment Is Free editors for encouraging/allowing Ms. Campbell OBE to expose herself through the article to such ridicule. The vision of Ms. Campbell (in her best frock) accepting her honour from the Queen was too much for many to bear, but the article was voted 'Best Thread of the Year' for 2009 by CIF's own subscribers, and the comments comprise a sort of compendium of work of great comedy writers-in-the-making.

In addition to the obvious support for Ms. Campbell OBE by the Labour Party, who else would count her as a true friend? Well, the somewhat short list would include the chairman of PACA - Professionals Against Child Abuse - an otherwise anonymous group comprising professionals concerned with child protection, worried that the seemingly constant stream of scandals and allegations of unprofessionalism are preventing the real issue from being addressed; that child abuse is rife in Britain and the government needs to do more and spend more, in dealing with it.

Looking for a suitable writer upon which they could rest their hopes of favourable treatment in the Press, PACA no doubt conducted a thorough investigation into which journalists could be sure to sway public opinion, and perhaps encourage greater confidence in the child protection process and the professionals, who since the Cleveland Scandal of 1987, have been blighted with the charges of zealotry and obsession. With an eye to ensure that their cause would be heard dispassionately and that they had chosen a writer whose merits would reflect well upon them, they chose...Bea Campbell OBE;

Beatrix Campbell is a writer of great wisdom and talent. She has written perceptively about child protection “scandals” for many years, certainly since the problems that arose some years ago in the north east of England. Her comments in this article triggered by the tragedy of Baby P are very relevant and could be used to guide those in positions of influence.
(Source: Professionals Against Child Abuse 2008 - External Article by Bea Campbell)

Bearing in mind the controversy surrounding Ms. Campbell's perceptive writing, particularly concerning the SRA Myth, it isn't immediately clear if PACA incorporates fundamentalist religious views amongst its membership - but certainly any organisation willing to endorse her record in saying she has written perceptively about child protection “scandals” for many years does run the risk of attracting that enquiry.

Who else could she count on as being an ally? Well the conspiracy theory community have incorporated the SRA Myth with huge enthusiasm, finding that the 'Myth, enthused about still by religious fundamentalists and feminists alike is an already proven formula that requires no reference to evidence. Indeed the extreme conspiracy theory section of society have a simple strategy to deal with non-believers; they simply condemn such people as being satanists, pedophiles or alien 12-foot reptiles in disguise, or under their command. Such a ploy isn't so far removed from the tactic of simply accusing an SRA Myth skeptic of being a paedophile and/or satanist. It seems reasonable that Ms. Campbell and the feminist/religious fundamentalist community could call David Icke a friend;

THE ABUSE AND SATANIC RITUAL ABUSE OF CHILDREN, AND HUMAN SACRIFICE CEREMONIES IN GENERAL

Staggering as it may seem, all of the above are massively widespread all over the world. It is happening in your community now, I don't care where you are. I, and others, have been highlighting this for years and now, as you will see on this site, the scale of it, and the famous people involved, are coming to light at last.

Partly these rituals and abuse networks are to do with traumatising people, especially children, but it is far more than just that. Follow the Illuminati-reptilian bloodlines from the ancient world to now and they have ALWAYS taken part in human sacrifice ceremonies and blood-drinking. The sacrifices to "the gods" in the ancient accounts were literally sacrifices to the reptilians and their hybrid bloodlines. The story of the blood-drinking Dracula is symbolic of these reptilian "vampires". One of the locations of this reptilian group would appear to be the star-system known as Draco and "draconian" certainly sums up the Illuminati.

To hold their human form, these entities need to drink human (mammalian) blood and access the energy it contains to maintain their DNA codes in their "human" expression. If they don't, they manifest their reptilian codes and we would all see what they really look like. "Oh, my God, Mr. President, do you always eat your breakfast from across the room?".

From what I understand from former "insiders", the blood (energy) of babies and small children is the most effective for this, as are blond-haired, blue-eyed people. Hence these are the ones overwhelmingly used in sacrifice, as are red- haired people also, it appears.

This is why people like George Bush, Henry Kissinger, and a stream of the other Illuminati "big names" are exposed in my books and on this site as reptilian shape-shifters who take part in human sacrifice and blood drinking. The two go together. There also appears to be a very significant emphasis among the Illuminati-reptilians and their offshoots with paedophilia, which is rampant on this planet.

I would emphasise also before I end here that I am exposing certain reptilian GROUPS behind the Illuminati, not the reptilian genetic stream in general. There are many of reptilian origin who are here to help humanity to free themselves from this mental and emotional bondage. Indeed, every one of us has a body with much reptilian genetics, including part of the brain called the R-complex, the reptilian brain. It is merely a matter of degree.
(Source: excerpt The Reptilian Connection from ...and the truth shall set you free by David Icke (2004))

The merging of the Recovered Memory community and obsessions of conspiracy theorists has already taken place, whilst maintaining the elements of the original SRA Myth, including the Vast Conspiracy idea, 'pushed' by Ms. Campbell OBE, that somehow the Freemason community is deeply engaged. This from a leading conspiracy theorist admired by David Icke, Henry Makow, with his interview with 'survivor' Mary Anne;

On Sept. 21, 2008 Mary Anne said that tens of thousands of children will be sacrificed that night (the autumnal equinox) in Illuminati ceremonies. The children are bred for the purpose or kidnapped. Satanists believe they gain power from killing. Often they rip out the heart and eat a piece of it. They prefer it to be still beating. At Easter, they kill adults.

There are also sexual rituals involving young children. They are believed to increase power, and create fear and solidarity in members.

[A troubling error. Mary Anne let me refer to this as the "Vernal Equinox" when it is the "Autumnal Equinox."]

Illuminati members live double lives. At night they engage in these Satanic rituals. By day they are found in all walks of life: medicine, education, psychology, therapy, banking, law, law enforcement, government, technology, military, charities and religion.

They are everywhere. The worst are in the news on a daily basis posing as leaders.

They are the elite of Freemasonry. They are generational Satanists, which means you have to be born into it. You can't join. Their children are evaluated and trained. Mormons and "Nation of Islam" have parallel beliefs, she said.

The world has been divided into ten regions. Different groups are in control of North America. They are related to the Crowns of Europe.

Many Jews have a prominent role but the Illuminati is not predominantly Jewish. Muslim, Christian, Mormon, Wicca, Pagan and New Age groups all play a role.

She said 80-90% of the House of Representatives and %100 of the Senate belong to the Illuminati.

Mary Anne said she was sexually abused by her own family from an early age. In spite, or because of this, she was groomed to be a prominent political figure. She worked closely with many world leaders and was sexually abused by them. She was tortured when she refused to carry out assassinations.

All religions are infiltrated and controlled by the Illuminati. The Vatican is rotten at the top. The future "Anti Christ" will be a Pope. All countries, including Russia, China and Iran, are controlled by the Illuminati. "You don't say no."

The Illuminati is behind the homosexual agenda, AIDS, and the sexual revolution. They foster anything that is in rebellion against the Christian God.
(Source: Children Sacrificed by Illuminati --Defector "Mary Anne")

Amongst the feminist community, Ms. Campbell OBE is still an iconic figure, despite her association with religious fundamentalism and the promotion of the SRA Myth and other causes that have negatively impacted on women, particularly women with children. The organisation Feminism in London thinks enough of her that they invited her as a keynote speaker in the opening session of the Feminism in London 2009 gathering, and also in recognition of the her appointment as Commissioner to the Board of the Women’s National Commission (WNC) though the WMC, not having contributed anything positive to the lives of the UK's women was wound-up in 2011 by the Coalition government. In addition to Ms. Campbell (OBE) another keynote speaker was Susan (Suzie) Orbach - most famous for being suspected as the source of the psychobabble Princess Diana had produced in televised conversation during her period of greatest stress, but also hugely associated with the DID/MPD/SRA Myth movement. Indeed in 2006 in Commercial Street, London, Ms. Orbach chaired a round-up session with Valerie Sinason and others, at the The John Bowlby Memorial Conference - Trauma & Attachment, which also included contributions from leading Mind Control SRA Myth advocate Sue Richardson (mentioned earlier) whose history in child protection goes back to being the child abuse consultant appointed by Cleveland social services department, just in time for the infamous 1987 Cleveland RAD Scandal (it was she who decided the best thing to do was remove the children whose rectums had been examined by Dr. Marietta Higgs and Dr. Geoffrey Wyatt from their families). Such is the obsession with the right-wing Christian-fundamentalist-derived SRA Myth, that it is virtually impossible for any feminist conference to avoid even accidentally inviting an SRA Myth advocate, albeit if they are now 'getting on' a little in years.

By way of illustration the list of speaking guests for Feminism in London 2010 included Jill Radford, described as a radical feminist and member of the Campaign to End Rape. She has recently retired as Professor of Women’s Studies and Criminology and Director of the Section for the Study of Gender Violence at the University of Teesside.... She is also co-author of Demons, devils and denial: towards a feminist understanding of ritual/satanic abuse with leading SRA advocate and True Believer Dr. Liz Kelly, published in now-defunct feminist periodical Trouble & Strife, volume 22 that itself had enthusiastically adopted the ultra-right fundamentalist-derived 'Myth. Ms. Radford though hasn't written sufficient a body of work in support of the 'Myth to be able to call herself a True Believer.

Feminism in London 2011 was cancelled, apparently due to logistical difficulties. By way of compensation to the feminist community Fem 11 organised by an ad hoc organisation called Feminista is scheduled to be held at The Quakers Friends House in Euston Road, London for one day on 12 November 2011. The organisers, contemplating all of the possible speakers to invite to the event, decided it best to invite as guest speakers Shami Chakrabarti of UK charity Liberty (notable for its wholesale abadoning of women abused by the UK justice system) and...Beatrix Campbell OBE. It isn't by any means clear why the Fem 11 organisers, with UK feminisdm truly in the doldrums, not least because of its inability to shake off the accusation that it is simply anti-male rather han pro-women, would even dream of wanting to invite Bea Campbell as a guest speaker. Her association with everything that is reprehensible about UK feminism is almost universal, to the point that her invite may have been a deliberate attempt to sabotage the event, or at least 'put the boot in' to UK feminism a little more. However Ms. Campbell is a consumate public speaker, conceivably having gained much of her rhetoric from her dealings with religious fundamentalism. Her invidtation though does point at the paucity of talent in UK feminism, and its continuing dependence on faded and spent individuals from previous generations.

Fem11 - Feminista 11


Whilst Ms. Campbell's partner Judith (Dawson) Jones saw no difficulties in giving her time to a Christian Fundamentalist video production, Ms. Campbell OBE herself never blanched at the thought of working with religious fundamentalists (see Page One of this entry. Moderate religious publications, such as The Third Way (not to be confused with the Labour Party's same term) were privileged to interview her in 1999, and her image adorned the front page;

http://www.thirdwaymagazine.co.uk/

Although professing to not have a religious bone in her body, Ms. Campbell's inclusion in the edition, concerned one subscriber in a later letters page, but caused absolute joy for another;

I was excited to receive a copy of Third Way with a picture of one of my heroes on the front: Bea Campbell. She is a wonderful example of the provocation and inspiration a genuinely compassionate and insightful person can give when not tied to supporting or preserving a religious institution.

It's also good to be reminded that there are so many people who are not Christians who can appreciate the contribution that Christians and Christianity make to society. Thank you (and her) for allowing us dignity where we don't allow it to ourselves, through our paranoia about being a minority and our subsequent feelings of exclusion and unloveableness. Her truthfulness allows God to bless me.

I'd like to thing I'm part of a Christian community that is just as forthright, compassionate, uncluttered and free of the defences that encroach then you think you have to sustain power. Reminds me of Jesus.

Andy Thornton, London
(Source: Letters to the editor, page 7, Third Way magazine, July 1999)

It seems likely Ms. Campbell OBE will attend the 2010 Feminism in London event in October, and it seems highly unlikely that any 'awkward' questions will be asked of her, both from the floor or in the social gatherings and workshops that take place. The 2009 event was notable for side-stepping the issue of fundamentalism, an issue increasing twisting the feminist movement, and once again focusing on a historic tendency for feminism to collude rather than oppose religious fundamentalists (see Kate Allen and Naomi Wolf). It is worthwhile speculating if a curious individual attending the booksellers stands at the event would be able to track down any publications advocating for the SRA Myth (unfortunately one of the co-authors of this entry did attend in 2009, and the answer was 'yes'). For the moment, through documented contributions to religious fundamentalist publications, web sites and conferences - the complicity between religious elements and feminism continues unabated. Indeed even after a year in investigating the subject, the editors of this Site still receive enormous amounts of material on the collusion, and there is an equal amount of material about such established and continuing collusion in the US which has been barely published yet. A planned extended entry, tentatively titled From Rocket Ships in the Schoolyard to Camp Delta will include this subject for discussion, and how it changed the judicial and human rights landscape of the US. As the SRA Myth transforms again, this time with the assistance of the David Icke-inspired 12'-high lizard crowd, it can be anticipated that fantasies of worldwide ritual torture conspiracies will continue to prevail amongst feminists, diffusing down to the rest of the left and liberal elite, though with less avid enthusiasm than in the past.

As previously discussed at length, having tried to foist an incredible tale of Vast Conspiracies onto a not necessarily unwilling Left and liberal elite, it isn't entirely surprising that the SRA Myth should fit in perfectly with the 'right-field' conspiracy theorists, and it's worthwhile just revisiting this facet;



In a fashion, supporters of David Icke and Beatrix Campbell OBE have to be recognised for their dedication, if for nothing else. Both individuals share a similar passion; to expose the idea that the world we live in is just a mere shadow of reality, that scratch below the surface and Vast Conspiracies are discernible. This though cuts both ways; our understanding of the Left, of feminism, and liberal concepts we associate with 'modern' times were challenged by the 'crazy' years. For Ms. Campbell, she inhabits a world with an unbreakable conviction that at least a sizeable minority of men routinely sodomise their children (Cleveland); whereby inter-generational covens of witches and satanists conspire to meet in secret and ritually abuse tens-of-thousands of children a year, with the assistance of senior police officers, Directors of Social Services and the judiciary (the SRA Myth); that women routinely deliberately injure and kill their children to gain attention from medical staff, and manage to inflict conditions like leukaemia, autism and spina bifida through means yet not understood by medical science, but which were perfectly understood in the 17th century (MSBP). And finally, that two workers in a busy nursery managed to take children out to their homes and repeatedly sexually abuse them, without anyone noticing, including their 'victims' themselves (The Shieldfield Scandal). David Icke in the meantime simply wishes to insist that mankind is controlled by 12-foot high alien reptiles (plus all the stuff advocated by Ms. Campbell OBE).

It isn't easy to determine if the current generation of feminists look upon their older peers with either awe and respect for their collusion with religious fundamentalists, or with shame and incredulity. What can be said is that there are no new faces amongst the current generation of feminists, willing to publicly endorse the 'Myth, either in writing or from a public stage. The 'old guard' persists with their views and these aren't challenged, suggesting that belief in the religious fundamentalist message of the SRA Myth continues amongst the young feminist community, though with less enthusiasm than in the past. In Wales and England some universities, inclined towards a 'pseudo/crank science' curriculum continue to teach MPD/DID as part of student social worker degree, ensuring the 'Myth lives on amongst some NQSW's (Newly Qualified Social Workers).

As mentioned previously, a pursuit that consumes much of the time of feminists, particularly the lecturers and management of Women's Studies courses is how to curtail the desire for women to engage in free thought and expression. Such pursuits are frowned-upon, principally because it is felt that free-thinking women are invariably enticed by a patriarchal society, and thus engage with evil, satanic males, or worse, create and lead families, thus continuing the patriarchal tradition. Only by limiting the facility for women to think freely, to prevent them from being able to construct their own arguments and conduct independent research is it felt that feminist women can ensure their freedom from patriarchy.

The result though of this strategy is that feminism has become stifled, sandbagged by its own limited vocabulary, a distant and bitter shadow of the movement that produced dynamic confident women of the 1960's and '70's. Reading a feminist text, or listening to a speech by a feminist (invariably accompanied by the de rigour standing ovation from fellow feminists) can be a stifling pursuit, as each of the buzz-words are ticked-off, and delivered in sufficient quantity: patriarchal, evil males, inclusive, gender, abuse, oppression...The self-enclosed world of feminism has had an unintended consequence; the current and quite likely, following generations are seriously short of charismatic leaders and inspirers. Having banished free thought and expression, limiting them to tightly defined boundaries which broach no revision or challenge ensures that feminism is moribund, unable to react to the worlds changing events. For the most part, feminist impact upon society has seen little more than an unplanned desire to impose a medieval view of women; portraying them as simple, easily confused and constantly victimised doe-eyed angels, always out-foxed by wily males, in a world that they have no control or proper comprehension-of. This is a total corruption of the feminist ideal, but perhaps the most obvious result of its continued dalliance with religious fundamentalism.

Philosopher Christina Hoff-Sommers, loathed by feminists, not least because of her contention that they are impacting negatively on both feminism and women themselves, fears that feminism's intellectual diversity is diminished.



Marxism Today's submission to christian fundamentalism

The journal/magazine Marxism Today stopped publishing in 1991, finishing its history under editor Martin Jacques in embarrassing fashion. Becoming enraptured with the message from the ultra-far-right religious fundamentalists, whose image of society would make Margaret Atwoods world of The Handmaids Tale look tame, the publication fell off the precipice of radical Left-wing thought and headed due-Right. At least one reader though wasn't happy about how British Marxism had been hijacked by Ms. Campbell OBE, and wondered how an obsession driven by religious fundamentalists had made headway in Britain;

Abuse Of Faith
Bea Campbell's article on ritual child abuse (MT November) presents only one side of the story. She says nothing about the 18 foster parents who did not report any signs of ritual abuse from the children in their care, or the intensive forensic investigation that did not turn up a single trace of human or animal sacrifice. Campbell talks about the inquiry's' need to believe' that there is no sub-culture of Satanic abuse in Britain. I would like to know why Campbell needs to believe in something for which there is about as much physical evidence as there is for flying saucers.

Over the last two and a half years, the ritual abuse myth has been rising in Britain, and there is no doubt whatsoever that it emanates from the US Christian right via international fundamentalist information networks. In America,the ritual abuse allegations focussed on day-care centres, but so far no physical evidence has been produced to show that satanic abuse rings have been making use of these centres - all the evidence has consisted of the 'disclosures' of very young children who had been through months of therapy with people who firmly believed in ritual abuse.

It has taken this time for the idea of satanic abuse to become established in Britain. It generally takes about that long for American cultural ideas to penetrate to Europe. Had ritual abuse rings been operating in Britain before 1987-8,details and hints of it would have been circulating for years beforehand. Instead, the current British scare has all the appearance of a transplanted myth, with the confirming 'proofs' appearing only after the details had been made part of public knowledge through tabloid reporting.

'Believe the children' is Campbell's entirely understandable gut reaction to satanic abuse. But gut reaction simply cannot be trusted! I wish that she showed some of the honesty and insight of Simone Weil, who wrote: 'I know that if at this moment I had before me a group of 20 young Germans singing Nazi songs, a part of me would instantly become Nazi. This is a very great weakness...'. Justice is not served by wild emotionalism- just ask the Guildford Four.#

Val Dobson, Lancashire
(Source: From page 12 Marxism Today, January 1991 - from microfiche)

A repository of Val Dobson's intermittent writing can be found on her site at newoomh and includes her work ranging from examinations of witchcraft, to the risk inherent to the British Greens because of their association with David Icke.

Phillip Jenkins, quoted before in this Index entry, also noted the willingness of a British Left publication to roll over and play dead for the ultra-Right religious fundamentalist message;

Another defence of the ritual claims appeared in the rather inappropriate setting of Marxism Today, a popular left-wing journal. Campbell was writing for an audience that had struggled to accept claims of widespread child abuse, and that now gagged at the prospect of accepting satanic rings as culprits. However, the charges had to be taken seriously, or else we would be challenging the truth of what children were saying (Campbell 1990).

In defence of the charges, she asserts that satanism is often not taken seriously, and thus only provides abusers with a more exciting setting and justification for the crimes: "Satanic rituals in a secular culture like ours aren't taken seriously. Anyone who respects children's accounts of ritualised abuse isn't taken seriously either." After all, the occult was commonplace in the culture, in the form of heavy metal music, horoscopes, and New Age shops. Her linkage of these phenomena with satanic abuse reflected (no doubt unconsciously) the connections so frequently made in the religious press.

But throughout her writing, Campbell knowingly or otherwise repeats the charges from the fundamentalist literature, most strikingly the alleged claims of human sacrifice made by Aleister Crowley, as great a charlatan and practical joker as an occultist (Symonds 1973). She is left defending the truth of human sacrifice and ritual abuse in the Nottingham case and elsewhere, and excoriates the police for their failure to pay attention: "All the progress of the 1980s in transforming the way children and women witnesses alleging sexual crimes have been treated by the police has been undermined by the notion that the child witnesses should be treated as if they were the culprits and not the victims...Once again the problem of policing has confounded the struggle for children's rights" (Campbell 1990). The appropriation of left and feminist rhetoric in such a cause is striking, but it was not untypical.

The breadth of media support-and the odd coalition of religious and radical groups that now emerged-created an atmosphere conductive to the rapid spread of ritual abuse accusations.
(Source: pages 175 and 176 of Intimate enemies: moral panics in contemporary Great Britain - 1992, by Philip Jenkins)

For still-genuine Marxists and political commentators alike, Martin Jacques sudden committment to the cause of christian fundamentalism during the final year of Marxism Today remains unexplained to this day. Quite likely as editor he became enraptured by the SRA Myth, and put aside the natural skepticism that the role of editor requires. It isn't certain how far Marxism Today would have strayed had it continued - would articles on exorcism, interviews with leading US evangelicals have slipped into its pages? Some commentators found some mirth in the subject, though with a serious edge;

Witchburning
"And if the fire starts going out, she said we can use some back-copies of Marxism Today…’


Others noted Jenkins' observations about how seeming committed secularists embraced the most extreme of religious views, most notably US authors Derek Davis and Barry Hankins. Pope Benedicts visit to the United Kingdom in September 2010 exposed the issue again; whilst secularists are only too willing to declare religion dead in Great Britain, many remain unwilling to explain or apologise for the willing and documented collusion secularists, left and liberal-leaning intellectuals and one particular campaigner and journalist in particular had engaged in. Whilst banishing belief in God, the effort to demonise families, women with children and males appears to have left a distinct belief in satanic evil lingering;

So, we have the seemingly strange situation of quite secular feminists sometimes appearing to take seriously the claims being made by anti-Satanists with whom they appear to have very little else in common. Jenkins tell of a feminist scholar writing in a Marxist journal who treats quite seriously objective claims by Christian fundamentalists about the action of Satanists in child care centers. Such occurrences are illustrative of the many forces and movements that flow together to help form the Satanism scare.
(Source: Page 74 - New religious movements and religious liberty in America - 2003, by Derek Davis, Barry Hankins)

In the same month - September 2010, the former liberal and leftist daily newspaper, The Independent revealed an editorial tendency that demonstrated that secularist opposition to religion - notably the Catholic Church, often acted as vehicle for the simple continuation of the blood libel tradition against whichever religion is out-of-favour at the time. In a comment of the 8th September, using the vehicle of the Pope's visit and the marriage difficulties of soccer player Wayne Rooney, Julie Burchill made every effort to demonise all Catholics, rendering her attack not on the management of the Church, or even its historic institutions, but rather on anyone who is a Catholic;

But if one is a Catholic, then surely double-speak and duplicity are second nature. A Church which rails against abortion and then spends decades covering up the most appalling degree of child abuse obviously has no problem with holding two opposing ideas at once – and at least the opposition to termination now makes perfect sense, with hindsight. All those unborn children that could have been molested – what a waste!
(Source: Do visits from ex-Hitler Youth members make me uneasy? Is the Pope Catholic? by Julie Burchill, The Independent, Wednesday, 8 September 2010)

By the mid-1990's the British Left had been rendered an intellectual basket-case, twitching only sporadically in abject indignation only every-now-and-then, and normally with a rhetoric of religious intolerance it had inherited from it's dalliance with the ultra-right religious fundamentalists. In the US, the situation was near-identical; the SRA Myth having wreaked it's havoc, destroying concepts of civil liberty and a conviction in the Rule of Law, whilst saddling the American Left and liberal elite with a charge that still sticks today - that they had willingly conspired in bringing forth the abuses of Salem in 1692 into the modern age. Lumbered with the baggage of it's allying with fanatical fundamentalism, the Left on either side of the Atlantic now stand routinely accused of one again being beguiled by religious fundamentalism - this time of the Islamic variety.

For the most part though, young 'leftists' have no comprehension of how their older peers willingly listened to the siren calls of religious fundamentalism in the 1990s. Those that do know of it are understandably reluctant to discuss the subject.

In the UK, some of those on the Left weren't and aren't so willing to be sucked-into belief in the conspiracy. Living Marxism magazine, changed names, folded after a libel case and now lives in the guise of sp!ked...and all of it's incarnations had and have absolutely no time for Ms. Campbell's imaginings, and Martin Jacques vulnerability to the fundamentalist message;

It ought to be said that even at the time not everyone was convinced. Notably, regular spiked contributor Dr Michael Fitzpatrick challenged the myth of Satanic ritual abuse in the pages of Living Marxism. In many ways, 'Satanic abuse' was a classic moral panic, and transparently so, but it was given special impetus by the peculiar political character of the child abuse issue. While concerns about the occult might seem more in keeping with religious conservatism, especially coming from the USA, in fact the uncovering of child abuse had become a feminist, even left-wing cause, and the idea that sinister things were going on behind the closed doors of the family had a certain resonance even beyond the lunatic fringe. The former Communist and noted feminist Beatrix Campbell wrote a series of articles and made a Channel 4 Dispatches programme promoting the myth more enthusiastically than any American evangelist group or salacious tabloid.
(Source: A full stop to the Satanic panic, by Dolan Cummings, 12th January 2006)

In some quarters, particularly in the UK, there are those who will claim that the Left and feminism broke apart long ago. Unfortunately even a perfunctory view of any leftist periodical or journal reveals that the Left, in its many varied forms, is utterly subservient to the dominance of feminist rhetoric and thought.

Christian Fundamentalists are by default forgiven for their part in the 'Myth years, as their studies in demonology are a traditional activity going back centuries. The ultra-right religious fanatics only did what they are expected to do, and which they have a history of for centuries across Europe and the former 'Colonies'. In the end their pursuit of Satan in all his perceived guises is no more and no less than 'tradition'.

For the feminist community, belief in the 'Myth is still embedded deeply within its psyche, and until its advocates pass away, it is unlikely that it will be sufficiently challenged or purged from within. Explaining its continued persistence in feminist literature and core belief remains a mystery that only they can determine. For lay-persons, and those whose political awakenings came after the 1980's and early 1990's, even the concept that feminism could have had anything to do with religious fundamentalism is hard to grasp. Rather though than it being simply two political and social constructs travelling down the same route like railway tracks - never touching one another, it was instead, and remains so, an active and seemingly thriving relationship, with active communication between the two groups (such as through R.A.I.N.S). For feminism, the relationship with ultra-right-wing religious zealots has given them a rhetoric and dictionary of evil that remains applied today. For the religious militants, so ultra-right-wing that the likes of even the most militant Republican Party 'card carriers' feel distinctly uncomfortable with them, the relationship with feminism has given them a comprehension of politics and a knowledge of media manipulation whose currency has proven invaluable.

In addition to the wider implications of how the political and social history of the US and UK and other Western nations have been influenced by the collusion of those who would otherwise declare themselves as 'leftist' or 'liberal' and those who would be unashamed to describe themselves as right-wing religious fundamentalists, the SRA Myth raises other issues;

In the past it was conceivable to say that the societies of Western Europe from the 13th to 17th centuries were hopelessly patriarchal, driven by vicious and religious strive that punished women and sought to constrain intellect and feminine nature. That view now seems hopelessly obsolete - in the late 20th century and early 21st century, all the way to even now in time, it can be demonstrated that our society continues to be vulnerable to religious militancy, and indeed the very communities and individuals who would be expected to challenge the return of the Witchcraft Trials, can easily be the very people who will turn traitor and betray women and men to collude openly with those who would bring back the sight of smouldering stakes early in the morning. The Witchcraft Trials that engulfed Western Europe and the American Colonies required the collusion of intellectuals and even secularists (or at least not deeply religious) to gain a foothold. The SRA Myth years and the continuation of the moral panic that spawned it was similarly 'blessed'. Scratch not very deep below the surface and our historical peers are waving back at us.

The well-documented collusion of feminism with ultra-far-right fanaticism also draws attention to the now-constant observation that the modern Left are too easily enraptured with the extreme religious fundamentalism represented by radical Islam (see the entries for Kate Allen, Kay Hymowitz and Naomi Wolf). The thought that the collusion of the Left with Christian right-wing religious fundamentalism during the SRA Myth years and beyond, paved the way for the now perceived collusion of the Western Left with Islamic right-wing religious fundamentalism is perhaps best addressed by political scientists, and beyond the scope and ability of this web site's editors.

Earlier in this entry, the subject of 'what if?' is discussed, with reference to speculating what might have occurred had a Labour Party government been in power at the height of the SRA Myth years. Another 'what if?' to contemplate is what if Ms. Campbell OBE had taken a different tack with the SRA Myth? It's a difficult scenario to envisage, particularly because her partner Judith (Dawson) Jones, embarked on a series of seminars and training sessions for police officers, social workers and psychiatrists, immediately after the Broxtowe Scandal, whilst at the same time co-starting R.A.I.N.S (the group of feminists and religious fundamentalists who continue to advocate for the 'Myth). Yet what if Ms. Campbell OBE had decided that she personally wasn't going to follow the religious fundamentalist line? What if she had written and campaigned, in her bombastic style, to lead feminists and the Left in Britain from the siren-like voices of the ultra-right religious militants? What if she had persuaded the social work profession and others that Britain doesn't necessarily have to follow America at every opportunity, and this was one instance when the nation could go its own way?

How then, 23 years after the SRA Myth emerged in the UK, would Ms. Campbell OBE be viewed? Having an Order of the British Empire granted to her obviously suggests she is well thought-of by the Establishment, or at least by the Labour Party, now out-of-office, but what if she had made a stand, instead of becoming the ultra-right's faithful puppy?

Is it possible that few would have been able to contest with her - knowing that she had single-handedly fought the religious fundamentalists? Would, in time, she have made a long-term peace with the Labour Party? Have been offered a safe constituency seat...climbed through the backbench's, into Cabinet...her agenda for women's rights enacted, simply because she had secured her place in history already as a 'saviour of the nation'? We, and she, will never know. She chose a course...to collude with, rather than oppose the ultra-right religious militants, and it's impact, none positive, can still be felt today. At the very least the obsession with the SRA Myth distracted attention from real child abuse, made real abuse seem minor, petty, compared to the 'sexy' imaginary battles with satanists.

Perhaps in some alternate universe Beatrix Campbell is hailed as a hero, the very essence of rebellion and dogged opposition, and she bathes in the glow of a grateful nation. In our universe, regrettably she is seen by many as a Colluder, a Collaborator.

Ms. Campbell OBE was selected by the Green Party to contest the leafy, "chattering-classes" London retreat of Hampstead and Kilburn in the 2010 General Election, perhaps emphasising her middle-class heritage to the ultimate degree. The selection was particularly odd as feminism is often identified for its anti-science posturing, which it shares with religious fundamentalism. A key feature of this anti-science stance is the rejection of modern scientific research and reasoning methodologies, and the conviction that evidence is a patriarchal concept, best avoided. Whilst feminists may be bound to crank/pseudo science, it seems unusual that The Green Party should ally itself to an individual so associated with a movement that passionately rejects science, with the same fervour that anti-climate-change supporters profess. An extended entry about the feminist rejection of science can be found at the entry for Patricia Gowaty.

Ms. Campbell OBE gained over 700 votes, or 1.4% of the votes cast, losing her deposit. The Green Party though did enjoy some success, having it's leader Dr. Caroline Lucas elected to Parliament for the Brighton constituency. All told the Green Party lost £164,000 in candidate deposits. It isn't clear if Dr. Lucas is a believer in the SRA Myth, or what her opinions are about the War on Science, being conducted by both religious fundamentalists and feminists. It isn't clear what potential Green Party voters thought of about ms. Campbell's OBE's candidature, but searching 'Google' with the text 'Beatrix Campbell Green Party satanic' suggests that her past had finally caught up with her.

Why I turned from red to green


Ms. Campbell's Order of the British Empire was conferred for service to "equal opportunities", though it is uncertain who nominated her for it, and who indeed, male or female, has benefited from her apparent commitment to said "equal opportunities". In the UK a selection committee draws up a shortlist of nominated candidates, which then forwards its recommendations to the Cabinet Secretary who, in turn, submits the list to the Prime Minister for submission to The Queen. In the case of Ms. Campbell OBE it can be presumed that even a perfunctory search of Google was made, revealing Ms. Campbell OBE's part in the Broxtowe Satanic Ritual Abuse Scandal, the Shieldfield Scandal involving her partner, Judith Dawson Jones, her support for Reflex Anal Dilation, and her support for the MSBP/FII theory used against women. It is also safe to presume that the then Prime Minister Gordon Brown was aware of these "difficulties" with Ms. Campbell, but nonetheless approved her inclusion.

Whilst the granting of an OBE was contentious in itself, it does perhaps reveal more about the engine at the heart of Labour Party social care policy, and its attitudes to women (certainly those with children) whilst it was in office until May 2010 than were ever intended to be revealed. In addition to Ms Campbell, another 'leading light' of the SRA Myth was honoured in 1999 in the form of paediatrician Dr. Camille de San Lazaro OBE who has perhaps managed to inflict almost as much damage on her profession as Dr. Marietta Higgs.

Ms. Campbell OBE's Debretts Authorised Biography is posted online here.

The acceptance of Ms Campbell's 'gong' also exposed another question; having spent years determining that the Establishment were comprehensively covering-up satanic ritual abuse, through the agencies of satanic Chief Constables, judges, Police doctors and politicians, why on earth would she wish to join the very same Establishment?

(See also Dianne Core, Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP, Ray Wyre, Rev. David Woodhouse, Dr. Lawrence Pazder, Dr. Sara Scott, Tim Tate, Linda Gordon, Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Christopher Booker, Joan Acocella", Dr. Darren Oldridge, Ken Livingstone, Colin Cramphorn, Lindsey Read)

Go back to the 1st page;

Part 1

Go back to the 2nd page;

Part 2



"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


Beatrix Campbell (OBE) & the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth - Part 2



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

Please note this entry, examining the career of the British journalist, campaigner and activist Bea Campbell OBE, was originally located in the Surnames C Index page. It's length, thanks to the enormous amount of submitted material to the Site, has required it to be moved to its own section, and it is now split across three pages, only the first of which is shown in the menu.

This entry is also a placeholder to discuss the nature of the SRA Myth and the apparent collusion of feminists and religious fundamentalists during the 'Myth years of the late 1980s and 1990s, to recent times. This isn't the only dedicated page devoted to Ms. Campbell and the subject of SRA - see also Sample of Beatrix Campbell's Writings about Satanic Ritual Abuse

Another extended Index entry, concerned with the history of the RAINS - Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support organisation in England and Wales can be found under Dr. Sandra Buck. This provides more detail about the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth allegations that were made in England and Wales from 1987 to the early 1990's, and in 2003 in Scotland.

This is 'living' Index entry, and is often updated by a number of individuals as new data is received and added.


Beatrix (Bea) Campbell (Mary Lorrimer, OBE - Order of the British Empire)



Section headings



12-foot high lizards

In recent years belief in the SRA Myth has extended to the conspiracy theory community. This is perhaps a natural progression; during the 'crazy' years, notably in the US, a belief in magic and the paranormal took hold briefly amongst those who would have other described themselves as leftist or 'liberal', but who would otherwise baulked at the thought of taking part in a religious fundamentalist obsession. Nonetheless the association with religious militants throughout the 1980's and '90's left a discernible mark on those liberal and leftist elite that can be still felt today. The subject of how, for instance, the legal system in the US was changed, perhaps permanently, by the SRA Myth is to be addressed in a forthcoming Index entry, tentatively titled From Rocket Ships in the Schoolyard to Camp Delta.

In 1992 it was still possible to talk about the SRA Myth as actual, indisputable fact, without too much ridicule. With feminists thoroughly entranced and with the Left and liberal elite like-wise similarly engaged, the somewhat glaring lack of evidence could be glossed-over as being simply the result of Satan being at his most cunning, or, as promoted in the UK, a conspiracy of Police Chief Constables and politicians (who would always be Conservatives) working hand-in-hand to ensure convincing evidence was never secured. SRA Myth advocates though haver never bothered with the task of securing any evidence, and asking for such evidence is a sure-fire method to be accused of being a satanist/paedophile.

Even so, in 1992, a wider conspiracy theory to accompany the SRA Myth, this time using the mechanism of 'Mind Control' was being seen amongst it's advocates in the UK. This from the Christian Medical Fellowship, that has a current membership in Britain of over 4,000 doctors and around 900 medical students;


The belief in the demonic, or indeed our belief in God is therefore not delusional. It is possible that some symptoms of mental illness are actually demonic in origin. Voices heard in the head commenting on the sufferer in a hostile way, could perhaps be demons. That is not to say that such people are necessarily possessed. The devil's legions are all around us. It could well be that a biochemical problem in the brain causes an individual to be sensitive to a dimension we are not. This is speculation, and the alternative view that such phenomena are the product of a sick mind is certainly possible from this verse.

All this talk of the occult and supernatural may sound very unfamiliar. We like to think such things are just superstition, and from the past. This very obvious work of Satan is still prominent today, however.

It is said that 250,000 Britons describe themselves as witches or pagans today. This could well be an underestimate, since such groups are clandestine by their very nature. Groups often involve important people, and in spite of highly illegal activity, are rarely brought to justice. The CMF quarterly Newsletter of July 1989 reported on a conference held by the Association of Christian Psychiatrists at the Royal Society of Medicine. This conference examined the controversial issue of child satanic sexual abuse. 'All of the speakers were able to talk from first hand experience with cases of ritual child abuse in which multiple physical and sexual assaults, the use of drugs, brainwashing and inverting of normal values (psychological abuse) and child and animal sacrifice featured consistently.'
(Source: The Battle for our Minds - the Supernatural and Mental Illness, by Adrian Warnock, Christian Medical Fellowship (reprint from Nucleus - the CMF's student journal, October 1992))

Christian fundamentalist therapists and psychologists provided much of the energy for the ever-more-bizarre Myth allegations being made, as it became harder and harder to keep the whole edifice of the 'Myth in the air. A general feature of Myth allegations, promoted heavily by Ms. Campbell OBE herself, was that anyone who denied the existence of SRA was by default themselves part of the conspiracy. This tendency to accuse those who deny the existence of the 'Myth, let alone anyone who professes even the slightest scepticism, can trace it's legacy back to the Witch Trials of the 17th century. At the very genesis of the 'Myth years, beginning with the famous McMartin daycare Scandal of 1983, the scene was already being set by the major protagonists to enable the most bizarre and implausible allegations to be accepted as God-given fact. Roland Summit, described by Ms. Campbell OBE as the 'great Roland Summit', a local child psychiatrist who had catapulted himself to national media fame through the expediency of introducing a satanic element into the McMartin Scandal (in a similar fashion to Ray Wyre's introduction of right-wing Christian Fundamentalist demonology to the Broxtowe social workers in Nottinghamshire in 1988) made it clear that left-field (or rather, extreme right field) thinking was the only way to deal with the huge conspiracy of satan-worshipping that was apparently engulfing America;

In all of his appearances, Summit wore his die fixed on his sleeve. Having already laid the foundation for believing anything children said with his "child sexual abuse accommodation syndrome", he now set about extending it to the more improbable stories of day care ritual abuse. Summit's message was not based on child development theories and research, therefore it rarely invited questions about children's developmentally-based ability to be truthful or to resist suggestion. Rather, it was all about belief. By elevating belief over empiricism, he exhorted audiences to abandon critical thinking and healthy skepticism, and in doing so, encouraged a kind of moon-eyed gullibility.

A sample of his comments at various ritual abuse conferences that were all of the rage during the 1980s illustrates this point. At one, he urged his audience to believe that lack of evidence is really evidence of ritual abuse by insisting that the inability to prove satanic conspiracy is behind the day care cases is due to the conspirators' skills in "creating paralysing, calculated confusion and mind control" of their young victims (Summit 1987). In another, he admonished mental health clinicians to believe that conspiring law enforcement officers may hide evidence of day care ritual abuse to protect satanic providers. "Any investigation that you might prompt on behalf of your client needs to be channeled as much as possible to trusted individuals," he asserted, although he hastily expressed regret for the comment when confronted on camera by a sceptical documentarian (cited in Earl, 1995, p124). And in another venue, he urged conferees to believe the ritual abuse allegation made my mentally unstable individuals like Judy Johnson whose fantasies fuelled the McMartin Preschool case, because they are able to discern what those with logical and analytical minds simple cannot - a conspiracy of evil. "Eccentric, alienated, unsocialized and paranoid personality types are needed to ferret our allegations," he explained. "It takes somebody paranoid to continue to express suspicion" (Summit, 1989).
(Source: Page 44 The day care ritual abuse moral panic, by Mary de Young)

But accusing those who expressed scepticism and doubt to be satanists and pedophiles wasn't going to be a strategy that would survive long, and would see such accusers rapidly propelled to a civil court for slander and libel. Thus another element was added to the 'Myth. In response to the core problem of there being no evidence to support even a single meeting of a cabal of satanists sacrificing and/or abusing children, it was determined that the reason the evidence was lacking was because of an extraordinary conspiracy of politicians, police officers, security officers, doctors, journalists and judges were not only taking part in the satanic abuse, but were also suppressing and hiding the evidence. And not only that they were employing Mind Control techniques to ensure the conspiracy persisted across decades and centuries (conveniently allowing some of there former captive victims to survive their abuse, write books, establish web sites...)

In 1984 MacFarlane warned a congressional committee of scatological behaviour and animals being slaughtered in bizarre rituals which children were forced to watch. Shortly after the United States Congress doubled its budget for child-protection programs. Psychiatrist Roland Summit delivered conferences in the wake of the McMartin trial and depicted the phenomenon as a conspiracy theory, suggesting that people skeptical of SRA were part of the conspiracy. By 1986 Carol Darling, a social worker, argued in a grand jury that the conspiracy reached the government. Brad Darling, her husband, gave conferences about a satanic conspiracy of great antiquity, now permeating American communities. By the late 1980s therapists or patients who believed someone had suffered from SRA could suggest solutions that included Christian psychotherapy, exorcism and support groups whose members self-identified as "anti-Satanic warriors." Federal funding was increased for research on child abuse, with large portions of the funding going towards child sexual abuse. Funding was also provided for conferences supporting the idea of SRA, adding a veneer of respectability to the idea as well as offering an opportunity for prosecutors to exchange advice on how to best secure convictions (with tactics including the destruction of notes, refusing to tape interviews with children and destroying or refusing to share evidence with the defence). Had proof been found, SRA would have represented the first occasion where an organised and secret criminal activity had been discovered by mental health professionals.

In 1987, Geraldo Rivera produced a national television special on the alleged secret cults, claiming "Estimates are that there are over one million Satanists in [the United States and they are] linked in a highly organised, secretive network." Tapings of this and similar talk show episodes were subsequently used by religious fundamentalists, psychotherapists, social workers and police to promote the idea that a conspiracy of satanic cults existed and were involved in serious crimes. In the 1990s, psychologist D. Corydon Hammond publicised a detailed theory of ritual abuse drawn from his hypnotised patients, alleging they were victims of a worldwide conspiracy comprised of organised, secretive clandestine cells who used torture, mind control and ritual abuse to create alternate personalities that could be "activated" with codewords and were trained as assassins, prostitutes, child sex workers] (who were used to create child pornography) and drug traffickers. Hammond claimed his patients had revealed the conspiracy was masterminded by a Jewish doctor in Nazi Germany, but who now worked for the Central Intelligence Agency with a goal of worldwide domination by a Satanic cult. The cult was allegedly comprised of respectable, powerful members of society who used the funds generated to further their agenda. The patients' lack of memories (and the failure to find evidence for their claims) were cited as evidence of the power and effectiveness of this cult in furthering their agenda. Hammond's claims gained considerable attention, due in part to his prominence in the field of hypnosis and psychotherapy.
(Source: Wikipedia article 'Satanic Ritual Abuse' - visit link for actual citations)

By the first third of the 1990's the most extreme wing of the christian fundamentalist right in the US had passed this new version of the SRA Myth, now tinged with mind-control and brain-mangling capabilities, onto their equivalents in the UK. They in turn had passed it on to the feminist community, who in turn passed it on to the rest of the intellectual Leftist elite, ensuring that the entire SRA mind-control myth was adopted by some and despaired-at privately by others. In Britain, efforts to paint a picture of the MI5 and the local police as being the chief shakers-and-movers in this huge Mind Control conspiracy proved somewhat difficult, so as with the original 'Classic' version of the SRA Myth, with its flying witches and dragons and goblins mythology, those at the margins of society; the dispossessed, the poorly housed, the unemployed and those in poverty, were blamed as being the cunning masters of Mind Control. The poor were therefore envisaged practising their home-acquired skills with hypnosis, drugs and ritual abuse, through the thin cold walls of British council estate homes.

In the summer of 1994 Prof. Jean La Fontaine's report, commissioned by the Conservative Government in 1991, entitled The Extent and Nature of Organised and Ritual Abuse was delivered to the then Health Secretary, the Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP. Overnight the SRA Myth became just that, a myth. With the exception of the most fanatical and committed religious fundamentalists, Ms. Campbell OBE and other die-hard colluding feminists, and of course publications including The Guardian, Marxism Today and The New Statesman who hung on in their support for a little bit longer, the 'Myth was pretty much struck down in the UK, leaving just a few more scandals, including the Island of Lewis in 2003, to get over. A primary factor in the 'Myths demise was the almost unequivocal decision by the nations' Directors of Social Services to prevent their social workers and associated professions from liaising with religious fundamentalists, attending joint fundamentalist/feminist conferences, or from receiving training/indoctrination from fundamentalist groups. The contribution of the Directors' has never really been appreciated in the UK, but acting through the community of their own professional bodies, the Directors exerted their control over the social worker profession, at a point when many English and Welsh social workers in particular had become lost to reality, dreaming obsessive dreams sparked by fundamentalist propaganda.

At the point of the 'Myth's demise from widespread belief, in 1994, it was frozen in amber, left with the Mind Control 'add-on module' tacked-on to the original witches-and-demons 'Classic' SRA Myth. For the remainder of the 1990's it was this version of the 'Myth that would be willingly believed by a core of religious fundamentalists and feminists.

Even academia and its belief in the SRA Myth, took a bit of a dip in the mid-to-late 1990's, as more journals published papers looking back on the sociological reasons for the 'Myth, making obvious comparisons with the witchcraft trials of the late 17th century.

The SRA Myth though, just wouldn't die. For religious fundamentalists, the belief in Satan is a core tenet, and indeed Hollywood had perhaps contributed more than any other influence (more even than the Bible) to the conviction that Satan was abroad in the world, adding to their general consensus belief that the world was increasingly turning evil. Feminists, embedded in the Women's Studies departments of leafy, lazy suburban middle-class universities, weren't too willing to let the 'Myth go either; the question of it's existence was simply meaningless - SRA had to exist because, well, men, families and women with children were so inherently evil. To even wonder about the chasm-like lack of evidence, was simply giving-in to the patriarchal tradition of demanding evidence to determine innocence or guilt, or to have belief in the patriarchal concepts of science and free thought.

An example of the feminist suspicion of science, and the continuing persistence in belief in the Christian Fundamentalist-derived 'Myth was typified in a 1998 mailing discussion group archive of a US university Women's Studies List, discussing the feminist book The Courage to Heal mentioned later;

Date: Wed, 17 Jun 1998 12:21:57 -0500 Reply-To: Women's Studies List WMST-L@UMDD.UMD.EDU Sender: Women's Studies List WMST-L@UMDD.UMD.EDU From: Kim Cordingly Cordingly@JAN.ICDI.WVU.EDU Organisation: Job Accommodation Network Subject: Re: The Courage to Heal/Feminism & Science? In-Reply-To: 009C7D68.21CE47A0.41@acad.ursinus.edu

Gina Oboler, Anthropology & Sociology wrote: > In response to Sasha -- The critical response I expect is careful investigation
> of such claims. Has your friend published her findings? I'd like to know
> the details of the events of Satanic abuse, and who specifically was involved.
> I'd like to be provided with information that would allow an independent
> investigator to check out the claim. That's science.


I was particularly interested in the last line of this paragraph, "That's science." I think for those who had the opportunity to attend many of the presentations at NWSA on feminist critiques of science & technology, they would agree that this is contested territory. "Science" or western versions of science have often been used to discount and distort women's experiences. Applying mainstream scientific methods to verify memories of abuse/ritual abuse will not provide us with *all* the answers we are looking for. This is often the frustration of survivors of abuse. "Science" is given more credibility as "knowledge" than the individuals own "knowing" what has happened to them. Yet, it is clear that "science" also carries with it its' own biases, subjectivities and agendas. It's important to critique abuse/ritual abuse issues, but if we're doing it from a feminist perspective, we also need to look critically at the methods we use to "verify" human experience. Using "science" doesn't ensure a complete or unbiased picture either. Kim Cordingly kcording@wvu.edu West Virginia Univ.
(Source: Women's Studies List

In reality, rather than adopting a new perspective on science, feminism rather adopted the plethora of 'pseudo science' concepts that have exploded in use in recent decades, taking from it elements of superstition, 17th century prejudice, and in recent years, though to a limited degree, the 'new' explanations of the world and universe from the '12' lizard' conspiracy theorists.

It was new advocates of the SRA Myth who changed it to suit the 'modern' environment, and it is this version that can be referred to as the 'new' SRA Myth. This time the driver for the Myth would comprise and encompass a new generation and class of conspiracy theorist. In this New SRA Myth, Satan is a constant presence, who sometimes shows up to remind folk he is about, the Illuminati/New World Order is a behind-the-scenes overarching enemy, 12-foot high lizards control mankind's destiny, ritual sex abuse of children is but a minor add-on, the CIA control entire populations, alien abduction is rife, mind control is routine and everywhere, psychotropic drugs are delivered into the water supply, hidden spacecraft (a feature of the US-derived SRA Myth that was too attractive to let go) are found once again in schoolyards, alien technology pops up in supermarkets, a huge government conspiracy is in play, and every conceivable element, including the facility to 'strap' new packages on to fit in with the changing years, includes even determining new President Barack Obama to be a satanist. As with the traditional version of the 'Myth, and then the Mind Control version, this re-run of the obsession is being passed down the line from to the Left, already engaged in it's own obsessions with a plethora of new conspiracies following 9/11 and the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

Some people saw it coming.

The British False Memory Society (BFMS), hated equally by both feminists and religious fundamentalists for their consistent opposition to SRA Myth advocates, was one of the first to recognise that the SRA obsessionists, including the more over-enthusiastic child protection campaigners were, and have been sliding over a more esoteric conspiracy theory cliff. It wouldn't though be accurate to describe this community as being 'fringe'; David Icke's ability to consistently fill venues like Wembley Conference Centre in London bears testimony to the increasing popularity of this worldview, that increasingly finds a resonance in a new generation of liberal, leftist or otherwise 'progressive' view holders;

A devil of a tail...
In case you hadn’t heard, the satanic abuse, alien abduction and military mind control theories that keep the likes of the Ritual Abuse Information Network afloat have been subsumed and superseded by the reptile conspiracy.

This development can be tracked through the internet and by reading sceptic researcher Robert Schaeffer’s amusing account of a Californian conference for conspiracy theorists in the Skeptical Inquirer.

“Survivor” narratives of the nineties, where child incest victims were delivered to a CIA experimental mind control programme coded MK-ultra, have been amended to include the lizard connection. One such presenter, Cathy O’Brien claimed to have seen President Bush (the elder) momentarily revealing his true self in a “lizard projection” during her former existence as a White House sex slave. Like so many others, Ms O’Brien was apparently quite unconscious of her early experiences, until the hypnotically repressed “memories” began to surface at around the age of 30. The victims, who have been programmed to have “false memories” of a normal existence, tend to wake up at this point in their lives. But through pre-programmed sabotage, the victims self-destruct or go crazy at this stage – which explains why so many only discover their true lives in the confines of MPD psychiatric units.

Masterminding the reptile connection is Britain’s own grade-one listed conspiracy theorist, former TV presenter and goalkeeper, David Icke. Icke strides the stage with tales of the world being governed by lizards cunningly disguised as world leaders who secretly slake their thirst on the blood of sacrificed infants made available by a global network of satanic paedophile covens. The aliens it seems, have not only landed, but have always been with us, and for Icke and his ilk it is no coincidence that the Evil One has traditionally been portrayed with a slippery spiked tail.

Interestingly, reptile apparitions displayed by channellers on Icke’s web-site bear a passing resemblance to ET. This was the image of choice of the now-passé alien abductees. ET meanwhile looks a bit like a ninja-turtle, and they were supposed to have abused the children in the Orkney ritual abuse case back in 1991. QED for Icke? That these characters are the creation of Hollywood, and are chronologically synchronised with the theories, might pose an alternate explanation. It provides the setting for a perfect folie à deux between theorists and victims who have both imbibed the same imagery. Jurassic Park would explain the ascendancy of the reptile connection over ET, just as the benign Indiana Jones films contained much of the pre-1990 satanic imagery of snake pits and drinking blood. No doubt Icke would have Hollywood ruled by the lizards too, but why they should give themselves away so readily when they have rocket science at their bidding is not clear.

Whether the reptile connection will be endorsed by therapists remains to be seen, but the O’Brien presentation suggests that leakage, if not the truth, is already out there. After all alien abductee and satanic abuse theories, though superficially poles apart, were reconciled through the military mind control paradigm which preceded the reptiles. And this was endorsed by the likes of MPD psychiatrist Colin Ross. Furthermore images of brain structure are now routinely paraded before forests of glazed eyes at traumatic memory conferences. Bombarded with talk of neurotransmitters and the amygdala, what’s the betting that all some delegates subsume is an image of a hazy rippled outline called the “reptilian brain” only to regurgitate it as a “lizard projection” on a client’s “alter”? Watch this space.
(Source: BFMS Newsletter - December 2001)

As it, the BFMS prediction was remarkably accurate, as testified by the Satanism / Child abuse / Cults / Esoteric / Astral Entities & Spirit Possession - David Icke's Official Forums. The SRA Myth is alive and well, as belief in a Matrix-like world, in that it is utterly different to the reality we know, increases and spreads through the left and liberal elite, and through academia.

Conspiracy theories have dogged modern child protection in the UK for decades. The Cleveland RAD Scandal of 1987 required advocates to believe that a significant minority of children in the community (indeed any community in the country) were being repeatedly sodomised by their fathers and other male carers, and that none of the victims had quite got around to telling anyone about it. The following year, 1988, all the way to 2003, and to even now, the SRA Myth advocates demand that we believe that satanic groups across the country are routinely abusing and sacrificing children in fantastic numbers - and are somehow avoiding surveillance or even dissenting members. In addition we have to believe (if we are not to be labeled pedophiles/Satan's minions) in flying cars, the aforementioned rocket ships, lions and giraffes in our public parks, teleportation, invisibility, gross injuries magically healed and women and children sacrificed in public places without anyone noticing. In recent years we are expected as a body citizen corporate, to accept the concepts that women cause autism and most childhood diseases, that women are prone to a huge gallery of psychiatric and psychological conditions, most not subject to peer-review, and, most recently, providing a healthy diet for a child is 'emotional abuse'. With this gallery pick-list of conspiracy theories to choose from, it perhaps isn't too surprising that the SRA Myth has been adopted by those with a belief that Mankind is controlled by 12' lizards, simply because the normal checks of such runaway beliefs, that in the past have been enabled by academia and those who would be proud to call themselves liberal and/or leftist, are no longer present.

Feminism has one again served to introduce these bizarre 'wing-nut' right-wing-inspired conspiracy theories to the wider audience of the otherwise fractured Left. As mentioned earlier, 9/11 and the invasion of Iraq in 2003 has saddled the Left and liberal elite with a terrible conundrum, resulting in a weird mix of desires amongst some groups to challenge anything that the US is perceived to stand for (democracy, equal rights, an open judicial system) whilst supporting anything determined to be anti-US (Sharia Law, repression of women and homosexuals, denial of education for females). The sometimes bladder-wrenching twists that the likes of Amnesty International now engage in are perhaps the most visible indicators of this awkwardness (see Kate Allen).

In the US, the 'mind control' conspiracy element of satanic ritual abuse grabbed the feminist lobby in California and overwhelmed them, as they descended into an orgy of David Icke-like assertions, whilst David Icke was still a pin-up former soccer goalkeeper and TV presenter;

Report of the Ritual Abuse Task Force – Los Angeles County Commission for Women
Ritual abuse is a brutal form of abuse of children, adolescents, and adults, consisting of physical, sexual, and psychological abuse, and involving the use of rituals. Ritual does not necessarily mean satanic. However, most survivors state that they were ritually abused as part of satanic worship for the purpose of indoctrinating them into satanic beliefs and practices. Ritual abuse rarely consists of a single episode. It usually involves repeated abuse over an extended period of time…. Mind control is the cornerstone of ritual abuse, the key element in the subjugation and silencing of its victims. Victims of ritual abuse are subjected to a rigorously applied system of mind control designed to rob them of their sense of free will and to impose upon them the will of the cult and its leaders. Most often these ritually abusive cults are motivated by a satanic belief system [only on the surface.] The mind control is achieved through an elaborate system of brainwashing, programming, indoctrination, hypnosis, and the use of various mind-altering drugs. The purpose of the mind control is to compel ritual abuse victims to keep the secret of their abuse, to conform to the beliefs and behaviours of the cult, and to become functioning members who serve the cult by carrying out the directives of its leaders without being detected within society at large.
(Source: Report of the Ritual Abuse Task Force Los Angeles County Commission for Women (1991)

The response to skepticism

It is worthwhile going back in time and examining how the advocates of the SRA Myth dealt with scepticism. The facility to accuse those who exhibit nothing more than a querying nature has been passed on to the current generation of conspiracy theorists.

In 1994 Professor Elizabeth Newson (mentioned earlier) then joint director of the Child Development Research Unit at Nottingham University, before retiring the same year as Emeritus Professor (and later being awarded an OBE for services to children on the autistic spectrum) was subjected to this labelling, this time from Ms. Campbell. Dr. Newson felt compelled to write a letter to The Independent newspaper, referring to an earlier article from Ms. Campbell, the unfortunately titled Where Satan goes unseen, published on the 4th May 1994. The article had attempted to question the report on the SRA Myth, presented to the then Conservative Government by Prof. Jean La Fontaine, determining that her somewhat tenuous association with an academic called Benjamin Rossen, who had expressed a scepticism about the impact of pedophile in the past, was enough to suggest that Prof. La Fontaine was sympathetic to pedophilia (and perhaps a paedophile herself, by implication). Although a crude device, Ms. Campbell's technique was lifted directly from religious fundamentalist Myth advocates, who routinely accused skeptics of being child abusers and/or satanists with little provocation. In doing so, as well as neglecting once again to mention the quoted Judith Dawson/Jones was her partner, Ms. Campbell OBE managed to catch Professor Newson in her blast;

Professor La Fontaine's orthodoxy on this issue echoes the views of well-known promoters of pedophile.
(Source: Where Satan Goes Unseen, by Beatrix Campbell, The Independent, 4th May 1994)

Professor Newson, in her response to the letters page of the The Independent, made clear her particular concerns that the then demands of fundamentalists and feminists that everyone should be "listening to the children" was selective;

Sir: Professor La Fontaine rightly complains of being accused of promoting pedophilia by Beatrix Campbell's techniques of 'suggestion and innuendo'; I am similarly accused, the difference being that I am no longer surprised by Ms Campbell's methods ('Where Satan goes unseen', 4 May).

She describes me as 'a patron' of Rossen, and as 'one of the main architects of the notion that children have been brainwashed by foster carers and social workers', having appeared as an expert witness at Rochdale although I 'had never worked on child abuse'.

Although much of my play therapy work has involved abused children, I was called as an expert witness because of my many years of research on interviewing techniques, on children's ability to fantasise both in therapy and in more normal situations, and on children's drawing - all of which were highly relevant to the Rochdale case.

Sadly, the children in the case did suffer secondary abuse from the aggressively suggestive way in which they were interviewed; my report rested entirely on the evidence of videoed social work interviews (not foster care) compared with social work reports.

The children were isolated for many months from their parents, despite their protests. I shall not forget the child who exclaimed: 'Why doesn't someone listen to me like it says on the posters? I want to go home, I am safe at home.' When there is professional determination to discover satanic abuse, children will be listened to only selectively.
(Source: Experts do not always listen to children - Letter published in The Independent - Monday 9th May 1994)

Detail about the Rochdale Scandal, including examples of the video-taped social work interviews with the children in the case, plus interviews with the children, now grown up, whose childhood's had been wreaked by enthusiastic Satan-hunting social workers, can be found at Rochdale

As it is, Prof. Jean La Fontaine herself wasn't willing to be labeled as promoting paedophile by Ms. Campbell. She too wrote to The Independent;

Defending her view that satanic abuse is taking place, Beatrix Campbell ('Where Satan goes unseen', 4 May) has accused me of promoting paedophilia. The accusation is made by suggestion and innuendo: the only evidence offered is a letter written to the Child Abuse Review and a telephone conversation from which Ms Campbell has selected one remark which, quoted out of context, suits her purpose.

As regards the first, I recently (March 1994) protested against a one-sided Review of Literature on Organised Abuse. I drew attention to the omission of eight works, including the standard work by Spencer and Flin, The Evidence of Children. I also pointed out that the review relied on American cases, and referred to published material on European cases. With respect to Rossen I wrote:

B. Rossen has published on child prostitution and pornography in Europe and his article 'Mass hysteria in Oude Pekela' gives a different view of the best- known Dutch case from that presented by the Jonkers (special issue of Child Abuse and Neglect 1991).

Ms Campbell fails to mention that I told her that I had had a 'row on paper' with Mr Rossen over his views on child abuse, which I emphatically do not share.
Yours faithfully,
J. S. LA FONTAINE
London School of Economics
London, WC2
(Source: Letter: Abused children, adult pawns, Professor Jean La Fontaine, Letters Page, The Independent, 7th May 1994)

The suspension of scepticism was emphasised by feminist/suspect fundamentalist, partner of Ms. Campbell OBE, and social worker Judith (Dawson) Jones;

In 1990, New Statesman and Society published a Judith Dawson piece on the Nottingham case, "Vortex of Evil" which argued that an "insidious and dangerous" contagion was sweeping the land, the opinion that ritual abuse was imaginary: "This contagion takes the comforting form of skeptical and rational inquiry, and its message is comforting too: is is designed to protect 'innocent family life' against a new urban myth of the satanic abuse of children inspired by evangelical fundamentalists" (Dawson 1990)."
(Source: Pages 174 and 175 of Intimate enemies: moral panics in contemporary Great Britain By Philip Jenkins)

From mid-1994 the SRA Myth was collapsing, almost by the minute. Few advocates of it remained willing to discuss the issue in public, with the exception of a few editors of the magazines and newspapers who had published articles promoting the fundamentalist view, such as Marxism Today and The New Statesman. The hopeless lack of evidence, in the face of such bizarre allegations, had now become the primary problem for advocates of the Myth, and the insistence that scepticism be abandoned, and people simply accept every allegation come-what-may, wasn't working. Some academics continued to promote the SRA Myth in journals inclined towards fundamentalism, but by now the writing was on the wall. Except Ms. Campbell OBE continued to promote the Myth, even in the face of a mounting wall of doubt.

A cynical approach to those who request evidence of SRA continues to play a crucial part in the Myth's longevity. In England the registered charity HOPE (Healing Our Past Experiences) promotes the SRA Myth in and around 'Scarborough, Whitby, Ryedale and more recently Leeds'. To the question about evidence, the charity has a simple answer;


People are always demanding evidence of the existence of ritual abuse so that they can believe more readily that it happens or deny its existence more rigorously. Unfortunately, the abusers do not usually (leave?) proof lying about for others to find. They do not want the world to know what they are doing and therefore do their best to carefully dispose of evidence.
(Source: Ritual Abuse - HOPE page)

The rise of pseudo/crank science

Feminism and Christian Fundamentalism continue to collude in modern times, though the willingness of feminists to appear on the same platforms as those of their religious counterparts are few and far between. An area where the two communities co-exist is over the question of science. Christian Fundamentalism is still often (though not exclusively) wedded to Creationism. Feminism is highly wedded to "pseudo" science, most typified by the use of crank science wheeled-out against mothers in secretive Family Courts. In addition pseudo science doesn't demand the high levels of peer-review and verification that normal science requires, and "feminist research" methodologies emphasise that the use of biased research (sometimes called "Standpoint" research) is justified if it achieves the aim of demonstrating fellow feminist women to be victims. In addition males are routinely portrayed as raping rotters, the family institution as nothing more than a haven for abuse and for the continuance of the patriarchal tradition, and often, women who are mothers are determined to be as mad as a box-of-frogs.

But feminism has a not-very-secret secret; The desire to change society fundamentally - using the argument that children are "moulded" not by their genes and environment but rather by patriarchal society only, requires that evolutionary biology be rejected - see the extended entry under Patricia Gowaty. The reason for this attitude is simple; feminism dogmas determine that humans are somehow separate from normal evolutionary biology because it is strongly believed that normal human behaviour - even patriarchal behaviour and interaction between men and women, isn't the result of hundreds of thousands of years of instinct driven by our genetic heritage derived from our survival as a species. Rather human behaviour, both male and female is garnered from the implicitly patriarchal society that women and men in particular are brought up in. Without the awkward concept of evolutionary biology, feminists can envisage a society when male behaviour - particularly aggression, the perceived-by-them seemingly insatiable need to molest and abuse their children, or to repeatedly rape their wives and girlfriends, is curtailed, whilst at the same time the desire to have children is removed from women.

In an effort to maintain this worldview, Darwinism and evolution are rejected, leaving feminism and Christian Fundamentalism on the same side, again. Equality feminism enabled a woman to fly a Merlin helicopter through intense anti-aircraft fire to rescue a wounded colleague ((First woman DFC wears her uniform with pride)) without the protests from "concerned" males saying it was too dangerous, whilst feminists have contributed to women being bamboozled by evolutionary biology and chemistry, and for a generation of schoolgirls unsure about pursuing a career in science.

How much has feminism been influenced by religious fundamentalism? The answer is probably "substantially". Feminist portrayal of males as being inherently evil is rife on feminist web sites and forums. The concept of the family as being a haven of abuse is similarly rife and the idea that women who are mothers are in essence - mad - stems from the efforts of feminists with their obsessions with pseudo science. The SRA Myth as it was in the 1990's melted away, replaced with the continuing MSBP assault against women; seeing non-scientific explanations for hundreds of otherwise known medical conditions being employed through the mechanism of "Munchausens". Not entirely unsurprisingly feminists and religious fundamentalists in the child protection industry segued seemingly effortlessly into employing MSBP allegations against women, either notably against professional women with families or single women with children, providing the capability that in the distant past had been provisioned through the use of simply accusing such women of being witches.

Some connections are more distinct; the use of the term "breeder" is shared between feminism and religious fundamentalism. It harks back to the SRA Myth craze, when a fictional mechanism was required to explain how SRA-proponents were claiming that the number of children being murdered by satanists was exceeding the number of homicides in their respective countries (notably the US and U.K). The term "breeder" was deployed in an effort to explain-away this somewhat glaring problem. The concept stated was that some teenage girls were being forcibly kept in almost perpetual pregnancy with the sole aim of having them "breed" babies that could be subsequently murdered in satanic rituals. Leading "modern" (the term may not be suitable) SRA Myth advocate psychotherapist Valerie Sinason has extended the breeder fantasy to explain-away what happens to the sacrificed babies; these are either disposed-of in huge industrial mincing machines, incinerated in invisible-to-the-public incinerators, or, simply eaten by the satanists themselves and their charges. Fortunately in the near-thirty years of the Myth, no school dinnertime assistant has asked what a child of a family of satanists has in their sandwiches.

The feminist term "breeder" currently refers to the insult given to mothers by child-free feminists. Although it's use on feminist Internet forums sometimes provokes a response, no objections are ever made by fellow feminists when the "breeder" term is used - even with it's history.

Ultimately though, Ms. Campbell OBE's hatred for fathers, families and women with children, paralleling that of the general body of feminism, still needs an outlet, and certainly since the 1980's and continuing today, that outlet has to be through the editors of those publications willing to publish her work, most notably former Left-Wing newspaper The Guardian (the current editor is Alan Rusbridger). By 1992 the SRA Myth was almost extinct, and many of the publications who had enthusiastically taken-up the Christian Fundamentalist message - such as Marxism Today, Community Care and New Statesman were becoming unwilling to publish such articles to a now-disbelieving public, at quite the rate they had in the past. Only The Independent (who had, bizarrely published the work of Rosie Waterhouse, whose aggressive investigative journalism had done much to challenge the Myth at its height) and The Guardian were willing to to continue the line. The Guardian remains an enthusiastic and consistent publisher of Ms. Campbell OBE's work since the Myth's 'mainstream' demise; perhaps the greatest example of loyalty from a newspaper to a contributing writer in publishing history, although she has largely dropped pushing her insistence in her belief in SRA.

The march of the 'child saver' lobby

As previously recognised, Ms. Campbell OBE's involvement in British social history over the last few decades cannot be understated. In the 1980's a "savvy" Guardian-reading young professional female may have nodded sagely to the then popular view that all men were rapists and pedophiles; in the early decades of the 21st century though, those very same professional women find themselves living in a society whereby female teachers are unable to give a hug to an upset infant schoolchild for fear of being labeled a paedophile, whilst girls themselves are increasingly subjected to sexual bullying at school. In a society whereby the normal conventions of behaviour have been challenged and abandoned for new ones based, it seems, upon sexual abuse, racism and rampant homophobia, it isn't sometimes immediately certain how women have benefited from the "gender wars" of the 1980's and '90s.

Throughout the intervening years, during which the child abuse "industry" has extended its brief well beyond even the SRA Myth and the recovered memory fiascos, to touch upon every level of society, Ms. Campbell OBE has maintained a consistent stance; repeatedly condemning the male sex, fathers, the tradition of family and marriage, whilst avidly supporting professional establishments and individuals and "pseudo science" theories such as MSBP, even when routinely regarded by protesting groups and individuals as a modern form of witchcraft allegation usage, exercised by a secret court system possessed with a streak of misogyny that wouldn't look out of place in the 17th Century.

Perhaps the biggest difficulty encountered by both Christian Fundamentalist and radical feminist supporters of the SRA Myth is that in the intervening 20-plus years since many Western societies became obsessed with the concept, no adult has stepped forward in the UK to say that 'yes, the child protection officers and social workers were correct to intervene' - saying words to the effect I was indeed being ritually abused, you were right to remove me from my home. Indeed the same problem is apparent with the children of the Cleveland and Rochdale Scandals, and all of the other scandals of recent times when children were determined to have been unjustly removed; none of the former children step forward to say the authorities were right and the doubters wrong. There are numerous examples of individuals who have stated they were ritually abused, and those, who under hypnosis, later in life, determine they were subjected to SRA, or alien abduction, and their injuries magically healed - but there hasn't been a single instance when an adult, taken from their home in any one of the SRA allegations made in the UK (or elsewhere) has said they were indeed saved by being forcibly removed.

In May 2009 Ms. Campbell OBE's Guardian Online article We too need a truth commission on child abuse provided an "unusual" chronology of the United Kingdom child protection scandals that ran from 1984's Jasmine Beckford scandal to the 2007 murder of Baby P and skipped every other scandal in between - notably the Cleveland RAD scandal (which she has written a book and several articles about) the Broxtowe satanic ritual abuse scandal (which she had taken a peripheral part in, together with her partner) the Orkney, Rochdale, Manchester and Congleton SRA allegation scandals, the 200+ women jailed for murder on the evidence of Sir Roy Meadow, often without any further evidence, during the SIDS "women-are-killers" regime of the 1990's, the Shieldfield Scandal, which she had written about and in which her partner Judith (Dawson) Jones had also played a significant part in (the resultant corrupted report), the Island of Lewis witchcraft/satanic abuse fiasco and scandal of 2003, the Fran Lyon Scandal and of course the abuse of thousands of women with autistic children (see Bruno Bettelheim). Of any of these there is no mention.

There is though a disturbing reference to the concept, that was repeatedly emphasised, notably by Christian Fundamentalists during the SRA Myth craze, that the real problem with law enforcement and satanic ritual abuse allegations is that those accused have both the right to deny the accusation, and the 'annoying' use by the legal establishment of the concept that evidence of an offence is actually required for a conviction;

But the system could not withstand the resistance of accused adults and their advocates, nor could it cope with the unsettling evidence of scale.
(Source: We too need a truth commission on child abuse - Bea Campbell OBE - The Guardian Online - Friday 22nd May 2009)

Does the term "unsettling evidence of scale indicate that Ms. Campbell (OBE) believes that the criminal justice system was somehow overwhelmed by the sheer number of (albeit false) allegations? And that perhaps it should be sufficient to simply have a huge number of allegations made to ensure a conviction, even in the face of a hopeless lack of evidence? Who can be sure; Ms. Campbell (OBE) is notoriously reluctant to be interviewed by anyone likely to ask her difficult questions.

The suggestion that spectral evidence, discussed on the first page of this entry, be allowed in SRA cases, together with the denial of the normal standards of criminal evidence, let alone the right for defendants to actually deny allegations made against them (however foul) was repeatedly discussed during the SRA Myth years. Indeed the "failure" of the British legal system to adjust its standards of expected evidence, together with the point-blank unwillingness to return to the 17th century witchcraft-phase use of spectral evidence is cited as being the primary reasons that the SRA Myth craze floundered.

As with most recent Bea Campbell OBE online articles of recent years, The Guardian moderators have felt it necessary to censor a huge number of reader comments. However it is her 3rd July 2009 online article Cameron's 'sorry' isn't enough which detailed Ms. Campbell OBE's apparent disgust that the then-Leader of the Conservative Party hadn't apologised for the Section 28 legislation that prevented the alleged "promotion" of homosexual sex education to youngsters (even though he wasn't a Member of Parliament in 1988) that perhaps wins hands down for being the most censored article on The Guardian online web site, and one of the most censored articles that has invited comment on the entire World Wide Web. Perhaps not surprisingly the first sentence of the article, which includes the phrase "When David Cameron says "sorry" for the witch-hunting section 28... might have been better received if it had not included the perhaps unwise words "witch-hunting" - which promptly provoked a series of reader comments (not all censored apparently) about Ms. Campbell OBE's connection to the SRA Myth of the 1980's and 1990's. Amongst the many comments submitted were those referencing the heavy censoring of comments;

Oh my gosh, i don't think I've seen a more heavily moderated thread in a long time!

Bea, your article appears to be nothing more than (hypocritical) biased opinion.

Expect commentators here to tear it to shreds, well, where they're allowed to!



However distasteful, The Guardians often public willingness to go the extra mile with Ms. Campbell OBE, has ensured her written words remain being added-to, even in the 21st century.

Continuing collusion and future threats

Whilst the 'moral panic' over child abuse remains, it is difficult for either religious fundamentalists or feminists to find a public platform upon which to exercise their obsessions. Reaching the 'critical mass' point for entrancing other members of society, to the point that feminists and religious fundamentalists will be able to openly engage in discussions about witches and Satan seems inconceivable - particularly as the spotlight on the collusion of the past increases with every year. Nonetheless though 'moral panics' in Western society seem to be increasing in regularity, whether they be perceived fears over 'hoodies' or fears over rap music. In other societies, notably in Africa, the SRA Myth of previous decades appears to have become the spark for the abuse of children in West Africa, identified by religious fundamentalists to be 'Witch Children' (see Satanic Ritual Abuse indicators. Perhaps for obvious reasons, all feminists are remarkably quiet in condemning the abuse of children is countries such as Nigeria.

As our society moves to a 'post-modernist' structure (using a feminist term) then 'pseudo' or 'crank' science theories appear to gain increasing credence in the public eye, enhanced it has to be said by their huge use in the secret court system. Those who believe in the SRA Myth are unlikely to be swayed, just as those who refute global warming being caused by human activity, or that astronauts landed on the Moon in the late 1960s and '70s, by any counter-argument presented whatsoever.

Indeed the question about the existence of SRA amongst religious fundamentalists and (some) feminists is simply a 'non question.' SRA has to exist; it is a crucial plank in the vision both of a patriarchal society, where males, families and women with children are possessed with evil beyond belief, and the image that Satan himself walks the Earth. One of the problems in countering belief in SRA is that there isn't really any evidence to disprove it, other than pointing-out the hopeless lack of evidence. How do you prove conclusively a negative? The lack of physical/forensic evidence is too, SRA's advocates glaring problem.

One way SRA Myth advocates have responded to the problems of evidence, is to simply deny instances when evidence is horribly missing. The McMartin scandal in California, the first 'proper' SRA false allegation event of the 1980s suffered hugely from the lack of underground tunnels beneath a daycare center, through which children, dropped-off by parents early in the morning, would be, it was alleged, whisked away hundreds, if not thousands of miles by car, jet aircraft or hot-air balloon, to be sexually abused without any injuries incurred, only to be returned to the daycare center in time to be collected by a totally-oblivious mother or father.

In response to the lack of tunnels being found, advocates for the Myth decided to conduct their own survey, determined that the tunnels had indeed existed, and had been filled-in by means and persons (or creatures) unknown. Regrettably these intrepid discoverers forgot to make a photographic record of their findings, and any pictures taken are not available on the 'Web or elsewhere. Despite this, Myth enthusiasts routinely state their conviction that the tunnels existed, and their 'discoverers' had actually walked along them (sans cameras). The 'dark tunnels of McMartin' are addressed further in Part 3 of this Entry.

For the religious fundamentalists and those who believed in the Myth, the hopeless lack of evidence was simply reinterpreted, in reverse fashion, as being positive evidence of its existence. Indeed fundamentalists (and some feminists) simply dismiss the lack of evidence in the SRA Myth as being simply down to its nature...its satanic - therefore quite simply Satan has engineered the lack of evidence, just so he can continue his presence on earth, visiting towns like Nottingham and Rochdale.

A search of the Medline and PsycINfo data bases for articles (both credulous and skeptical) for the acronym "SRA" yielded the following total number of articles by year:

1984 1 articles
1986 1 articles
1987 1 articles
1989 3 articles
1990 22 articles
1992 36 articles
1993 21 articles
1995 16 articles

It would appear that at least professional interest in SRA peaked about 1992 and that interest has since dropped of considerably.

Many advocates of SRA realised that there simply are not enough Satanists in North America to account for all of the abuse that they believe is happening. They expanded their accusations by blaming ritual abuse on secret cults, criminal gangs, self-help groups, mutual support groups, Christian, Jewish and Pagan religious groups, secret Government agencies, the CIA, etc. The fear and harm generated by promoters towards innocent, helping groups is immense. Meanwhile, some governments became involved in the promotion of public hysteria and intolerance. The Ontario Government, for example, funded many SRA seminars during the mid-1990s. Some professional organizations gave credits to their members for attending these seminars.

From the late 1990's the vast majority of papers being submitted were those concerned with studying the SRA Myth and discussing its sociological aspects that could be traced back to the witch trials of the late 17th century.
Current status of belief in SRA:

Belief in SRA by professionals is currently almost non-existent everywhere in English speaking countries, particularly in the U.S. and Canada.

By 2010 it will probably be essentially defunct worldwide, except among victims of recovered memory therapy who are still plagued with false memories of abuse that almost certainly never happened.

Specialists know today a great deal more about conducting proper child interview techniques, inaccuracies of physical examinations and lab testing. It is unlikely that the Satanic Panic will reappear in the future. However, something similar may surface in its place.
(Source: Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA): Introduction, Part 2, by B.A Robinson)

The statement Belief in SRA by professionals is currently almost non-existent everywhere in English speaking countries, particularly in the U.S. and Canada is not entirely correct. As previously discussed the conspiracy-theory community promote a new SRA Myth, resplendent with twelve-foot-high lizards, whilst feminist and religious fundamentalist communities are still hard at work promoting the SRA Myth, as exampled by the publication of the combined collection advocating the Myth;

Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century: Psychological, Forensic, Social and Political Considerations (2008).

In England, the RAINS (Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support) organisation, established by feminists and religious fundamentalists in the aftermath of the Nottingham Broxtowe Scandal of 1988, continues to 'trade'. Its history is detailed, in thanks to an article by a leading paediatrician member Dr. Sandra Buck

In the US, Christian fundamentalist social workers of the Charismatic Church maintain a consistent and forthright belief in Satanic Ritual Abuse, typified by the SRA-related items on the agenda of the 2008 NACSW - North American Association of Christians in Social Work ('A vital Christian presence in Social Work') in Orlando, Florida February 7-10th, 2008;

35. Use of Charismatic Gifts in the Assessment & Treatment of Satanic Ritual Abuse Annette Sarcinelli, MSW & Sherri McKenna, MSW

Therapists who are able to use Christian spiritual approaches in their practice are best equipped to assess & to treat clients who have experienced Satanic ritual abuse because Satanic doctrine & rituals are the exact antithesis of Christian belief and practice. The soul, which is comprised of oneʹs spirituality & sexuality, is deeply wounded by traumatic experiences. ʺUse of Charismatic Spiritual Gifts in the Assessment & Treatment of Satanic Ritual Abuseʺ demonstrates the importance of using spiritual approaches for spiritual issues.
(Source: NACSW 2008 Convention Poster)

From the early third of the 1990's, advocates for SRA have tended towards the theory that the abuse is linked to government-sponsored mind-control programs (in the US most often administered by the CIA). This theory is routinely used to explain how compelling evidence for SRA continues to evade those who insist it is hugely prevalent (presumably through some government technology that prevents the use of mobile phones with cameras from ever working).

On the Internet, the most comprehensive, and professionally-designed Web site promoting SRA is S.M.A.R.T (Stop Ritual Abuse and Mind Control Today) which brings together fundamentalist religious, feminist and secular beliefs in SRA, with an archive of reports and current research into the subject. It's home page helpfully warns those convinced they have been victims of SRA;

Please use caution while reading all of these papers. Some of the information may be very heavy for survivors. If in doubt, download the page and wait to read it until you are with your therapist or a trusted support person.
(Source: SMART home page)

The archive includes the report from the feminist group Report of the Ritual Abuse Task Force – Los Angeles County Commission for Women from 1992, which S.M.A.R.T contributor Kathleen Sullivan kindly contributed-to with a Glossary of terms;

Demons and Evil Spirits

[from Greek daimon = a spirit]

Spiritual beings who are evil and ruled by Satan. According to Christian tradition, they are angels who shared in Satan’s rebellion and were expelled with him.

Ritually abused children and adults are victimised at rituals which invoke such beings. Victims report believing that perpetrators of ritual abuse possess control over these spiritual entities. Some victims are made to believe that these spirits have power to control the victim’s life. For some, the fear of harm from such evil spirits or demons, or the fear of being controlled by them, is more oppressive and debilitating than fear of the perpetrators themselves.
(Source: )

The tendency, promoted by religious fundamentalists and Ms. Campbell OBE, of accusing anyone who disagrees with the SRA Myth of being a paedophile, remains alive in S.M.A.R.T's pages, typified by a "Press Release" from the organisation in November 2008, decrying the Wikipedia article on SRA PRESS RELEASE – Wikipedia “Satanic Ritual Abuse” article promotes PEDOPHILIA.

Retail therapy? Trying hard not to find evidence of ritual abuse

The persistence of advocates for the SRA Myth, whose enthusiasm and often genuine conviction that the Myth is real, is only matched by their genuine unwillingness to obtain any credible and concrete evidence for its existence. Perhaps the obvious source of evidence for ritual abuse would be to employ modern technology in an effort to secure credible and convincing evidence of its existence. In the 22 years of the 'Myths existence in the United Kingdom, and a further ten years before that in the US, True Believers have been notably relunctant to bother with such pursuits.

Commercial retailers, such as Advanced Intelligence Spy Shop have been selling retail covert surveillance equipment to suppliers and the public for decades. The current generation of equipment, using technology that has been available since the 1990's has dropped in price to the degree that it becomes difficult to comprehend why any self-respecting SRA Myth advocate hasn't invested in any of it, let alone a car boot-full. For instance a snip at $830 will purchase any feminist or religious fundamentalist 'Satan Hunter' a ten metre fibre optic night scope, that allows an otherwise unskilled Devil-hunter the opportunity to (from the site description) SEE INSIDE OTHER ROOMS ! WITHOUT OPENING A DOOR ! Other products, including micro-recorders, wireless transmitters of images and/or audio, covert GPS transponders (for tracking husbands and wives suspected of illicit affairs) are available through internet retailers and retail stores.

Indeed the fantastic array of gadgets, gizmos and miniaturised components, that have been available to the public in most of the Western world since at least the 1980's (although early such technology was invariably more expensive and bigger) is extraordinarily diverse, and beyond even the dreams of a fictional James Bond. Yet, over the course of over three decades the SRA Myth twin branches of advocacy - being feminism and religious extremism, appears to have simply 'forgot' to employ any of it. No one could be bothered to setup any form of covert surveillance on any of the alleged members of the satanic groups (of which there were/are thousands worldwide, particularly on council estates in the UK). No-one could be bothered to maintain a long-term effort 'bugging' any suspected members of the alleged satanic covens, sure that eventually they would either say something stunningly incriminating, or would actually lead SRA Advocates to a ritual session actually planned. In the US, with ready access to licensed firearms, any decent group of SRA-hunters could ensure they were armed-to-the-teeth to ensure their own defence.

One explanation for the lack of pursuit is that religious fundamentalists and feminists have been fearful that Satan himself can defend his minions adequately, or that those individuals - armed with the paranormal powers that typify many SRA allegations - ranging from the ability to fly to having access to spacecraft, evade such attempts of detection easily.

A long-term desire for 'Myth Believers has been to secure the assistance of police officers. Now-retired British police officer Chris Healey, who had lectured to RAINS members in the past, typified the problems that investigators have when trying to delve into the strange world of the SRA Myth survivors mind. In this account, Mr. Healey had taken the time to set-up surveillance on a 'Myth survivor, only to come unstuck;

A woman told the psychiatrist that she was being taken out regularly and hurt, and that people were leaving dead animals on her doorstep. I arranged for fixed cameras to be put in place that would show anyone coming or going from her house. I did not tell her or the psychiatrist that I was doing this. Two weeks later the woman reported that she had been taken out and hurt again. But when we looked at the tapes, we could see no evidence for anything she'd described. I discussed it with the psychiatrist, who was quite taken aback and asked the woman about it. The woman said that she had left the house by another route, through a window, and that was why the camera had missed it.
(Source: Unsolved: investigating allegations of ritual abuse by Chris Healey, page 27, from Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder (2008) Edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton Series Editor: Brett Kahr)

An example of the discrepancy between allegation and reality took place in an interview between leading UK-based advocate for the SRA Myth Valerie Sinason and Graeme Galton, published in a psychotherapy journal “free associations” (Volume 10, part 4, No 56, Autumn 2003). Dr. Sinason had also contributed, as joint author, the essay Where are We Now? Ritual Abuse, Dissociation, Police and the Media in the SRA-advocating collection Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century: Psychological, Forensic, Social and Political Considerations (2008)

In the aforementioned interview, Dr. Sinason stated that some of her patients were still being ritually abused, and had in the past at least, detailed precisely that a murder/sacrifice of a baby would take place that night. The obvious route to take would of course be to insist the police get involved (being part of the conspiracy they, it can be assumed, wouldn't be interested) and indeed Sinason suggests this was done. The next step of course would be to ensure the said baby/mother didn't make it to the ritual (airports and train stations are excellent places for people to travel vast distances in a short space of time).

The final response though of course, that most human beings confronted with what they thought were plausible warnings that a baby was going to be killed in a satanic ritual that night would perhaps do, didn't though get a mention; The concept of simply collecting as many supporters of your beliefs as possible, go 'tooled-up' in the best 'Bruce Willis'-style possible (even shotguns are routinely owned in the UK) and head off 'into the hills', armed to-the-teeth and with plenty of camcorders, doesn't appear to have ever crossed Mrs. Sinason's mind. The cacophony of violence that would follow, even if it saw Sinason and her supporters shot to death, would be surely willingly performed by advocates of the Myth, knowing that no cover-up would ever see their sacrifice go unseen by the public. And if she survived, perhaps wounded, splattered with the blood of Satan's servants, the baby in her arms, flanked on one side by a grateful Chief Constable, and on the other a triumphant Ms. Campbell OBE, already mentally laying-out her front-page Guardian piece, Dr. Sinason would have been able to take satisfaction in a baby saved, her advocacy of the SRA Myth proven, her detractors shamed, the Government compelled to act...

Unfortunately, that somewhat obvious route was, and never has been contemplated, and apparently Dr. Sinason had to go to bed that night, and every night since, bearing with her the knowledge of a baby being murdered in a satanic ritual that she could have done something to prevent. And perhaps she is still unable to comprehend how it is that there are so many people who believe that the Myth is pure 'moral panic' bunkum with its heritage buried deeply in the Witch hunts of the 17th century;

GG: I know that some of the patients being seen by the clinic are still being ritually abused. And this must raise important ethical issues for you as a clinician. Have you been able to get any support regarding these ethical issues from the psychotherapy or psychoanalytic professional bodies?

VS: No. We have written to them all and had acknowledgements, but had no response. Of course, how can there be if there is not enough of a body of us who have written in? I'm about to be sending off again, not just by myself, but also with other therapists from different trainings, a shared letter to say, `We are at risk, and the patients are at risk, in the absence of guidance in the ethical code'. Patients are at risk from their therapists' bodies not having a certainty around this. You see, if you have a total certainty that outside reality doesn't count, that it's inner work, it's easy.

GG: And it's the belief that outside reality doesn't count which has been the traditional view.

VS: Which has been the traditional view, yes. Although, again, where is the idea coming from that that's traditional? Freud and Anna Freud were key liaisers with police officers and barristers. Freud worked on a free association test he hoped would reveal guilt in criminal courts and wanted to do that. You find, on the whole, that Anna Freud cared a lot about child abuse and treatment of children. But then clones come in and fossilise what original pioneers did. So, yes it's traditional, but the word traditional needs close looking at. If someone is saying, `Well, I'm pregnant and the baby's going to be taken away and killed tonight'. Then what are you supposed to do? Or someone has witnessed a murder and you have told the police, which we have. You know, `Halloween is coming up. This person wants you to follow them and is saying there will be a murder'. `No'. The provision and resource needed when this is considered an unreal subject means it would only be a police officer who really had such a high moral sense who would push for something to happen. Since all the cases could turn into Fred West cases, then what's our position? `You didn't tell the police enough'. `You didn't tell the public enough'. Well, we have actually told, but that's no consolation.
(Source: Valerie Sinason Talks to Graeme Galton, Spring 2003, reprinted from the journal “free associations”, Vol 10, part 4, No 56, Autumn 2003, Karnac Books)

Graeme Galton, Ms. Sinason's interviewer, is himself a firm advocate for the SRA Myth, and its accompanying theory of Disassociation (formerly known as Multiple Personality Disorder) and is described in his book, with his co-author Adah Sachs Forensic Aspects of Dissociative Identity Disorder (Forensic Psychotherapy Monograph) (2008) as being both psychoanalytic psychotherapists and registered members of the Centre for Attachment-based Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy. They both work as consultant psychotherapists at the Clinic for Dissociative Studies in London, a small specialist outpatient mental health service for people suffering from severe trauma and dissociation. Mr. Galton himself works in the National Health Service and in private practice. At the Parkside Clinic in London he works with individuals and groups in an NHS outpatient psychotherapy service. At the Centre for Attachment-based Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy he is a training supervisor and teaches on the clinical training programme. He is also a visiting tutor at the School of Psychotherapy and Counselling Psychology at Regent's College in London whilst Ms. Sachs has worked for many years as a psychotherapist in psychiatric hospitals, first at St Clements (the Royal London Hospital) and then at Huntercombe Manor, a special hospital for adolescents. She is a visiting lecturer and a training supervisor at the Centre for Child Mental Health and at the Centre for Attachment-based Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, as well as in her private practice.

Running courses in 'Disassociation' to English Local Authorities, religious groups and universities is also performed by Norma Howes, and these are discussed later. The University courses include teaching MPD/DID/the SRA Myth to student social workers in England and Wales, ensuring that the 'Myth lives on, albeit in a somewhat curtailed form, and most likely not with the assent of Directors of Social Services. An example of how the English university courses have help maintain the Myth is detailed below, this from 1997;

It is likely that such conferences as this are self-propagating. One presenter related how in 1994 she went to a study day at Southampton University presented by Valerie Sinason: ‘Ritual Abuse: Does it Exist.’ At first she felt “total disbelief” at what she was hearing, but by the end of the day she believed in ritual abuse. The following years one of her patients started ‘disclosing’ having been made to take part in Satanic rituals (during which devils and humans flew about in the air), hence by the time of this conference she was herself an authority on the subject.

Finally, it may be remarked that one piece of actual physical evidence was produced in the course of the weekend, A woman who was in the process of remembering the Satanic rituals she had been made to attend as a child awoke one morning, so she said, to find a box of voodoo dolls on her doorstep, obviously a curse placed there by the Satanists to warn her to keep her mouth shut, The voodoo dolls were shown. They were Guatemalan ‘Worry Dolls’, as sold at charity shops all over the country.


Others have noted that whilst Dr. Sinason, and her colleague Dr Joan Coleman MRCPsych and RAINS co-ordinator, (author of Satanic Cult Practices) are enthusiastic True Believers in the SRA Myth, and will allege it to all and sundry with no hesitation, they has no such enthusiasm for actually securing the evidence for its existence;

Curiously, some of the patients supposedly continue in Satanism even while in therapy. Joan Coleman’s first survivor once had to postpone her sessions by two days because she had been summoned to a Satanic court in France, When she got to the delayed sessions she described how two ‘hoods’ had taken her to a chateau, where a black cockerel was sacrificed, she was urinated on, smeared with excrement, and all the usual stuff, questioned, then apparently let off. Valerie Sinason has a Multiple Personality Disorder patient who, as a child, was made Satan’s daughter and had “a goat’s horn shoved up her bum”. Her ‘adult alter’ still goes to rituals, returning with injuries, and she is now in a wheelchair. Though Sinason and her colleague Rob Hale at the Portman Clinic were doing an NHS-funded study of SRA, asking “what corroboration?”, it did not seem to occur to her that surveillance of such a patient could readily provide proof, if her story were true.
(Both quotes sourced from It never R.A.I.N.S but it Pours: Reporting on the Satan Hunters by Basil Humphreys, Magnolia - April 1997)

For both fundamentalists, feminists and secular advocates of the SRA Myth, simply alleging SRA is regarded as definitive 'evidence'. This element of the SRA Myth is probably it's most long-lasting and distinctive legacy, as the secret court system in England and Wales (sometimes called by it's archaic name 'Family Courts') allows for the easy use of allegations without corresponding evidence against women and families.

Feminist and psychoanalyst SRA Myth believers aren't the only ones with a conviction that ritual abuse is everywhere. So easy is it to find True Believers that it seems bizarre that someone amongst them, somewhere, wouldn't have bothered in nearly thirty years to take the opportunity to secure the greatest media story of the century (and last century) with a skeptic-convincing photograph. The fundamentalist division of the of the SRA Myth movement are notoriously lazy in following the natural human desire for revenge;


In our previous article about heaven, I commented that when I minister for satanic ritual abuse, these satanically ritually abused persons often see and hear from heaven while they are seated in my office. A common memory for someone who was satanically ritually abused is one of having given birth to a baby who was tortured and sacrificed to Satan. Such a memory is painful and terrifying beyond anything imaginable. After such a memory, I ask Jesus to minister to the person. As He ministers to her, she is able to see and hear Him. He lets her see her baby and how happy the baby is in heaven. She often gets to hold the baby for a minute right in my office in front of me. I can’t see or hear any of the things she is experiencing.

My question has always been, why can’t I see and hear also? From the very beginning of the satanic ritual abuse ministry 17 years ago, I noticed that the survivor, the demons, Jesus—everyone connected with the ministry situation could see what was going on but me. I always wondered why I couldn’t. After many years of study, I have found some interesting answers in God’s Word. As we turn to the Bible, God will reveal why most of us do not see into the spiritual realm yet and at the same time He will reveal why we may be able to do so in the future.
(Source: Satanic Ritual Abuse and the Wheel Within the Wheel, His Presence Online - a multifaceted Christian ministry for the End Times by Patricia Baird Clark)

Patricia Baird Clark is the author of a number of 'modern' (if that is a term that can be used) books on SRA, including Sanctification in Reverse - a biblical exposé of satanic ritual abuse alongside end time truth that 'includes a thorough explanation of astral projection, soul power, how Freud's discoveries led to SRA in the form we see today, and why this is a last days' phenomenon.' and Restoring Survivors of Satanic Ritual Abuse: Equipping and Releasing God's People for Spirit-Empowered Ministry (formerly entitled His Presence in Abuse Counselling) which 'helps the reader gain an understanding about many mysterious phenomena encountered in SRA ministry. Principles are explained on how to release the presence of the Lord for thorough healing and deliverance.'

Although there might be enough enthusiasm amongst some feminists and religious fundamentalists to get together and get a 'burn the witches!' agenda up-and-running again, persuading liberal law enforcers, non-Christian Fundamentalist/feminist social workers, judiciary and non-dogma-driven secret court-appointed experts to adopt the 'Satan-hunter/witch burning' philosophy seems hugely unlikely, were it not for the fact that the SRA Myth comes in several forms today; the original 'Classic" version with witches, flying and perhaps a few changes of inanimate objects into living creatures, followed by the one with the satanic ritual abuse coloured with 'Dissociation' and mind control. The third version is of course the version with 'both barrels'; SRA with lizards. The various versions are described as a Summary, later in Part 3.

Though it seems reasonable to assume that The Guardian and perhaps The Independent (which has become willing to push the fundamentalist view in recent years) wouldn't hesitate to back a resurgence of such a campaign, the current editors of The New Statesman and (perhaps) the online Community Care seem too far removed from their predecessors of times past, who gleefully endorsed the right-wing Christian Fundamentalist agenda. Marxism Today expired, it's dalliance with the Fundamentalist Christian Right probably not helping stem it's decline.

A key feature of the 'old' 1980/90's SRA Myth was the routine tales of horrific acts being committed in public, without anyone noticing, and without any CCTV evidence or member of the public happening to walk past and thinking 'what the?'. In the 1990's the Pembroke Scandal emphasised the impossibility of some of the evidence, in this case presented at court with the paranormal and magic elements left in, but with reference to satanic abuse carefully avoided by prosecutors.

Canadian feminist group Persons Against Ritual Abuse - Torture managed by Jeanne Sarson (MEd, BScN, RN) and Linda MacDonald (MEd, BN, RN) maintain a web site Persons Against Ritual Abuse, maintaining the links with religious fundamentalist groups such as S.M.A.R.T. To their credit they have removed the 'satanic' references to their particular brand of ritual abuse, referring to it by the catchy term 'RAT' (ritual abuse torture). 'Exposing' Ritual abuse they allege committed by professionals and in public places in a world of camera-equipped mobile phones is one of their particular and peculiar obsessions, but not quite enough to persuade them to bother getting any evidence of it;

Forced impregnations and infanticide. These impregnations occur within the context of the ritual abuse-torture victimizations described above. However, when the impregnations are permitted to develop until term or near-term women describe that the delivered infants were frequently drowned in a bucket of water and destroyed, burned, buried, 'disappeared' or sado-necrophilically 'sacrificed' – killed – or cannibalised during the violent RAT family/group gathering. Women also report that infanticide (as well as foeticide) occurred in various familiar settings secured by the perpetrators such as in their home, business, or farm surroundings, in the out-of-doors, or by professionals such as doctors and nurses for example who used their positional power and prestige to secure and misuse the hospital facilities in which they work. Some women also informed us that they were raped during labour and/or following delivery by the RAT perpetrators.
(Source: The Emerging Issue of Ritual Abuse-Torture: Foeticide and Infanticide in the Private Sphere of Family and Guardian Relationships Presented to Working Group on the Girl Child of the NGO Committee on the Status of Women - Geneva (CONGO), by Jeanne Sarson, MEd, BScN, RN & Linda MacDonald, MEd, BN, RN)

Once again, the reader, and members of CONGO were not encouraged, and could perhaps not be expected to ask the somewhat obvious question 'hang on, with all this RAT going on, they'll be sure to be someone who has actually managed to have a camera-equipped mobile phone?' Fortunately in such papers, and at the meetings and gatherings at which they are presented, this glaring lack of evidence never comes up in the Q & A session. Whilst low-cost miniature retail surveillance technology has been available for over twenty years in the Western world, such technology - through the cunning facility of no-one being bothered to get around to doing anything with the gizmos, has assisted in allowing the Myth to persist.

In England and Wales, under the aegis of the Labour governments of 1997-2010, the collusion of feminism and religious fundamentalists continued, maintaining and intensifying the moral panic over the subject of child abuse, all the way to the establishment of the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) - an organisation unique in both Europe and the rest of the world. To some degree that sounds like some madcap conspiracy theory, yet the ISA can trace its history back to the Shieldfield Scandal, and back further, to the Cleveland RAD Scandal, and finally to the SRA Myth scandals from 1988 to 2003 in the UK. Perhaps an alternate way of reaching or at least considering such a view is to ask, what other country in the world managed to suffer the equivalent of the RAD scandal, SRA, Shieldfield and then finally established an organisation like the ISA? The battle against fundamentalist tendencies, because of the establishment of the ISA, may have been lost already. It could be debated that the perceived war against Christian views expressed by some in the 'mainstream' Churches, such as objections to the wearing of crucifixes and the right to voice concern over (depending on your point-of-view) non-Bible compliant sexual preferences (i.e. homosexuality) have been provoked by the realisation of the feminist/religious fundamentalist lobby, that they hold the moral high ground and should be the nations moral arbiters. It is conceivable though that, thanks to the continued use of MSBP and the secret court establishment, the obsessions of both feminists and religious fundamentalists have been to a degree, sated, and the SRA Myth will stay as a low-level background hum, feeding the obsessions of a minority of social workers and secret court experts.

For a while, at its most intense, from 1988 to 1994, the UK looked into the abyss. The US, with the brief allowance of spectral evidence back into its criminal system (the first time since the Salem trials of the 1690's) crossed the ruby-con, and with the enthusiastic of its liberal elite, fell headlong in the maw of religious extremism. How close were England and Wales to a return to the New England of 1692 and the 1662 Lowestoft Witch Trials? Well, probably very close. It was significant that a Conservative government was in power at the time, as, in a matter of years, it became obvious that no government support was going to be forthcoming. Even so, some government departments, such as the Social Services Inspectorate, had become fixated with the SRA Myth, collating the allegations, however senseless and absurd. The NSPCC charity had enthusiastically endorsed the fundamentalist SRA Myth, providing a list of 'satanic indicators' to social services around the UK.

What if?

What though if New Labour had been in office at the time of the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth? How would the likes of then-Ministers like Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP, Rt. Hon. Patricia Hewitt MP and Margaret Hodge MP have responded in the face of the insistent demands of the Christian Fundamentalist and feminist lobby? Would there have been a calculation made in determining should the SRA Myth be crushed at once, or perhaps left to run a while, particularly if the colluding groups, aided by police officers and social workers indoctrinated by the likes of the fundamentalist group The Reachout Trust would perhaps put a few dents in the concept of the family...perhaps deal with a few men, and perhaps teach a few 'lessons' to women with children? It makes for an intriguing "what if?" concept.

Just how close British society came to a return to the late 17th century, with feminists, religious fundamentalists and other groups inspired to mount a crusade against what they perceived to be an avalanche of witchcraft and satanism lurking amongst Englands green and pleasent land is typified by the words of Maureen Davies, then director of the Reachout Trust who pushed fundamentalist literature to a willing audience.

At a three day conference Not One More Child held at the centre of religious fundamentalist academia in England - Reading University, in September 1989 to promote the SRA Myth amongst social workers, police officers, psychiatrists, health workers and writers such as Ms. Campbell, Mrs. Davies revealed how the SRA Myth was being seen as an opportunity to address what had been suspended at the end of the 17th century;

“There’s a grave problem,” Maureen tells us, about the time of the Reading shindig; “the way we are going to deal with it is not by bringing back the Witchcraft Act, but by talking confidentially with police and social services, so they know what to look for.”
(Source: Where the Babble Thrives We Needs Must Follow, by Les H. Posted on Open Salon)

Just how far would a feminist-religious fundamentalist-dominated government have gone to address the demands of both sides? In the UK the traditional conflicts between feminists and fundamentalists don't generally transpire - thanks in part to the success of the 1967 Abortion Act, whose driving force, the Liberal politician David Steel, managed to find a compromise that suited most people rather than alienate all. Because of the Abortion Act, feminist and religious fundamentalists were able to share the same podium, attend the same training course, speak at the same events, in a fashion that US feminists and fundamentalists are normally reluctant to engage together in.

As it is, the SRA Myth diminished, as 'moderates' increasingly realised they'd been duped, and the claims being made became more and more lurid and bizarre. The rise of the MSBP diagnosis probably sufficed to satisfy the witch-hunters amongst both the feminist and fundamentalist persuasions, with a government quite happy to see its use against women in a secret court system (sometimes called by its archaic name The Family Court). With the return to blaming conditions such as autism on women (see Bruno Bettelheim) - a process that can trace its origins back directly to witchcraft allegations of the 17th century and before, much of the 'steam' was taken out of the extremists daily activities. Feminists, who had despaired that women had somehow managed to find a 'third way' - that is pursue careers AND have children and families (thus apparently sustainng the dreaded patriarchy) maintained their determination to punish those they deemed to be traitors. Such obsessions could be exercised within the unpublished and unknown confines of the secret court system, free from the prying eyes of peer review and the scrutiny of investigative journalists. That state remains in place today; MSBP has changed it's moniker to 'FII' and is buttressed by a huge range of pseudo/crank science diagnosis' that make the labelling of women as deranged an even easier process than it was in the 17th and 18th centuries.

If SRA exists, as many fundamentalists still profess, and a few feminists still claim, then in this world of digital technology and State surveillance, it should be relatively simple to uncover it. The lack of any evidence whatsoever is explained by two simple theories; that there is an enormous conspiracy being enacted by the authorities, including all of the countries Chief Constables and Directors of Social Services, to conceal the evidence and ensure that the wholesale, undetected acts of satanic abuse continue to this day, as they have done for centuries past (both groups of advocates try to suggest SRA goes back generationally at least hundreds of years) or, well, because Satanic Ritual Abuse is satanic and it is Satan who is concealing the bodies, the injuries, the tunnels and caves, and the activities therein from prying, remote and digital ears and eyes.

Probably the most visible and obvious legacy from the SRA Myth years was the adoption of fundamentalist religious rhetoric by the feminist community. Even the most cursory examination of 'modern' academic works from feminists, discussions on web forums and public speeches will reveal a vocabulary lifted directly from religious fundamentalism. 'Evil' and 'satanic' predominate, with a simplistic world in which anything concerned with males, the structure of the family and women with children are regarded as the core of patriarchy; in which the existence of evil is unquestionable, and the divine 'goodness' of women - well that is feminist women only - is undoubted.

The difficulty with 'evidence'

The one-way pollination from religious fanaticism didn't end with feminists; the vocabulary of the extreme end of religious fundamentalism has infected first feminists, and then passed, as mentioned before, airborne-virus-like to the Left in general, already increasingly seen as being prone to the siren call of fascism. For many who would describe themselves as 'Leftist' or 'liberal-leaning' in both the US and UK (though once again, not in European nations like France or Italy) the traditional battles of socialism versus fascism have now become the battle of Divine versus Good - particularly as the fight against fascism has become, well, confused at best (see the lengthy entry under Ken Livingstone). The echoes of the SRA Myth, like the reverberations of a church bell, continue to exert their influence down the intervening years.

Believe in Multiple Personal Disorder, or, to know it by its 'modern' name DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) continues amongst both the feminist and religious fundamentalist communities, although invariably battling with other groups who wish to own the theory - such as those who believe in kidnappings by aliens (see the Wikipedia article on Alien Abduction) and mind control exercised by the CIA. The SRA Myth version of MPD/DID is that that it envisages individuals have been so traumatised by being ritually sexually abused in their childhoods, that their consiousnesses have split into multiple personalities as both a response to the sheer horror or what had been done to them, and as a defence mechanism to deal with it. Recovered Memory Therapy depends on the idea that the same sort of abuse is somehow buried in victims' memories, to be recovered only through the skills of a professional (and invariably Christian fundamentalist) therapist.

The difficulty with both theories is that we would anticipate that the horrors witnessed would match or exceed any of those inflicted on children in non-Western world, and certainly in countries where events such as genocide and mass raping's as a weapon of warfare (such as Rwanda and Bosnia) were rife. Unfortunately it appears that MPD and RMT are almost exclusively confined to middle-class, white Western women. In addition we would anticipate that DID/MPD would feature horrific injuries, certainly requiring expensive and extensive genital and gynaecological surgery for those women who therapists declare were subjected to horrific ritual torture. Such injuries would also provide the necessary evidence to give the Myth some genuine credence. Once again, unfortunately in the near-thirty years since the Myth began, such evidence has been simply missing, although in some quarters, actually demanding to have such evidence produced is regarded as evidence that you are a satanist. A key element of the SRA Myth is that its advocates have to believe to varying degrees that modern technology (i.e. anything produced after 1980) such as recording devices, mobile phones, digital cameras, simply don't exist.

Another seemingly intractable problem with the MPD/DID and the SRA Myths is that it would perhaps be anticipated that the horrific abuse that the alleged victims had suffered would be accompanied with enormous physical injuries, that had persisted into adulthood. Certainly the recollections and allegations of gross vaginal, anal penetration, accompanied with repeated pregnancies without access to proper medical facilities (for the "breeders") plus various acts of woundings, floggings and stabbings...would leave gross signs that any police photographer or physician would find easy to document. Indeed such a victim would be expect to suffer acute gynaecological and intestinal conditions for at least the early part of their adult lives, requiring considerable intervention from skilled reconstructive-injuries surgeons.

The SRA Myth and MPD/DID theories though are completely and utterly unaccompanied with such evidence. Although many thousands of individuals were accused of satanic ritual abuse, and even some hundreds, particularly in the US, imprisoned, though on the basis of recovered memories and the allowing of 'spectral evidence' in testimonies - no case had ever managed to present medical or forensic evidence that actually managed to confirm any single allegation.

In Dr. Lawrence Pazder's novel Michelle Remembers (1980) previously mentioned as being 'credited' as being a formative publication that encouraged the rise of religious fundamentalist and feminist interest in SRA, this basic problem is explained simply; the child victim of the satanic ritual abuse 'Michelle' had her injuries cleansed by a combination of God, Jesus and the Holy Ghost. In other accounts, Satan, in a devious and wily effort to conceal his activities, repairs the wounds inflicted on the child victims, time and time again, ensuring that they can be tortured unceasingly, until, released from their ordeals, they join society - their physical appearance relatively intact. These explanations are accepted as de rigour by religious fundamentalists, and to a significant degree by the feminist community - although Judith (Dawson) Jones, the social workers manager in the infamous Broxtowe Scandal, did offer an ingenious explanation as to how satanists concealed scars in a fashion that would defeat modern medical science.

The 'wily' satanists though, did tend to leave themselves open to easy detection by any police officer, journalist or even a social worker. Even in the 1990's, with the technology to-hand then, it should have been relatively simple to find convincing evidence of satanic rituals, particularly as they had supposed to have been performed for centuries past. Indeed it is difficult to fathom-out how a journalist like Bea Campbell OBE managed to fail to record such a ritual, with her access to other journalists and the organisation of colluding feminists and religious fundamentalists to at least provide some hint as to when such an event was taking place. With her conviction that the conspiracy to hide SRA was organised by the elite in society, it would have been relatively easy to follow such an individual to the location of a ritual. Perhaps not entirely surprisingly, that never never happened during the SRA Myth years, or any time subsequently.

The testimonies of 'survivors' of SRA, whose memories of it are often only revealed through the skill of religious fundamentalist therapists, constantly beg the question, why isn't the evidence secured? The conspiracies claimed seemingly cry out for anyone with a mobile phone to grab the media story of the century. Yet advocates for the SRA Myth, MPD/DID show no enthusiasm for (if they really believe what they say) in going out and securing such evidence for themselves, or from simply (particularly in the US) going out one evening armed-to-the-teeth and getting some measure of revenge on their alleged (and seemingly anonymous) abusers. The more bizarre and horrific the tales of SRA alleged, the more mystifying it is that the 'survivors' wouldn't spend every waking moment ensuring it never happened to anyone else. In the near thirty years that the SRA Myth has been about, no-one has bothered with such a requirement.

The kindly ability of the invisible satanists and ritual abusers to let 'survivors' escape their clutches, tell their stores on the Web, even produce artwork, write books and even engage in feminist and religious fundamentalist conferences to inform 'enlightened' women and congregations of their experiences does cause some obvious credibility gap. Artist Lynn provides an insight;


I was born into a cult practicing a ritualised and sadistic form of pedophilia. Along with profiting from child pornography and prostitution, the group also had connections to people involved with government medical and behavioural experimentation programs. Many cult children were used as subjects in these programs.

From earliest memory I was subjected to unspeakable acts of torture. It occurred within private settings, such as cult gatherings, and at research facilities during experimentation sessions. The torture included: food, water, sleep, and sensory deprivation; confinement; multiple sexual assaults; electroshock; burials; and other near-death experiences. I was also forced to witness and participate in acts of violence and cruelty.

My responses to the brutality, such as dissociative reactions including amnesia, were intentionally manipulated. This manipulation is called trauma-based mind Control. The intent was to ensure that I would remain loyal to the cult and unaware of government use and experimentation. The people who subjected me to this process knew exactly what they were doing. Despite years of therapy, it was not until my late thirties when I began to discover the other side of my life.

Trauma-based mind control is the deliberate infliction of trauma to produce dissociative reactions and the subsequent manipulation of those reactions. It is the deliberate creation of multiple personality systems that are vulnerable to control. The goal of cults and other mind control perpetrators is to supplant the victim's original personality with trained, perpetrator-loyal alters. Quoted from a high ranking program doctor: "We do not break her will, we make her will our will."
(Source: Lynns Page: My Story)

With access to huge government and military facilities, it would be anticipated that the fictional satanists would be extraordinarily smart;


A Perfect Conspiracy

The diabolical cleverness attributed to satanists runs afoul of other contentions by ideology proponents. On the one hand satanists allegedly have a tightly organised, powerful, infallible network that leaves no evidence of its large-scale abduction, breeding, and human sacrifice activity. On the other hand, these groups supposedly leave behind an easily discovered trail of clues such as animal carcasses and open graves that invite official investigations. Although satanists are very powerful, they allow ritual abuse survivors to recount their stories publicly, and use easily discovered intimidation techniques such as tapping phones, breaking and entering, mailing warning messages, and planting explosive devices. Finally, satanists maintain perfect disciplines and secrecy despite the fact that their network consists of teenage dabblers, sociopathic criminals, public satanists, and prominent, powerful individuals who secretly occupy positions of cult leadership. Not a single defector has managed to leave with any type of organisational records. This absence of defectors who could furnish hard evidence is striking since radical groups historically have been particularly prone to schism, defection, and internecine conflicts.
(Source: Page 61 from 'Satanism: The New Cult Scare' by David G. Bromley, extracted from The Satanism Scare (1991) - Social Institutions and Social Change, edited by David G. Bromley, Joel Best and James T. Richardson)

It is conceivable of course that some SRA Myth 'survivors' might be a bit timid about the obvious idea of going up against the alleged world-wide conspiracy of satanists. It seems though that the 'survivors' include amongst them those who would have given Rambo a run-for-his-money. Judging by some of the publications coming from the government mind-control-SRA Myth fact/fiction conspiracy industry, there are women who have escaped their persecutors, but with training in all sorts of weaponry, can fly helicopters, but never quite got around to killing their abusers and it seems, their instructors;

Now in their late 30s, the Hersha sisters claim to have experienced chilling childhoods, recounted here by two Ohio-based investigators Schwarz (The Hillside Strangler) and former police captain and "ritual abuse expert" Griffis who say they have studied declassified CIA files and interviewed military personnel in an effort to bolster the Hersha memories.

Before the age of seven, the sisters say, they were inducted into a covert, government-authorized, mind-control program designed to spawn spies and assassins. During weekends and summers, they were subjected to traumatising experiments. Cheryl tells of her days as a caged "lab rat," released to navigate electrified mazes. The two became "psychological captives," programmed to respond to code words. Following practice in weaponry, martial arts and flight training, altered identities were purportedly introduced. At 15, Lynn "was made part of a unit that experienced murder," and she assumed the identity of team leader "Lt. Rick Shaw." As the seductive "Samantha Gooding," Cheryl would paralyse her victims, and she later became the cocky chopper pilot "Sgt. Thomas O'Neil." Naturally, these two "men," long separated, were destined to meet: "Cheryl Hersha! It's me, Lynn, your sister. You've got to let me go. You can't shoot me." Credibility collapses, as improbabilities are piled on inconsistencies, and the truth is buried beneath simplistic, pulp-adventure prose. In closing, the authors claim that "Their story is true," following with an admission that they found no government documents about the program or the sisters. An elaborate disclaimer about the "presumed thoughts and imagined words of the participants" will lead many readers to ponder just how much real events have been fictionalised.
(Source: Publishers weekly review of Secret Weapons : Two Sisters' Terrifying True Story of Sex, Spies and Sabotage - 2001, by Cheryl Hersha , Lynn Hersha, Dale Griffis & Ted Schwarz)

Ted Schwarz had previously written Satanism: Is your family safe? (1988) and co-wrote Minds In Many Pieces: Revealing the Spiritual Side of Multiple Personality Disorder - 1999.

Belief in the supernatural, or paranormal, is a necessary prerequisite for belief in the SRA Myth. Indeed such beliefs are a crucial element for anyone obsessed with the idea that child abuse is rife in Western society, protected by an enormous secret organisation that can trace its roots back through centuries of time. It is almost routine for supernatural events and abilities to be associated with alleged abusers, such as Gerard Armirault believed to be capable of anally abusing a child with a kitchen knife without leaving a mark or injury. Teleportation, telepathic mind control, the ability to cross short distances at a speed exceeding the human eye or a CCTV camera to detect are all crucial elements in the convictions of such 'believers', blurring the distinction between the real world, and a twilight world of unrecognised evil, and the dread presence of Satan himself. Such belief may be the source of modern obsessions with child protection, typified by the emergence of enormous Government sponsored organisations, intent on identifying evil in all its guises (discussed later).

Whilst in the US, organisations like the NACSW continue to encourage the SRA Myth, in the UK significantly there are still Christian Fundamentalists who claim to be providing training for police officers and child protection social workers. One of the most active individuals is Norma Howes, who in the introduction for a conference entitled Trauma and the Body A Conference with Norma Howes at Glyndµr University, Wrexham on January 24th 2009, describes who the course should appeal to, and her previous experience;

This conference will be of interest to social workers, police, emergency service workers, health, education workers, therapists in the NHS and private practice. For attendees of this conference, we also recommend the conference 'Ties that Bind' in October 2008.

Norma Howes is a Social Worker, Child Forensic Psychologist and Sensory-motor Psychotherapist. Norma is involved in training police, social workers, health and education staff on all aspects of childhood trauma and abuse.

Norma has a private practice working with adults and children most of whom have experienced severe childhood trauma. She has worked in the field of trauma, mental health and dissociation for more than twenty years and has researched the impact of dissociation on memory and the implications this has for both civil and criminal court proceedings.
It can perhaps be safely assumed that the civil court proceedings refers to the secretive Family Court system. "Disassociation" is the modern term for Multiple Personality Disorder - invariably used by Christian Fundamentalists and feminists as being caused by SRA (or in some quarters, kidnapping by aliens). Attachment theory saw many experts, no longer able to pursue the SRA angle, still able to trade in the secretive Family Courts.

A simple search for Norma Howes through Google reveals that many Local and Health Authorities employ her for her skills as a 'child forensic psychologist' and trainer. The nature of her clients is such that a cursory check of her past would be expected, and it may be safe to speculate that with her well-documented role in being an enthusiastic advocate for the SRA Myth, belief in the 'Myth is still well established amongst those who commission her for courses. The subject of Norma Howes, and her relationship with Bea Campbell OBE is discussed a little later. The main entry for Ms. Howes investigates her claims to be a 'Social Worker'.

In the UK there are still groups, composed of feminists and religious fundamentalists, who continue to 'push' the SRA Myth, onto a mostly disbelieving public. Ritual Abuse Network Scotland (R.A.N.S) the Scottish equivalent of the English R.A.I.N.S organisation that is staffed and subscribed-to by both feminists and religious fundamentalists, and seeks to publicise SRA Myth material, from both fundamentalist and secular sources, is administered by Izzy's Promise in Dundee, Scotland. The organisation, supported by The National Lottery of Great Britain, promotes the SRA Myth, typified by its own YouTube presentation;



As with similar organisations, Izzy's Promise ('Working to end RITUAL & ORGANISED ABUSE in the world') sells a number of products to assist funding its activities, amongst which is Who Dares wins, described as;


This book is aimed at workers who may come into contact with survivors of ritual abuse. It is intended as a basic information resource. Covers issues such as: feminism and ritual abuse, supporting survivors of ritual abuse, children and ritual abuse and a survivor’s perspective.
and the DVD The 8th Day that promotes the SRA Myth and is aimed to raise basic awareness of ritual abuse in order to encourage more agencies and workers to provide support to survivors.

As with other advocates of the now 30+ years of the 'Myth's existences, Izzy's Promise hasn't quite got around to pursuing any desire to obtain definitive evidence that SRA exists. Nor, as the Myth's supporters allege, have they in the face of continued carnage brought about by ritualistic killings and cannibalism, got around to perhaps intervening with their own vigilante attack on the wily satanists and baby eaters. Presumably once again the old and somewhat tired excuses that Satan is too cunning, or that the satanists are just too smart, are wheeled-out on their creaky undercarriages, destined once again to take off briefly before plunging into the swamp at the end of the airfield runway.

Women remain routinely accused of being the cause of childhood conditions understood perfectly well in the rest of the Western world, whilst criminal law is still obsessed with the vision of women as being either mad or psychotic, or both. Is it possible that feminism, with its overriding drive to demonstrate by any means that males, families and mothers are inherently evil, is willing to ally itself to any dogma or creed, just so long as the primary purpose is satisfied? Or is it that feminism, with it's aura of righteous indignation, sold its soul (sic) to achieve its primary purpose, even at the expense of raising the spectre of witchcraft allegations against women? Is the engine at the heart of feminism not a fierce Marxist one, spawned from repression and class war, but rather one derived from religious fundamentalism, woven in the furnace of power and the inflicting of repression?

Unlike the brief killing summer that was inflicted on Salem, the "child-savers" empire-building of the late twentieth century has managed to persevere decades into the 21st Century. In England and Wales in 2009 the Independent Safeguarding Authority is being established, principally to enforce the requirement for employers to vet potential employees to ensure they aren't employing pedophiles. Amongst the capabilities of the ISA will be the facility to record and disclose false allegations of abuse - in effect ensuring that the false allegation regime so feared by modern teachers for blighting numerous careers is now rendered into an official strategy. The ISA will impact upon the lives of a quarter of the adult population - 11.3 million people (though this figure may have dropped to a 'trifling 9 million) - each to be effectively branded by the machinations of government a potential pedophile. Anyone who has any interaction with children will be subject to such a check, and not performing the check will be a criminal offence. Taking in a foreign exchange student, cooking school dinners in a school, even helping-out as an clerk for a charity...all of these and many more roles will be subject to scrutiny by the ISA.

The purpose of the ISA, perhaps not surprisingly, has little to do with child safety, and the basis and methodology of the organisation isn't really designed to increase the safety of children in the nation, but rather to address the needs of the child-saver lobby. Of more importance is its message that adults are, by default, all pedophiles, either now, or in waiting (although a third of sex crimes are performed by adolescents). The ultimate victory of the child-savers appears to be to ensure that any adult with a child - whether they be a parent, a teacher, a policeman, a nurse, someone who is seeking help with a lost child, a member of the public treating a child after a road traffic accident, a lawyer or social worker or guardian speaking with a child, a journalist, a politician turning-up for a photo-call even in a classroom, a noted and respected children's author providing a reading from his or her latest publication, is regarded with suspicion...regarded as a potential pedophile. At that point, which appears to be rapidly coming to fruition, then society will have been successfully changed, revolutionised. Children will no longer be afforded the protection of adults and (in the eyes of feminism) the human desire to have children at all will have been banished (after all who will want to have children if you are being constantly branded a pedophile?) Without the need for children, thus no need for marriage, no need for the hated family structure and consequently no need for the hated mothers, evil males and the wicked "patriarchal" society.

In July 2009 Ms. Campbell OBE wrote of her support of the ISA, in response to objections by authors such as Phillip Pullman who were being expected to pay for the privilege of speaking to children in schools. (Vetting: it should happen to an author) The Guardian "Comment is Free" section following her article was again huge, and again hugely weighted against her. As in response to her other recent online articles, the moderator had to ban a huge number of comments - embarrassing for the newspaper as the section the article is listed under is "Liberty Central." As before a large number of contributors referenced Ms. Campbell OBE's involvement in the SRA Myth, whilst others questioned how Ms. Campbell OBE continued to have her articles published by The Guardian (ultimately only her editor Alan Rusbridger can answer this.)

In October 2004 30-odd members of the Metropolitan Police centrally-based child abuse team were sent on a course run by an organisation with vast enthusiasm for the concept of SRA (see Met defends satanic abuse course and the discussion about Lee Moore under the entry for Mark Ivory). The "moral panic" of the late 1980's and most of the 1990's never really faded away - if anything it intensified, encompassing all of society to the point that a father is regarded with suspicion by other adults if he is seen playing with his daughter in a public park. Whether we like it or not the combined resources of religious fundamentalism and feminism are still fighting their war.

In 2007, the Metropolitan Police took part in a major conference at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre that displayed to the world just how much the religious fundamentalist-derived concepts of the SRA Myth and Multiple Personality Disorder/DID had found a home amongst London's police force and other child protection professionals;

6a. Dissociative disorder and ritual abuse – MORNING ONLY
Valerie Sinason (Director, Clinic for Dissociative Studies)
This seminar will outline the work of Valerie Sinason, a child psychotherapist and adult psychoanalyst who has been at the forefront of the growing awareness and understanding of ritual abuse and the ways that psychoanalytic psychotherapy can be used to treat its victims. Delegates will have an opportunity to explore some of the difficulties encountered in trying to support children who have experienced ritual abuse, including where the consequences of ill treatment can lead to a further condition, dissociative disorder (DID). Treatment can be complicated by the fact that this type of abuse, and DID, is not well understood or believed. The presenter will use her extensive experience of providing assessment and long term therapy for ritual abuse survivors to consider some of the paths which can be taken and their consequences.
(Source: Schedule for the annual conference of the London Safeguarding Children Board)

The event was targeted at;

Elected members, policy makers, senior officers, managers and practitioners from health, police, probation, children’s social care, education and voluntary and community groups, with a particular interest in or responsibilities for child safeguarding work or work with vulnerable children and their families.

...and was attended by senior Metropolitan Police officers including Commander Rod Jarman (Commander, Territorial Policing Command) who Chaired the event and DCI Gerry Campbell (Metropolitan Police Violent Crime Directorate) - neither of whom felt it necessary to say 'hang on, with all this satanic ritual abuse going on, where's the evidence?' Also in attendance were Tink Palmer (then Director of Stop It Now! UK and Ireland and now Barnados) and the Reverend Jean Bosco Kanyemesha (Pastor, London Fire Church International Fellowship and Director, World Action Youth).

A 'mild' version of the current 'new' Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth, minus lizard conspiracies, but involving many of the mind control elements that it's current advocates profess can be viewed below;




(See also Dianne Core, Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP, Ray Wyre, Rev. David Woodhouse, Dr. Lawrence Pazder, Dr. Sara Scott, Tim Tate, Linda Gordon, Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Christopher Booker, Joan Acocella", Dr. Darren Oldridge, Ken Livingstone, Colin Cramphorn, Lindsey Read)

The entry for Bea Campbell OBE continues on the following page;

Part 3

Go back to the first page;

Part 1



"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


Bruno Bettelheim & Autism



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

Please note this entry, discussing the career of US child psychologist Bruno Bettelheim, his theory of the 'Refrigerator Mom' as a means of explaining autism, and the modern equivalent use of MSBP allegations against women to explain autism, was originally located in the Surnames B Index page. It's length has required it to be moved to its own page.

Bruno Bettelheim



Section headings



Introduction

Emigrated to the USA in 1939. Known as the originator of the concept of "refrigerator moms" that explained autism through the mechanism of blaming of women for their child's condition. The theory though wasn't entirely new; the idea that autism was caused by a lack on input and neglect by mothers had been first postulated by Leo Kanner in a 1949 paper — attributing autism to a "genuine lack of maternal warmth."

Bruno Bettelheim though, through a series of articles throughout the 1950s and 1960s popularised the theory, at a time when the incidence of autism was beginning to be diagnosed more regularly. Not everyone was willing to accept the concept that the condition was the fault of women, most notably Bernard Rimland, a psychologist with an autistic son, and founder in 1967 of the Autism Research Institute (ARI) and the Autism Society of America. He also wrote Infantile Autism: The Syndrome and Its Implications for a Neural Theory of Behaviour (1964). Rimland managed to even persuade Kanner, through the quality of his research and writing, that there was a neurological explanation for autism, and Kanner in response wrote the forward to his book.

The Refrigerator Mom theory

In 1967 Bruno Bettelheim published The Empty Fortress: Infantile Autism and the Birth of the Self which reinforced the popular belief in Western societies that autism was caused by women, defeating many of the gains that Rimland, Kanner and others had made. In the Empty Fortress Dr. Bettelheim detailed how three children with severe autism had been treated under his supervision at the University of Chicago's Orthogenic School using psychoanalytic theory and milieu therapy.

Children who had once exhibited bizarre antisocial behaviour were, in some cases, completely cured. No one had ever achieved such success with this enigmatic disorder. Although Bettelheim's book did have its critics, the overflow of praise from Bettelheim's advocates drowned out the voices of the few detractors. As a result, Bettelheim's thesis, that the infant's relationship with her "refrigerator mother" caused autism, soon became the accepted explanation in popular and some professional circles.
(Source: Bruno Bettelheim, Autism, and the Rhetoric of Scientific Authority by Katherine DeMaria Severson, James Arnt Aune and Denise Jodlowski, published in Autism and Representation, edited by Mark Osteen.)

By the 1970s the theory of the "Refrigerator Mom" was still hugely popular amongst some corners of the medical and social work professions, though further research into autism was leading to its critics increasing in both number and accuracy in their findings. Left alone the theory would have probably passed into history, particularly after revelations about Dr. Bettelheim following his death by suicide in 1990 (see later below).

An interesting account of how Bruno Bettelheim's theory of the Refrigerator Mom impacted on women, all the way through the 1960's, and extending until MSBP-usage took over as the facility to blame women for autism, can be viewed here;



Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy

Sir Roy Meadow's theory of MSBP, published in the The Lancet just 10 years after in 1977 proved to be a lifeline for those who believed in Bettelheim's theory. Although initially given little credence, MSBP, from the 1990s onwards, was employed to blame autism, or symptoms that appeared like an Autistic Spectrum Disorder-on women. In the intervening years it has became a de rigour exercise for many child protection professionals to employ a 'standard' MSBP allegation against a woman with an ASD child.

The strong echoes of 16th & 17th century witchcraft allegations against women permeate much of the use of MSBP - made doubly disturbing with the knowledge that before Bettelheim's "refrigerator mom" theory, witchcraft and demonic possession had been routinely employed to explain autism - and indeed continue to do so today, particularly in fundamentalist communities and some non-Western cultures.

Using the concept that the mother or female carer (the MSBP theory rarely applies to male suspects) caused the child's autism, or symptoms that ostensibly appear as an ASD, MSBP goes far further than the misogynist dreams of even the most ardent "Refrigerator Mom" Theory advocate. Rather than having to prove a failure to emotionally connect with an infant, because the woman is "emotionally frigid," child protection professionals employing MSBP/FII have taken Bettelheim's theory and run with it into a zone where the woman actually deliberately causes the child's autistic spectrum disorder through deliberate intent, or has inflicted symptoms on a child that "look similar" to an ASD. Furthermore the woman is able to perform this feat using a process as yet undetermined by science or medical or criminal forensic science. Although some court-appointed experts believe that ASD-like symptoms can be inflicted deliberately on a child by a woman with MSBP, the means to actually perform this aren't divulged. Presumably the absence of sensory and emotional input from a very early point in the infants life — i.e. "Refrigerator Mom" activities (or lack of rather) would suffice to explain how a "Munchausens Mother" would actually cause a child to be autistic or to produce a outwardly not-very-convincing approximation of an ASD.

MSBP's close correlation with witchcraft allegations of the 16th and 17th century mentioned earlier (see David B, Allison, Dr. Virginia T. Sherr, M.M. Drymon, Dr. Lynne Wrennall) may appear fanciful, however there has to be the suspicion that in the absence of science, belief in mysticism and magic have taken hold in the secretive courts and it is being posited that the women accused of inflicting AS disorders on their young charges through malice are performing it through supernatural means.

The term MSBP was dropped following the scandals overshadowing Professor Sir Roy Meadows. Instead the term FII (Fabricated and/or Induced Illness) has served as a replacement. The loss of the Munchausens reference is probably appropriate as it became more difficult to imagine there were thousands upon thousands of simpering women seeking the love and attention from medical personnel, by either fabricating or actually inflicting an injury or condition on a child — using the child as a proxy to enable repeated visits to hospitals or clinics, even at the expense of a child having unnecessary medical procedures inflicted on it. The FII term though allows for circumstances when women don't even come into contact with medical personnel — enabling child protection professionals, invariably with the assistance of a psychiatrist, to determine that a woman may possibly fabricate or induce an illness or injury on a child not yet born. The Fran Lyon Scandal provided a golden example of this scenario in use; with Ms. Lyon's diagnosis of being a likely deranged woman who would injure or fabricate an injury or condition on her not-yet-born baby being garnered without her actually being examined or interviewed by the professional who made the diagnosis.

The extraordinary ease of use of MSBP/FII allegations against women is such that many professionals only have to quote "MSBP" without any further analysis or effort to try to provide therapy or assistance for a woman so accused of it. As MSBP was (and remains) in the minds of many family court judges and secretive court-appointed experts and child protection professionals, a deadly condition that can lead to a child being murdered by a woman, then a finding that a woman had caused an infants autism through MSBP, or, as in recent times might possibly cause a child to become autistic — is sufficient to have the infant or new-born baby forcibly removed and placed into forced adoption.

Through its employment in the secret family court system, the use of the MSBP theory had a perfect vehicle in which to thrive. For those child protection experts and professionals inclined to seeing children forcibly removed from parents, either for financial gain or to satisfy dogma (or both) then MSBP has proven to be a god-send. Even better, through the restriction of the issuing of secretive family court judgements (see Paul Rowen MP and Rt. Hon. John Hemming MP) there is little danger that the testimony of secretive family court-appointed experts would ever be challenged by opposing experts, as their testimony would never see the light of day through an Appeal Court judgement one way or the other.

Comparing MSBP and The Refrigerator Mom theories

The relationship between the Refrigerator Mom theory and MSBP/FII theory isn't necessarily clear-cut across the world. In the US autism support groups have banished Bettelheim's theory to the scientific gutter, and it is nigh impossible to employ a false or spurious MSBP allegation against the mother of an autistic child without risking the wrath of an expensive civil action. In England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland though, where the use of MSBP/FII has reached such common usage against women it is often considered as the first diagnosis rather than the last final explanation of a child's condition, enabling the employment of blame against women for autism to be thriving like never before.

Bettelheim simply expressed his conviction that autism disorders were caused by women failing in their duty to provide emotional support for their children, leaving the children bereft of communication skills and an inability to socialise. MSBP/FII though steps beyond the bounds of Bettelheim's theory with a huge leap; now instead of being simply accused of being remiss or somehow lacking in the emotional suite required by young children, women are now (and have been for over a decade) accused of being devious, vindictive schemers who deliberately inflict ASD or ASD-like conditions upon their children, and then have the temerity to demand assistance and support services for their children. In this regard MSBP/FII isn't the Refrigerator Mom theory by any other name - Bettelheim's writings never suggested any deliberate intent. MSBP/FII though retains the concept that AS Disorders are caused by women, but this time with deliberate intent.

As with Sir Roy Meadow, who had shredded his original research for his theory of Sudden Infant Death (SID) — closely related to his other theory of MSBP when it was being demanded for peer-review, Dr. Bettelheim also had a hidden secret;

For the next twenty-three years(following the publication of Empty Fortress) the writings of researchers, parents of autistic children, and adults with autism served to discredit Bettelheim's claim of maternal causation. However, shortly after Bettelheim, a Holocaust survivor, committed suicide in 1990, at the age of 89, the world suddenly had reason to question more than his hypothesis. Letters poured into newspapers from former students of the Orthogenic School. Bettelheim, the staunch advocate of safe and comforting environments for children with emotional disabilities, allegedly had physically and emotionally abused the children in his care. Some of the adults that Bettelheim claimed to have "cured" of severe developmental disabilities, including autism, charged that they had entered the school with nothing more than behavioural problems. The shocking revelation that Bruno Bettelheim had neither a degree in psychology nor therapeutic training also emerged during this time. We have learned that in fact he wrote his dissertation on aesthetics, and while in Vienna was a lumber merchant.
(Source: Bruno Bettelheim, Autism, and the Rhetoric of Scientific Authority by Katherine DeMaria Severson, James Arnt Aune and Denise Jodlowski, published in Autism and Representation, edited by Mark Osteen.)

When a secret court-appointed expert or social worker determines that a woman has caused a child's condition, are they actually correctly recognising an ASD? That question is hard to answer, due to the secretive nature of the Family Court system in England and Wales, that prevents us from seeing the testimony of experts and identifying any trends to indicate that the same experts are being used time and time again, employing the same dogmatic view of women and children with ASD symptoms. The experience of Jan Loxley suggests that some professionals have genuine difficulty in recognising AS Disorders and choose deliberately to adopt a strategy that either deprives the child of the necessary and statutory support services (for economic reasons — most notably to save expenditure) and/or to inflict 'revenge' on a pushy parent (who pursues a request for services to be granted). In the worst cases, of which there are many tens of thousands, the child is removed forcibly from the parent. For any purpose a false allegation of MSBP/FII fits the bill perfectly, distracting professionals from their duty-of-care, whilst at the same time branding a woman with the odour of madness, which in turn limits her opportunities to deal with misogynistic medical professionals.

I have worked in senior front line positions in Voluntary Sector children’s provision in the UK. Nevertheless, three years ago, both of my children were (briefly) put onto the Child Protection (At Risk) Register for fear that I was causing “significant harm” to my son by asking that he be formally assessed for ADD/ADHD/Aspergers Syndrome and by taking the LEA to SEN Tribunal. The grounds were that a former GP had started a “whispering campaign” amongst health and educational professionals who did not understand Autism/Aspergers Syndrome / Dyslexia / Dyspraxia and related conditions-always preferring to suspect and blame the mother. The lasting damage of the Social Work intrusion into our lives is much greater for my daughter, who was only 5 at the time. She was previously an extremely independent young lady who, faced with the fear of being taken from me, became extremely clingy and afraid to sleep without me. I still can’t easily go out on a school night as she forces herself to stay awake for my return. Her education was undermined by the intrusion, which caused enormous difficulties in relationships with her school. Low teacher expectation of the “CP kid” led to massive and totally unfair delaying her getting help with her Dyslexia.

Eventually at the age of 12 my Dyslexic son was diagnosed as high functioning Autism or Aspergers Syndrome (DAMP –Disorders of Attention, Motor control & Perception). In the wake of complex pneumonia he also developed some of the symptoms of ME/CFS. His main difficulty is that he is extremely bright-and uses his intelligence to mask his difficulties. Education professionals (led on by the whispers from the GP) had mistaken his educational difficulties for lesser intelligence. I had identified that something was wrong when he was 3 and the whispering campaign had persisted for 9 years. Misapprehensions by some personnel in the LEA still make it difficult for him to get appropriate educational help.
(Source: The Right to Quiet Enjoyment of Family Life - by Janet Loxley-Blount)

From the Refrigerator Mom to Abusive Mom

The use of false or spurious allegations of MSBP/FII against women for children with AS Disorders increased exponentially with the assistance of the New Labour Government of 1997-2002. In response to the findings of the Lord Laming enquiry into the Victoria Climbié Scandal the Government chose to reorganise child protection services through common working practices, under the guise of the Working Together to Safeguard Children” (1999). Guidelines. Upon seeing the first release of the guidelines, the National Autistic Society were aghast when they realised that the very pointers that child protection professionals were to use to identify and seek-out MSBP/FII almost perfectly matched the symptoms that an autistic child would be expected to exhibit in one form or more;

Without putting factitious or induced illness into a proper context the NAS fears that there may be an 'epidemic' of this type of abuse, with many parents/carers reported as abusers, when the reality is that their children have very real but undiagnosed conditions such as autism. If this guidance on factitious or induced illness has to be issued, then this rare form of abuse must be put into an appropriate context, with a list of prevalence figures for other, more common, conditions which could explain the 'symptoms' which are said to indicate possible abuse.
(Source: Safeguarding children in whom illness is induced or fabricated by carers with parenting responsibilities: consultation from the Department of Health-Response from the National Autistic Society

The response to the NAS's meeting with the Government in 2001 - with a civil servant called Jenny Gray and the then-Health Secretary and former Home Secretary Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP resulted in the report quoted above being prepared by Dr Judith Gould, Director - The Centre for Social & Communication Disorders and Judith Barnard, then Director - Policy & Public Affairs, NAS. The report was quite specific about how the proposed Government guidance could be used as a vehicle with which to accuse women of MSBP/FII, particularly those whose children had an ASD;

* Firstly, the list in chapter two (para 2.16) which describes symptoms which may occur as a result of abuse is a list of classic pointers to autistic spectrum disorders. These symptoms are, however, presented in a very subjective way (see our light italic type, below) — underlying causes are implied, yet the people being asked to recognise these symptoms are not qualified to make these judgements. There could be many other reasons for these symptoms, all of which must be ruled out by referral to appropriate specialists before suspecting factitious or induced illness in the parent.
o Delay in speech and language or motor development as a result of distress;
o Development of feeding disorders as a result of unpleasant feeding interactions;
o Dislike of close physical contact and cuddling because it recalls episodes of smothering;
o Development of attachment disorders as a result of the mother-child relationship being over-controlled;
o Low self-esteem as a result of not being able to understand why they have been abused in this way;
o Having no or poor quality relationships with peers because their opportunities for social interactions are restricted;
o Under-achievement at school because of frequent interruptions in attendance;
o Development of abnormal attitudes to their own health (for example, the development of abnormal illness behaviour and even somatoform disorders) because of their abnormal experiences


This list of symptoms is likely to become the 'cut out and keep' checklist for your average health practitioner from the 60-plus pages of this guidance document. In order to avoid a wrong diagnosis, a full developmental history of the child must be taken by a qualified clinical professional before the possibility of an autistic spectrum disorder can be ruled out. There are undoubtedly many other conditions which may cause one or more of these symptoms. All of these must also be ruled out through assessments by appropriate specialists.

o Secondly, awareness of autism amongst all the groups identified in this guidance is very low. Given that autism is far more prevalent than 'factitious or induced illness' there is an urgent need for guidance on autistic spectrum disorder to be issued by the Department. This particular guidance document places a huge weight and importance on a very rare form of child abuse, out of all proportion to its prevalence. Yet a complex and far more common condition such as autism is not taken as seriously as it needs to be.
In response to the protestations of the NAS, the New Labour government did amend the guidelines, pointing-out that autism needed to be considered by professionals instead of having them rush straight to a conclusion that a woman is "Munchausens". Too late though, the damage had already been done; up and down the UK child protection professionals had been following guidelines to identify MSBP/FII that exactly matched those that they would find in autistic children. Unconsciously or otherwise MSBP/FII had been allowed to ensure that women would be regarded as having inflicted the symptoms presented by their children though the somewhat witchcraft-like accusation of MSBP/FII. This political element, with a Minister of State effectively endorsing the concept that ASD symptoms married those of MSBP saw the concept of women being blamed for AS Disorders (whether genuine or not) take an exponential step beyond the Refrigerator Mom theory of AS Disorders. The consequence of the Governments guidelines was as NAS predicted; children with AS Disorders were forcibly removed from women and parents under the guise of the women being determined to be "Munchausens."

The allegation of MSBP against a woman is a pernicious and vicious thing. With the controversy over the MMR vaccine and autism, the use of MSBP allegations against women rapidly became rife. The perceived rise in AS disorders in recent decades was answered with a corresponding rise in the use of MSBP allegations against women. A key feature of MSBP is that its advocates absolutely do not want a comprehensive world-wide or even (in the UK) national regional study performed of the condition, even to identify MSBP/FII black-spots where additional research or funding could be granted to try to understand why there is a "postcard lottery" in the use of MSBP/FII allegations against women, with some counties in England being particularly enthusiastic about its use (such as Kent).

How routinely is MSBP used? Well the Consensus document, submitted to the New Labour government, like the NAS report, drew attention to the widespread use of MSBP allegations that resulted in the forced removal of children.

Despite the government’s official view that MSBP, also known as fabricated or induced illness, occurs in only about one person in a million, up to 12,000 children a year are being taken into care for MSBP-related reasons, according to the report.

The 104-page report, drawn up by Consensus, a group of parents and professionals, says Department of Health guidelines on MSBP issued in 2002 are phrased in such a way as to trigger referrals of parents to social workers even without any evidence.

The guidelines state: “When a possible explanation for signs and symptoms is that they may be fabricated or induced by a carer, and as a consequence the child’s health or development is likely to be impaired, a referral should be made to social services.”
(Source: Innocent parents accused of abuse by Daniel Foggo, The Sunday Times, April 23rd 2006 )

The Consensus report estimated that 12,000 children a year are being removed from women and parents using MSBP allegations in England and Wales. As it is expected that just one case of MSBP occurs per every million citizens (of all ages) then we would expect 65 cases a year, using the New Labour Governments own figures. That means for every year of use, current MSBP allegations consume the equivalent of 184 years of expected cases. As MSBP allegations against women have been employed actively for two decades, then over 360 years' worth of allegations have been made inside 20 years already. If we recalculate the figures and perhaps determine that MSBP occurs say ten in every million citizens, then we would expect 650 cases a year. To try and get close to the 12,000 allegations made every year we have to estimate that MSBP is prevalent in around 185 of every million citizens. That is still a long way from the agreed prevalence of schizophrenia (at around 7,000 sufferers per million) but certainly enough it could be reasonably expected, to trigger a substantial investment in research into MSBP. As MSBP allegations are made invariably against women of child-bearing age (15-44 is the normal range) then the pool of women being used for this enormous source of MSBP allegations is low — and a fair proportion of the same have to have an MSBP allegation made against them, year-after-year.

Even so, 12,000 allegations a year seems hugely excessive a figure, although the New Labour government didn't challenge the assertions in the Consensus document. There are about 1050 towns in England alone, plus 50 cities and countless villages. Even one social worker or paediatrician could manage a single MSBP allegation against a woman once-a-month. Enthusiastic supporters of MSBP/FII allegations will profess that the Syndrome is more rife than official figures suggest — although those very same supporters are absolutely against any comprehensive survey or research to ascertain where MSBP can be found and what its causes are. It should be noted though that following the review into the Sally Clark scandal, when questions over the veracity of Sir Roy Meadow's testimonies over SID's and MSBP reached a peak (and he was prevented from being used as a prosecution witness in criminal trials) a review of 5,000 children taken into care was requested.

Ultimately though it was determined that the vast majority of these cases were correct, or that it was too late to resettle the forcibly removed children. If indeed the vast majority of cases were correct then the figures for MSBP prevalence issued by the Government are obviously wrong, though once again there is no enthusiasm for funding research into why the discrepancy exists. (see Margaret Hodge MP)

The use of MSBP/FII allegations against women with AS Disorder children remains rife in the UK. Gagging orders until a child is 18 prevent most women from speaking-out, though in the coming decade their accounts will probably be regularly aired. It is likely that thousands, perhaps tens of thousands of children were taken into forced care or adoption, although they continue to suffer for AS Disorders, on the basis that their condition was inflicted upon them by a woman. In Scotland some effort has been made to recognise the the harm inflicted on ASD children though the Working Together guidelines that were adopted and approved by the Scottish Executive, through a consultation exercise that accepted written and oral evidence;

Although we have major concerns about the above noted government policies towards the human rights of people with autism, it is in the history of government policy as regards Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy (MSBP) that we find most to worry us specific to children with ASD, because of the overlap in the features of MSBP contained within government guidelines with the international clinical criteria for ASD. Given the absence of research data on this `syndrome` and proper peer reviewed research, it cannot be considered to exist. Whilst we know that accusations of MSBP are disproportionately directed against parents of children with autism, and that an unknown number of autistic children have been taken into local authority `care` on the basis of such an accusation (through the Children's Panel system), we also know that this is the tip of a very large iceberg, where professionals often accuse parents of being responsible for their child's autistic behaviours or genuine medical problems, even where a diagnosis of ASD has been made. Most parents recognise that this is a defence mechanism against parents who have greater expertise in matters related to autism than the `professionals`, and is used when parents are attempting to access services that are more appropriate to the needs of their child.
...
Although we have major concerns about the above noted government policies towards the human rights of people with autism, it is in the history of government policy as regards Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy (MSBP) that we find most to worry us specific to children with ASD, because of the overlap in the features of MSBP contained within government guidelines with the international clinical criteria for ASD34. Given the absence of research data on this `syndrome` and proper peer reviewed research35, it cannot be considered to exist. Whilst we know that accusations of MSBP are disproportionately directed against parents of children with autism, and that an unknown number of autistic children have been taken into local authority `care` on the basis of such an accusation36 (through the Children's Panel system), we also know that this is the tip of a very large iceberg, where professionals often accuse parents of being responsible for their child's autistic behaviours or genuine medical problems, even where a diagnosis of ASD has been made.37 Most parents recognise that this is a defence mechanism against parents who have greater expertise in matters related to autism than the `professionals`, and is used when parents are attempting to access services that are more appropriate to the needs of their child.

We have concerns regarding other pseudo-medical diagnoses – especially Reactive Attachment Disorder38, which is at the core of a major Scottish-based research study (of 12,000 subjects) into child development linking RAD to autism.39 It is the best opportunity yet to reinvigorate the `refrigerator mother` theory for autism, and we are convinced that it will be used to bolster the continued denial of an explosion in numbers of children presenting with autism, both as regards the future and retrospectively.
(Source: (both quotes) Incompetent, Abusive, or both? - Scottish Executive policy and legislation on Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) - `Autism Rights` Briefing Paper April 2007, by Fiona Sinclair

Dr. Paul Shattock OBE of Sunderland University's Autism Research Unit, together with Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown have drawn attention to the use of false MSBP/FII allegations against parents and women whose AS Disorder coincided with a recent MMR vaccine jab.

Mr Shattock said: "Accusations of Msbp are often focused on parents who believe autism has been triggered by the MMR jab. The child is ill so something has happened. But the official medical dogma says it can't be the MMR vaccine so it must be the mother.

"The guidelines social services use for Msbp describe children on the autism spectrum, so what we are seeing is a plague of these false allegations.

"Yet there is no scientific evidence whatsoever that Msbp even exists. It's a witch hunt. I believe that the secrecy surrounding Family Courts could be masking very serious miscarriages of justice."
(Source: Wrongly Accused - Sunday Sun, 21st December 2002

The use of MSBP allegations against women as a means on simply saving expenditure is already well documented and accepted by a sizeable majority of parents of ASD children. The Channel 4 News anchorman Alex Thomson became a recent high-visibility "victim" of the official desire to save money, though, unusually it seems, his girlfriend wasn't accused of MSBP/FII (though continued "awkwardness" with medical authorities invariably provokes a false allegation). The criminologist and lecturer Dr. Lynne Wrennall has also written about the use of MSBP/FII allegations as an economic tool to be wielded against women. The psychologist and recognised autism spectrum disorder expert Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, although courting controversy with her opinion that one of the causes of autism can be found in the mercury-based "transport agent" of the MMR vaccine, has also expressed her concerns that MSBP allegations against women with ASD children are invariably made for economic reasons.

Behind all this though, where does Dr. Bettelheim's theory of the "Refrigerator Mom" sit in the early 21st century? Quite healthily intact it appears. The writer and child psychologist Alice Miller, who books invariably dictate that family life is rife with child abuse and modern mothers are the source of most of this abuse, wrote of her opinion, after observing ASD children in a therapy center, that AS Disorders are simply the consequence of having been abused (physically, sexually or emotionally).

I spent a day observing what happened to the group. I also studied close-ups of children on video. What became clearer and clearer as the day went on was that all these children had a serious history of suffering behind them. This however, was never referred-to...In my conversations with therapists and mothers, I inquired about the life stories of individual children. The facts confirmed my hunch. No one, however, was willing to take these facts seriously
(Source: Alice Miller - Breaking Down the Wall of Silence: The Liberating Experience of Facing Painful Truth (1991))

It is uncertain how many child protection professionals have determined that AS Disorders are the direct result of abuse and that no other explanation will suffice.

Feminism, which would perhaps be expected to have opposed the seemingly remorseless rise of false allegations of MSBP against women, is strangely quiet on the subject. Indeed only a paper by ML Bergeron reveals any disquiet on the subject (in this case concerning the use of a false MSBP allegation against a lesbian mother). There are various possible explanations for this, but following the allying of the feminist cause with religious fundamentalism in the late 1980s and early 1990s over the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth (see Bea Campbell (OBE)) that saw mothers and carers routinely accused of being witches and child abusers, it is likely that an environment that sees women (notably mothers) easily accused of being obscenely mad suits a desire to present families as being havens for child abuse. Women, who as mothers, are seen as being mere simpering dolts willing to continue the patriarchal traditions of marriage and family.

The use of MSBP allegations invariably step beyond any normal legal or medical standard used in the modern Western world. On frequent occasions its use will echo the "ducking stool" use of witchcraft allegations from the 16th and 17th centuries;

One particularly dubious element of the standard M.S.B.P. profile, which was published in such periodicals as the Journal of Mental Health Counselling and Archives of Disease in Childhood, was its assertion that perpetrators were "deniers" who would firmly deflect accusations of abuse. This placed accused mothers in an absurd bind. "The 'perpetrator' may genuinely be innocent and that is why she persistently and vehemently denies harming her child," C.J. Morley, who is now a professor of paediatrics at Royal Women's Hospital in Melbourne, Australia, wrote in 1995. "In some cases the mothers are told if they do not confess they are unlikely to have their children back. This is blackmail and may result in a false confession."
(Source: The Bad Mother - The New Yorker, by Margaret Talbot - published August 9th, 2004)

The use of MSBP/FII false allegations against women with ASD (autistic spectrum disorders) has coalesced into a number of different perspectives, all of which can be summarised through diagnostic viewpoints;

1. The child has an ASD condition (autism, Aspergers Syndrome, Dyspraxia , etc.) AS Disorders are caused by "refrigerator mom's" and the child should be removed forcibly, using the MSBP/FII stratagem, at the first opportunity and offered for adoption.

2. The child has a condition that by all appearance, seems to be an ASD condition. However for some other reason or reasons the mother is suspected of fabricating the condition (MSBP/FII) through an unknown mechanism not yet understood my science or forensic investigation. The child should be removed at the first opportunity and placed in care or forcibly adopted.

2. The child exhibits ASD-like symptoms but is suffering an Attachment Disorder. Although RAD theory details that such disorders invariably impact most on children moved from familiar surroundings (such as children in care moved repeatedly from foster parents to foster parent) it is common practice to forcibly remove such children from their families and have them enter a cycle of repeated movements until being possibly forcibly adopted into a new household.

3. The child has an ASD condition which is genuinely believed to be caused by a genetic or environmental vector. However the child should be forcibly removed from its family to preserve the costs inherent in providing services for ASD children. Having entered care the child is probably best not being forcibly adopted as the new adoption parents will also request resources for their ASD adopted child.

Two other viewpoints are invariably used in non-Western parts of the world, but both have been employed in the US and UK in the past, and there is anecdotal evidence that some professionals with fundamentalist/feminist perspectives have determined them to be valid and correct;

4. The child is indeed subject to an ASD but such disorders are caused by demonic possession. The child should be forcibly removed from the female parent, who is most likely the cause of the possession, at the first opportunity.

5. The child is indeed subject to an ASD but such disorders are caused by witchcraft by the woman (mother or primary carer). The child should be forcibly removed at the first opportunity from the woman to reduce the influence of the spells inflicted. In some non-Western nations this diagnosis will result in an exorcism attempt and or the murder of the female for alleged witchcraft (see )

An example of how some child protection professionals view those with AS Disorders is well documented with the case of the Storey family;

ASPERGER SYNDROME Anti-social services

It is hard to envisage more ignorant or unsympathetic treatment by the “caring professions” than that meted out to the Storey family of Rayleigh, Essex.

Debbie Storey, 41, has Aspergers Syndrome (AS), as do her sons Ben, 16, and Sam, 12. AS is a form of autism where sufferers often have high IQs but lack social and communication skills. This can be seen in apparently “odd” behaviour.

Last year Ben and Sam were nearly taken into care because a therapist who had been visiting the Storey home decided — without being qualified to do so — that the children were being psychologically abused. Nothing could have been further from the truth. But a confidential report prepared for Essex social services concluded that Mr and Mrs Storey were “consciously or unconsciously using their children to meet their own needs.” They were summoned to a child protection conference and the boys were put on the “at risk” register for emotional abuse and neglect.

In what was subsequently found to be only one of a series of failures by the authorities, no input was sought from any expert on autism to throw more light on the condition of Mrs Storey and her sons. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, a psychologist and expert on Aspergers, was so horrified by what was happening to the family she even gate-crashed a case conference to act as a family advocate. She found the intimidation of the family “absolutely unbelievable and unacceptable”.

After a mammoth battle with Essex county council involving lawyers and various experts, Ben and Sam Storey were eventually removed from the “at risk” register last September. But the year-long ordeal took an enormous toll on everyone, especially Mrs Storey. In emails she revealed the depth of anxiety and desperation she felt throughout the period. In March last year, for example, she wrote: “They are ripping my family to pieces and there isn’t anyone who can intervene at a higher level and stop the damage this is doing to the children.

“Ben is really unwell with all the flu symptoms again that flare up when he is under immense stress….but thanks to the core group (those monitoring the children) we’re too afraid to take him to a GP who has blatant disregard for experts and is totally ignorant to the needs of a family dealing with autism…. This is spiralling out of control and I’m rapidly going with it.”

But it was not just her mental health that was suffering. According to Debbie’s mother Rosemary, Debbie had been fatigued and feeling unwell for some time but was too fearful to go to the doctor lest this was interpreted as more “attention seeking behaviour” that could harm her chances of keeping the children.

She had complained of increased back pain in the middle of last year and in November was referred to the Royal Orthopaedic hospital for spine and hip investigations. No cause for the pain could be found. Instead, according to Rosemary, questions were asked about whether Aspergers could have affected Debbie’s perception of pain.

Later in November the pain was so bad it was frequently causing Debbie to vomit. A GP at her practice prescribed slow-release morphine to ease the pain, but another GP took her off it. At one stage she was in such pain she dialled 999 and was taken to casualty at Southend Hospital. After two painkilling injections she was sent home. But she was then readmitted to hospital by her GP when blood tests revealed worryingly low levels of haemoglobin. Again she was discharged.

It was only in March of this year that, on mother Rosemary’s suggestion, Debbie was seen by the consultant who was treating her brother for a rare renal cancer. It turned out that Debbie’s “perception” of pain was all too horribly real. She too was diagnosed with rare renal cancer, only hers had spread to other parts of her body.

While her husband Michael now cares for Ben and Sam, Debbie is being nursed by her parents and awaiting an operation to remove a kidney on 4 May.

Because she is so seriously ill, an advocate from Mencap has written to the respective health authorities, the Southend Hospital NHS trust and Castle Point Health Trust, to question and complain about her treatment. But Lisa Blakemore-Brown has no doubt that the labels attached in ignorance to Debbie and her family over the years mean she has not received the kind of treatment and care she needed when she needed it. “What has happened to Debbie and her family should not be ignored. We have seen over the last seven years more and more cases of parents being wrongly blamed and their real needs ignored. In this case a completely unqualified person set a rumour running that then permeated the entire health, education and social work systems, blinding the professionals. This resulted in no support for the children, no recognition of their condition — and a mother fighting for her life.”
(Source: PRIVATE EYE Issue No: 1131 29 April – 12 May 2005)

The abuse of AS Disorder children and women with ASD children is perhaps the most unreported medical scandal of the last fifty years. The abuse of both the children and families by medical and social work professionals continues to this present day, almost unabated. The political element in the seemingly official encouragement of the use of MSBP/FII allegation against women with AS Disorder children will probably, in the years to come dominate discussions about social care policy in the UK - as more children taken forcibly from families and mothers reach the age of 18, and more women find that the secretive court gagging orders have expired; allowing them to speak freely. How society, child protection professionals, the Labour Party and numerous retired Labour Party MP's and councillors cope with the questions that will be asked of them will be fascinating to observe. A Royal Commission, or perhaps an equivalent of South Africa's post-apartheid Truth and Reconciliation Commission, with the input of the victims of the regime imposed, the experts involved and the politicians who allowed the scandal to develop and persist may suffice. For the moment though the MSBP-autism scandal remains a "work-in-progress" with women still being accused of causing autism on a daily basis in the UK.

(See also Anne McIntosh (MP), William R. Long, Jan Loxley, Angela Wileman)
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


Dr. Sandra Buck & RAINS (Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support)



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

This Entry is focused upon the establishment and history of the RAINS organisation, the continuing belief in the SRA (satanic ritual abuse) Myth in the UK and its impact on Child Protection policies and practises in Great Britain since 1989. The Entry is strongly related to the lengthy but more general discussion about the SRA Myth which dominates US and UK contemporary social history, to be found at Beatrix Campbell (OBE)

Part One (this page) is listed under Dr. Sandra Buck, principally because it investigates the RAINS organisation, using Dr. Buck's written history as the primary source.

Part Two is an analysis of the 1994-published book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, and is therefore titled under the name of its editor, Dr. Valerie Sinason, one of the primary advocates in the United Kingdom for the SRA Myth after 1994.

Part Three and Part Four discuss the nature and extent of belief in the SRA Myth in the early 21st century in the United Kingdom, with particular emphasis on the psychotherapy/psychoanalysis profession in the UK. It is titled under Dr. Sinason and David Icke, the two primary public faces of belief in the SRA Myth in the UK in modern times. Part Five extends Part Four to another page, whilst discussing the subject of Recovered Memory Therapy and other recent pseudo science or conspiracy-theory driven therapies.

The Index editors would like to extend their thanks to a number of British academics, NHS staff, mental health professionals, journalists, historians and other British academics, serving police officers, social workers and others who have contributed and continue to contribute specific information and opinions for this Entry.

Because of the amount of data provided, this Entry has been split over five pages, and even so partitioned is probably too lengthy for easy reading. This first page is particularly lengthy and jumps between discussions about the US version of the SRA Myth, and its British equivalent from 1988-2003. later pages are restricted to British-related subjects.

Go to the second page;
Go to the third page
Go to the fourth page
Go to the fifth page

Sandra Buck (Dr.)

Paediatrician working in Nottingham, East Midlands, England.

Section headings

  • Part One (this page) - the SRA Myth in England & Wales and RAINS

  • Introduction
  • The SRA Myth, MPD/DID and RMT
  • Satanic Ritual Abuse indicators
  • The SRA Myth arrives in England & Wales
  • Broxtowe
  • Pembroke
  • The Shieldfield Scandal
  • Scotland
  • The importance of 'Michelle Remembers'
  • Dr. Sandra Buck's history of RAINS
  • RAINS consolidates
  • RAINS & fundamentalism
  • Rochdale
  • Conflict with The Jet Report
  • Mind Control - the SRA Myth takes a new turn
  • Professor La Fontaine's Report
  • The Evil, Satanic Poor


  • Part Two - A Chapter-by-chapter Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (Routledge, now Informa PLC, 1994)

    Go to Page Two for a detailed Contents listing of the sub-pages.

  • The essay contributors - then & now
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Sub-Page 1
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Sub-Page 2
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Sub-Page 3
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Sub-Page 4


  • Part Three - The Nature & Extent of belief in the SRA Myth in Great Britain in the early 21st century

  • Individual and Institutional members of RAINS
  • Wolverhampton City PCT and RAINS
  • The Metropolitan Police & RAINS
  • The burden on RAINS members
  • SRA Myth True Believers in the public eye - Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke
  • The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy
  • Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder - taking psychotherapy to a new academic low
  • Dr. Ellen P. Lacter - American witch-hunter
  • The Institutions of psychiatry, psychology, psychotherapy/psychoanalysis & the SRA Myth
  • psychotherapy/psychoanalysis
  • The regulation of psychotherapy
  • Psychiatry, Psychology and the SRA Myth
  • Psychotherapy/psychoanalysis and its submission to David Icke
  • The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain

  • Part Four - The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain (continued)

  • The Department of Health and Dr. Sinason
  • Trauma, disability, attachment and the promotion of the SRA Myth
  • The Centre for Child Mental Health & the SRA Myth
  • The Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability
  • The 8th European Congress of Mental Health in Intellectual Disability
  • The Paracelsus Trust
  • Treating 'survivors'


  • Part Five - The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain (further continued)

  • The London Safeguarding Children Conference and Valerie Sinason
  • The Metropolitan Police and Valerie Sinason
  • The Carol Felstead scandal
  • The BBC and Valerie Sinason
  • The CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) and Dr. Valerie Sinason
  • The SRA Myth and the destruction of John Bowlby's legacy
  • Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs (Karnac Books, March 2011)
  • Attachment Therapy
  • Recovered memories, body memories and the pseudoscience of the future
  • 'special pleading' - a Letter to The Guardian, January 23rd 2012
  • End piece


  • Part One - the SRA Myth in England & Wales and RAINS



    Introduction

    This page of this extended Index entry provides some background information about the SRA Myth in the US and Great Britain, before discussing the establishment and history of the RAINS organisation. Part Two is dedicated to an analysis of a key text in the study of contemporary social history in Great Britain, Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (Routledge/Informa PLC, 1994). Therefore this page can be regarded as 'pre-Treating' and pages three, four and five 'post-Treating'. Please note this is a lengthy Index Entry, which has now been split into five pages. Parts Three, Four & Five investigate and discuss the nature of belief in the SRA Myth in Great Britain, notably amongst those working in the psychotherapy profession.


    The SRA Myth, MPD/DID and RMT

    In the UK, the Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) Myth moral panic descended into farce during the mid-1990's. Those that remained convinced that vast multi-generational dark satanic conspiracies were at work, killing huge numbers of sacrificed children and leaving legions of 'survivors' to tell their tales, worked in an environment where the SRA Myth changed to suit new concepts imported from the United States.

    Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD), or as it is now known, DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder), plus Recovered Memory Therapy (RMT) were introduced as part of new conspiracy theories, over and above the relatively less complex SRA Myth regime that had been employed in the UK in the late 1980s and early 1990s. This had been based principally on a repeat of the 13th-17th centuries witchcraft allegation mechanism, with men and women accused of practising dark arts against children, casting spells, performing magic, eating babies, maintaining wild animals like lions, and even resurrecting the dead. The initial version of the SRA Myth in the USA had coincided during the 1980's with the Believe The Children movement that was precisely that - a conviction amongst SRA Myth advocates and others that however outrageous the claims and allegations, whatever children being interviewed/interrogated said, was absolutely the cast-iron Truth. This in itself was a replication of the very same emphasis placed on child witnesses during the latter stages of the Witchcraft Trials, notably in New England and Great Britain during the late 1600s.

    In the early 1990s the 'shit-house-rate-crazy' Mind Control version of the SRA Myth, derived from the increasingly bizarre theories promulgated by a minority of US-based psychologists, psychiatrists and psychotherapists took hold, and spread, once again through religious fundamentalists, to the UK. Throughout the 1990s the focus of interest in the promotion of the 'Myth switched from social workers as being the core True Believers to the mental health professions, as they became increasingly vulnerable to a tendency to promote and suggest the fantasies to their patients. In the US a large number of mental health professionals found that promoting diagnosis of SRA and DID was particularly financially lucrative, as for several years medical insurance companies were willing to pay-out. In the UK only a small number of mental-health professionals have been able to operate in this 'market'; extracting public money from the NHS (National Health Service).

    The introduction of Multiple Personality Disorder to the SRA Myth discourse has led to conflict within the psychotherapy profession. The profession is beset by two distinct views; one that dissociation, even to the MPD degree, can be caused by a range of experiences, traumas and schizophrenic-like conditions, and the other, that all dissociation - particularly MPD, is caused only by exposure to Satanic Ritual Abuse, and no other cause is possible. Within the profession this conflict has run for several years - with psychotherapy afflicted with christian fundamentalist and feminist practitioners who advocate for the SRA Myth to a sometimes fanatical degree, to the detriment of any other likely cause.

    The base theory for 'Myth advocates of MPD/DID is that a child, undergoing severe physical trauma, such as being abused by Satanists, will fragment into numerous personalities, or 'alters'. The description of this 'survival' mechanism and the associated complete loss of memory of the abuse is unique to the Western world and within it, almost completely unique to white, middle-class and middle-aged women, who have retrieved memories of satanic abuse through a process generally known as RMT - Recovered Memory Therapy. A discussion about the nature of SRA Myth/DID 'survivors' who retrieve such memories, whilst often being diagnosed as being 'multiples' - that is having dissociated personalities - can be found at The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy.

    Dissociation though contains a wide plethora of diagnosis'; ranging from day-dreaming, being dis-attached from your body (the 'flying' sensation many experience) all the way to the concept of multiple personalities, which is at its most extreme end. Trauma is regarded as a valid trigger for DID, but so to are instances of severe illness, though once again a small proportion of DID advocates believe only ritual abuse can be the cause, and no other. DID amongst children is extremely rare, as will be discussed later. In the US, since the 1980s, a mammoth rise in the diagnosis of DID in its most extreme and contentious form - that of MPD, has been reported, notably from christian fundamentalist and feminist therapists. As mentioned before, the vast majority of patients are white, middle-class and middle-aged females, predominantly born into a privileged family, exhibiting no gross external or internal physical injuries.

    Despite the conflict within the psychotherapy profession about the causes of DID, 'serious' practitioners, or at least those who try to give the impression of beng serious, don't always help themselves in trying to shake off the synergy with the 'Myth; at the 2009 International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation 26th Annual Conference in Washington DC, an extreme right-wing organisation which promotes DID as a natural by-product of trauma, amongst the subjects discussed by this leading SRA Myth-advocating organisation was The Role of Religious and Spiritual Transformation as Components of Healing from Dissociative Identity Disorder Associated with Satanic Ritual Abuse and Interest Group: Ritual Abuse/ Mind Control (bring your own lunch).

    The SRA Myth rolled-on through the remainder of the 1980s in the US burdened with the range of conditions it had picked-up along the way - MPD/DID, Mind Control and Recovered Memory Therapy (RMT). The 'new' baggage was hand-carved by 'Myth Believers to work, in a fashion, though needing practitioners and believers to routinely abandon any moral or scientific beliefs. 'Mind Control' was a concept that determined, that in addition to a child being partitioned into numerous Multiple Personalities by Satanic Ritual Abuse, they could be controlled as robot sex slaves, assassins or general purpose human puppets. The general conspiracy theory is that after several years, the slaves' 'masters' tire of them and release them into the general community, rather than killing and disposing of their bodies. It has never been clear why this strategy is adopted - i.e. how on earth anyone ever survives satanic ritual abuse - and asking such questions invariably leads to an accusation that the questioner is a satanist.

    Following the former 'dsurvivor' satanic cult members release into the community, the conspiracy theory continues with the idea that finally, years later, the multiple personalities and/or hidden memories can be coached from such individuals, using intensive Recovered Memory Therapy, mostly from fundamentalist or feminist practitioners. To become a True Believer in the 'Myth the intellectual hurdles to be jumped were higher and more numerous as time wnt by. He or she would have to dispel skepticism and embrace concepts from far-right US religious extremists such as Mind Control (being practised apparently by the CIA), MPD/DID (applicable only to Western white middle-class women), RMT, which scythed through a generation of US white middle-class women in the 1990s, and of course, SRA itself, with its still-notable hopeless lack of evidence in its existence. Perhaps understandably, most of the academic supporters for the 'Myth dropped off, as quietly as possible, leaving a core of fanatical religious fundamentalists and feminists, but mostly practitioners who would benefit hugely in financial terms with the continuance of the now unwieldy caravan.

    Whilst for many the whole SRA Myth/DID/RMT conspiracy theory vehicle sounds ridiculous in the 21st century, those very same conspiracy theories went 'mainstream' in the US during the 1990s, rendering tens-of-thousands of white middle-class and middle-aged women virtual emotional and mental car-accidents; unable to exist day-to-day without a therapist to-hand, cut-off deliberately or otherwise from their families, and obsessed with false memories of satanic rituals, derived from pornographic films and descriptions and suggestions fed to them by their therapists. The Recovered Memory Therapy scandal of the 1990s is one of the most significant social events in contemporary US history (less so in other white, English-speaking nations) and is extensively discussed in these Index pages.

    The Recovered Memory Therapy movement and its moulding into the SRA Myth share a common ancestor. Dr. Lawrence Pazder's book Michelle Remembers (1980) recounted how Dr. Pazder's then-to-be-wife Michelle Smith had as a child been tortured by a cabal of Canadian satanists for months (whilst apparently letting her out to attend school) until they managed to illicit the physical attendance of Satan himself, resplendent with permanent flames and twin forked tails. At the end of the book Michelle's terrible accumulated injuries are healed by Jesus, Mary and the Holy Ghost, and she suffers memory loss of the experience 'until the time is right'. When recovered she is able to recount pages and pages of poor rhyming dialogue from Satan himself, which appears verbatim in the later pages of Michelle Remembers. The book became a key driver amongst religious fundamentalists and feminists who advocated for the SRA Myth, and in early editions, the leading feminist RMT tome The Courage To Heal written by Laura Davis and Ellen Bass referenced it as a recommended book and inspiration (though later editions perhaps understandably dropped this reverence). The historial worth of Pazder and Smith's book is discussed in The importance of 'Michelle Remembers'

    The modern 'theory' of Multiple Personality Disorder has its heritage in the now-debunked book Sybil (1973) by Flora Rheta Schrieber, and its subsequent movie adaptions. In the past some psychiatrists had postulated that MPD existed in very rare cases, though for the most part it was simply diagnosed as a symptom of schizophrenia (Flora Rheta Schrieber's last book before her death in 1988 was about a schizophrenic mass-murderer). MPD, or DID as it is now known, had no immediate connection with the SRA Myth; it was 'tacked-on' in the early 1990s, principally because even with RMT, SRA Myth proponents were struggling to explain the core problem of a complete lack of evidence for satanic abuse.

    A key difficulty with the MPD/DID vehicle is that it appears to be a peculiarly Western issue, and one that is perceived to afflict one group in particular; that of white Western middle-aged females, notably in the US, from middle class and invariably, privileged backgrounds. This key difficulty is discussed in length in the key section of this Entry The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy.

    Furthermore there is no basis for MPD/DID in history, particularly when children have been exposed to immense traumas in the past, including those that would leave gross physical injuries and severe mental handicaps that didn't include MPD/DID. For those advocates - True Believers in the SRA Myth, and particularly those who are convinced that only Ritual Abuse can cause children to fragment into multiple personalities, there is an additional burden that can't be escaped; quite simply those children don't exist in anything like the numbers that should be expected.

    Seattle-based psychiatrist August Piper (MD) encapsulated these and other difficulties with MPD/DID theory, into a single paper;

    The logic of the claim that childhood trauma causes MPD demonstrates a final serious flaw. If the claim were true, the abuse of millions of children over the years should have caused many cases of MPD. A case in point: children who endured unspeakable maltreatment in the ghettoes, boxcars, and concentration camps of Nazi Germany. However, no evidence exists that any developed MPD (Bower 1994; Des Pres 1976; Eitinger 1980; Krystal 1991; Sofsky 1997) or that any dissociated or repressed their traumatic memories (Eisen 1988; Wagenaar and Groeneweg 1990). Similarly, the same results hold in studies of children who saw a parent murdered (Eth and Pynoos 1994; Malmquist 1986); studies of kidnapped children (Terr 1979; Terr 1983); studies of children known to have been abused (Gold et al. 1994); and in several other investigations (Chodoff 1963; Pynoos and Nader 1989; Strom et al. 1962). Victims neither repressed the traumatic events, forgot about them, nor developed MPD.

    ...

    In 1988, Vincent and Pickering noted that in the published reviews of the literature, exactly one case presenting in childhood was reported in the 135 years prior to 1979. After reviewing the literature published since 1979, they were able to gather a mere twelve cases. (It seems, however, that Vincent and Pickering had to stretch a bit to find even those — four of the twelve were examples not of MPD, but rather of something the authors called “incipient MPD.”) Nine additional cases were found by Peterson (1990).

    These minuscule numbers, standing in stark contrast to the thousands of adult cases discovered in recent years, reveal the third weakness: if MPD results from child abuse, then why have so few cases been discovered in children?
    (Source: Multiple Personality Disorder: Witchcraft Survives in the Twentieth Century by August Piper Jnr. The Skeptical Inquirer, Volume 22.3, May / June 1998)

    It is possible though to find some psychiatrists and psychologists who advocate that Holocaust survivors can forget their experiences - though analysis of these reveal that such individuals were either very young, and had no experiences of severe trauma to remember (they simply managed to survive with their families) or that the advocates for such views are simply trying to employ the argument to suggest that the Holocaust never happened in any case (Holocaust Denial).

    Dr. Guy A. Boysen of the Department of Psychology, State University of New York reviewed The Scientific Status of Childhood Dissociative Identity Disorder: A Review of Published Research as a paper submitted to Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics in 2011. He identified the research papers addressing DID in childhood published since 1980 and found a total of 255 cases of childhood DID reported as individual case studies (44) or aggregated into empirical studies (211). Nearly all cases (93%) emerged from samples of children in treatment, and multiple personalities was the presenting problem in 23% of the case studies. Four US research groups accounted for 65% of all 255 cases (from the abstract). That was still a lot more than the 12 cases Vincent and Pickering had identified from 1979 to 1988, but still tiny when only 23% of the 255 cases were originally identified as having the initial presenting issues. As the US in particular had suffered the epidemic of Recovered Memory Therapy from the 1980s onwards, when DID is supposed to be employed by white children to enable them to compartmentalise sexual abuse (notably incest) it could be expected that tens-of-thousands of cases would have been identified. Dr. Boysen notes that the scant research to date is somewhat old in itself, and he finished with; Conclusion: Despite continuing research on the related concepts of trauma and dissociation, childhood DID itself appears to be an extremely rare phenomenon that few researchers have studied in depth. Nearly all of the research that does exist on childhood DID is from the 1980s and 1990s and does not resolve the ongoing controversies surrounding the disorder.

    The surprising absence of research on the subject of MPD/DID, with just four studies undertaken in over three decades flies in the face of what would be expected from enthusiastic SRA Myth/DID advocates, who could be expected to be only too willing to find as many children suffering DID as possible in an effort to prove their theories.

    Satanic Ritual Abuse indicators

    By 1987 the SRA Myth was in full swing in the USA, beginning with the McMartin scandal. It would lead to hundreds of US citizens arrested on the grounds of fantastic tales of magical and paranormal activity, entwined with terrible tales of gross sexual abuse of children in their care - all of whom had managed to avoid the horrific vaginal and rectal injuries that would be expected had their abuse have been real. Nonetheless in the face of a full-scale moral panic, and with the Left and Liberal elite having either gone AWOL, or now actively colluding with the New Christian/Evangelical Right, dozens of adults were imprisoned - though most were reprieved on appeal when the US Justice System took a collective deep breath and realised that it had temporarily taken leave of its senses.

    The satan-hunter community was a long way from being finished though in 1987, and to fill a void in academic respectability, a list for the use of social workers, psychiatrists and priests that could identify a child that had been satanically abused was introduced. American fundamentalist psychologist Catherine Gould MD published a list of 'satanic abuse indicators' - any single one of these signs - not a combination or accumulation of - was heralded as being a firm indicator that a child had been satanically abused. For an SRA Myth advocate to persuade colleagues less trigger-happy, a few other signs might have to be visible though. In essence no child then or now could escape being labelled 'satanically abused';

    Eating Problems
    Refusal to eat red or brown food
    Fear that food is poisoned
    Bingeing, gorging, vomiting, anorexia


    Sexual problems
    Age-inappropriate sexual knowledge
    Fear of touch
    Excessive masturbation
    Sexually provocative behaviour
    Vaginal or anal pain
    Relaxed anal sphincter, enlarged vaginal opening
    Venereal disease


    Toileting/Bathroom problems
    Bathroom avoidance, toileting accidents
    Preoccupation with cleanliness
    Preoccupation with urine and faeces
    Ingestion of urine and faeces


    Problems Association with Supernatural
    Fear of ghosts, monsters, witches, devils
    Preoccupation with wands, spirits, magic potions, curses, crucifixes
    Odd songs and chants
    Preoccupation with occult symbols
    Fear of attending church


    Problems Associated with confinement
    Fear of closets and other small spaces
    Fear of being tied up, ties up others


    Problems Associated with Death
    Fear of dying, preoccupation with death


    Problems Associated with Doctors
    Fear of doctors
    Fear of injections, blood tests
    Fear of removing clothes


    Problems Associated with Colours
    Fear of colours red and black
    Preoccupation with color black


    Emotional Problems
    Rapid mood swings
    Resistance to authority
    Hyperactivity, poor attention span
    Anxiety
    Poor self-esteem
    Withdrawal
    Regression and babyish speech
    Flat affect
    Nightmares, nigh terrors
    Learning disorders


    Family Problems
    Fear of death of parents, siblings, pets
    Separation anxiety
    Avoidance of physical contact
    Threatens or attacks parents, siblings


    Play and Peer Problems
    Destroys toys
    Death, mutilation, confinement themes in play
    Inability to engage in fantasy play


    Other Fears and Strange Beliefs
    Imaginary friends
    Fear of police, strangers, bad people
    Fear of violent films
    Fear of aggressive animals
    Fear of cemeteries, mortuaries, churches.
    Fear of something foreign inside body, e.g. bomb, devils heart
    (Source: Satanic ritual abuse: child victims, adult survivors, system response by Catherine Gould, California Psychologist - 1987)

    A child of the early 21st century who loved to read J.K Rowling's Harry Potter books, didn't fancy going to Church, didn't like injections, was a bit moody and kept him or herself clean, would be a dead certainty for being identified as having been satanically abused using 1987's Dr. Gould criteria.

    The risks inherent in such a wide-ranging list has been recognised by many, not least by Mary deYoung, and Roger Sandell, who wrote about Dr. Gould's list;

    Catherine Gould of the Los Angeles Ritual Abuse Task Force writes on `Diagnosis and Treatment of Ritually Abused Children’ (OOD), a large part of which consists of a quite ludicrous checklist of symptoms of Satanic abuse which includes items such as ‘child refuses to worship God’, ‘child resists authority’ and ‘child is extremely controlling with other children, constantly playing chase games’.

    A notable feature of this catalogue is that it includes a large number of contradictory items, which cause practically any type of behaviour to become evidence of Satanic abuse, including both ‘child is afraid to separate from parents, cannot be alone and clings’, as well as ‘child seems distant from parents avoiding close physical contact’.
    (Source: Still Seeking Satan, Part 2, by Roger Sandell, Magonia 51, 1995)

    Dr. Gould's ability to spot satanists and witches is highly regarded, both by the fundamentalist community, but also by the then feminist lobby at the time. Although Dr. Gould though had little time for feminists - she was more inclined to rooting-out witches and warlocks rather than engaging in debates about the 'patriarchy', she did work closely with a feminist lesbian icon of the time - Dr. Myra Riddell on the aforementioned Los Angeles Ritual Abuse Task Force.

    The ability to get around some fairly key problems if professing a belief in the SRA Myth and its associated conspiracies is a skill Dr. Gould and her cohorts are adept at. This from a 1995 conference in the US;

    Catherine Gould gave an advanced workshop in which she described the mechanics of cult mind-control, extensively utilising the mind-as-computer model. At one point she puzzled over the idea of cult members catching AIDS. She said that no one can figure out why the offenders are not "dropping like flies, because we know they don't practice safe cult sex.” With all the blood, cannibalism, and unprotected sex, they ought to be catching a lot of sexually transmitted diseases. Therapist Jerry Mungadze offered a unique explanation. He suggested that mind-control programming boosts the immune system, making the victim resistant to the HIV virus, and that is why children in day care satanic-ritual abuse cases do not have elevated levels of sexually transmitted diseases.
    (Source: Conspiracy theories and Paranoia Notes From A Mind Control Conference)

    Perhaps not surprisingly, Dr. Gould and Jerry Mungadze or other professionals weren't too enthusiastic about getting this 'cure for HIV/AIDS' into a peer-reviewed journal paper.

    In his study of US police officers who believed in the 'Myth, Wiccan policeman Kerr Cuhulain invested the activities of Detective Robert "Jerry" Simandl. In the early 1990s Detective Simandl was officially employed as a Youth Officer with the Chicago Police Department. He was though also the president of the Illinois chapter of the Midwest Gang Investigators Association (MGIA), and in this role Det. Simandl excelled in his efforts to teach fellow officers and others how to identify witches and satanists. In January 1990 Kerr Cuhulain attended one of his meetings;

    Simandl showed some films by Cavalcade Productions an outfit run by fundamentalist Christian Dale McCulley: "Ritual Crime: Guidelines for Identification" and "Identification of the Ritually Abused Child." Some of Simandl's therapist associates appear in these films.

    The latter 40 minute video advocates Catherine Gould's use of a sand tray, which is a sand box filled with toys and articles which the child victim can use to demonstrate a story which the child may have difficulty verbalising. This sand tray method has its merits, but it appeared to me that Gould's sand box contained a large number of demons, monsters, and devils in amongst the children's toys. It seemed to me that the selection of articles in the box lent itself to Satanic interpretations but little else. Combined with leading questioning techniques such sand boxes would make it very easy to get children to make up disclosures about Satanic activity.

    Dr Catherine Gould, who is best known for her lists of "Symptoms of Ritualistic and Sexual Abuse" which commonly appear in Satanic conspiracy literature, is one of the main characters of this film. Indeed, it is merely a video version of these lists. Gould showed some children's drawings of fairly innocuous scenes of clouds and people which she interpreted as scenes of witches and Satanists involved in evil. Gould and her associates obviously have no knowledge of Wiccan religion and seem to consider Witchcraft to be synonymous with Satanism.
    (Source: "Police Who Believe (8) by Kerr Cuhulain, 30th December 2002. This quoted section is also employed elsewhere on this Web Site.)

    Sand-tray therapy was hugely popular with SRA Myth advocates in the 1990s and remains so even in the 21st Century. Its use remains popular, simply because it allows for the interpretation of virtually anything the client (the patient) does to be interpreted by the psychotherapist/counsellor as being sure proof of sexual abuse or even satanic ritual abuse. Sand-tray therapy was used in the Rochdale scandal in North West England (see later on this page) and even in the UK is still being employed - in this case from a therapy partnership in England's Derbyshire, Hope Valley Counselling Limited;

    Sand tray usage


    The concept of indicators to detect witchcraft or satanism isn't new; the 'Witches Mark' goes back to the 17th century and behavioural indicators of witchcraft go back even further, all the way back to the 13th century. In recent years an equivalent of Catherine Gould's satanic indicators has been applied - this time not to children determined to have undergone SRA, but rather children who, according to Helen Ukpabio, founder and head of African Evangelical franchise Liberty Foundation Gospel Ministries in Nigeria, are possessed by Satan. Ukpabio has appointed herself the chief child-witch-finder in the nation, resulting in numerous children abandoned and stigmatised by their families, convinced by Ukpabio's teaching that they are Satan's spawn;

    Ukpabio has published her views in several books. An example is 'Unveiling The Mysteries of Witchcraft', in which she states that:

    If a child under the age of two screams in the night, cries and is always feverish with deteriorating health he or she is a servant of Satan.

    A fact not mentioned in the book is that these symptoms are common in young children, especially in areas like Nigeria with poor health and high levels of malaria.

    She also produces a number of films to spread the view that children can become possessed by evil spirits through her film production company, Liberty Films, part of the Liberty Foundation Gospel Ministries franchise. The most famous of these is 'End of The Wicked' in which child actors are shown to eat human flesh and murder their parents.
    (Source: Wikipedia page for Helen Ukpabio)

    The SRA Myth of the 1980s, 90s and its continuance into the 21st century maintains a distinct and documented link with the witch-hunts of the 13th-17th centuries in Europe and the American Colonies (see The Metropolitan Police & RAINS and Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs (Karnac Books, March 2011)).

    The SRA Myth arrives in England & Wales

    If 1987 seems a bit weird through the lens of modern times - then things were going to get a lot more weirder. The same year, the SRA Myth made the journey to England. The nation was ripe for taking-on the SRA Myth, having only just recovered from the Cleveland RAD Scandal the same year (see Dr. Marietta Higgs). Driven by Christian Fundamentalists from the American New Christian Right, who in turn briefed their counterparts in England and Wales, the SRA Myth that took hold incorporated the signs determined by Catherine Gould;

    The first British story of satanic abuse appeared in the Colchester Evening Gazette in January 1988 in the form of an interview with "Satan's Cop": Sandi Gallant from San Francisco police department was in England on a conference circuit to issue warnings that in the US satanic cults were sacrificing animals and killing children, and it was likely to happen here.

    During 1988 a group of loosely connected people began telling newspapers increasingly ghoulish stories about how satanic cults were luring children into the occult and how animals were being sacrificed. Teenage girls, they said, were being used as "brood mares"; they were deliberately impregnated and the foetus was aborted for sacrifice and, in some cases, eaten. The Evangelical Alliance, which represents one million Christians in Britain, set up a committee to investigate. It included those spreading the stories.- Maureen Davies, director of the Reachout Trust based in Rhyl, North Wales, a charity to help people who have been involved with the occult; the Reverend Kevin Logan, a vicar from St Johns Church, Great Harwood, near Blackburn who had written a book, Paganism and the Occult; Doreen Irvine and Audrey Harper, who confessed to being former witches who had survived satanic abuse; Diane Core, founder of a charity called Childwatch, who compiled a dossier of cases.

    The first suspected cases investigated by social workers and police appeared like a rash late in 1988, in Kent, Nottingham, and Congleton, Cheshire.

    In Kent, a two year old boy was showing signs of disturbed behaviour. He kept wanting to take his clothes off, would laugh hysterically, and told about strange drinks that made him feel funny. Norma Howes, an independent social worker from Reading, was brought in. She consulted an American expert on child abuse, Pamela Klein, who diagnosed a classic case of satanic abuse.

    A list of "satanic indicators" was sent by Ms. Klein to help social workers. Classic signs and symptoms are said to include an unusual preoccupation with urine and faeces, fear of ghosts and monsters, aggressive play, and the child being "clingy", reciting nursery rhymes with indecent overtones, suffering from nightmares and bed wetting, preoccupation with "passing gas", using mouth to make "gas sounds" and wild laughter when the child or someone else "passes gas".
    (Source: Child Abuse - or occult rituals? By Rosie Waterhouse, The Independent 16th September 1990, transcribed and courtesy of SkepticFiles.org)

    The events in Broxtowe, near Nottingham in England's East Midlands proved to be the first genuine SRA Myth scandal in England, and one that set the tone for all subsequent SRA false allegations to come, all the way to 2003. Before Broxtowe, the SRA Myth arrived in England via in Kent, as mentioned. Norma Howes has the distinction in contemporary British social history to be the first social worker to introduce the SRA Myth to the nation.

    Following Broxtowe, SRA arrived in the sleepy Cheshire town of Congleton, but little is known of this instance, though it resulted in no criminal charges or court appearances. There the satanic indicators had been given to the secretary of the Social Workers Christian Fellowship re-emphasising the part that christian fundamentalists in social work had in the promotion of the 'Myth, together with feminists. The Congleton social workers approached the Broxtowe social workers for advice, who by then had already seen their relationship with the police decay, as feminist social workers Judith (Dawson) Jones and fundamentalist Christine Johnston and other members of the social work group called Team 4 were increasingly intoxicated by the hunt for Satanists.

    The adoption of the SRA Myth though wasn't pre-ordained; it needed some combination of events and personalities to get a kick-start, and in Broxtowe, that combination came together. Broxtowe had been preceded, as detailed previously, by the Cleveland RAD scandal (see Dr. Marietta Higgs) where the professionals involved, including Sue Richardson, had tried to engender an interest in the SRA Myth, only to find it impossible to work up any enthusiasm from the Police, who were willing to arrest foster carers of some of the children forcibly removed from their families after the children were re-examined by Dr. Higgs, but not quite so willing to believe that Satan was stalking Cleveland.

    The Cleveland RAD Scandal had depended hugely on the willingness of professionals to believe in a Vast Conspiracy of fathers repeatedly sodomising their children, though without ever leaving any of the rectal injuries that such abuse would normally entail, or instances where mothers found out about such groups and killed or seriously injured their spouses. In these regards Cleveland possessed many of the attributes that later SRA Myth false allegation scandals would feature; allegations of extraordinary evil, no supporting evidence, and the temporary suspension of forensic science and medical knowledge and use. A key individual in both the Cleveland and the later Broxtowe SRA Myth scandals was Beatrix Campbell (OBE); she wrote extensively in support of both the flawed RAD diagnosis and in favour of the far-right fundamentalist-inspired SRA Myth. Her partner Judith (Dawson) Jones led Team 4 at Broxtowe.

    The Cleveland RAD scandal was largely driven by the then-prevailing view that most males, particularly married men with children were both pedophiles and often homosexual pedophiles, who wouldn't hesitate to sodomise their daughters and sons at every opportunity. The entry for Catherine Itzin discusses the then-prevailing view of the British feminist community at the time (the late 1980s) who had been heavily influenced by the promotion by their US counterparts of the idea that males only engaged in marriage and the bringing-up of children so they could sexually abuse them. In the US the feminists, colluding with religious fundamentalists had initially turned-on the gay community in a largely successful effort to equate gay=pedophile. The nature of this betrayal is discussed under the entry for Myra Riddell. In the UK efforts to perform the same association were still-born, and the feminist lobby skipped this stage and went straight to the all males=pedophiles and then all males=demonsd assertions.

    Broxtowe

    Broxtowe, taking place the next year after Cleveland, would see the SRA Myth explode into use in Great Britain. In concert with Nottinghamshire Police, social workers were investigating allegations of inter-generational incest on a housing estate in a large village outside the city. The social worker unit, as mentioned before, Team 4 was itself unusual - comprising a mixture of religious fundamentalists and feminists, secularists and all points in between. An essay in Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century - Interrelated Moral Panics and Counter-panics: The Cult Brainwashing Panic and The False Memory/Ritual Abuse Moral Panic by Martin H. Katchen mentions that collusion between feminists and religious fundamentalists that would come to define the nature of the SRA Myth. Yet the religious fundamentalists are excused any blame to a degree; they simply followed traditions of pursuing perceived demons that have existed for centuries. There is no easy or conceivable excuse for the feminists though;

    ...throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s ritual abuse was one of the few issues in which premillenial fundamentalist Christians could not only find common ground with feminists who were normally their mortal enemies, but also cooperate on a day to day basis.

    Whilst the Broxtowe investigation was being conducted, and would eventually come to a successful conclusion with genuine (non-satanic) child sex assault convictions secured against adults, the list of satanic indicators provided by Pamela Klein, which was in reality Catherine Gould MD's list, would whizz across the nation, on the wings of the Nottingham social workers;

    The symptom list circulated circuitously around Great Britain, passing from one social worker to another, one local council to another, one police department to another.

    Its most ignominious use, with a doubt, was in Nottingham, where a genuinely horrific case of multi-generational incest in an extended family living on the shabby Broxtowe Estate was worked into a case satanic ritual abuse by council social workers armed with a symptom list and the conviction that a "vortex of evil" was at work in the case (Dawson, 1990).
    (Source: page 169 - The Day Care Ritual Abuse Panic, by Mary De Young - 2001)

    By the time the Broxtowe case had finished, the relationship between Nottinghamshire constabulary and the social services department had fallen apart; the social workers now completely obsessed with the fantasy that they had uncovered a vast Satanic conspiracy involving church-mice-poor council estate residents who routinely decapitated sheep in their thin-walled council living rooms, killed and ate babies, murdered indiscriminately, and somehow hid any trace of physical, forensic or medical evidence from dozens of police who took apart the interiors of their dwellings and visited every location alleged to be sites of satanic pestilence. The breakdown prompted the The Joint Enquiry Team (JET) Report which saw Nottinghamshire Police and social services investigating both the satanic claims again, ndependently from the initial Golum Inquiry, and then to discern how the social workers on Team 4 had so easily been infuenced by US fundamentalist fantasies.

    The publication of the JET Report was suppressed, through the insistence of feminist social work Team leader and partner of Beatrix Campbell (OBE), Judith (Dawson) Jones. Conceivably, had the JET Report entered public knowledge upon completion, the SRA Myth might have been stopped dead in its tracks in Great Britain, there and then. Instead though the Nottingham social workers - that strange mix of religious fundamentalists, secularists and feminists, went on tour, hooked-up utterly with the Evangelical church sources of the SRA Myth in England.

    In the course of the next two years, the SRA Myth exploded across England, driven by a cabal of obsessed social workers, assisted by other groups and organisations, most notably the NSPCC, with indoctrination provided by The Reachout Trust (see Maureen Davies. When finally the then-Conservative government commissioned a report from Prof. Jean La Fontaine of Manchester University, the anthropologist's research team managed to find 85 allegations of ritual abuse across England and Wales, over four years. A third of the cases originated in the East Midlands, of which twenty-one came from Nottinghamshire alone, Dr. Sandra Buck's own English County. London had twelve cases, and of the other fourteen cases, twelve were revealed to be from the North West. No case saw any convictions using evidence of satanic abuse, let alone any charges alleging evidence of SRA. Every single allegation of ritual abuse lacked the evidence to bring anything to court. No evidence of satanic practises, or killed and/or eaten babies was ever found, although every single allegaton incorporated these particular features. Abuse with 'ritualistic' overtones though were found - invariably with children being frightened by religious metaphors or imagery to maintain their silence. Such cases though have been seen throughout history across the world, and the use of 'satanic imagery' by pedophiles, who would otherwise use any other facility to continue their hold on their victims, has continued into modern times, not least with the well-publicised conviction of Colin Batley.

    With Broxtowe a 'template' for the scandals to follow became established. The 'Myth allegations invariably followed the same format - impossible allegations of supernatural events and powers, 'disclosures' made by children, most often only after lengthy and repeated interrogations involving coercion, suggestibility, inducements and often, just plain threats. No physical or forensic evidence (including no evidence of injuries to the children themselves), no recovered 'satanic' paraphanalia, no videos, cassette recordings or photographs, and no confessions from those accused. In every single one of the major scandals from 1988, those accused were living in poverty or marginal poverty. Whilst their accusers were invariably middle-class and white, the accused were most often distinctly poor and socially excluded.

    The Bishop Auckland SRA Scandal of 1993 (see Dr. Camille de San Lazaro), proved to be the last known SRA Myth event in England and Wales, though it is believed by some (though quite likely a conspiracy theory in itself) that the civil secret Family Court system continues to "try" women for witchcraft-like allegations even to this day, with contempt-of-court gagging order enabled to ensure public discussion of such cases is constrained. The Pembroke Scandal of 1991-1994 would actually see people charged, a trial in 1994, and convictions. Strangely enough SRA Myth advocates have no desire to quote this case as being definitive 'proof', let alone even an instance of the SRA Myth - simply because the enormous holes in the evidence (or rather lack of evidence) and the inclusion of the magic and the paranormal are so absurd that the case is simply seen as the most gross non-murder miscarriage of justice instance in English and Welsh history, dwarfing even that of the Birmingham Six and Guildford Four. RAINS members don't even refer to the case, nor even leading SRA Myth advocate Beatrix Campbell (OBE). The Pembroke Scandal, though including many of the elements of the SRA Myth, is presented as a case of a pedophile ring - just simply a pedophile ring with access to powers and abilities beyond the knowledge of modern science and our species' knowledge of the physical properties of the universe.

    Pembroke

    The Pembroke Trial in 1994 was also the first instance in modern history that a British criminal crown court trial, albeit with a jury, was held in secret. The then-Campaign for Civil Liberties (now Liberty) had no interest in the subject then. Even so the case effectively set a precedent, and Liberty now professes to be concerned about the introduction of secret courts, neglects to mention that the concept was established in the 1990s unopposed (see Shami Chakrabarti.

    The full story of the Pembroke Scandal remains to be told, and will comprise a major entry in the Index in the future, including details of the main characters and the limited reporting of the trial at the time. Yet the scandal is still relevant for this Entry, principally because of the inclusion of evidence that required the suspension of belief, a conviction in magic, and the willing acceptance of events of incredible cruelty performed in full view of the public, sometimes with hundreds of people present. For the moment the Pembroke scandal, and the scandal of the trial itself have been extensively covered by investigative journalist Richard Webster and Byron Rogers, both now passed away, whose investigation and writing on the case have been quoted at length by Mike Dash, a columnist for Fortean Times.

    'Right, this is the first one.' It is 50 yards from his house and is a small, corrugated-iron shed in the grounds of a small-holding. The shed is full of rusting machinery and old clothes, a mess that had built up over many years. 'They said there were 30 people in there shouting and squealing and letting off guns. Can you see any holes in the roof? It was supposed to be like a colander, the boy said, but they crawled all over it and didn't find a single hole. Now look at that house on the corner. How far away would you say that is? Ten yards? And there's a window at the side. Didn't they hear what was going on?'

    He drove me through a town to a council estate. There was a graveyard on our left. 'That's where they were pouring goats' blood on the gravestones, but they never found any.' We turned into the council estate. ' That's the garage where they were supposed to be spinning a bottle to see who would go with who. See the size of it? If you dropped a hammer, the neighbours would hear.'

    We were driving through the lanes. 'See those mud flats? They were doing something down there... Ah, here we are.' It was another shed that, like most of those I was shown, looked as though it was about to fall down. 'They're supposed to have brought a Land Rover full of kids to that. But see how close that house is? Did nobody hear anything? And these lanes were supposed to have 30 or 40 people walking along them. Nobody saw them. If you or I saw 40 people in a lane, we'd never forget it.'

    We drove out of Pembroke to the farm that was mentioned in some scenarios. 'There were 40 children screaming in a trailer pulled by a tractor. Now wait.' He had slowed, for on the Cleddau Bridge there is a tollbooth where you pay to cross. 'Odd nobody in that noticed 40 screaming children.'

    ...

    Rogers spoke to one of the defence lawyers. He had been concerned at first at the seriousness of the charges against his client, but after reviewing the evidence came to the conclusion that it was worthless – worse, ludicrous. Of course, the jury had not been convinced of that, but still...

    'I read about a barn at harvest time in which 20 to 30 people, in capes and balaclavas, were having an orgy, with children in a pit being made to eat excrement and a fire blazing on the floor. I was brought up on a farm, they were terrified of fires in barns. Where was the smoke going? And how could a barn be empty in the middle of harvest?

    'I was being asked to take seriously the idea that convoys of cars had rushed through the countryside and that all those children had just gone to school on Monday morning. Had nobody noticed anything, no teachers, no GPs? At the end of the first file I thought the prosecution were insane. As for the social workers, I thought they needed help.

    'There was also one thing nobody mentioned. They talked about orgies on beaches in summer. In Pembroke in summer every bed and breakfast is full. For God's sake, where were all the tourists when all this was going on? When the trial judge refused to let the jury see the locations, one of the defence solicitors made a video of them. Do you know the greatest problem he faced? It was that wherever he filmed, people kept straying into shot.'


    So secret was the prosecution and trial, that some of the defendants weren't even aware of each other;

    In jail, on remand, the man encountered another prisoner. "This chap asked me what I was in for. I said I'd been charged with being part of a pedophile ring. 'Whereabouts?' he asked. 'Pembroke,' I said. 'Good God,' he said. 'And me.' I'd never met him before."


    The secrecy of the Trial ensured that the public in Britain would have little or know knowledge of the extent to which police, social workers and the judge in the case, were willing to stretch credibility to the point where it fell off a cliff;

    There were 13 more arrests, two of them of women. They included a couple of farmers, one of them 80 years old and so decrepit that "he had to buy a new hearing aid just to hear the charges against him," another an Englishman who had only recently moved to the area – something of a high risk recruit to a gang of Satanic abusers, one would think. In the end, 12 people stood trial, in January 1994, but the proceedings were held in camera and hence went unreported.

    The trial, Rogers writes, did not go smoothly, despite some fairly typical pressure applied on the part of the social workers involved in the case to keep their witnesses onside:

    Within four months, the twelve in the dock had dwindled to seven, as the judge directed the jury that some defendants had no case to answer. The two adults expected to be prosecution witnesses, the former wife and the girlfriend of the man first accused, also recanted statements in which they had named people. The girlfriend said she had only named them because social workers had said she would otherwise never see her children again. 'I knew what they wanted me to say – I just added on and on, but none of it was true.'

    A teenage boy also recanted, claiming he, too, had been pressured into giving a version of events by social workers. The prosecution case thus rested on the evidence of six children speaking over a video-link, and it was hard for the defendants to establish an alibi, for no dates or times were given. There was much medical evidence, bitterly contested, but there was no corroborative evidence, no forensic testimony.

    Week after week, month after month, the jury (one of them with a T-shirt inscribed "We're Only Here For The Beer") heard all of this.

    'I kept waiting for someone to say, "Hang on...", but nobody did,' said one defendant. "I think I'd have found myself guilty in I'd heard all that stuff."
    (Source: All quotes - When Satan Came to Pembroke, by Mike Dash, quoting Byron Rogers, Fortean Times - online, 21st July 2010)

    An extraordinary summary of the Pembroke Scandal is available at A win at last, sort-of: the Pembroke case, 1991–4 written by Les H.

    The Shieldfield Scandal

    As well as the Pembroke Scandal, not really a scandal because the public were kept in the dark because of the secrecy of the crown court trial, The Shieldfield Scandal, of 1993 (see Christopher Lillie, in Newcastle, saw many elements of the SRA Myth, notably the use of evidence that was frankly incredible and physically impossible, and required a belief in magic on the part of accusers. The second half of the Shieldfield Scandal - centred on the Review commissioned by Newcastle City Council and released in 1998 (eventually resulting in the largest privately-funded libel case in English law history that saw Mr. Lillie and Ms. Reed awarded £200,000 in damages each) repeated many of the incredible assertions of the original false accusations. When the motivations and past history of the three social workers and psychologist who wrote the report were examined, it was possible to easily trace a legacy back to the SRA Myth. Incredibly one of the Review members was Judith (Dawson) Jones, who had been responsible for preaching the SRA Myth to social workers across Britain in the late 1980's. The Shieldfield Scandal would cement her place in British social history, but she wasn't the only one with a connection to the 'Myth;

    The one psychologist on the Newcastle panel, Dr Jacqui Saradjian, also had an ideological axe to grind. A former teacher, she studied under psychologist Helga Hanks at Leeds University. Dr Hanks was a supporter of 'satanic abuse' and a member of the Leeds team that included Drs Jane Wynne and Christopher Hobbs. Their promotion of the now discredited 'anal dilatation' diagnosis of sexual abuse created havoc and injustice in Cleveland in 1987 when it was applied by Dr Marietta Higgs and others. Ms Saradjian, who has specialised in women as abusers, is also a believer in the 'recovered memory' method of accessing narratives that reinforce her ideology, including her belief in 'satanic abuse.'

    All that was required to promote the production of a report which would, in the words of the judge, include "fundamental claims [the Review team] must have known to be untrue" was for Newcastle City Council to appoint Dr Richard Barker, a social work lecturer, as leader of the team. The judge stated that Dr Barker was a man who "eschewed rational analysis in the approach to his task from the outset". His evidence was so poor that the judge said he "was unable to place reliance upon anything said by Professor Barker, for any significant purpose, unless it was independently corroborated". Acting as "a law unto himself" Barker and the team were to "promulgate to the Council and to the wider public what was recognised within days … to be a specious and disreputable document".

    Now that the Shieldfield Nursery abuse fiasco has finally been laid to rest, questions must be asked as to how it came to develop from the outset. Close critical scrutiny needs to be paid to a wide range of welfare services and the professionals involved, not least Dr Camille San Lazaro, the consultant paediatrician who falsely diagnosed so many children as having been abused. Mr Justice Eady said, "The truth is that where physical findings were negative or equivocal, Dr San Lazaro [who had trained with Dr Marietta Higgs] was prepared to make up the deficiencies by throwing objectivity and scientific rigour to the winds in a highly emotional misrepresentation of the facts."

    The fact is that many of the key personnel in the Shieldfield case are part of an ideological axis stretching back through Nottingham to Cleveland. That it has taken nine years to nail the myth of Shieldfield indicates that the misinformation this faction continues to promulgate within the welfare, police and criminal justice systems continues to cloud professional judgment. Unfortunately the media, as was seen in the trial with the Newcastle Evening Chronicle and other mainstream newspapers, all too often follows suit. It is therefore all the more remarkable and gratifying that Mr Justice Eady has been able to cut a swathe through their emotive, pseudo-scientific claims.
    (Source: Landmark decision in the High Court, by Margaret Jervis - The British False Memory Society)

    Scotland

    Scotland, already having suffered the Orkney Scandal in 1990-91 would become the centre of belief in the 'Myth in Great Britain, seeing the last instance of its use during the 2003 Island of Lewis fiasco and scandal (see two excellent sites that investigate and document the scandal are Satanic ritual abuse hoax on the Island of Lewis in Scotland - Religious Intolerance and Lewis Notes - False Allegations Action - Scotland).

    Scotland remains the pre-eminent source of True Believers in Western Europe, and seems intent on pursuing an obsession with the 'Myth, openly, through the 21st Century. Penny Campbell, one of the adult victims of the Lewis scandal, although a member of a family that was, as typified families falsely accused of being satanists, church-mouse poor, in a hugely competent writer, and provides an insight into why the 'Myth persists;

    An important reason behind the claims of Satanism, is the predominant religious beliefs in the Scottish Islands. The Free Presbyterian Church, as an evangelical church, has strong beliefs in the devil and this affects their conscious thoughts and actions in everyday activities. Only recently, at my son's school, have suggestions of devil worshipping been raised again, by a member of staff. Similar accusations of Satanism were directed at a former resident of the area, following an evenings study of a lunar eclipse.
    (Source: Penny's Report to The media - FAA Scotland)

    These pages don't document the Scottish SRA Myth scandals to a sufficient degree; a shortfall planned to be addressed in 2012.

    Broxtowe, Pembroke, Scotland. Just a mere rapid run-through of the full-blown SRA Myth scandals of the 1990s. Beyond just the ravings of religious fundamentalists and colluding feminists, where did all this sure belief that the country was being overrun with satanists come from? For that we have to go back, way back to the 1970s and 60s to find the core drivers for 'moral panics' of the 1980s and 90s. But in 1980s those social paranoias of decades past were crystallised into the one book that remains hugely popular now, in the second decade of the 21st century - Michelle Remembers.

    The importance of 'Michelle Remembers'



    Michelle Remembers


    Victoria, British Columbia, was of course the home town for Michelle Smith, the childhood 'satanic victim' of the famous book Michelle Remembers (1980).

    The book, sold as non-fiction, features huge passages of dialog purporting to come from satan himself, recalled entirely by Michelle whilst being hypnotised by her soon-to-be-husband, psychiatrist Dr. Pazder. Michelle Remembers, adored by sections of the religious fundamentalist and feminist communities worldwide, is regarded as the core text for SRA Myth True Believers, notably because it addresses a shortfall in The New Testament that doesn't devote much 'page time' to satan getting his dialogue in! It is also the primary inspiration for the Recovered Memory Therapy movement and the 'body remembers' memory movement of more recent years.

    Michelle Remembers unique ability to appeal to both the feminist and fundamentalist community is well documented. Feminist psychotherapist Bonnie Burstow included the book in her Recommended Reading reading page of her seminal book Radical feminist therapy: working in the context of violence (1992). Now a Senior Lecturer at the University of Toronto in Adult Education and Counselling Psychology Programs and a 'global feminist', Professor Burstow was enchanted by Michelle Remembers and certainly doesn't regard it as a work of fiction; for her and other feminists, Satan really did walk the earth in Victoria, British Columbia, and wrapped his tail around Michelle Smith.

    Feminist therapists like Professor Burstow would employ Michelle Remembers as a template for the Recovered Memory Therapy movement. Lynley Hood, in her investigation of the extraordinary Peter Ellis Scandal, painstakingly picked-apart what is the second most substantial event in the New Zealand city of Christchurch's history, preceded only by its major earthquake. In chapter two of A City Possessed – the Christchurch Civic Creche Case (2001) she examined the collusion between New Zealand feminists and religious fundamentalists which led to the explosion in belief in satanic ritual abuse and the subsequent exploitation of New Zealand women by feminist therapists;

    Michelle Remembers (1980), and the books and articles that followed in its wake, persuaded feminist therapists and their clients that, if they kept up the therapy for long enough, memories of sexual abuse were bound to surface. Michelle Remembers – which was later shown to be a hoax – also revived a belief that had fallen into disrepute in the wake of the great witch-hunts: that children could be brutally molested as part of Satanic rituals.
    (Source: Page 36 - A City Possessed – the Christchurch Civic Creche Case (2001) by Lynley Hood)

    Other feminists recommended Michelle Remembers, such as Chris Cuoso (see the extended entry on the sustained attack on gay community in the US by the feminist and lesbian lobby in the entry for Myra Riddell.) Feminist lesbians Laura Bass and Ellen Davies included it as Recommended Reading in their earliest editions of The Courage To Heal.

    In A personal review of the literature, one of the final essays in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (1994) leading British child protection social worker trainer Su Burrell recommended Michelle Remembers, with every indication that trainee social workers who crossed her path were being given a reading list whch included the book;

    SINGLE CASE DESCRIPTIONS
    Perhaps the best-known single case description recounted by an adult is Michelle Remembers (Smith and Pazder, 1980). This is enormously credited by a numbers of writers as the first published account of satanic ritualistic abuse, and view by some as causal to all the cases that have since come to light.
    (Source: Page 268 - A personal review of the literature by Su Burrell, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

    The ability for Michelle Remembers to cross disjointed boundaries - to appeal to both fanatical religious fundamentalists and fanatical feminists explains why it is a bestseller. Even its setting; 1950s Victoria, British Columbia, continues to attract the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' elements, both fundamentalist and feminist.

    In 1989, nine years after the publication of Michelle Remembers, Trish Fotheringham was studying for a Social Service Worker Certificate at Malaspina University College (now Vancouver Island University) in (would you believe) British Columbia. Apparently, at this point, accordingly to her DVD interviews ($18 for the first one, and $12 for each subsequent one, $11.00 shipping outside Canada for each set ordered) this is where she began, at the age of 30, to remember that she had been abused as a mind-controlled slave in the past. She fits the template for white Western middle-class and middle-aged women who claim to be DID/SRA Myth 'survivors' to a tee (see once again The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy) and perhaps best of all isn't burdened with any awkward scars, injuries or indeed any signs of having been terribly physically and sexually traumatised through her childhood and past.

    For sure Trisha Fotheringham will at some point obtain her school attendance records at Cedar Hill Secondary High School, Victoria (she just hasn't got around to it yet). Certainly a school reunion of her former classmates would be interesting; as it seems unlikely they will remember anyone called Trisha, seeing as she was apparently engaged in recruiting others, training other young children, triggering others to action, recording, reporting, stealing, spying, drug and arms trafficking, and other common criminal activities. Indeed Ms. Fotheringham probably has good grounds to sue both Victoria's public education department and social services for not noticing she was absent so often whilst she pursued the missions her 'programmers' designated her for.

    Those very same Victoria public bodies appeared to be negligent in the case of Michelle Pazder (nee Smith) who, as detailed in Michelle Remembers was a key figure in a continuous 7-week rite that concluded with an appearance from satan himself, in person, forked-tail, bad poetry and all. Somehow though her absence from class wasn't noted. Mrs. Pazder will no doubt be issuing writs against those authorities, and just hasn't got around to it yet in the intervening decades.

    If that wasn't enough, Victoria, British Columbia is also the home town for psychologist Dr. Alison Miller, though it isn't entirely clear if she is a 'real' psychologist, as she isn't registered with the British Columbia Psychological Association. Dr. Miller Ph.D (her thesis and alma mater can't be identified) is Canada's leading SRA Myth/DID proponent, with her book Healing The Unimaginable: Treating Ritual Abuse And Mind Control scheduled for release by leading British conspiracy theorist publisher Karnac Books (see the entry for Oliver Rathbone) in September 2011. She too is a colleague of witch-hunter Dr. Ellen P. Lacter, having presented Torture-Based Mind Control: Psychological Mechanisms of Installation and Continued Control with her at the Annual Conference of leading extreme far-right SRA Myth-advocacy organisation The International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD) in Atlanta Georgia in 2010.

    What it is about Victoria, British Columbia, and the town's association with the SRA Myth can't be easily discerned. By all accounts Victoria is a pleasant place to live, with a population of just 78,000. Yet satan (according to Michelle Smith/Pazder of Michelle Remembers (1980) fame) apparently took the time to make the town the site of his physical appearance on planet earth in the 1950s, whilst Trish Fotheringham reckons she was satanically abused by a Vast Conspiracy of crime/security services abusers throughout her childhood, once again in Victoria, whilst taking time of school to engage in secret missions. Dr. Miller maintains her practice there, as Alison Miller & Associates at 1517 Amelia Street, Victoria, and appears to be therapist for Trish Fotheringham - the giveaway being that Trish Fotherington was invited to contribute to Alison Millers book Healing the Unimagnable: Treating Ritual Abuse and Mind Control (2012) with the essay Mind control as I experienced it the latest 'shit-house-rat-crazy' book from leading conspiracy-therory publishing house, Karnac Books. This from Ms. Fotheringham's Web site;

    Since 1989 I have sought counselling in Ontario and British Columbia for various types of child and adult abuse/torture/rape. However, it was not until 2008 that I was accurately diagnosed and effectively treated for post-traumatic stress disorder and dissociative identity disorder (formerly known as multiple personality disorder). If I had not been medically referred to Dr. Miller by another psychologist and psychotherapist, I would have succumbed to the perpetrators' end goals – committed to a psychiatric hospital or succeeded with suicide. Instead, however, Dr. Miller has effectively worked with me and my alters to start living a quality of life that includes learning how to respect myself as a worthy human being, being an apartment tenant, completing university and now attaining the work experience and education necessary to be an effective advocate for other survivors and children’s rights!
    (Source: Anonymous review of Dr. Alison Miller, Victoria, BC, RateMDs.com)

    Dr. Miller is apparently unconcerned that either satan himself might reappear in Victoria, or that she will be targeted by Trish Fotheringham's clandestine satanists. The little town of Victoria even supports the LabyrinthVictoria Centre for Dissociation Inc. in Fort Street, Victoria, owned and founded by Marlene Hunter, MD, FCFP, who in the past has presented on the subject of Dissociation with Dr. Alison Miller.

    One possible explanation for Victoria BC's elevation to the be the top location for all things SRA Myth/DID-related is that British Columbia, the fourth richest Canadian province/territory, and Victoria, with a population that is 84%+ white, is a fine place for English-speaking white middle-class women - the perfect combination for the majority of SRA Myth/DID/RMT/Mind Control 'survivors' and their therapists, to thrive in.

    Not all 'survivors' of Mind Control/ritual abuse/DID-MPD are females. Famous 'shit-house-rat-crazy' military super-agent Andy Pero had his brief time in the sun, recounting increasingly bizarre recollections to an audience that accepts the wackier as being Gospel truth.

    Andy Pero claims to have been created through a combination of genetic manipulation, trauma based mind control and Silva Mind Control training resulting in superhuman feats and psionic abilities. In addition to this, Mr. Pero alleges to have been unwittingly used in covert assassinations as a Manchurian Candidate and also in missions connected to the Montauk Project, such as time travel.

    ...

    AP: I was involved in an off shoot of the Montauk Project called the Montauk chair. Basically the Montauk chair was developed to give the human and spirit a zero point of reference to facilitate time travel. What the chair essentially does is separate the mind from the body. The chair operator's thoughts and vibrational energy is picked up by umbrella looking antennas above the chair, sent to a computer, over to a processor, then amplified several hundred times. The information is sent to a network of free energy crystals arranged in a circle. Then whatever thoughts were amplified, i.e., a time period, a wormhole would open up in the room. The wormhole was as large as 16-18 feet across and even large enough for a truck to go through.

    In Camp Hero, Montauk, the location is the cross hairs of the earth's biorhythms and is the point on earth where time travel is most easily accomplished when earth is the point of origin.

    My part of the Montauk chair project was to use my focused visualisation skills to think of specific time points in history that were assigned to me. The chair is connected to a sophisticated computer system and thought amplifier, such that when a thought or time period is visualised, the computer simulates a time portal based on that point in time. A series of time portals are done until a library of time periods and portals are accumulated.

    The chair is also used to amplify extremely focused thoughts to create three-dimensional materializations based on the operators thoughts. Preston Nichols wrote several books on the Montauk Project and describes an incident in which Duncan Cameron created a monster while in the Montauk chair.

    One such time travel mission was called Project Southern Cross. It was used to win WW2 in favour of the allies. What the US government did using time travel was to go back in time to the 1940's to help us win the war. We would deliver communication devices, weapons and technologies made out of 1940's parts. These would be delivered to the 1940's along with a complete set of drawings on how to make them out of 1940's parts. I took part in several of these deliveries, one time I was sent to Germany and another time to England. I was not allowed to speak to anyone, other than deliver my parcel and quickly return back to our time. And this was all done under deep hypnotic programming, so I didn't have a lot of freedom to explore. I was gone no longer than two hours for the deliveries.

    EL: Have you ever encountered any extraterrestrials or seen any aliens in any of your underground base memories?

    AP: From what I understand the Department of the Navy made an agreement with the alien Greys to exchange technologies for human women and children to conduct horrific breeding experiments. This is what is going on right now in an underground base not far from Miami, Florida. One of my most disturbing memories is being escorted down a hallway in this underground lab and seeing cages of chicken-wire fencing with women and children screaming for help. I have seen Grey aliens (the 4-foot tall ones with large black eyes) and also 7-foot tall reptilian beings in some of my experiences. I have been told that I have many children from alien breeding experiments. I have had abductions with the Greys also. On one occasion I was introduced to a Reptilian being while in an underground base sometime in 1989-90. At first I saw a 7-foot tall human Aryan looking man. He walks towards me and I notice that his image phases out as if something interfered with an energy field. He does something to a device on his belt and tells me, "OK, I'll show you." He then pushes some button and then I see his image change into a 7-foot tall lizard like creature who looked like he weighed over 400 lb.
    (Source: Interview with Andy Pero, Montauk 'Superman' Programming Victim From Eve Frances Lorgen, M.A, June 13th 2000

    Whilst it might seem fun to read the latest offerings from Western middle-class conspiracy theorists of the far right and left, there is unfortunately a serious side to the issue. The SRA Myth during the 'classic years' followed by its 'bolt-on' additions of Recovered Memory Therapy, Dissociative Identity Disorder/Multiple Personality Disorder and of course Mind Control ripped through two generations of white middle-class women in the USA and threatens to do the same to another generation at present. The victories of 1960s and 70s feminists have been largely reduced to rubble in the face of 'fads' that rendered tens-of-thousands of white, English-speaking Western middle-class, middle-aged women emotional basket-cases, including those who, having been convinced by self-help guides and enthusiastic therapists that they had spent their childhoods scoffing on roasted infant baby, and having denounced fathers, mothers, families and their true past, now realise they were 'had'.

    Conspiracy theories though, such as the SRA Myth, may have a particular place in 21st Western societies. Perhaps they address the need in some people to imagine and believe-in a mysterious world beyond our own reality, to make up for the shortfall in religious belief amongst white English-speaking Westerners that typified the late 20th century and beyond.

    For religious fundamentalists, particularly in the US, conspiracy theories such as the SRA Myth seem to help affirm their Faith, in an effort to fix witches, satan and his cohorts firmly on planet Earth, even perhaps working for the government (i.e. the usual CIA) in their own neighbourhoods amongst us. Feminists too, particularly 'radical' or 'gender' feminists are easily influenced by a desire to demonise - all males, families, women with children - and as with religious fundamentalists, they too share the emotions of hatred and disgust and extreme moral rectitude. Feminism had colluded with religious fundamentalism during the SRA Myth years in the US, UK, Canada, New Zealand and Australia, and is still engaged in the collusion, notably in the UK and Australia. In the US, issues with abortion ensure that feminists and fundamentalists struggle to find the means to conjoin. In the UK though the extraordinarily sensible 1967 Abortion Act, guided into law by Lord David Steele ensured that feminists could and do appear on the same platforms as fundamentalists, can even share the same agendas, and share the same rhetoric.

    All this - satanic ritual abuse, Mind Control, Recovered Memory Therapy and DID/MPD comprised the world of the British SRA Myth True Believer after the initial false accusation scandals finished. From the mid-1990s onwards, UK-based 'Myth proponents would incorporate one-or-more of the bolt-on additions.

    Dr. Sandra Buck's history of RAINS

    The SRA Myth Scandals in England of the late 1980's and early 1990's required a degree of co-ordination, most notably to ensure that far and ultra-right religious fundamentalist literature reached across the Atlantic into the hands of Christian Fundamentalist, feminist and secular social workers and other professionals convinced in their belief of the 'Myth.

    In England and Wales that co-ordination came about through a group called RAINS (Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support). In Scotland an equivalent group, called RANS is established in Dundee.

    RAINS is not a secret organisation, but for obvious reasons, it has kept secret its membership. The group was established in 1989. The organisation does not maintain a Web site, but has a contact telephone number and PO Box for communication in Surrey. Its founders are public knowledge, but little was known about the group until just recently, and that came about from a chapter submitted to a recently-published book advocating for the SRA Myth.

    2008 saw the publication of Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century edited by leading SRA Myth advocates Randy Noblitt, a clinical psychologist, and his wife Pamela Perskin-Noblitt. The book, a trade paperback of 521 pages and bound with an attractive cover, was issued by a leading spiritualist publisher, Robert D Reed, whose website offers Free Autism Prayers and Free Alzheimer's Prayers and includes in its publishing list such gems as the Autism Recovery Manual of Skills and Drills.

    Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century addresses a vital need, both for advocates of the SRA Myth, who have struggled in recent years to find literature that supports their belief that doesn't date after the mid-1990's, and for those who study those who advocate for the SRA Myth itself. The SRA Myth stands at a crossroads at present; its advocates faced with the prospect of deciding whether to endorse the current version of the 'Myth, resplendent with 12-foot alien reptiles, who practise satanic rituals (see David Icke and A Summary of Three version of the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth. This quandary for SRA Myth advocates is hard to resolve; they have already fed the conspiracy industry with two versions of the SRA Myth, and it is tough finding the will to challenge this new third version, with its alien reptile element.

    The book is expertly edited by the Noblitts, who contribute their own work. All told there are twenty-six articles, including those of the editors themselves. The authors nationalities roughly equate in proportion to the nations that adopted the SRA Myth in the 1980's and 1990's, namely eleven authors from the USA, six from the UK, three from Germany, two from Canada, one from Australia, one from South Africa and the remainder, joint authors from Greece and Israel. The UK authors include well-worn SRA Myth advocates Graeme Galton, a working colleague of Dr. Sinason, feminist Sarah Nelson and of course, Valerie Sinason herself. The remainder of the UK authors are previously unknown, being a David Leevers, Valerie Sinason's husband, Carole Mallard and Sandra Buck, the subject of this Entry.

    Randy Noblitt is a key individual for those who study the SRA Myth as a part of American contemporary history. He was a leading character in the Oak Hill SRA Myth scandal of 1991. The scandal differed from the other major cases in the US, such as McMartin, Little Rascals and the Kelly Michaels scandal in that it incorporated many of the paranoid theories that would later become incorporated into the Myth in its current, 21st century form - notably Mind Control, DID (Multiple Personality Disorder) and RMT (Recovered memory Therapy.) Randy Noblitt, rather than being a detached, bias-free writer and editor on the subject, is instead hugely implicated in the 'Myths most substantial injustices.

    The SITPRCA organization was created by Dallas therapist James Randall "Randy” Noblitt, currently the president of the group, and Pamela Perskin, its executive director. Noblitt lectures widely on the existence of ritual cults and mind-control techniques, and has served as an expert witness in a number of child-abuse cases. In the 1992 Austin, Texas, day care case of Fran and Dan Keller, he helped obtain a conviction by informing the jury that cults across America regularly ritually abuse children through torture and sexual abuse and that the cults make child pornography with these victims. Noblitt stated that these children will often not be able to recall the events because they are so highly traumatized, and that the severity of the abuse causes the amnesia. This testimony, combined with Noblitt’s statement that he was “convinced” that the child in this case had experienced extreme trauma, apparently helped convince the jury that the Kellers operated a ritual-abuse cult in their day care center. At the time of that trial, Noblitt testified that in addition to supervising his own clinical employees he had been sought to consult in 15 similar cases and that he provides supervision for therapists individually and in groups. Noblitt and Perskin (1995) recently released a book outlining their beliefs about ritual abuse. While some mainstream therapists may conclude that those associated with SITPRCA represent a fringe element, I would point out that such organizations are able to have a dramatic influence on society.
    (Source: Conspiracy Theories and Paranoia Notes from a Mind Control Conference, by Evan Harrington, published in Skeptical Inquirer, Volume 20.5 September/October 1996)

    Almost immediately the Oak Hill SRA Myth case incorporated allegations of Mind COntrol, DID and recovered memories, all with the absence of forensic or physical evidence of any kind. Journalist Gary Cartwright in The Innocent and the Damned investiated the scandal in minute detail, and identified how it differed from other scandals, incorporating the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' elements of the 'Myth;

    The tales of satanic ritual abuse usually started with touching or fondling, then progressed to oral, genital, and anal penetrations; forced injections of mind-altering drugs; monsters or witches enacting bizarre rituals that included defecating and urinating on their victims’ heads and forcing them to eat feces and drink blood and urine; and finally torture, mutilation, and murder. The rituals were almost always filmed. The victims were forced to participate in the murders and often made to eat the flesh and drink the blood of those who had been sacrificed. These were not merely the sadistic acts of pedophiles but the sophisticated techniques by which devil-worshiping perpetrators programmed and controlled victims, ultimately turning them into Manchurian Candidate-style robots. The perpetrators were often the parents or grandparents of the victims. The cults went back many generations and were as powerful as they were secretive, including among their ranks doctors, lawyers, the clergy, police officers, and prominent business and political leaders.

    “They have infiltrated the legal, medical, and law enforcement professions with their agents,” reported Karen Hutchins, one of the therapists at Cicada. “The male agents tend to end up in the criminal justice system and the females in state hospitals.” Hutchins is the secretary-treasurer of this watch-dog group, which calls itself the Travis County Society for Investigation, Treatment, and Prevention of Ritual and Cult Abuse. It is part of a statewide organization headed by Dallas psychologist Randy Noblitt. Hutchins and the others believe that satanic cults are widespread throughout Texas and the United States. They believe that cults induce multiple personality disorders in their victms to control them. These cult-created alternate personalities, or alters, behave like mental robots, programmed to follow orders. Robots have been strategically placed to sabotage our institutions and to recapture and return to the cult those who have somehow escaped—in other words, those whom the therapists are attempting to deprogram. This is nothing less than a battle to the death for the soul of America.

    Psychologist Pam Monday had brought to the meeting copies of secret CIA documents supplied by Cory Hammond, a Utah psychologist and leading theorist on the satanic menace. The documents, which Hammond had gotten through the Freedom of Information Act, were lists of names of people connected to a satanic-influenced mind-control experiment that the CIA conducted following World War II called Project Monarch. “This will give you some sense of how big the cover-up is,” Monday said, passing the lists around. “Some of these names will blow your mind.” They included Albert Einstein, Wernher Von Braun, Lyndon Johnson, Fidel Castro, Karl Marx, and Mao Tse-tung.

    Hammond frequently lectured at seminars and had convinced many therapists—including those at this meeting—that satanic ritual abuse was an international conspiracy involving the CIA, former Nazi scientists, and a mysterious Dr. Greenbaum. According to Hammond, Greenbaum was a young turncoat from the Nazi death camps who saved his own life by giving the Nazis the secrets to the cabala. After World War II, the CIA brought Greenbaum and the Nazi scientists (who were Satanists) to this country and hid them at military bases. In the years that followed, the scientists continued to perfect the mind-control techniques they had started in the death camps. Greenbaum was educated in psychiatry and positioned at the centerpiece of the satanic order. What was the purpose of all this activity? “My best guess,” Hammond told audiences, “is that they want an army of Manchurian candidates—tens of thousands of mental robots who will do prostitution, engage in child pornography, smuggle drugs, engage in international arms smuggling, snuff films. All sorts of lucrative things. Robots who will do their bidding. And eventually the megalomaniacs at the top believe they will create a satanic order that will rule the world.” Hammond thought that the Satanists had already penetrated high levels of government. Part of his evidence was the frequency with which the name “Greenbaum” was spontaneously and independently mentioned by patients being treated for multiple personality disorder in therapy sessions across the United States.
    (Source: The Innocent and the Damned, by Gary Cartwright, published in the Texas Monthly Magazine, April 1994)

    Cory Hammond (Corydon D. Hammond) is discussed later on this page in the section Dr. Corydon Hammond - the rise of the mind-controlled satanically-abused robot slave (and other ramblings).

    The Fran and Dan Keller Scandal incorporated every single crazed element in the 'Myth, excepting the alleged presence of aliens.

    According to the parents, Fran’s Day Care was a working brothel. When customers appeared, the Kellers lined up the children like cuts of meat on a display shelf. Customers paid cash up front to Danny, then took the child of children of choice to the playroom. One customer wanted all the children and agreed to Danny’s price of $2,000. Before the children were taken to the playroom, Fran drugged them with needles to the anus or toes. Lookouts carrying two-way radios warned the Satanists when someone was approaching the day care, at which time Fran Keller and Janise White turned the satanic pictures to the wall, revealing the Christian paintings on the other side.

    Frequently the children were driven to other homes or businesses in and around Austin, where they were abused by people dressed as monsters and werewolves. At the sheriff substation and Precinct 3 road maintenance complex—where both Danny Keller and Janise White had worked—the children were supposedly abused by men and women in black uniforms. The orgies were often filmed. The Nash boy reported an incident in which Danny Keller delivered ninety gift-wrapped packages (apparently of pornography tapes) and collected $10,000, which he spread out in piles on the floor of the day care for all the kids to play with. An investigator suggested to the parents that the Kellers were part of an international porno and prostitution ring. This explained why, at the advanced age of fifty, Danny Keller found Satanism attractive. He was in it for the money.

    The children also told of being flown on jets to Mexico and taken to military bases like Camp Mabry, home of the Texas National Guard, These reports squared with the satanic checklists and other satanic ritual abuse information the parents were gathering. Carol had discovered the airplane scenario in a book titled The Franklin Cover-Up: Child Abuse, Satanism, and Murder in Nebraska, recommended to her by Pam Noblitt, the wife of Dallas clinical psychologist Randy Noblitt, the president of the Society for the Investigation, Treatment and Prevention of Ritual and Cult Abuse. (Randy was guru and adviser to a number of Austin therapists.) The book makes wild and unsubstantiated claims that some of Omaha’s top business, academic, and political leaders conspired in a network of pornography and ritual murder. Girls and boys were flown to a number of cities, including Austin, where they were subjected to unspeakable sexual abuses by devil-worshiping old men in satanic hoods and then murdered during the sex act while a cameraman filmed and Hunter S. Thompson directed.
    (Source: The Innocent and the Damned, by Gary Cartwright, published in the Texas Monthly Magazine, April 1994)

    By the tme the therapists had finished with the chldren, determined to be victms of the Kellers and others satanic cult, they were riddled with psychiatric problems;

    Only a small percentage of therapists (or police officers) buy the satanic ritual abuse and multiple personality disorder material put out by theorists like Hammond and Noblitt. In a nationwide survey of mental health professionals in 1991, 70 percent of those who responded had never treated a case of ritual abuse or multiple personality disorder. Two percent of the sample who did report such cases were responsible for a majority of the cases, each reporting more than one hundred victims. One individual reported two thousand cases. Austin therapist Karen Hutchins, who for the past seven months has been treating the Chaviers girl and the Staelin boy, estimates that about half of her fifty patients have been ritually abused and suffer multiple personality disorder. She can usually spot a victim after one visit. “I can feel an energy change,” she told me. To date, Hutchins has identified in the Staelin boy fifteen to seventeen personalities, including Jacob, an assassin alter, and Poopsie, a 56-year-old man who can have bowel movements on command. Carol Staelin regards Poopsie as final proof that the child was ritually abused. “Having a bowel movement at nine p.m. when your pattern is every other morning, you can’t fake that,” she said.

    The Chaviers girl has eight personalities, Hutchins claims, including a violent alter named Crystal. At the appropriate age, Hutchins has determined, the child is programmed to be called back to the cult as a breeder, meaning that she will bear a child that will be sacrificed to Satan. The Chaviers girl was supposedly programmed to kill herself on her sixth birthday, in November 1993, but she did not. According to his therapist, the Nash boy said he is supposed to kill himself on his eighth birthday.

    The Nash boy is seeing a psychiatrist rather than a therapist, and at this point, multiple personality disorder has not been diagnosed.
    (Source: The Innocent and the Damned, by Gary Cartwright, published in the Texas Monthly Magazine, April 1994)

    The Kellers faced a six-day trial, although the original child 'victim' had retracted, saying that she had been told to say abuse had occured. The Kellers were given sentences of 48 years each in 1992. They remain in prison in early 2012 (declining any parole as no criminal offenses were committed) eighteen years later, and Fran is now 60 years old and Dan 70. In 2009 The Austin Chronicle, which has followed the scandal of the Kellers, published Believing the Children, by Jordan Smith which closely examined the issues-in-hand right up to early that year, including concerns that Randy Noblitt was actually ever able to give evidence in the case;

    Professor Wood was stunned that Noblitt's testimony was allowed into evidence" "Austin, you know, has a reputation for being progressive and an intellectually enlightened city. So it is really shocking to learn that a D.A. there put an expert on the stand to testify to the reality of 'witchcraft' - satanic ritual abuse - and that a judge allowed it into evidence...I've never seen that on any other case I've been on".
    (Source: Believing the Children, by Jordan Smith, The Austin Chronicle, March 27th 2009

    An extensive Index Entry concerning the Kellers wil appear on this Web Site in 2012.

    Sandra Buck's article The RAINS Network in the UK in Randy Noblitt and his wifes book Ritual Abuse in the 21st Century is, next to Valerie Sinason's twin contributions, one of the most fascinating of the UK submissions to the volume. Unlike previous publications from Randy Noblitt, although the vast majority of contributions are pro-SRA Myth, and unfortunately sometimes stray a long way into 'wacko' conspiracy theories, there was an effort to incorporate some skeptical enquiry. Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century is probably already on the bookshelves of most True Believers but it is a vitally important work for those who make a study of the SRA Myth moral panic phenomena, and a tremendous insight into a world of intense belief probably not suspected by most people to be present in the 21st Century. Although this Site is identified as being distinctly sceptical about the 'Myth, we are able to recommend Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century as a reference work for anyone concerned about the state of child protection and family justice, particularly in the US and UK (though perhaps purchased as a second-hand copy.) The contents of the book are likely to inspire numerous Index entries in the future.

    Ritual Abuse in the 21st Century


    Dr. Buck's contribution in Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century is hugely important, particularly for scholars of contemporary British history and sociologists. Evolutionary psychologists may find the work a useful resource. For the lay reader, The RAINS Network in the UK may challenge previous assumptions about British society in the late 1980's and early 1990's, and may also provides a possible insight into some of the sometimes unusual decisions made in recent years with respect to national child protection policy, most notably with the creation of the Independent Safeguarding Authority (Sir Roger Singleton CBE).

    It is the opinion of the Editors of this site that any contemporary historical reference work or curriculum covering the past three decades for either the US or UK that doesn't incorporate the SRA Myth moral panic is most likely worthless.

    Described on the Contents page as Sandra Buck, M.D, is a community paediatrician working in an inner city area in Nottingham, England with a Yahoo email address, the professional abbreviation stated is most likely a mistake, as 'M.D' (Doctor of Medicine) is not used in the UK. However a Dr. Sandra Buck works at Meadows Health Centre in Nottingham and is detailed in the 'Health Services and Contact Details' section of the Nottingham City Area Child Protection Committee Safeguarding Children and Young People from Sexual Exploitation document. A Dr. Sandra Buck contributed as an 'expert' in a failed attempt to get ritual abuse incorporated into the NICE (National Institute for Clinical Excellence) Guidelines for Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), displaying the desperation with which NHS health professionals who are True Believers in the SRA Myth seek to have it adopted as policy by government agencies.

    Dr. Buck contributed chapters to a leading paediatric volume (the) Manual of paediatrics: an integrated approach (2007), edited by Leon Polnay, Mandy Hampshire and Monica Lakhanpaul. Fortunately the work has no reference to Satanic Ritual Abuse. Dr. Buck contributed Clinical Records (Chapter 5), School Refusal (Chapter 19), Anxiety (Chapter 20), Depression and self-harm (Chapter 21), Bullying (Chapter 26) and Children who break the law (Chapter 27).

    Dr. Bucks Nottingham location is significant; the County suffered a disproportionate quantity of SRA Myth allegations during the 'crazy years' of the SRA Myth in Great Britain. Prof. Jean La Fontaine as detailed before, identified 85 allegations of ritual abuse across England and Wales, over four years, and twenty-one of those came from Nottinghamshire alone. The Meadows Health Centre is just over four miles from the Broxtowe Estate. The vast majority of cases though were never revealed to the public, and never saw the inside of a court room. An allegation made though was sufficient for the case to be considered by the study team.

    RAINS began in September 1989. Two social workers, a psychiatrist, a psychiatric nurse and a lecturer in social work met to discuss how to respond to the needs of people like themselves, who were coming across 'ritual abuse' for the first time. The social workers were Judith Dawson (Child Abuse Consultant for Nottingham Social Services) and Chris Johnson (Leader of Team 4, a specialist team set up in 1987 to work with children and families in a complex multi-generational child abuse case in Broxtowe, Nottingham). Dr. Joan Coleman was the psychiatrist and Eileen Revvens the psychiatric nurse. In 1989, Joan and Eileen worked in Surrey, and had supported two adult survivors since 1987. The lecturer, Jeff Hopkins, had a special interest in staff welfare.
    (Source: Pages 308 Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK by Sandra Buck M.D)

    By the time RAINS was established, the Broxtowe Scandal had been and gone. Although the relationship between social workers and police had broken down, and The JET Report investigation was scheduled to report in late 1989, feminist Judith (Dawson) Jones and christian fundamentalist social worker Christine Johnston were desperate to tell their colleagues across the nation, and anyone who would listen, about this new-found 'satanic ritual abuse'. In effect the promotion of the SRA Myth would become a race; between those who wanted to enthusiastically advocate for it, including Dawson and Johnson, plus members of the Evangelical church's in the UK who had followed the SRA Myth 'trialled' in the US throughout the 1980's to date - and those who recognised that the SRA Myth would most likely lead to the same injustices and abandonment of scientific and medical principles as witnessed in the US. The authors of the The JET Report were aware that the social workers had already 'gone on tour' with their beliefs, and they were powerless to stop them;

    We are less sympathetic with the current attitude of the staff involved in the Broxtowe case. In our view two years later on an unshakeable belief system in Satanic ritualistic abuse appears to have developed which could easily lead into a modern day "witch hunt" (as has happened in the USA). All the elements appear to us to be present; rigid preconceived ideas, dubious investigative techniques, the unwillingness to check basic facts, the readiness to believe anything, however bizarre, the interest in identifying prominent people, with widening of the net to implicate others and the unwillingness to accept any challenge to their views.
    (Source: The Broxtowe Report - part 5)

    The SRA Myth advocates won the race. RAINS began in September 1989, but the...

    ...Joint Enquiry Team (JET) issued their "Joint Enquiry Report" at the end of 1989. It was quite large, totalling 600 pages in 5 volumes, Kenneth Clarke, the Health Secretary and local Member of Parliament realised that the findings of this team should be generally circulated in order to prevent similar serious abuses elsewhere in the UK. He asked that a shortened version be prepared. A "Revised Report" was then prepared in 1990, and distributed to the Social Services Inspectorate and to the Government. It was then suppressed. It was never circulated to individual social work departments.
    (Source: The Nottingham, UK Ritual Abuse Cases and Internet free speech implication)

    The campaign to see the JET Report released was a significant one for the right of free expression on the Web (see the campaigns archive at UK Broxtowe case - JET Report) but when the campaign was finally officially won, in 1997, the SRA Myth had long disappeared from use by Welsh and English social workers, leaving just the 2003 Island of Lewis scandal to run its course.

    Even before RAINS was established, the first SRA Myth conferences were being run.

    Joan and Eileen met Judith and Chris at a conference in April 1989 (Coleman, 1994) and later in the year at what is now known as 'The 1989 Reading Conference'. Judith and Chris presented a workshop describing the accounts of the Nottingham children, and how these had evolved.
    (Source: Pages 309 Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK by Sandra Buck M.D)

    A review of the 1989 conference, actually billed as ‘Not One More Child' (meaning not one more child/baby killed and eaten by satanists) from an observer, provides some insight into the state of belief in the SRA Myth at the moment RAINS was born, and perhaps, shortly after in Dundee, its Scottish equivalent, RANS;

    After that came the social work conferences on the theme ‘Not One More Child’ . The first of these, and perhaps the most important for spreading Satanic Abuse hysteria, was at Reading University, 15-17 September 1989. The organisers were Norma Howes, an ‘independent social worker’, and Pamela Klein, the American who had introduced the ‘Satanic indicators’ to Britain.

    The star speaker was Detective Robert J. (‘Jerry’) Simandl of the Chicago police. He held up a plastic sheet, of the type which he said was used to wrap the bodies of children sacrificed at Satanic rituals and described how the body would be buried in a freshly-dug grave the day before a genuine funeral. He told harrowing tales of sexual abuse of children in caves and underground tunnels, and of one case in which a child had been cooked in a microwave oven.

    A year later, Mr Simandl was interviewed in Chicago by the Mail on Sunday (16 September 1990). He said ‘My superiors and colleagues are sceptical when I tell them these stories. But it is so interesting being in England and Scotland and talking to people there. The rooms were packed, and everyone wanted to know more and more what was going on’.

    The other speakers at the Reading conference were Maureen Davies, then Director of the Reachout Trust, and Judith Dawson, the Child Protection Coordinator from Nottingham Social Services. I do not know what Judith Dawson said at the conference, but it may perhaps have been something like what she says, using her official title, in Doorways to Danger, a video produced by the Evangelical Alliance, (A transcript was published in ORCRO magazine).

    She goes on about Satanic groups ‘whose main aim in life is to destroy everything that is good about human life’. In order to insult Christ’s love of children, she says, the adult members of these groups use the children as sexual and sacrificial slaves. Her only evidence is a quotation from the New Testament.

    Reporting the Reading conference, the Mail on Sunday spoke to ‘a senior social worker who cannot be named for professional reasons’, quoted as saying ‘The longer this went on the more sceptical I became. Where was the proof? Where were the bodies? But I admit I did not have the courage to get on my feet and voice my doubts. Everybody was taking copious notes. There was an atmosphere of hysteria which I found frightening.’

    Howes and Klein organised another conference in Dundee, using the same speakers. Jerry Simandl increased the number of babies cooked in the microwave from one to four and there were eight more conferences, making a total of ten.
    (Source: Satanic Child Abuser Hysteria in Britain 1990-1991 by Donald Rooum, Satanic Media Watch and News Exchange - 1st May 1998)

    At the Reading conference, Maureen Davies had candidly provided a clue as to what the real target of the panic was; Judith Dawson-Jones, Beatrix Campbell and all the other supporters had engaged with religious fundamentalists intent on a genuine witch-hunt across Britain. As a director of the fundamentalist Reachout Trust (still in operation - see the entry for J.K Rowling OBE) and with the feminist community and others on-board, these were indeed boom times for witch-hunters;

    “There’s a grave problem,” Maureen tells us, about the time of the Reading shindig; “the way we are going to deal with it is not by bringing back the Witchcraft Act, but by talking confidentially with police and social services, so they know what to look for.” There were thirty-five satanism cases afoot in Britain at that very minute, she said. Fourteen separate constabularies were involved! Among Reachout’s confidential papers was ‘What Goes on in the Rituals in Britain Today?’ — a handy guide for those of us who think of attending a black mass:

    “Children are given drugs by injection, medicine, or in drinks that are laced. This is either to sedate them or cause them to hallucinate. Candles are also laced with drugs. Adults dress up in robes and masks and goats’ heads. The children are taught to hate God, Jesus, the Church and everything that is good. During the ritual, children have to drink blood, sometimes from human skulls. Children are placed in coffins and buried alive. When they shout for their parents they do not come, but eventually, perhaps hours later, the satanist leader comes to show he is the only one who really cares. Children are made to eat insects such as beetles and spiders. Perverted sex takes place as the children are passed around as objects for the entertainment of adults.”

    And if all that fails to satisfy your vulgar notions and taste:

    “In certain cases the children themselves take part in sacrifice. Teenage girls and adult women have to sacrifice their own children. This makes them guilty of murder which is then used to bring about another aspect of fear, showing them they are in the system and can’t get out. After the sacrifice, they take the heart, spleen and eyes and eat them. The children are taught how to remove these parts of the body. What is not eaten is stored. Some of the bodies are melted down. The fat is used for candles and the bones ground down and the powder is used as an aphrodisiac.”

    Which explains why there’s never been any evidence for the pathologist.

    Reachout had thoughtfully produced a video, distributed widely to social-service departments. In it a woman described a scene at a sabbath:

    “This lady in a black robe came forward with this little baby and she laid it on the altar. It was breathing, but it wasn’t crying, and then the High Priest used the athame or ceremonial dagger to cut the baby’s throat. I just couldn’t believe it, but by then I was led forward and lifted up onto the altar, The baby’s blood was daubed all over my body and then the High Priest raped me. I then had to sign in blood on parchment saying that I would never reveal what had happened in the coven. If I did, I would die.”

    Concern for personal privacy prevented Reachout from giving further detail.
    (Source: Where the babble thrives, we must follow, by Les H, posted on Open Salon)

    RAINS consolidates

    Membership of RAINS expanded rapidly;

    By word of mouth, the RAINS network reached 150 members.
    (Source: Page 316 Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK by Sandra Buck M.D)

    In addition the organisation was aided by SRA Myth advocates in the media; both feminists and christian fundamentalists;

    Some journalist are concerned about ritual abuse and have written intelligent and sensitive articles. They include Andrew Boyd, Beatrix Campbell, Nick Davies, Sarah Nelson, Jean Rafferty and Tim Tate. Some have struggled publishing their written work. Stolen Voices, written by Judith Jones and Beatrix Campbell, was published by The Women's Press in 1999 and withdrawn immediately for legal reasons. It was about the backlash in the UK. Tim Tate's book was withdrawn after he was successfully sued over alleged libel implication. He and his publishers apologised and paid damages.
    (Source: Page 320 Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK by Sandra Buck M.D)

    The question of religion has dogged the RAINS organisation since its inception, principally because it has been responsible for providing ultra-right christian fundamentalists from the US and UK and other countries a means to address a far wider block of people, including notably, the feminist community, who wouldn't have normally associated with fundamentalists in the past. In 1996, with the SRA Myth effectively dead-in-the-water in England and Wales, RAINS organised its very own conference, though its title was perhaps unfortunately chosen. The presentations included one from the famous Dr. Catherine Gould, who had published her Satanic Ritual Indicators way back in 1987, that RAINS members had so enthusiastically adopted;

    Our first conference was in 1996, Better The Devil You Know. We invited speakers from the US and Netherlands. Main presentations were from Joan Coleman, Hereward Harrison (ChildLine), Joan Golston (US), Catherine Gould (US), Norma Howes, Marjorie Orr (Accuracy About Abuse), Sara Scott, Valerie Sinason, Caryn Stardancer (US), Tim Tate and Sheila Youngson.


    Caryn Stardancer, a US citizen, was a regular speaker as SRA Myth events throughout the 1990s, attending with her multiple-personality 'altar' called 'L.J' - an imaginary small boy with a surprising penchant for drawing pornography. Stardancer would publish her peculiar form of media in a 'survivor' newsletter all the way through the 1990s (see the entry under Doris Sanford).

    Also at the Better The Devil You Know conference, hosted in September 1996 at Warwick University, was Professor Bernard Gallagher from the University of Huddersfield, currently an Associate Editor with the leading British journal Child Abuse Review. He presented his paper Results of research into adult and child reports of organised ritual abuse.

    By 1996 belief in the SRA Myth, both in the UK and US was in a tailspin, with only the most ardent religious fundamentalist, feminist and some academics still convinced in its existence.

    Although unable to organise an annual gathering, another conference took place in 2001. By now though all official trace of social workers attending the conferences was gone (for simple fear of instant dismissal by their managers). Left were police officers, notably from the Metropolitan Police, psychotherapists, psychiatrists and a growing number of middle-class and middle-aged white women claiming to be 'survivors'. British feminists still hung on, represented by Sara Scott and Sarah Nelson.

    For the conference in 2001, The Dark Side of the Rainbow, we collaborated with The Clinic for Dissociative Studies. We appointed two conference organisers who worked as an excellent team, and were familiar with ritual abuse from their other work. Main presentations were from Jeran Goodwin (US), Chris Healey (Police Aspects in UK), Norma Howes, Kobus Jonker (South Africa), Sarah Nelson, Jean Rafferty, Sue Richardson, Sara Scott, Valerie Sinason and Howard Steele.
    (Source: Both paragraphs from Page 319 Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK by Sandra Buck M.D)

    The Dark Side of the Rainbow
    The most recent conference was in May 2009, and this is discussed later. SAFF, a leading investigator of the British satan and witchcraft-hunters, captured the essence of RAINS perfectly;

    Justamum blog


    Of all of the extremists amongst those invited to the RAINS conferences, Kobus Jonker was streets ahead of his nearest competitor. Indeed he makes christian fundamentalists who believed equally in the SRA Myth and the inalienable right to kill abortionists look positively tame;

    Kobus Jonker is not an objective secular expert, he is a Christian fundamentalist . His deputy, Policewoman Rietta Everton, who makes up the rest of the grand-sounding Pretoria Occult Related Crime Squad is also a Christian fundamentalist. Christians reading this may be irking by now so we will explain how different Jonker and Everton's Christianity is from mainstream belief.

    To set the scene we point out that over the door of the Pretoria Occult Crimes Squad office is nailed a carved wooden plaque proclaiming in Afrikaans

    Onder Jesus Bloed

    It roughly translates as 'for the blood of Jesus'.

    Jonker is on record as saying:

    'I believe the devil exists because I have seen things happen. I have seen a woman being attacked right in my presence by a demonic being, cuts just appearing on her arms and three sixes manifesting'
    (Source: Thames Torso Case Exposed as Another Satan Myth)

    Now retired, Colonel Jonkers (ret) Occult Related Crime Unit (ORCU) made 70 successful prosecutions under the 1957 Witchcraft Suppression Act in a single year in South Africa. So interesting a character he was made the subject of a Channel 4 Witness documentary in 2000, but not all police officers who become entranced by satanism and witchcraft-hunting are always able to stay the course, due to the glaring lack of evidence. Jonkers pursue of 'witches' amongst the black South African community is legendary, and he was desperate to tell of his exploits to both British feminist and fundamentalist SRA Myth True Believers

    Jonker's standards of evidential veracity would send a shiver through the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. A car hit-and-run victim was found with 'Jesus Christ' tattooed on her feet. Jonkers concludes that she was a Satanist; because 'this was the woman's way of trampling on Christ's name'. The intellectual rigour in Jonkers' cases is reminiscent of a mediaeval witch-hunter. 'A Cat disappears and 'strange smells' emanate from a room used by a suspect - Jonker deduces that she was therefore 'engaged in some satanic practice.' Jonker has a 'museum' of Satanic artefacts which include 'human fat candles '(?) and, wait for it, Heavy Metal Posters' (!). Jonker's believes in all the crud about so-called backward-masking on pop-music. He says he 'loved Satanists as God would wish him to' and found plenty to put under the microscope. Anyone who reads Tarot Cards, frequents Health Shops or Listens to Heavy Metal Music is immediately suspect in his religious crusade against Satanism.

    A woman who resents having her book on Astral Projection confiscated is immediately earmarked as a Satanist murderess. One of his prime witnesses is a dysfunctional self-immolating woman who was brought up in a strict pentecostal family. She relates in graphic detail ten years of detailed abuse at the hands of a 'satanic circle' she says she joined when she was 15. She knows the chief satanists name but is prevented by some magical force from speaking it (a typical victim impostor confabulation) so her story cannot be checked. Jonker did not think to ask her to write it down instead. Jonkers appears enthusiastically clued in to everything except what is actually going on. He says that he does not know of any other unit in the world like theirs , but there are dozens in the fundamentalist circuit (see CCIN later). Jonkers believes that the Devil exists. Really exists. He adds that he has witnessed Demonic Possession 'a few times' and claims that the devil actually tried to take him over in 1989:

    'He had been at home, walking to his bedroom and felt another presence even though there was nobody there.. He had laid down on the bed and felt held there, pressed down, unable to move or speak. Finally he had called out to God, in his mind and vroom, that feeling just disappeared. The reality of Satan, he would say, and the reality of God. After that Jonker had no fear of Satan or Satanists. He would not routinely carry a gun but he would always wear a tiny silver cross on his jacket. He was protected by the blood of Jesus - was beyond harm.'

    Readers untutored in the ethos of the Satanic Abuse Myth can be forgiven for asking why a sectarian bigot who is obsessed with mediaeval psychology and who believes that the Devil really exists, is being allowed to lecture to an audience of social workers on the subject of Satanic Ritual Abuse. That is because they do not realise that history is repeating itself. Those who think Jonkers is a loose-cannon in law-enforcement are in for a surprise. In fact he is just one of an army of self-styled Satan Hunters; emulating the original 'Cult Cop' Randy Emon, who grabbed nationwide publicity in the U.S.A. in 1988 with his sensational claims about Occult Crime and Satanic Abuse. Emon, a fundamentalist Christian (head of Breaking Point Ministries) and beat policeman did his Satan Snooping unofficially when he was off-duty but was nicknamed God's Cop by the USA media. A few years later after realising the damage his zealotry had caused, he publicly recanted and denied that Satanic Ritual Abuse Existed. This is what Emon had to say in a 1992 letter to 'Cornerstone' (a mainstream USA Christian magazine):

    'I and many others have been the unwitting perpetrators of fostering a conspiracy theory without having factual substantiated evidence... I believe the MPD movement [ed: MPD multiple-personality-disorder] fuelled by Bennet Braun and Catherine Gould [ed: Gould was the USA therapist who invented the 'symptoms list' which was widely used as a witch-pricker in alleged cases of Satanic Abuse both here and in the U.S.A. to supposedly identify children who had been Satanically Abused ,] has been instrumental in knowingly or unknowingly creating this hysteria. I too, must accept part of the responsibility. The bottom line is that there is just no evidence to support a conspiracy theory...I got the impression that this stuff was widespread everywhere. But I couldn't find any evidence. ..... there is zero evidence that there is a multigenerational Satanic conspiracy."
    (Source: Quotes from the Keynote Speakers at the 2001 Satan Seminar - SAFF)

    More detail about Korbus Jonkers is provided in the section The Metropolitan Police & RAINS.

    A review of the 1996 conference Better The Devil You Know provides an insight into how the Multiple Personality Disorder and Recovered Memory Therapy elements had taken advocates for the 'Myth into a world that shared little with what we know of;

    ...All this was illustrated by the Californian therapist Caryn Stardancer, editor of Survivorship, who is herself a survivor of ritual abuse and “a member of a multiple-self system”. Having announced herself as such, she briefly slipped into one of her little girl alters. She kept two stuffed toys on the front of the podium as she talked, which apparently were so useful in her therapy that she now takes them everywhere.

    It is a myth, Stardancer said, that “survivors are neurotic people with empty lives who invent stories to get attention”; in fact, they haven’t got the attention that False Memory Syndrome has (everyone in this field thinks that it is only their opponents who are getting the media attention). She knows it is a myth because she herself suffered, back in the 1940s and 1950s when she was a small child, and the hands of an inter-generational, multi-perpetrator cult, actually at least five cults who were conspiring together. These included: a Satanic Cabal hiding under the cover of a Fundamentalist church; a Dionysiac group (who had survived underground ever since the days of ancient Rome) who “specialise in political manipulation through crime and blackmail”; a feminist Pagan coven; a youth gang who used Satanic imagery; and military mind-control experts who were affiliated with the Masons. She was able to bring in several other favourite conspiracy theories by giving them as part of the alleged cult’s teachings: she says they claim the cult hierarchy dates back to Hermes Trismegistus, an early Grand Master, they built the pyramids, and they are in touch with extra-terrestrials, as is proved by the eye in the pyramid on the US dollar bill. Many survivors, she says, are programmed to believe that social unrest at the turn of the millennium will enable the group they are in to take control.

    This talk won a minute’s standing ovation, In response to a question from the audience, she said she was given the surname Stardancer twenty years ago by an Indian medicine man she met at a conference on adolescent schizophrenia.

    Curiously, some of the patients supposedly continue in Satanism even while in therapy. Joan Coleman’s first survivor once had to postpone her sessions by two days because she had been summoned to a Satanic court in France, When she got to the delayed sessions she described how two ‘hoods’ had taken her to a chateau, where a black cockerel was sacrificed, she was urinated on, smeared with excrement, and all the usual stuff, questioned, then apparently let off. Valerie Sinason has a Multiple Personality Disorder patient who, as a child, was made Satan’s daughter and had “a goat’s horn shoved up her bum”. Her ‘adult alter’ still goes to rituals, returning with injuries, and she is now in a wheelchair. Though Sinason and her colleague Rob Hale at the Portman Clinic were doing an NHS-funded study of SRA, asking “what corroboration?”, it did not seem to occur to her that surveillance of such a patient could readily provide proof, if her story were true.
    (Source: It Never RAIBNS but it Pours: Reporting on the Satan Hunters. Basil Humphreys - MAGONIA, 15th March 2009)

    RAINS & fundamentalism

    As mentioned earlier, questions over religious belief have dogged RAINS since its inception. Dr. Buck explained the nature of Belief amongst the RAINS membership, and her own beliefs;

    I have no attachment to any religion, and would probably be most comfortable being described as a humanist. I fully respect others whose beliefs and experiences are different to mind. Within the RAINS network there any many like myself, and many who do have a religious faith. Some of those do not believe in satan as an entity, and some do. Most do not believe in demonic possession, but some do.
    (Source: Pages 315-316 Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK by Sandra Buck M.D)

    Although titled Ritual Abuse in Twenty-first Century like a First World War British General, Dr. Buck tries to re-write the battles she and her then-later RAINS colleagues lost so comprehensively - notably the Broxtowe Scandal of 1988. Broxtowe was significant; the first reported instance of the use of the SRA Myth in the UK (the Kent fiasco being kept relatively secret), and the case that set the tone of all future SRA Myth uses by social workers across Great Britain, from 1988 to 2003. But it was the Rochdale Scandal of 1990 that saw 'Myth Believing social workers extend themselves to the point that any lingering support from all but the most fanatical fundamentalist or feminist would be lost in England and Wales.

    Another of the invited speakers at the 1996 conference was the previously mentioned Dr. Catherine Gould whose 1987 satanic indicators were distributed to believers and those who would presumably become RAINS members, and became the basis of True Believers suspicions that children were satanically abused. A classic case of such activity took place in the aforementioned Rochdale SRA Scandal of 1990, which when revealed to the public, effectively ended the SRA Myth in England. Unlike the Broxtowe Scandal there was no on-going investigation into incest or child sex abuse. Like Broxtowe though, the families involved and alleged by social workers to be satanists were church-mice poor, living on a council estate, socially deprived and deprived of the protections that perhaps middle-class families could have both expected and demanded from the authorities.

    Rochdale was hugely important moment in the history of the SRA Myth in Great Britain. Catherine Gould's satanic indicators by now were in almost universal use, and indeed no effort in the intervening 22 years since the SRA Myth arrived on British has been made to ensure they were banned or curtailed from use by British social workers, paediatricians, psychologists or psychiatrists. Dr. Buck, who describes herself as then working as a psychosexual therapist in Nottingham at the time of the Broxtowe Scandal, doesn't make it clear if she has employed Dr. Gould's checklist in her NHS work then and since, but it seems inconceivable that she is unaware of it, and there is no record of Dr. Buck or any other member of RAINS condemning or even questioning the checklist.

    For example, Gould's checklist of indicators for ritualistic abuse has been widely disseminated among the believers. However, although Gould's list contains a wide variety of problems which she interprets to indicate suspicion of ritual abuse, the behaviours listed are found in non-abused children and in children who have been subjected to more ordinary forms of abuse. They are signs of stress in general and are not specific to child abuse. The danger in promoting this checklist is that unsophisticated therapists may decide that a child showing one of these symptoms has, in fact been ritually abused and begin questioning the child in a way that elicits statements to confirm this belief. It is important for sceptics to understand that a therapist who believes in satanic ritual abuse is likely to have encountered this checklist someplace and to be familiar with the methods Gould recommends for getting children to talk about the hypothesised abuse (leading questions, toy figures with masks and costumes, sand tables, etc.)
    (Source: Book review of Out of the Darkness: Exploring Satanism and Ritual Abuse Edited by David K. Sakheim and Susan B. Devine - 1992 - reviewed by LeRoy G. Schultz, IPT Journal, volume 4)

    Rochdale

    One of Dr. Gould's indicators of satanic abuse (it should be remembered any one item on the list would be the 'tripping point' for a believer in the SRA Myth) was a fear of ghosts. It was this specific item that provoked the Rochdale scandal, and in The Daycare ritual abuse panic Mary de Young described how a social worker profession, already reeling from the aftermath of the Cleveland RAD scandal in 1987, and the new guidelines that it provoked, were easily rendered vulnerable to a new obsession;

    The Rochdale Council social services program was just one of many local authorities that had not yet implemented the good practice guidelines in 1989; doing so, it was estimated, would require the hiring of at least another five social workers at a cost of almost £100,000, and even then would risk opposition from the union because of the additional work the implementation would require (Eaton, 1990).

    Despite all that, British social workers carried out their work with a guarded optimism that what they were doing would somehow and at sometime makes a difference. It was with that kind of good faith that the two Rochdale social workers assigned to the case of the frightened six-year old brought him and his mother to a local child abuse assessment centre. Contrary to the good practice guidelines, they did not videotape their first interview with the child, but according to them, the usually inarticulate child was nothing less than eloquent in his description of pink ghosts haunting his bedroom, and midnight visits to cemeteries with his parents to help them bury the babies they had bludgeoned to death with hammers. Concerned for the child's safety, the social workers secured a Place of Safety Order and took him into care. The following day they interviewed the child's older sister who confirmed the presence of ghosts although, she hastened to add, they may have only been in her dreams. She and her two youngest brothers also were removed from the family and taken into care (Bunyan, 1990).

    The social workers were convinced the siblings were victims of ritual abuse. Interestingly, none of them had said anything about having been abused, either sexually or physically, but he seductiveness of the diagnosis has never radiated so much from the work "abuse" as from the modifier "ritual", and all of the imaginary evils it conjures up. The social worker profession's imagination had been primed for just such a diagnosis. By early 1990 when the four siblings had been taken into care, rumours about satanic cults and the ritual abuse of children had spread across Great Britain and social workers had been warned that the devil was afoot.
    (Source: The day care ritual abuse moral panic (2004) by Mary De Young, pages 167 and 168)

    After the first child and his sister were made Wards of Court, the social workers expanded their scope across the deprived Langley Estate.

    As the weeks went by and the frightened children were put through intensive questioning, their confessions became more numerous and concrete, and began to implicate neighbouring families. They told of being drugged and caged, of sheep being mutilated in occult ceremonies. In June 1990, sixteen more youngsters were roused at dawn and taken away, and others were removed in July and September. Families of the sequestered children were not allowed to see them or communicate in any way — not even to send printed Christmas cards, for fear these might hold coded satanic messages. The parents were prevented by a High Court injunction from talking to anyone about their plight.

    In all twenty-one children from infants up to the age of twelve were removed from five families on the Langley Estate at Middleton (in the borough of Rochdale). The children were taken in the combined police-social services dawn raids which would soon become standard. They were made wards of court, and they and their families were plunged, arbitrarily, into a lifelong nightmare.

    Rochdale’s social services director was one Gordon Littlemore. He had attended a satanism course in London during March 1990, and had returned with the familiar list of ‘satanic indicators’ and a warning for the public of the dangers posed by ritual abuse. “We are dealing with allegations of emotional abuse, degradation, humiliation, the administration of drugs and exposure to acts of violence ….” As the controversy developed and at last turned against the council there would be some fudging, a shift of ground as to whether Rochdale Council had ever been acting against satanism, or whether (as it came to insinuate) it had assessed the children merely as ‘neglected’.

    Social services refused to allow the youngsters’ return so long as police investigations were afoot and prosecutions were a possibility. After a long enquiry, Manchester Police conceded they lacked any evidence to proceed — in particular on the satanism claim. Seventeen youngsters were now cleared by police for return to their parents, but the logistics were left to Rochdale social services and they were loath to give up the children. The separation continued.

    In their misery and frustration the parents were not completely isolated. The Middleton councillor Tony Heaford campaigned on their behalf over several years. And the Mail on Sunday took up the issue. However, Rochdale was tenacious in prosecuting its case. The social workers were certain they had something big. There was a delay of eighteen months before a judge ruled after a 47-day High Court hearing that there was absolutely no evidence to support the workers’ claims, that satanic abuse was a myth. Even after that ruling, and collapse of the council’s position, social services held onto twelve out of seventeen children on alternative grounds, saying for example that their parents were in debt. The last of the care orders was not lifted for another eight years.

    Though Rochdale social services bowed before the High Court criticism, it appears to have been neither converted nor convinced. Littlemore resigned the day after the judgment was handed down; the two workers who had “done some reading on satanic abuse” (they are named below) were transferred to other jobs. The NSPCC’s Liz McLean, who as ever had been foremost in formenting mischief, would soon pop up again to stoke trouble elsewhere.
    (Source: The Rochdale removals: a father not silenced)

    A BBC documentary on the abuse of the children and parents of the Langley Estate by the social workers, who raided their houses early in the morning is available here, it includes extracts of the actual social worker interviews with the children, together with dramatised sections;

    Real Story, BBC North West, January 2006

    Real Story, BBC North West, January 2006


    (A plugin might be required for your browser to play these clips).

    An accompanying interview with one of the children, now grown-up, the Caroline referred-to above when she was 11, was made by the BBC, who challenged the gagging order imposed by the Family Court. In addition a studio interview with David, who was 13 when police and social services burst into his bedroom early in the morning provided the best-documented review of the impact of the SRA Myth on the children involved to-date. The solicitor David Attfield was also interviewed, and he emphasised how the secret proceedings in Family Court cases can prevent such stories coming to public attention;

    BBC Breakfast Interview

    BBC Breakfast Interview


    Visitors might note the extraordinary lucidity of the children-now-adults interviewed, including David, who was interviewed live-to-broadcast to all of the BBC audience in England. In the Rochdale Scandal, there was never any evidence of physical or sexual abuse beforehand or after. They literally were ordinary kids in ordinary working-class families.

    An accompanying BBC news story Lost years of 'satanic panic' children records in text the way that the children's childhoods were ruined by the activities of the social workers, particularly for those who were held against their will in Council care for up to ten years (Daniel).

    The impact of the BBC's When Satan Came to Town documentary went beyond just the daily news. Don Williamson reviewed the broadcast for the London Book Club;

    In raids which can only be described as ‘terrorist’, one morning in 1990 families were raided by gangs of screaming police and social workers. Children and parents dragged from their beds, parents handcuffed and brutalised and hysterical little kids dragged away. Throughout the whole disgusting affair, not a shred of evidence, not a single body or missing child, not a single amputated finger, not a drop of sacrificial blood or animal was ever discovered. Quite apart from the ruthless separation of the kids – some of them toddlers – from their parents, with all that impacted upon them, there was the actual treatment they received from these social workers in the child protection agency.

    We see video footage of a little girl, dragged from her older brother and kept in a room where she is cruelly interrogated despite her anguish and pleading to be reunited with him. The callous, heartless and inhuman interrogation of this six-year-old continued relentlessly – we hear the interrogator tell the desperate child, “As soon as you answer my questions I can let you see your brother.” Torture plain and simple. Other video evidence quite clearly shows social workers lying through their teeth as to what the little kids are supposed to have said.

    The children at every turn insist nothing whatever had ever happened to them. Despite all of this 16 children spent a total of 34 years in care, separated from their parents and brothers and sisters. It was a miscarriage of justice to rival that inflicted on the Birmingham Six and Guildford Four – and perpetrated against innocent children – the oldest being 15, the youngest six. One boy spent 10 years in care, unable to return to his parents until he was 16. The police dropped the case within weeks of the furore, finding no evidence of any wrongdoing, but the social workers, with their unlimited powers of detention, continued to hound the families until a judge ruled there was nothing whatever to answer, since no crime had ever been committed. Still they used their sovereign powers to detain some of the children, on the basis of the low income of their parents, regardless of the high levels of love and affection.
    (Source: When Satan Came to Town, review by Don Williamson, London Book Club, April 16, 2009)

    Although an extraordinary abuse of State power, it might not entirely come as a surprise to find that the-then Campaign for Civil Liberties, now trading as Liberty took absolutely no interest in the plight of the children and families, then in 1990, or anytime subsequent.

    A feature of all the SRA Myth scandals in the UK was that social workers or believing police officers were not subsequently sacked when the absurdity of the cases finally came to light. The Rochdale social workers Susan Hammersley and team leader Jill France, who themselves had received training from fundamentalists shortly before they 'discovered' ritual abuse amongst the socially deprived residents of the Langley Estate, were simply redeployed, and continued to work in child protection until at least 2006.

    As the Rochdale Scandal unfolded, at least one individual within the local authority recognised that something had gone terribly wrong;

    This week a former Langley councillor, Robin Parker, told the Guardian that he tried to alert the then chairman of the Social services Committee, Councillor the Rev Paul Flowers, a clergyman, that something was going wrong.

    Parker - a former Manchester City Council social services official - said: "I was a very new councillor in Rochdale at the time. I was approached by Langley councillors Kevin Hunt and Tony Heaford.

    "They said that something was going very badly wrong and they were on the wrong track."

    He said it was apparent that the two social workers involved were fundamentalist Christians and that could be affecting their judgement.

    "I went to the chairman of Social Services and said the two social workers were on a mission and could not be objective when they believed Satan was at work, but he rejected this."
    (Source: Satanic abuse: Town in shock, by David Edwards, Middleton Guardian, January 19, 2006)

    In comments that follow, it is mentioned that three local Labour Party councillors, Kevin Hunt, Peter Thompson and Tony Heaford defied the Labour Party official line on Satanic Ritual Abuse at the time. Kevin Hunt and Peter Thompson were apparently de-selected as future Labour party candidates, and Tony Heaford left to join the Liberal Democrats. Unfortunately the idea that that the SRA Myth in Britain was no more than a deliberate attempt to demonise working class families is given credence by those that lived through the events;

    I myself grew up on the Langley Estate and was a seventeen year old teenager at the time of the disgraceful 'Satanic Abuse' case. Langley was no different to many other areas, it had its high levels of unemployment, poor social housing etc, however I found it a wonderful place to grow up; it was a very close knit community where everyone knew everyone and the community was like one large extended family.

    It was such a close Knit community it would have been impossible for anything like this to have occurred without people knowing about it.

    We also had three hard working local councillors at the time who all campaigned on behalf of the parents. They were of course Kevin Hunt and Peter Thompson and Tony Heaford.

    Kevin Hunt and Peter Thompson spoke out on behalf of the families and would not be gagged by the Labour Party whips. Because they supported local residents instead of following the party line they were both de-selected. Tony Heaford later joined the Lib Dems in Rochdale.

    My uncle, Alf McDermot ran the Langley Residents Association and also campaigned to bring the children home to their families also suffered at the hands of the local authority who instigated a dawn raid at the Associations Office to confiscate and suppress information damaging to the council

    Vilest of all however are the two evil social workers who conceived such odious lies. I find it personally repulsive to think they have been allowed to continue in their jobs for the last fifteen years, left free to destroy more lives. These two twisted morons don't deserve the jobs they have, they should have been sacked years ago.

    The last fifteen years have been nothing less than an evil conspiracy of silence between the Social Services and Rochdale Council to suppress details of their incompetence and negligence. Instead of apologising to the families they have destroyed, they prefer to keep their mouths shut and pretend they were innocent bystanders. Shame On Them.
    (Source: Satanic abuse: Town in shock, by David Edwards, Middleton Guardian, January 19, 2006, comment by Phil Burke)

    Much of the credit for uncovering the scandal goes to the local newspaper, the Middleton & North Manchester Guardian, journalists like David Edwards, and in particular then-beginner journalist Jeni Harvey, who was nominated for the Paul Foot Award for her work in exposing Rochdale Council's efforts to silence the families ruined by the councils own actions. Jeni Harvey continues working as a senior journalist for the Yorkshire Post daily newspaper.

    Fighting against the full weight of the law and the determination of the local council to prevent the appalling injustice of the Rochdale satanic child abuse affair being exposed to public scrutiny, Harvey challenged court order and used the Freedom of Information Act to reveal the highly dubious practices of Rochdale Council’s social services department. Refusing to let the scandal rest, Harvey used both her own paper and a BBC documentary to, as the judges put it, “expose the full horror of a despicable affair the council was determined to keep secret”.
    (Source: Paul Foot Award 2006 shortlist - Jeni Harvey)

    Conflict with The Jet Report

    As noted before, much of Dr. Buck's essay is concerned with running through the battles fought by RAINS members in the 1980's and 1990's, notably over the Broxtowe estate scandal. The JET Report that resulted from the breakdown of trust between police and social workers pulls no punches, leaves little scope for reinterpretation. For the True Believers though, there was nothing that could be said or written that would ever dissuade them - and indeed the very absence of evidence was determined to be evidence that the fantasy satanists were simply too wily, and that the police and non-believing social workers were part of the Vast Conspiracy. In recent times this block denial of valid evidence has been given a label - confirmation bias - which describes a condition whereby even convincing conflicting evidence or accounts confirms in the Believer of the Righteousness in their own convictions. The JET Report made the reality simple-to-understand;

    1. That there is no evidence of Satanic ritual abuse in the Broxtowe case or its aftermath.

    2. That there is no evidence of any other organised abuse in the Broxtowe case or its aftermath.

    3. That there is no evidence of ritualistic abuse in the satellite cases.

    4. That we are unable to identify any other children at risk or any other perpetrators arising from the Broxtowe case and its aftermath.

    5. That it is doubtful whether the practice of the type of Satanic ritual abuse being promulgated by the Social Services Department actually exists. It has never been substantiated by empirical evidence. We have come to the hypothesis based on [Mary]'s case that evidence can actually be "created" by social workers as a result of their own therapeutic methods.

    6. That the lack of joint working in the follow up to the Broxtowe case led to a serious polarisation of the Police and Social Service Departments. Initially it was the Police who declined to work with Social Services on "bizarre cases", latterly the roles have been reversed.

    7. That parts of the Social Services Department appear to have developed over the last two years a belief system in ritualistic Satanic abuse which is unwittingly resulting in children being encouraged to believe in and allege bizarre abuse. This could lead eventually to grave injustice and if unchecked it has the ingredients of a modern "witch hunt".

    8. That if children in care continue to allege the most bizarre abuse to Social Services staff who appear to accept it, and the Social Services staff present these children to the Police weeks later with the final outcome that the ensuing Police interview discredits the disclosures then the relationships between Social Services and the Police will completely collapse.
    (Source: The JET Report - Summary of Conclusions)

    For Dr. Buck, the principal problem with The JET Report was the people picked to perform the investigation were all wrong.

    Many authors have criticised the choice of people who were appointed to the Joint Enquiry Team and the experts they used (Scott & Snelling, 1994; Tate, 1991, chap. 7)
    (Source: Page 311 Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK by Sandra Buck M.D)

    As with both True Believer and sceptical works in the SRA Myth debate, it is worthwhile chasing-down the references employed. The "experts" referred-to by Dr. Buck in the passage above, aren't perhaps of a nature most academic works would be willing to employ;

    Sara Scott and Olave Snellings contribution href="http://www.dramatis.hostcell.net/SRA/RAINS2/TREATING4/treating_4.html#dispatches">Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse can be found in Valerie Sinason's book Treating survivors of satanist abuse (1994). Olave Snelling would go on to be CEO of the Christian Broadcasting Council, whilst self-confessed feminist Sara Scott would go on to advise the government on child protecton issues. Scott is perhaps best known for her often outrageous and obvious collusion with far-right fundamentalists, and she doesn't hesitate in working with them and referencing them in her long-established promoton of the 'Myth.

    The other reference, to Tate was to christian fundamentalist Tim Tate's 1991 book Children for the devil: Ritual abuse and satanic crime which was pulped before publication after Mr. Tate was sued for libel by the officer-in-charge of the Broxtowe scandal Det. Sup. (ret) Peter Coles (see Court Pulp Tate's Devil Book, SAFF. Mr. Tate also contributed Press, politics and pedophile to Valerie Sinason's Treating the Survivors of Satanic Abuse. To her credit Dr. Buck does mention the problem with Mr. Tates book.

    The JET Report was signed on the 7th June 1990 by W. Thorpe, Detective Sergeant, J. B. Gwatkin B.A. Hons (Social Science) Dip App Social Studies, Area Director, W. P. Glenn, Detective Policewoman, M. F. Gregory RMN CQSW PhD Candidate, Senior Social Worker

    The other members of the original team were:-

    Detective Superintendent R. S. Davy (Deputy Head of Nottinghamshire CID), D. C. Long B.A. (Sociology & Politics) M.A. (History of Education)/M.A. (Social Work), CQSW, Certificate of Education, Senior Social Worker.

    Dr. Buck doesn't provide any clues as to who should have been appointed to the JET Team, but it seems likely that a belief in magic and witchcraft would have been a prerequisite for any candidate.

    Mind Control - the SRA Myth takes a new turn

    In 1992 the then-current version of the SRA Myth was burdened with new 'baggage' - this time in the form of Mind Control. Once agan the US would be the source of these new conspiracy theory claims, and RAINS, over the Atlantic in Britain, would adopt these new concepts. Many members it appears, dropped out, as it became increasingly difficult to equate the fantastic claims with reality. But many new members joined, as the paranoid delusons found increasing appeal amongst the subset of fundamentalist, feminist and simply greedy therapists who found the entire SRA Myth/DID/RMT lanscape to be financially lucrative.

    The attachment of this element had already been discussed in the past, not least by Dr. Roland Summit, who had mentioned the subject in his paper The Dark Tunnels of McMartin though it remains unclear why any dastardly organisation or group would choose to establish a Mind Control facility in a Daycare Centre on the side of a highway with 70,000 cars passing-by everyday.

    In 1992 though, the SRA Myth, already plagued with the distinction of being a 'wacko' belief, drove itself off the last ledges of the cliff of reality and continued to plunge down at an exponential rate. The following sections discuss the nature of how the SRA Myth changed, taking-on increasingly bizarre elements. Throughout those changes, RAINS as a body-corporate stayed loyal to the 'Myth, though the demographics of its membership would change markedly.

    Dr. Corydon Hammond - the rise of the mind-controlled satanically-abused robot slave (and other ramblings)

    Dr. Hammond wasn't the first to try to tack the paranoid theories of government Mind Control onto the SRA Myth; as discussed Dr. Roland Summit had already gone down that path. Dr. Hammond though manage to contribute to the process with a vitally important speech.

    Psychologist Corydon Hammond of the University of Utah has lectured on what he believes to be the Satanic techniques of mind control. He claims that a team of Nazi doctors had been conducting mind control experiments in concentration camps. They came to the US after the war to secretly continue their experiments for the CIA. They allegedly programmed and tortured children on army bases across the US. At this time, the CIA, NASA, the Mafia, Hollywood and some business leaders are part of a massive, tightly controlled Satanic network which is gearing up to rule the world. He asserts that children are programmed from age 3 to teenage years; this involves disorienting noise, flashing lights and electric shocks. He believes that alters are created to perform specific functions. Programmed is done in layers; some are:
    • Alpha layer is general programming
    • Beta controls sexual behaviour including knowledge to make kiddy-porn
    • Delta are assassins and are responsible for slashing
    • Theta are psychic killers; through mental energy, they can cause another person to develop a malignant brain tumour
    • Omega self-mutilate and commit suicide
    • Gamma provide misinformation and create confusion
    • Zeta has information to produce snuff films
    (Source: Mind Control / Programming by Satanic Cults)

    Dr. Hammond's speech can be read at The Greenbaum Speech - Hypnosis in MPD: Ritual Abuse

    Dr. Hammond kindly detailed the cunning plan of the satanists;

    People say, "What's the purpose of it?" My best guess is that the purpose of it is that they want an army of Manchurian Candidates, ten of thousands of mental robots who will do prostitution, do child pornography, smuggle drugs, engage in international arms smuggling, do snuff films, all sorts of very lucrative things and do their bidding and eventually the megalomaniacs at the top believe they'll create a Satanic Order that will rule the world.


    Incredibly the editorial board of the Journal of Trauma & Dissociation , the official journal of the ISSTD, includes on its Editorial Board none other than psychologist Dr. Corydon Hammond (as D. Corydon Hammond, PhD - Professor, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA).

    In the first 1988 edition, Dr. Hammond was thanked by authors Laura Davis and Ellen Bass in their best-selling book The Courage To Heal, the feminist and religious fundamentalist 'Bible' of Recovered Memory Therapy, which also enthused about the SRA Myth and MPD/DID. The acknowledgement was reprinted in the 2008 The Courage to Heal 20th Anniversary Edition.

    The Courage To Heal


    Amongst a substantial minority of US psychotherapists, and even psychiatrists and psychologists there still exists the idea that severe trauma - notably child sex abuse, and even more notably ritual abuse (most often performed it appears by the CIA), can simply be forgotten - squirrelled away by Western middle-class white women through the convenient facility of multiple personality disorder or 'dissociation', although that 'dissociation' can't be detected in the said children or even teenagers. Only later, and only through extensive therapy from either a fundamentalist or feminist therapist - or at least one who stands to make an awful lot of money - can that dissociation be revealed, and the client can then recognise that they harbour multiple personalities that have either enabled them to be employed as one of Dr. Hammond's CIA-controlled robot slaves, or simply a victim of gross sexual abuse that magically has left no injuries.

    Repressed memory, dissociation and satanic abuse are implicitly connected. A US survey of victims claiming criminal compensation on the basis of memories retrieved revealed some telling statistics, though the total number of individuals analysed as part of the survey was quite small. The survey, In Washington State looked into the claims made by 670 'victims' who claimed between 1991-1995 under the Crime Victim Act. Of the 670 claims 325 (49%) were allowed. Of that figure of 325, 183 were selected by nurse consultant to be part of the survey and 30 of those 183 were "randomly selected for a preliminary profile."

    Of these, 30 were "randomly selected for a preliminary profile." Some of the findings of this analysis are reported here. The sample was almost exclusively female - 29/30 (97%) and white (29/30 = 97%), with ages ranging from 15 to 67 years with a mean of 43 years.
    • Virtually all the patients (29/30 = 97%) contended they had been abused in satanic rituals
    • They claimed their abuse began when they were, on average, 7 months old
    • Parents and other family members were allegedly involved in the ritual abuse in all cases (29/29)
    • Most remembered birth and infant cannibalism (22/29 = 76%)
    • Consuming body parts (22/29 = 76%)
  • The majority remembered being tortured with spiders (20/29 = 69%)
  • All remembered torture or mutilation (29/29)
  • There were no medical exams corroborating the torture or mutilation.
The sample of (mostly) women was fairly well educated, and most had been employed before entering therapy (25/30 = 83%), many of them in the health-care industry (1539). Three years into therapy, only 3 of the 30 (10%) were still employed. Of the 30, 23 (77%) were married before they entered therapy and got their first memory; Within three years of this time, 11/23 (48%) were separated or divorced. Seven (23%) lost custody of minor children; All (30/30) were estranged from their extended families.

(Derived from Compensation & Repressed Memory, US False Memory Foundation page)

In Washington State the repressed memory 'victims' - the vast majority being white females in middle-age, from, judging by their education and circumstances, middle-class backgrounds, exacted a heavy toll on the State's healthcare bill: Whereas the average cost of a mental health claim in the Crime Victim Compensation Program that did not involve repressed memory was $2,672, the average cost for the 183 repressed memory claims was dramatically higher: $12,296. (1996 values).

A return from a random sample of 100% 'victims' claiming to have been satanically abused indicates that penetration of the 'Myth into popular white female middle-class 'victimology' was total. In addition to Davis and Bass's The Courage To Heal there were a plethora of repressed memory self-help books that dominated the bestseller lists in the 1990s and early 21st century. Most of these covered satanic abuse - to the degree that the incest component in them might perhaps be regarded as being minor - the real subjects being promoted to their female white middle-class, middle-aged readership was satanic abuse, with the thin veneer of incest as a wrapper.

With the repressed memory movement primarily concerned with the revealing of satanic ritual abuse amongst its victims, The Courage To Heal, although providing extensive coverage of the subject, didn't quite satisfy the community of victims now convinced they has been members of cults throughout their childhoods and had simply forgot.

Safe Passage to Healing


Safe Passage to Healing - A Guide for Survivors of Ritual Abuse by Chrystine Oksana was first published in 1994, six years after The Courage to Heal, and again in 2001. The paperback edition had an endorsement from Laura Davis;

“A real gift to ritual abuse survivors who’ve only had crumbs in the recovery literature…poignant and insightful” — Laura Davis, co-author of The Courage To Heal.

Safe Passage answers comprehensively the issue that many 'survivors' struggled-with when their repressed memories brought forth images of satanic abuse, cannibalism and the murder of infants; all of those memories aren't false, but rather are utterly true, and anyone who challenges this, such as the False Memory Foundation is an obvious pervert, pedophile or satanist (or all three). That uncompromising view had been promoted in The Courage To Heal which had left no opportunity for a get-out clause; if a woman, after seeking therapy, joining self-help groups, reading the books and consuming the videos, still hadn't retrieved memories of incest and/or satanic abuse, then it wasn't because they weren't there - it was simply because she hadn't either tried hard enough, or hadn't found the key to unlocking those memories.

As mentioned before, this was core to the problem with the repressed memory movement. The theory was that only the most sustained and painful abuse would result in total loss of memory of the event - and in many cases - the creation of alters through which to 'compartmentalize' the resultant trauma. The snag was to quantify that forgetting process, the victim had to generate memories of something suitably horrific. Therapists had little interest in the 'traditional' image of incest - of the father creeping into his daughters room to abuse and/or rape her. What was needed were memories of something sufficiently traumatic that they would provoke the mythical amnesia that was said to accompany such an activity. Enrolled in self-help classes, reading recommended books like The Courage To Heal and Michelle Remembers, subjected to hypnosis sessions, persuaded by therapists to watch extreme pornography, imagine themselves engaged in sadistic sex, to read-up on other accounts of sadism, and if necessary, fill in the gaps with their own imagination and creativity, and perhaps most of all, to talk with other self-identifying victims, some women - though certainly not all - complied.

The Courage To Heal has sold over a million copies, and been translated into a dozen languages, though perhaps not surprisingly the book only appealed to English-speaking middle-class white women in predominantly Protestant countries. The vast majority of the white middle-class women who read it chucked it into the bin, or sold it on so it thrived in the second-hand market. But an indeterminate number, certainly over 100,000 women in the US alone, took on the ethos of the book and its cohorts. Some doubtlessly benefitted, using the book, written by two authors with no formal training in counselling or psychiatry, as a guide to resolving genuine childhood abuse. Unfortunately for the remainder the impact was nothing less than devastating; crippling at least two generations of (predominantly) American white middle-aged women with memories that went way beyond incest. Instead of a decade-plus of 'go-getter' dynamic women, the collusion of feminists and religious fundamentalists produced a hobbled shadow of what should have been after the extraordinary work of the 1960s and 70s feminists; beset by 'crank science' mental illnesses, utterly dependent on therapists, cut-off from families and their past, and now thoroughly entwined into the 'victimology culture' that defined American feminism from the mid-1990s, all the way to the second decade of the 21st century.

Yet the SRA and RMT and DID aren't the only components of the complex and complete mythology. Mind Control would be the final piece in the crazy-paving puzzle.

For the most part, the Mind Control version of the SRA Myth engages with the idea that most bad things that happen in the world are the fault of the US Central Intelligence Agency. Tough though it is to imagine the CIA, which does its best to give the impression that it blunders through most of the events of world history, is associated with some enormous hidden Mind Control capability, derived from Nazi technology salvaged from the Second World War, it becomes even tougher to accept that any of this can have gained any ground in the United Kingdom. MI6 is sometimes vaguely accused of practising it by the daftest conspiracy theorists - but MI6 is the 'offshore' branch of the intelligence services, and once again it takes a huge effort of will to imagine the British secret services, once again often associated with blundering-about on the world stage in recent years, as being satanic Mind Control practitioners.

At RAINS most recent conference, organised in conjunction with charity and SRA Myth advocacy TAG - The Trauma and Abuse Group, at The Hayes Conference Centre, Alfreton in Derbyshire May 2009, some impression of how deeply embedded the Mind Control fantasy element had become entwined with the other 'baggage' can be discerned;

Demystifying Mind Control Programming
Two presentations that will look at characteristics of mind-controlled personality systems, ways in which perpetrating groups train children, specific trainings given, and a systematic approach to therapy with survivors
Presented By Dr. Alison Miller

Challenges of Working with Survivors of Ritual Abuse
Because intense somatic responses to traumatic triggers are internally experienced as "threat" or "danger", our best efforts to treat the memories, the parts of self, and the programming are often thwarted. learning how to address the body and nervous system is imperative for treating the effects of ritual abuse.
Presented by Dr. Janina Fisher
(Source: TAG & R.A.I.N.S Conference leaflet")

For sceptics, the obvious subject that would be expected to be discussed at such conferences, indeed in every conversation between therapists and 'survivors' is 'where are the satanists and how can we kill them?' Such discussions though are not welcome amongst the SRA Myth advocates, and indeed asking such a question is once again a sure-fire route to be condemned as a satanist. The subject of this wholesale unwillingness to to actually root-out or hunt down satansts is discussed in subject is discussed The burden on RAINS members. For the moment though, although Dr. Buck neglects to mention it in her essay, we must assume that finding the Satanists and disrupting their work is one of her primary goals in life.

Psychiatrist and fundamentalist Dr. Catherine Gould, with her 'Satanic Indicators' had no problem adapting to the new version of the 'Myth, with Mind Control. Key to comprehending how such people so easily accept such theories is to understand the concept that Mind Control/SRA Myth advocates see human brains - notably those of women, to be simple, easily manipulated things. Women (Mind Control only appears to manifest itself in white middle-class women after lengthy and expensive therapy) are presented as being easily 'programmed', almost as easily as a pocket scientific calculator. Women, once again, not girls, but rather middle-class, white women, often who are found to be virgins, and only after lengthy and expensive therapy, are (apparently) easy prey for those able to provoke their partitioning into Multiple Personalities. So, rather than having the image of women as dynamic equals to men, even perhaps better in many disciplines...instead we have the image of simple, idiot-savant-like automata - not much more complex that a modern computer - capable of being partitioned into multiple logical partitions.

1). Assassination Programs

When someone in the survivor's environment is deemed by the cult to have become too much of a liability, the patient may in some cases by triggered to attempt to kill that person. Most likely such programming will be set in against a supportive significant-other (e.g., husband, boyfriend), or against the therapist.

As is the case in self-injury programs, the special means/implements (e.g., guns, knives, poison, etc.) of the assassination program are often "given" to the patient by the cult.

The primary intent of the cult may not be the actual death of the assassination target, so much as the discrediting of the patient as a "murderer" or "attempted murderer."

Cult Control Programming

2). Reporting Programs

Patients are conditioned to routinely contact and report back to the cult. These programs may be time-triggered (every month, full moon, etc.), date-triggered (i.e., corresponding to cult "holidays", etc.), or situationally triggered (i.e., host personality enters therapy, reveals cult "secrets," etc.). Such programs keep the cult updated on the patient's daily life, as well as with the ongoing work in therapy. Further, specific intelligence information may be gathered about the therapist and treatment facility, and reported back to the cult.

Particularly prevalent with such conditioning are several layers of back-up reporting programs. Of course, along with back-up programs will come a large contingent of back-up reporting alters. Never assume you've found all the reporting alters in the patient's system. Always assume that reporting exists.

3). Access Programs
This refers to cult access into the survivors' personality system. These programs allow the cults to access the patient's personality system through specific (usually cult-created) alters. This access is achieved through a large variety of triggers, including whistles, electronic tones, spoken phrases, touch, etc. Once accessed, a myriad of other programs may be triggered and/or reinforced by the cult.

4). Return Programs (Call Backs)
Such programs are designed to manipulate patients to return to the cult for rituals and/or further programming or to "escape" from therapy. The patient may be conditioned to respond to phone cues, to follow a specific contact cult member upon sight, and/or to meet a cult "contact" at a predetermined location (i.e., "safe house").
(Source: Common Programs Observed in Survivors of Satanic Ritualistic Abuse by David W. Neswald, M.A. M.F.C.C. in collaboration with Catherine Gould, Ph.D. and Vicki Graham-Costain, Ph.D. The California Therapist, Sept./Oct. 1991, pages 47-50)

This vison, of women's brains being simple-to-programme, echoed the manner in which feminism in the US and UK (plus Australa and Canada changed in the early 1990s. Feminism portrayed females, not as dynamic, hugely capable and complex beings, but rather as easily retarded, confused, emotional train-wreaks, overwhealmed by the 'patriarchy' and males-who-had-everything. 'Victimology' was and is the buzz-word of the feminist movement of the 1990s and onwards, and remains so even in the second decade of the twenty-first century.
Mind Control, MPD/DID, RMT and the SRA Myth created a toxic brew amongst US psychiatrists, psychologists and psychoanalysts throughout the 1990s. Perhaps not surprisingly, there are no reports of hacked-to-death therapists, who through deep hypnosis, accidentally triggered an Assassination Program buried deep within a white middle-aged, middle-class woman's subconscious. There are though risks to therapists, though of the financial kind;

The MPD community suffered another serious attack on its credibility when Dr. Bennett Braun, the founder of the International Society for the Study of Disassociation, had his license suspended over allegations he used drugs and hypnosis to convince a patient she killed scores of people in Satanic rituals. The patient claims that Braun convinced her that she had 300 personalities, among them a child molester, a high priestess of a satanic cult, and a cannibal. The patient told the Chicago Tribune: "I began to add a few things up and realised there was no way I could come from a little town in Iowa, be eating 2,000 people a year, and nobody said anything about it." The patient won $10.6 million in a lawsuit against Braun, Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Hospital, and another therapist.
(Source: Multiple personality disorder or dissociative identify disorder - The Skeptic's Dictionary - Skeptic.com)

How is Mind Control programming performed? Well, according to one conspiracy theory, pushed by a leading psychotherapist, apparently its all done by making a victim dizzy;

Dr. John D. Lovern has described spin programming, a "newly uncovered technique of systematic mind control which he uncovered during therapy with his patients". He believes that it is used by Satanic cults to simultaneously modify the programming of a number (perhaps all) of a survivor's alters. If the patient is aware of their alters, then she will report that many or all of them are feeling a common emotion (e.g. fear, depression, etc.). They will complain of dizziness and of a sense of spinning internally; parts of their body may move rhythmically. The survivors tell of starting programming at the age of three. Many methods are used:
  • lying horizontally on a rotating table
  • horizontal spinning about the long axis of the body (as in a barbecue)
  • attached to a vertical rotating table (like the arms on a clock)
  • attached to a vertical spinning pole
  • confined upright inside a vertical spinning cylinder
Dr. Lovern implies that most (perhaps all) survivors may have been exposed to long periods of spin programming.
(Source: Allegations of Mind Control and Programming by Satanic Cults - Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance)

No-one has yet found any of these 'vertical rotating' or otherwise tables, or an example of 'vertical spinning pole'. Presumably there are supposed to be skilled craftsmen making them and shipping them worldwide, or plans on how to Make Your Own Mind Control Apparatus in existence.

Nazi mind-controlling NASA alien satanists

It might be thought that the subject of Mind Control would have varying degrees of advocacy - ranging from the plausible to the 'shit-house-rat crazy'. Unfortunately that isn't an accurate assertion; there is no 'moderate' scale amongst the plethora of enthusiastic believers in the idea that Vast Conspiracies are turning the brains of selected Mind Control victims to (programmed) jelly. Diana Napolis known by her posting name "Curio", was a former child protection social worker in the US, who became a vocal advocate for the SRA Myth; determining it to be everywhere. She is routinely quoted as a reliable source by secularist, fundamentalist and feminist advocates for the'Myth - particularly by self-appointed 'champion of the Left' Alex Constantine. She was though hospitalised and briefly jailed for stalking Jennifer Love- Hewitt and Stephen Spielberg. As with many 'Myth advocates she has a particular issue with the False memory Syndrome Foundation in the US, a group of academics and victims and of false accusations and retractors who realised they'd been 'had', lumping them together with satanists and the 'Illuminati';

. Part I of IV – BACKGROUND – In 2001 I was psychologically and physically victimised by extremely lethal computer-brain and body interface technology by reported satanist Dr. Phil Shaver of UC Davis; Carol Hopkins – a member of the Illuminati; her husband, David Hopkins; Michael and Lilith Aquino – satanic cult leaders of the Temple of Set; Robert Menschel; Dr. R. Christopher Barden – Attorney for the False Memory Syndrome Foundation [FMSF] ; Dr. Elizabeth Loftus of UC Irvine – FMSF Advisory Board member (perhaps Henry and Lila Gleitman from the FMSF) ; Bill Goodrich, MFT.; Dr. Scott Locklin – satanist, physicist and computer expert at UC Davis/Berkeley-Advanced Light Source (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory) who reportedly worked for a short time at the National Security Agency [NSA]. Scott Locklin also reportedly worked with SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligences) at Berkeley, California; Scott Locklin’s father “Ron Locklin”; satanist Tanya Lysenko aka Tani Jantsang; satanist Dr. John Price Ph.D of UC Davis (deceased); satanist Michelle Devereaux – computer expert, a “Claire”and “John “(pseudonyms) reportedly from Russia who I believe may have subjected cult leaders Michael and Lilith Aquino to identity theft and later stole their money; and various Institutions such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Mind control unit at NASA AMES.

I was first accessed by multiple individuals (including the above) who identified themselves as employees of NASA, Livermore Lab, the University of California school system, the CIA, the Human Genome Project – and later hostile “aliens” who, various factions stated, were waging a “planetary takeover.” The hostile aliens made their appearance in 2001 when I was attacked with what appeared to be artificial intelligence probes or nanobots. I was told that quantum-like computers specifically designed to torture and spiritually kill me in an esoteric black ops project were smuggled into the country via Tanya Lysenko, (whose Uncle works for the KGB: See Napolis v. Aquino, pg. 96, paragraph 358) which had the capability of accessing the internal dimensions of the physical and etheric body. I was led to believe that principles of *plasma* and 5th dimensional physics were involved and misused by Scott Locklin and others. They were able to flood my internal astral body with fluid of some type I was later told that these redesigned computers were sold to major institutions such as Carnegie Mellon and John Hopkins University. This may be an example of one such computer..] transparent Apple Macintosh SE/30 I was also told that Scott Locklin’s father stole Darpa-like technology from a facility he used to work for. Scott told me his father was a Nazi as was Michael Aquino and several other perpetrators.

I was eventually placed in an illegal Cybertronics program which included experiments in Robotization, Computer-Brain Interface, Artificial Intelligence, and Virtual Reality. I was told by Scott Locklin who now has a PH.D in physics (or someone assuming his identity) that I was his informal “science project.” After I was used as a science project without my consent, this same technology was used to take the interior of my body apart in an effort to see if these Quantum-computers could demanifest natural bodily codes or barriers, including the astral body. On several occasions, Locklin placed me in a “field” of some type which caused my spine and jaw to move back and forth in a fluid motion. There were several attempts to completely destroy my mind. Afterwards they subliminally programmed my subconscious and superconscious with a word association program so that I would think the opposite of my intention. For instance, when I intended to think a word like “go,” it would come out as “stop.” Because I had meditated for years and knew myself very well, I was able to identify what was done and eventually remedy it. There were also those, who I never identified, who chose to heal me. I had a deep cut on my finger at one time, and within seconds, the wound closed.
(Source: Diana Napolis, M.A)

Colin Ross - psychiatry falls off a precipice

Entertaining though they might be, and a little sad, Ms. Napolis' collected meanderings might seem as if they are a bit too 'left field' for SRA/Mind Control advocates. But she is is matched by Colin A. Ross M.D, a Canadian psychiatrist and author of, amongst many other titles Satanic Ritual Abuse: Principles of Treatment (1995), Bluebird : Deliberate Creation of Multiple Personality by Psychiatrists (2000), Multiple Personality Disorder: Diagnosis, Clinical Features, and Treatment (1990), Military Mind Control: A Story of Trauma and Recovery (2009) and regarded as an authoritative source by the likes of avid SRA Myth advocate Dr. Valerie Sinason, and many other campaigners and witch and Satan-hunters who persevere to drive their professional peers to despair. Dr. Ross has also managed to become the link for the SRA Myth and its alleged alien underpinning, though women who come into contact with him and are diagnosed as having taken part in SRA are unlikely to thank him for his insights;

But Ross can not be dismissed as a marginal fool. He is a well-respected and dangerous fool. Indeed, Dr. Colin Ross is an “internationally renowned clinician, researcher, author and lecturer in the field of dissociation and trauma-related disorders”. He is founder and President of the Colin A. Ross Institute for Psychological Trauma, which “specialises in the management of psychiatric treatment programs and is currently contracted to provide management and treatment services to Timberlawn Mental Health System, in Dallas, Texas, Forest View Hospital in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Del Amo Hospital, in Torrance, California.” Ross is “the author of over 130 professional papers and past President of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation”, and acts as expert consultant for the Showtime television series The United States of Tara. Dr. Ross has acted as therapist for celebrity Rosanne Barr (who now also believes she recovered memories of childhood abuse), and Cameron West, author of the New York Times bestselling First Person Plural: My Life as a Multiple.

...

And what exactly did he say his research was?

Multiple Personality Disorder and [that research into alleged] mind control experiments with the CIA – and Satanic Ritual Abuse, for crying out loud! He explained this to me the first month I started seeing him. There was a sign above the planetarium, and I saw it on my way to see him. It was the silliest thing. It was going toward Christmas and they were talking about the star of [Bethlehem], and that made [Colin Ross] start commenting about aliens. The star [of Bethlehem, according to Colin Ross] wasn’t really the star of Jesus – it was an alien ship that they were really seeing. So then he explained that lots of people had been abducted by aliens, and that women had been abducted by aliens and impregnated by aliens, and they have these alien babies. Now, I think I already said to you that at that time when I started seeing him I was a Pentecostal Christian Fundamentalist. I belonged to Church, was a Sunday School teacher. All I could think was, How horrible! How could God let that happen? And what about the baby? Would it have a soul? So, in my mind, I was horrified. Completely horrified. I wouldn’t even talk about it. I couldn’t even talk about it. I just didn’t want to talk with anyone.

But then, a few years later – I think it was 1990, somewhere around then – he came up from a conference in Chicago. He’d seen [infamous MPD therapist] Bennett Braun and the International Association of Dissociation and MPD, and that. He came in the hospital to see me and he said, Oh, I have great news for you! He was so excited, so happy and bubbly. I looked at him and thought, Good. Great news. What is it? And he said, You know that baby that you had? The half alien baby? It didn’t die! Thinking that it had died was [according to Colin Ross] the only way that I could resolve it in my mind, so that I wouldn’t have to worry about the soul. So he thought for me, telling me that it didn’t die was going to be some good news. I looked at him absolutely horrified. I said, What are you talking about? At the conference he’d just been to, it had explained why all of the Satanic Ritual Abuse cases that they’d always talk about, where women give birth to these babies and they kill the babies – but nobody can ever find the bodies of these babies – [the conference Colin Ross attended explained that] the reason they can’t find the bodies of these babies is because the bodies of these babies are beamed up into spaceships, and they’re raised in the spaceships until they’re 18 years old. Then they’re beamed back down to earth and given jobs with the CIA. This is all to form a New World, and all that. So it’s really the aliens who are impregnating the women, while they’re CIA mind-controlled, and then they give birth at Satanic rituals. It’s a big circular thing. It’s the craziest circular thing I ever heard in my life. But I was horrified. I burst into tears. I couldn’t believe he just told me that my alien baby was alive. But he was so confused. He didn’t know why I wasn’t happy.
(Source: extracts from Dr. Colin Ross: Psychiatry, the Supernatural and Malpractice Most Foul, a (lengthy) posting by 'Doug')

And, regrettably, there is more. The Index doesn't normally employ extracts from Wikipedia, but this entry is too succinct to be missed;

In 2008, Dr. Ross applied for the James Randi Educational Foundation's One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge with the claim that energy from his eyes could cause a speaker, receiving no other input, to sound a tone. In 2010, Dr. Ross published experimental data that supports his scientific hypothesis that the eyes emit energy that can be captured and measured in the Anthropology of Consciousness, a journal of the American Anthropological Association. During correspondence with Dr. Steven Novella of The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe, he conceded that the equipment he was using was, in fact, a biofeedback machine attached to his laptop, and that the laptop was responding in a well-understood way to an eye blink. However, he claimed that he could still send energy beams out of his eyes, and was working on modifying the software to ignore an eyeblink. His claim has not currently been tested by the JREF. In 2008, he was granted the tongue-in-cheek Pigasus Award.
(Source: Colin A. Ross - Wikipedia)

 Dr. Ross demonstrates his eye-beam technology


Dr. Colin A. Ross though can't be entirely confirmed as a True Believer in the SRA Myth/DID. He appears to change his viewpoint from year-to-year, sometimes writing in promotion of whatever crazed paranoid conspiracy theory is in vogue, and then disputing its existence in another book, sometimes even another chapter of the same book. Because of this, quotes from his writing are used in this Index entry, but with an appropriate warning. A quote from Dr. Colin A. Ross, which appears in a bizarre way, to be some kind of convuluted confession, provides an End piece to this RAINS history, on Page 5.

In the US, the subjects of Mind Control and the SRA Myth combined, have found a willing and appreciative audience. One even willing to pay for the privilege to be lectured-to on the subjects, whilst the 'industry' produces a seemingly endless stream of white middle-aged and middle-class women, testifying to having been ritually abused in the past (after receiving extensive therapy beforehand), though these 'survivors' are remarkably free of the gross physical injuries we would expect to see from victims of extreme physical and sexual abuse.

Such enthusiasts need a means to discuss their passion and Neil Brick, apparently a victim of the CIA's nefarious plans, and by his own admission, a highly-trained killer assassin who would give Rambo a run for his money, provides that to a willing minority. The lengthy "Ritual Abuse Exists" postings often seen on Web forums, with seemingly endless circular references to academic reports (which cross-reference once another) and assertions, come from him.

In 'Myth World, then yes, the McMartin daycare children were being taken by underground tunnels, shipped to Palm Springs by hot-air balloon or even to Washington via hypersonic jet, to be sexually abused - only to be returned intact in time for Mommy to pick them up at the end-of-the-day. There is never any possibility that say Mommy may suddenly turn-up early at the Daycare Centre, asking for their child, because she'd forgotten to mention to the daycare workers that little Jonny had a dentist appointment (only to find little Jonny not there - being of course sexually abused hundreds, if not thousands of miles away). Such possibilities are never considered in 'Myth World and to bring up such somewhat obvious ideas leads the poster to being branded satanist!.

The most recent conference organised by Neil Brick was The 2010 Annual Ritual Abuse, Secretive Organisations and Mind Control Conference (with information on Satanic Ritual Abuse), which ran August 6th – 8th, though out in the 'sticks' and well away from pesky journalists, at the Doubletree hotel in Windsor Locks, Connecticut.

But who is performing all this Mind Control? Well, although it reads like a spoof, Fritz Springmeier & Cisco Wheeler's explanation isn't, and they illustrate perfectly how difficult it is for skeptics to engage with such Believers

ORGANIZATIONS PRACTICING TRAUMA-BASED MIND CONTROL
These groups form what insiders call “the Network.” They are the backbone of what is known as the New World Order.

1. Air Force Intelligence
2. Army Intelligence (such as CIC)
3. Atomic Energy Commission, AEC
4. Boeing
5. British Intelligence, in. MI-6, MI-5, & the Tavistock Institute
6. Bureau of Narcotics
7. Bureau of Prisons
8. Catholic Church (incl. Jesuits)
9. Central Intelligence Agency, CIA (aka Agency, Company, Langley)
10. Charismatic movement
11. Church of Satan
12. Church of Scientology
13. CIRVIS
14. Club 12 & Club 41
15. Country Music Industry
16. Defence Intelligence Agency, DIA
17. Department of Justice, DOJ
18. Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI
19. Freemasonry (esp. the Palladium Rite, 33º and above degrees,Quatuor Coronati Lodge, SRIA, and other Masonic affiliated organizations)
20. GEPAN
21. German Intelligence (Shaback)
22. GHG
23. Hollywood
24. The House of Saud in Saudi Arabia (which has un-programmed slaves too)
25. The Illuminati (also known as The Circle, Moriah, Moriah-conquering-wind, Gnostics, Luciferians etc.) at all levels is involved in trauma-based mind control as perpetrators & victims, incl. Frat. Saturni-Orden Fraternitas Saturni, THFS, FOGO, Golden Dawn, AntiC.Lucif. Dyn, etc.
26. Interna Revenue Service, INS
27. Ku Klux Klan (different KKK groups)
28. Mafia
29. Masons (see Freemasonry)
30. Modi'in
31. Mossad (Mossad le Aliyah Beth)
32. Mormon Church
33. NASA (National Aeronautics & Space Admin.)
34. National Security Agency (NSA)
35. National Programs Office
36. National Science Foundation, NSF
37. Naval Intelligence (ONI, Office of Naval Intelligence)
38. Neo-nazi groups
39. Oddfellows
40. Ordo Templi Orientalis, OTO (there are 4 groups)
41. P.4 (elite MI6 section)
42. Palo Mayombe
43. Process Church and its offshoots (Chingun etc.,)
44. Professional Baseball, such as the L.A. Dodgers
45. Russian government & intelligence groups (GRU & KGB & KGB’s successor, historically an early group known as Spets Byuro #1 called “Kamera” in Russian which means “Chamber” did drug/hypnosis mind control research. The Spetsburo was responsible for assassinations.)
46. Santaria
47. Satanic Hubs, Soc. of Dk. Lily, Children of Lucifer (UK)
48. Temple of Power (previously known as Temple of Set)
49. Umbanda
50. US Army -- esp. the Delta Forces & the 1st Earth Batt.
51. United States Air Force, USAF
52. Veteren’s Administration
53. Werewolf Order
54. Some Witchcraft groups besides Satanism & Moriah
(Source: The Illuminate Formula to Create an Undetectable Total Mind Control Slave Chapter 1: The Selection & Preparation of the the victim, by Fritz Springmeier & Cisco Wheeler)

The 'Country Music Industry' and 'Professional Baseball, such as the L.A. Dodgers' lines are particularly amusing and intriguing. With so many agencies and companies practising Mind Control it's a wonder that there is anyone of the US population who isn't Mind-Controlled.

The risk to women and children posed by enthusiastic therapists and SRA Myth-believing psychiatrists was referenced in By James Hunter, in Interpreting the Satanic Legend published in the Journal of Religion and Health in 1998.

Felicity Goodyear-Smith, a doctor in New Zealand who has studied the matter carefully, concludes that "it can be seen from many videotapes of interactions between therapists and children that overzealous interviewers often use leading questions, cueing of desired responses, praise for desired answers, and manipulated fantasy play which implants ideas about sexual activity." Before I had formulated any firm conclusions about the objective reality of the cult abuse stories, I either observed or participated in efforts to track down evidence that would corroborate the cult abuse stories related by our clients. Always, it seemed, we were just on the verge of finding either cult members or unequivocal evidence of their activities, yet somehow the evidence slipped though our fingers at the last moment. I came to call this the mirage effect. When I turned to the examination of the literature, beginning with the reading of a number of accounts by the "survivors" themselves, the mirage effect continued to manifest itself. That so many atrocities could have been perpetrated by so many people for so long, and to have all corroborating evidence dissolve into nothingness whenever anyone gets close enough for a good look, can lead a reasonable and unbiased investigator to only one conclusion: the Satanic child abuse conspiracy is a mirage. It is an urban legend engendered by a moral panic. Therapy offered to the "victims," many of whom came to therapy with only ordinary problems in living, has frequently been devastating. Elizabeth Loftus provides an example which unfortunately is not that atypical.

In the next year, Lynn tried to kill herself five different times. After one attempt, she was hospitalised for two days. She was taking several different prescription medications at once including Xanax for anxiety, Mellaril to control her flashbacks, Lithium for mood swings, Zantac and Carasate for ulcers, Restoril to help her sleep, and Darvocet for headaches. Her therapist kept changing the diagnoses. In less than a year Lynn was diagnosed with schizoid affective disorder, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, neurotic depressive disorder, chronic post traumatic stress disorder, clinical depression, dissociative disorder, dysthymic disorder, and borderline personality disorder."

Lynn had come to therapy with some signs of depression and anxiety and an eating problem. It was also true that she had, as a child, been raped. These were real problems that needed attention and help. The help she received, however, led to her being swallowed up into the fantasy world of the therapist, with devastating consequences. Finally, with the aid of a new therapist, she came to realise that "the massive doses of drugs, the preoccupation with sexual abuse, the paranoia inspired by her therapist, and the mass hysteria of the group, worked together to create a traumatic but wholly fictional world. The memories had actually created the trauma." Then she was able to begin to heal. Perhaps most tragic of all, perpetrators of these stories have caused great suffering for the very children they purport to protect. In Making Monsters, Ofshe and Waters relate the disturbing case of "Mark," who was described by a nurse at the start of his treatment as being "warm and appropriate and friendly with peers and staff," so much so that the intake psychiatrist was reluctant to admit him. Early in his treatment, after a visit from his father, Mark tried to barricade his door so his father couldn't leave, saying: "Please don't go, Dad! When will you come back? A week is a long time."

After being persuaded during three years of institutionalised "treatment" that he had been sexually molested by his mother and that he had committed heinous crimes at her instruction, he was described at the end of the treatment as "incapable of 'social niceties,"' and as having trouble with 'lying and violating the rights of others ' ". If stories of Satanic cult abuse were in the same category with legends of finding cockroaches frozen in ice cubes at expensive restaurants, or Doberman pinschers gagging on the fingers of intruders they almost caught, it would be material for amusing dinner party stories and interesting Ph.D. desertions. But belief in this particular urban legend is not harmless. As Ofshe and Waters point out in Making Monsters, "If we discover that Satanic cults do not exist beneath our society, committing horrible crimes with impunity, then the recovered memory therapists are responsible for the destruction of the lives of thousands of patients and their families." The fifth criterion of a moral panic, cited by Goode and Ben-Yeuda, is volatility. Moral panics "erupt fairly suddenly (although they may lie dormant or latent for long periods of time, and may reappear from time to time) and, nearly as suddenly, subside." The Satanic panic has waned in England, and is showing signs of waning in the United States. However, the underlying social tensions, that provided the soil in which this legend could flourish, remain. Therefore the Satanic legend is very much in need of interpretation so that we can dispel its power and prevent it from re- emerging in some new guise at a later date.
(Source: Interpreting the Satanic Legend By James Hunter - Journal of Religion and Health Vol. 37, No 3, Fall 1998, pages 249-263)

Psychiatry and Psychology in the US and the SRA Myth

Parts Three, Four & Five of this extended Index entry investigate and discuss the belief in the SRA Myth amongst British mental health professionals. It is though the American experience of the obsessions that spawned such beliefs - transferring them to likewise-minded professionals in the UK from the later 1980s onwards. As Dr. Buck details in her essay, RAINS members are primarily recruited amongst therapists. Although psychotherapy, one of the three 'head doctor' professions is the least regulated of the three, psychiatry and psychology suffered equally, and continue to suffer from the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' beliefs of a minority of avid, and invariably fundamentalist or militant feminist advocates.

The adoption of MPD - Multiple Personality Disorder in the US, as a legitimate diagnosis in the 1990s saw it being used with RMT (Recovered Memory Therapy) by psychiatrists and psychologists determined in their belief that the USA was overrun with satanic cults. Although as mentioned psychotherapy has become almost the sole reserve for professionals who are True Believers in the SRA Myth, in the US in the 1990's, visiting a psychiatrist could on occasions be particularly dangerous;

Of the many legal cases that wound their way through the US civil courts in the mid-1990s onwards, the case of Elizabeth Gale was perhaps one of the most extreme;

When Elizabeth Gale sought psychiatric treatment in 1986, she suffered from depression, the most common of psychiatric illnesses.

But Dr. Bennett Braun and his colleagues convinced her that her family indoctrinated her as a child so she would make babies for sacrifice in a satanic cult, Gale charged in a malpractice suit she settled Wednesday for $7.5 million.

The therapists, she alleged, told her she needed their help to recover memories hidden beneath layers of rare multiple personalities that she had developed as a psychic guard against her childhood trauma.

Braun's attorney Martin Kanofsky said his client denies the allegations and declined to comment further.

On Thursday, Gale talked about how over an 11-year period she spent more than 2,000 days in psychiatric hospitals and cut off contact with her family. She said she changed her name three times, underwent sterilisation and fled town to escape detection by the cult. She also gave up her job as a legal secretary at a Chicago law firm, quit her undergraduate business studies at DePaul University and distanced herself from friends.

"I never thought I'd want to go back in my life," Gale said. "But I would like to go back to the day in my life I stepped into that hospital and say, `No.' It's a tragedy I can't reverse."

Gale, 51, is living in the northwest suburbs, mending fences with family members and undergoing traditional psychiatric treatment. She has received her degree.

"It will never be the same," she said. "There are some things you can't get back."

Gale's attorney Todd Smith said that under the settlement, entered Wednesday in Cook County Circuit Court, Rush North Shore Medical Center, where Braun was director of the dissociative disorders program, will pay $3.6 million. Psychologist Roberta Sachs will pay $3.1 million, and a corporation affiliated with Braun will pay $500,000. Dr. Corydon Hammond will pay $175,000, and Rush University Medical Center must pay $150,000. No wrongdoing was admitted by the hospitals, the doctors or the psychologist.
(Source: Psychiatric patient tells of ordeal in treatment, by Hal Dardick, Chicago Tribune/February 13, 2004)

An effort by the defendants to appeal the settlements failed too, leading to even more disclosures in public of the activities at Rush North Shore Medical Centre;

Defendants allegedly informed Shanley that her dreams of abuse were real memories, that she suffered from a "dissociative disorder," possibly caused by Satanic ritual abuse (SRA), and that therapy might elicit such memories. Dr. Braun confirmed that Shanley was a survivor of SRA in need of additional treatment. Shanley's husband was told that he should protect the couple's young son from ritual abuse by Shanley. Shanley was informed that, unless she "proved herself" by coming up with information to identify other Satanists in her community and "save" her son from the Satanic cult, she would not be admitted to the specialised dissociation unit at Rush North Shore Hospital. At the same time the treaters allegedly informed Shanley that she and her family were in immediate danger from the Satanic cult because she had divulged "cult secrets" during her therapy.

Shanley was discharged from Rush North Shore Hospital in 1991 after eleven months of continuous hospitalisations. From May 1991 to June 1993 Shanley was treated for MPD and SRA at Spring Shadows Glen Hospital in Houston. Her young son was sent to the children's unit where he was diagnosed with MPD as the result of supposed satanic abuse. During this time, Shanley's already high levels of medication were allegedly increased further to produce more "memories" of her involvement in the supposed Satanic cult.

As part of her "treatment," Shanley was deprived of contact with the outside world, and was allegedly informed that she would face criminal action and/or be involuntarily committed if she were to attempt to leave her "voluntary" treatment.
(Source: False Memory Syndrome Foundation Compilation: Dr. Bennett Braun volume 4, No 8, September 1st 1995)

The State of Illinois caught-up with Dr. Braun, through its Department of Professional Regulation, pursuing an extraordinary number of indictments against him, listed in this complaint

Dr. Braun's contribution to the Recovered Memory and MPD/DID fiasco and the scandals that engulfed US society in the 1990s can't be over-egged. Much of it spread to the UK, infecting both religious fundamentalists and feminists who had originally colluded together during the outbreak of SRA Myth allegations. Leading US feminist Gloria Steinem, who had contributed funds to a far-Right SRA Myth advocacy group in the past, backed Dr. Braun and his methods to the hilt, praising him in her feminist book Revolution From Within. Yet Braun was committing terrible atrocities against women without any regrets, adding Mind Control to his vision of the SRA Myth, in addition to RMT and MPD/DID;

Braun's own views rivalled any typical patient's paranoia. Over time, he concluded that the conspiracy involved the FBI, the CIA, AT&T, Hallmark Cards, the Ku Klux Klan, FTD Florists, the Mafia, clergy from various religious denominations, and the Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon. He concluded that Satanists were running "not only our society, but the world economy" and had been "doing so for a very long time" (quoted in Ofshe). He suggested to other therapists and professionals that the cult could not be stopped, but that it might be possible to convince its members to abandon the abuse of children, since people would be more responsive and loyal if they were treated well. His views would be comical if they were not destroying the lives of real people. Such extreme views, at least, raised concerns about Braun's practises.

As Patricia Burgus's mental condition worsened, she was transferred to acute care, and from there to a regular psychiatric ward. Treated like any other psychiatric patient and taken off her medication, she finally began to recover. Professionals who heard about her treatment generally expressed horror, and her own belief in her multiple personalities (which quickly disappeared) and status as a high priestess shattered.


Psychiatrist Dr. Bennett Braun had been a leading advocate for RMT and the SRA Myth, co-founding and an early President of the International Society for the Study of Dissociative Disorders, now the ISSTD (with "T" for Trauma), discussed earlier. The award against Rush North Shore Medical Center wasn't the first huge payout. Years before in 1997, he and others had been responsible for perhaps the worst case of psychiatrist abuse of a client in the history of the profession;

There, using a daly program of hypnotism and high doses of medication, her 'therapists' "recovered" her memories". Pat's rape on a satanic altar by her father and cult members; her participation in the cannibalisation of her own aborted foetuses and those of others (parts of up to 2,000 people consumed); and the abuse of her own children. Pat was supposed to have been a "high priestess" of the cult, in a national and possibly even an international conspiracy existing for many generations. And her personalities blossomed to number over 300 while she was under Braun's care. Pat certainly became Braun's star patient, whom he paraded at conferences and in the media.
The BENNETT BRAUN STORY - California-Illinois FMS Society

Despite the best efforts of the ISSTD, belief in the SRA Myth amongst US psychiatrists, psychologists and psychotherapists is at best 'patchy'. Yet the SRA Myth continues to bubble under the surface, fed mainly from the extensive collusion of religious fundamentalists and feminists that commenced in the 1980s. Psychotherapists in the UK have taken much of their current obsessions about the SRA Myth from their US counterparts, explaining why references to the CIA and aliens crop-up regularly in their continued assertions that Britain is rife with child-eating satanists.

In the 21st century, the weight of litigation in the US took its toll on the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' psychiatrists and psychologists who advocated for the SRA Myth. The continuing tendency for many white middle-class women to realise that their 'recovered memories' of abuse, notably satanic ritual abuse, had been implanted by feminist, religious fundamentalist, or just plain old greedy therapists resulted in case after case of patients seeking, and winning damages from such professionals.

Today Dr. Braun is struck-off from his profession. Corydon Hammond still 'trades' as a psychologist at the University Medical Center, Salt Lake City, though he makes no mention of his obsessions with the SRA Myth, DID/MPD, or his conviction that the CIA are amassing a vast army of mind-controlled robot soldiers through the satanic ritual sexual abuse of children. A difficulty that medical institutions have in employing SRA Myth enthusiasts such as Dr. Hammond, is that their medical defence insurance might be sorely tested (if indeed the insurance company would agree to pay-out in the circumstances).

Dr. Corydon Hammond
Dr. Corydon Hammond


Despite the ISSTD, some apologists for American psychiatry and psychology might say that the professions are broad churches and encompassing all views and positions are a natural consequence of an unregulated market. The ISSTD's stance, which incorporates substantial resources employed in condemning US security forces and the military as being satanic torturers and child sex abusers (the Editorial Board of its journal also includes Carolyn Allard, PhD, Director of the Military Sexual Trauma Clinic at University of California - see ISSTD Journal of Trauma and Dissociations Editorial Board) may be the most extreme of views, but nonetheless, excepting psychotherapy and psychoanalysis (seen by many as lost causes) US psychology is still heavily afflicted by True Believers

The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology

An excellent example of that affliction can be found in The Corsini Encyclopedia (also in the past titled ...of Psychology and Behavioral Science, a vital resource for any psychologist and associated professional or academic who requires rapid access to what they (thought was) a reliable source of data on subjects concerned with psychology. Dr. Raymond J. Corsini, a prison psychologist of huge standing in the US had edited the encyclopaedia, amongst other books such as The Dictionary of Psychology and his masterwork Individual Education.

Previous editions of The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology had classified the SRA Myth depending on the vogue at that time in history. So in the early 1990s the 'Myth received a positive entry. As the 'Myth was revealed to be a cruel and extensive hoax perpetrated on its victims (both children and those accused) the so did the Entry for the subject.

The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology


By 2010 though it could be assumed that Corsini's magnificent work, despite the blunders of the past, would reflect the scepticism of a more-enlightened age, and a profession that had begun to come to terms with the moral-panic it had taken part in across the US in the 1980s and 90s, notably with the RMT (Recovered Memory Therapy) fiascos, promoted by the likes of Braun.

The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology 2010 edition comprises four huge bound books. Editing is performed by Irving B. Weiner and W. Edward Craighead, whilst the 2004 edition had been edited by W. Edward Craighead and Charles B. Nemeroff and the 1994 edition by Dr. Corsini himself.

Unfortunately it appears Dr. Corsini's legacy is not in good hands.

In the 2010 edition the entry for Satanic Ritual Abuse, beginning on page 1494, written by an Hawaii-based psychologist, Dr. George F. Rhoades casts doubt on the veracity of the Encyclopedia as a trustworthy source of of unimpeachable knowledge. Across the following four pages, Dr. Rhoades makes it clear his personal belief in the 'Myth, through selected (and somewhat elderly) concepts that were banded-about when the 'Myth was believed by many God-fearing Americans and feminists. Dr. Rhoades had written the previous editions' entries for the SRA Myth, but in the past had applied at least a smattering of balance, with the 2002 edition references being at least three times the length of the 2010. In earlier edition, SRA stands for 'sadistic ritual abuse' reflecting how the 'satanic' term was pilloried immediately after the mid-1990s. Inexplicably the 'satanic' term has returned in use in the 2010 edition. Over the years the SRA Myth has lost credibility to the point where it is most closely associated with the conspiracy theories of David Icke. Instead of reflecting the 'Myths lack of credibility, the most recent Corsini edition tries to enhance it.

It is though Dr. Rhoades choice of references throughout the 2010 edition entry that is perhaps the greatest surprise. Dr. Bennett Bruin and fundamentalist Dr. Catherine Gould (whose famous guide to spotting SRA is provided on this page earlier) are quoted as authoritative sources. The (updated) suggested reading list includes Ritual abuse in the twenty-first century: psychological, forensic, social and political considerations the very book whose essay by Dr. Sandra Buck inspired this Entry. References include Dr. Gould's Diagnosis and treatment of ritually abused children and even David Finkehors long-derided Nursery crimes: Sexual abuse in day care - written at a time in American history when satanists were believed by many to be inhabiting daycare centres.

The Corsini Encyclopedia - purporting to be a genuine trusted reference work, but which in reality simply recycles unscientific and far-right religious fundamentnlist views, isn't the only 'encyclopedia' of its type to be found. The entry for Myra Riddell which discusses the betrayal of the American gay community by feminists and lesbians in the 1980s onwards, details the entries in the Encyclopedia of Domestic Violence which also promotes the SRA Myth and DID/Mind Control/RMT.

The Corsini Encyclopedia though is unusual, being aimed at the members of a specific profesion, that of psychology. In the extract below, retained in later editions, it has to be guessed or presumed that the editors believe that the profession is chock-full of particularly stupid individuals who won't come to an obvious conclusion, or even include such a possibility on a list. Mentioning fundamentalist Catherine Gould's oft-stated theories that the wicked satanists were masters of hypnotism, the possibility that children seldom spontaneously disclose their abuse because they actually havn't been abused in the first place, never makes it onto the list below;

Gould (1992) noted three reasons why ritually abused children seldom spontaneously disclose their abuse. First, these children are often drugged before the abuse. Second, hypnosis is often used to implant posthypnotic suggestions that they would not remember the abuse, and if they should, that the children would have to harm or kill themselves. Third, the abuse is so intolerable that dissociation usually occurs. These three factors combined in the ritualistic abuse of children before the age of six often create "amnesic barriers," making spontaneous disclosure unlikely.
(Source: from the Corsini Encyclopedia of of Psychology - Satanic Ritual Abuse entry, 2001 edition, page 1436, edited by W. Edware Craighead, Charles B. Nemeroff)

Perhaps the biggest clue to Dr. Rhoades lack of credibility is amongst the Suggested Readings on page 1497 of the 2010 editionthat the reader visit the Web page of the ISSTD.

Dr. Rhoades and the 2010 edition editors Irving B. Weiner and W. Edward Craighead have apparently ignored or deliberately forgotten to mention that Dr. Rhoades is not just a member of the ISSTD, but is also an enthusiastic, and long-established advocate for the SRA Myth.

His personal web site lists his achievements with respect to the SRA Myth;

  • Satanism Is Not Just Halloween
    (30 Minute Audio Cassette & 13 page Booklet, 1994). This Christian based tape and booklet challenges parents and church leaders that Satanism as a religion doesn't have only one holy day. The reader is introduced to the history, symbols and dangers of Halloween, description of Satan, levels of Satanism, sadistic ritual abuse, research on ritual abuse of children and adults and the churches response to Satanism.

  • Freedom From The Past: Forgiveness and Responsibility
    a 25 minute Audio Cassette, 1996). This two part taped live workshop is presented from a Christian perspective. Participants are given practical techniques to find healing from past trauma, such as sexual abuse. Participants are then challenged to take responsibility for their lives and move forward, unhindered into the future.

  • 1995-Present
    American Board of Forensic Examiners
  • 1993-Present
  • International Society for the Study of Dissociation
  • 1993-Present
    The American Association of Christian Counsellors
(Source: From the personal web pages of George F. Rhoades)

Strangely, Dr. Rhoades makes no mention that he contributed the entry to The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology, though he finishes his contribution with George F Rhoades, Jr, Ola Hu Clinic, Aiwa, Hawaii.

The Corsini Encyclopedia entry for the SRA Myth reflects the hold that the 'Myth still maintains on sections of the US psychology, psychiatric and psychotherapy professions. The UK suffers from the same issues, though to a lesser degree with psychiatry and psychology. In both nations, psychotherapy is perhaps best regarded as a 'lost' profession - one so drastically removed from reality and minimum standards of professional ethics and morality that it cannot be comfortably regarded as a proper profession in any regard.

Professor La Fontaine's Report

And so, by 1994, with the last of the SRA Myth allegations of the decade in the UK now been and gone, the RAINS True Believers, thanks to the way the 'Myth had been altered in the US, could reference a huge suitcase of paranoid obsessions, full of fantastic assertions, amazing convictions and extraordinary suspensions of disbelief. With the exception of the editors of The Guardian, Marxism Today and Community Care, plus the most extreme representatives from colluding feminists and christian fundamentalists, the 'Myth was dying by degrees. Perhaps in the 1990's it would have faded away naturally, burdened with the lack of evidence to persist in the now-emerging world of the Internet, where photographs and digital video were the required norms to attract belief. Mind Control, MPD/DID and RMT let the 'Myth persist, feeding the greed of a subset of therapists, and the obsessions of those who were convinced that Vast Conspiracies exist, perhaps in a way to replace the vacuum left when universal religion amongst national populations allowed in an easy belief in the spiritual world's interaction with the physical world of reality.

When not complaining that non-Believers are simply Satanists or pro-child abuse, SRA Myth advocates are inclined to say that the reason SRA isn't believed is simply because society is unable to comprehend it's persona of sheer evil.

Yet the potential for human evil is understood and reported-upon by just watching an evening television news programme. US and UK society didn't shy away from viewing and discussing Rwanda, the Srebrenica massacre, the daily atrocities committed across the world in the name of religion, politics or racism. If anything we have become immune to the images and stores of human suffering and evil.

Such evil is pursued by equally determined prosecutors and investigators. We see film of mass graves uncovered in Bosnia, Rwanda and even from The Spanish Civil War and its aftermath. Platoons of First World War soldiers, killed together as comrades in the blast of single artillery shell or morter round are still found regularly buried in the fields of Flanders.

Advocates for the SRA Myth believe that our society sees the equivalent of the machine-gun killing grounds of Flanders battles every year, if not several times a year, decade after decade, centuries even. Yet no body, let alone mass graves are ever found, no single scrap of physical or forensic evidence coming to light. No confessions are reported of recanting murderous satanists. No-one buys a house, a property, a shed, only to find that it was the scene of routine sacrifices sometime in the past. In a world of hundred of thousands of digital closed-circuit cameras, with mobile phones equipped with cameras a routine Xmas present, with miniaturised surveillance equipment available for sale through high-street shopping mall retailers, not a single Satanist is photographed, going about even his daily non-killing business. Even if there was fear of legal threats, such photographs and other digital recordings, perhaps taken covertly, don't exist on foreign, anonymous Web servers. We hear no early morning news story of 'man walking dog finds mass grave...' This from Kenneth Lanning, an FBI agent who investigated the entire SRA Myth 'scene' in the 1990s

The most significant crimes being alleged that do not seem to be true are the human sacrifice and cannibalism by organised satanic cults. In none of the multidimensional child sex ring cases of which I am aware have bodies of the murder victims been found - in spite of major excavations where the abuse victims claim the bodies were located. The alleged explanations for this include: the offenders moved the bodies after the children left, the bodies were burned in portable high-temperature ovens, the bodies were put in double- decker graves under legitimately buried bodies, a mortician member of the cult disposed of the bodies in a crematorium, the offenders ate the bodies, the offenders used corpses and aborted foetuses, or the power of Satan caused the bodies to disappear.


Notably, and discussed at length in Part Three of this entry, there is no thirst for revenge. Therapists and psychiatrists in the US and UK will, perhaps after months or even years of therapy, determine a remarkably physically intact (predominantly) white middle-class and middle-aged woman to have been satanically abused as a child. Occasionally the woman will approach the professionals "pre-basted" - convinced that they have been victims of vile depravities.

For sure a percentage, perhaps even a majority were subjected to sexual abuse as a child, often victims of incest. But these are victims claiming to have repeatedly raped, routinely tortured, made to kill and eat human flesh and human and animal bodily fluids and products. They, or their therapists will relate they have survived the most foul abuse imaginable to mankind.

And yet, strangely, these survivors and their carers and helpers are remarkably forgiving. There ire and hatred is invariably initally directed, first at ther immediate families - causing often, a complete dislocation, as the woman and her family find they are unable to reconcile each others tales. But accounts of satanic ritual abuse often tell of huge cults, sometimes numbering in their hundreds, even a thousand. In such cases, do the 'survivors' pursue these cults doggedly?

The answer, perhaps predictably, is no.

Amongst the survivors and their carers and confidantes, there exists no-one, in the entire history of the SRA Myth in Britain (23 years and counting) and even longer in the US, who has sought revenge beyond an accusation to parents and grandparents that they abused them in their childhoods as part of satanic cults. Other than accusing fathers and close family members of being their abusers, no 'survivor' has provided an insight into the vast intergenerational satanic cults that 'Myth advocates repeatedly claim exist. Nor it seems is there any risk of police being called to some house, out in the sticks or deep in the countryside, to find a young woman, dripping in the blood of others - shotgun in one hand, knife or axe in the other - the basement showing a scene of hooded and robed dead satanists, slumped over the infernal tables and racks with which they inflicted their tortures and Mind Control (until her therapists cured her). Our young woman, with the first smile on her life on her face, turns to the shocked officers standing before her. 'You should have believed me,' she whispers.

The therapists and carers haven't quite got around to the bit where they ask 'well, who are the bastards you say did this to you, and how do you fancy we bump them off one-by-one?'

...a numerical breakdown of the numbers of victims that are said to be involved in such abuse reveals significant problems for the belief in SRA.

According to the victims of reported SRA, the average satanic ‘cell’ or sub-group contains approximately one thousand members, a number not reflected in the actual membership of any known satanic group. According to the most commonly reported procedure, each member is welcomed into the cell with a human sacrifice, ensuring the new member’s silence through fear and/or the knowledge of their complicity in the crime. This means that each member of a satanic cell must sacrifice at least one person in their lifetime in the group. Satanic abuse survivors further contend that each member of a satanic cell would sacrifice an average of one person per year after their initial sacrifice. According to satanic abuse victims, the number of cells in the United States alone is at least five hundred. This means that in the United States, at least five hundred thousand people are sacrificed to Satan each year, with a further five hundred thousand being murdered as initiatory sacrifices. This is a staggering number of missing persons and homicides, which defies belief and pure practicality, when one considers the time, space and expenditure required to dispose of so many victims. Unless secret satanic groups are funding vast crematoria without the knowledge of the relevant authorities, then these numbers are preposterous. The suggestions of body disposal given by supporters of SRA, such as the complicity of funeral directors, large bonfires in isolated areas, vats of acid or the use of industrial mincers, are not believable given the lack of any crime scene evidence.

Many people reporting SRA overcome this statistical problem by stating that the women in the group are forced to produce children for sacrifice. While disposal of infants faces the same problems as that of any other victim, examinations of women who claim themselves to have been used as ‘breeders’ have sometimes found that these women have never borne children. Despite the absolute belief on the part of those reporting SRA, this kind of evidence raises doubts about the veracity of these reports. The lack of crime scene evidence, the statistical improbability of such large groups of victims and incidental inconsistencies all strongly suggest that the crimes reported as cases of SRA do not take place.
(Source: Signs of the Devil: The Social Creation of Satanic Ritual Abuse, by Morandir Armson)

Into this miasma of belief, accusation, conviction and tension stepped Professor Jean La Fontaine.

Dr. La Fontaine, a cultural anthropologist from Manchester University in England, as mentioned near the beginning of this Entry, was commissioned by then-Conservative government in 1992 to report on the veracity of the reports of satanic ritual abuse in England and Wales.

The professor, and the team she formed to take on the commission didn't rush the job. Dr. La Fontaine reported to the then-Health Secretary, Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP having studied data from January 1988 to December 1991. She presented her report in 1994. Professor Fontaine had already taken the time to meet up with forty-three members of RAINS in February 1992. Apparently the meeting went cordially. Although by 1994 it seemed unlikely, the fact that The JET Report was still suppressed might had led some members of RAINS to believe the Fontaine report would find evidence of the 'Myth in England and Wales and all would be well for the Satanist-hunters. Dr. Buck didn't appear to have held out much hope. They might have believed that their time spent hunting satanists would see a new dawn, and had the Government come down on their side, the more extreme fundamentalists amongst them might even have been able to plan for the purchase of stakes and piles of wood in every market square across England and Wales.

As it is Dr. Fontaines The extent and nature of organised and ritual abuse utterly mangled the case for the 'Myth for most of its advocates. Still, before the report was officially released, the most enthusiastic 'Myth supporters tried to pre-empt it's findings, in a media environment where they were already being sidelined.

Before publication of La Fontaine's report, there was an all-party press conference on May 25, 1994, at the House of Commons. (The findings of the report had already been leaked to the press). This press conference was called to challenge La Fontaine's findings and was attended and supported by Llin Golding (Labour Member of Parliament), David Alton (Liberal Member of Parliament) and Geoffrey Dickens (Conservative Member of Parliament). Presentations were given by Joan Coleman (RAINS), Valerie Sinason (then at The Tavistock and Portman Clinic), Hereward Harrison (ChildLine), Sue Hutchinson (SAFE) and others.
(Source: Page 318 Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK by Sandra Buck M.D)

Lay preacher Geoffrey Dicken MP, who had held the Saddleworth constituency, but is now deceased, is most famous for his rants against what he perceived to be hoards of witches taking-up residence in England. But his beliefs in what he saw to be the corruption of English life didn't end there, and he more than adequately demonstrated the nature of some of the enthusiastic SRA Myth advocates that the likes of Dr. Buck, Dr. Liz Kelly, Beatrix Campbell (OBE) and the other 'humanist' and secular members of RAINS had associated themselves with, though sometimes with unintended humour;

As a founder member of the Conservative Family Campaign, Dickens had petitioned for the recriminalization of homosexuality, and advocated the obligatory tagging of 'well-known' gay men and lesbians 'to keep AIDS under control'. Despite the gravity of the matter, Morrissey must have howled along with thousands of others to to hear Dickens announce, in a speech during the Clause 28 debate, 'The homosexual fraternity are only likely to get support from us if they stop flaunting their homosexuality and thrusting it down our throats.'
(Source: Morrissey: Scandal & Passion (2004), by David Bret, page 114)

Liberal Democrat MP, now Lord Alton, stretches the term 'liberal' to the limit, and then a bit more;

In November 1990 Alton's Movement for Christian Democracy (MCD) issued The Westminster Declaration, a political manifesto which hid Christian holy writ within acres of hyperbole and which was intended to polarise Christians from all parties in the House towards a fifth column of Christian-favoured policies and activities. It's six major points read:

* 'the MCD takes it's bearings from Christian convictions about the person, society and political authority', Human beings are created in the image of God',
* 'The Kingdom of God is heralded by a community in which ALL are to be reconciled in Christ Jesus'.
* 'ALL authority is from God and must be exercised in accordance with Divine ordinances',
* 'to encourage awareness of our accountability to God in all aspects of public and private life.'
* 'The evaluation of decisions in terms of how they affect our individual and collective relationships with god',
* 'to make resources available so that parents may effectively exercise their right to have children educated in conformity with their own religious and philosophical convictions,'
(Source: Lord Alton allows satan hunters to use 'The Mother of parliaments' to re-vivify ritual Abuse Claims - SAFF)

The Evil, Satanic Poor - Part One

(Part Two of this discussion can be found in the section that analyses the 1994 book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (1994) edited by Dr. Valerie Sinason at The Evil, Satanic Poor Part Two - an analysis of Chapters 11 and 23 on Page Two of this extended Index entry).

RAINS issue with Professor La Fontaine's report, Dr. Buck reports, is that she didn't speak to the Broxtowe children's foster parents, nor examine any of the children's' drawings or foster parents' diaries (page 319). In concentrating though on these issues, Dr. Buck and indeed RAINS as a body corporate have consistently avoided one of the most damning findings of the report; one that they have, over the course of the intervening sixteen year, never been able to refute, and one they haven't ever bothered to contend.

Of all the allegations of Satanic Ritual Abuse that Professor Fontaine and her team investigated - 967 cases of organised abuse (the existence of pedophile rings has never been disputed by SRA Myth sceptics, see Colin Cramphorn QPM) plus crucially, chiefly 85 cases of alleged ritual abuse over four years, the vast majority involved "very poor people". Of the men said to have been involved, fewer than a third had a job and only three had middle-class occupations.

The image of landed gentry Satanists, abducting young virgins and taking them to their huge country homes where they are sacrificed to satisfy their perverted psychotic desires, and total dedication to Satan, comes from popular media images and the racier moments of British history - notably the exploits of the members of the Hellfire Clubs in the 18th Century. In addition to actually manage even a fraction of the fantastical allegations made in the SRA Myth years, the Satanists would need a pretty substantial source of income, way more than State welfare could have paid out, and perhaps way beyond the means of even a middle-class professional.

Nonetheless, the council estates of England and Wales were determined to be the very centre of SRA activity. Some like the Langley Estate in Rochdale are simply communities of hard-working families, the source of occasional star soccer players, classical composers, Army and Navy recruits who go on to prove uncommon valour and British rock bands. Others are havens for the poorest of the poor who aren't yet homeless or in prison, the work-shy, the slovenly, the communities of hopeless citizens, then and now often comprising families that haven't worked for generations, and probably wouldn't be capable of work in any case...the families where incest was and is common, violence a regular feature of daily life, with drugs and drinking a never-quite-sufficient means to escape the monotony.

It was these people, effectively labeled 'scum' who would be transformed into 'satanic scum' during the SRA Myth 'crazy' years, by RAINS members.

In Part Two of this entry, the key book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse is discussed. The branding of the socially deprived and socially excluded was a key theme in the book, together with the calls for the hunting of witches and witches covens. to place Dr. LaFontaine's findings into perspective, we must analyse the words of those who rpomoted the SRA Myth in Great Britain in thr 1980s and beyond.

Go to the second page;

Part 2



"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind

Please note that on June 8th 2012, this site will be shutting-down. Our host service - hostcell.net will be shutting-down entirely, as its CEO Nahian Choudhury was involved in a serious car accident recently.

Dramatis Personae will resume on the Web in the near future when a new host is found (we have one in mind already).

Our thoughts are with Nahian and his family and the employees of hostcell.net.

Best regards - the editing team



Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS (Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support) Part Four



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

This Entry traces the establishment and history of the RAINS organisation, belief in the SRA Myth in the UK, and its impact on Child Protection policies and practises in Great Britain since 1989. The Entry is strongly related to the lengthy but more general discussion about the SRA (Satanic Ritual Abuse) Myth that dominates US and UK contemporary social history, to be found at Beatrix Campbell (OBE)

Part One is listed under Dr. Sandra Buck, principally because it investigates the RAINS organisation, using Dr. Buck's written history as the primary source.

Part Two is an analysis of the 1994-published book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, and is therefore titled under the name of its editor, Dr. Valerie Sinason, one of the primary advocates in the United Kingdom for the SRA Myth after 1994. It is split into four sub-pages to ease readability.

Part Three and Part Four (this page) discuss the nature and extent of belief in the SRA Myth in the early 21st century in the United Kingdom, with particular emphasis on the psychotherapy/psychoanalysis profession in the UK. It is titled under Dr. Sinason and David Icke, the two primary public faces of belief in the SRA Myth in the UK.

Part Five extends Part Four to another page, whilst investigating the subject of Recovered Memory Therapy.

Because of the amount of data provided, this Entry has been split over five pages.

Go to the first page;

Go to the second page
Go to the third page

Go to the fifth page

Dr. Valerie Sinason

Valerie Sinason (Dr. Ph D MACP M Inst Psychoanal.)

British psychoanalyst and psychotherapist, conspiracy theorist, campaigner, poet, author and editor.





David Icke

David Icke

British conspiracy theorist, campaigner and author.






Section headings

  • Part One - the SRA Myth in England & Wales and RAINS

  • Introduction
  • The SRA Myth, MPD/DID and RMT
  • Satanic Ritual Abuse indicators
  • The SRA Myth arrives in England & Wales
  • Broxtowe
  • Pembroke
  • The Shieldfield Scandal
  • Scotland
  • The importance of 'Michelle Remembers'
  • Dr. Sandra Buck's history of RAINS
  • RAINS consolidates
  • RAINS & fundamentalism
  • Rochdale
  • Conflict with The Jet Report
  • Mind Control - the SRA Myth takes a new turn
  • Professor La Fontaine's Report
  • The Evil, Satanic Poor - Part One

  • Part Two - A Chapter-by-chapter Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (Routledge, now Informa PLC, 1994)

    Go to Page Two for a detailed Contents listing of the sub-pages.

  • The essay contributors - then & now
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Sub-Page 1
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Sub-Page 2
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Sub-Page 3
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Sub-Page 4


  • Part Three - The Nature & Extent of belief in the SRA Myth in Great Britain in the early 21st century

  • Individual and Institutional members of RAINS
  • Wolverhampton City PCT and RAINS
  • The Metropolitan Police & RAINS
  • The burden on RAINS members
  • SRA Myth True Believers in the public eye - Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke
  • The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy
  • Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder - taking psychotherapy to a new academic low
  • Dr. Ellen P. Lacter - American witch-hunter
  • The Institutions of psychiatry, psychology, psychotherapy/psychoanalysis & the SRA Myth
  • psychotherapy/psychoanalysis
  • The regulation of psychotherapy
  • Psychiatry, Psychology and the SRA Myth
  • Psychotherapy/psychoanalysis and its submission to David Icke
  • The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain

  • Part Four (this page) - The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain (continued)

  • The Department of Health and Dr. Sinason
  • Trauma, disability, attachment and the promotion of the SRA Myth
  • The Centre for Child Mental Health & the SRA Myth
  • The Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability
  • The 8th European Congress of Mental Health in Intellectual Disability
  • The Paracelsus Trust
  • Treating 'survivors'


  • Part Five - The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain (further continued)

  • The London Safeguarding Children Conference and Valerie Sinason
  • The Metropolitan Police and Valerie Sinason
  • The Carol Felstead scandal
  • The BBC and Valerie Sinason
  • The CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) and Dr. Valerie Sinason
  • The SRA Myth and the destruction of John Bowlby's legacy
  • Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs (Karnac Books, March 2011)
  • Attachment Therapy
  • Recovered memories, body memories and the pseudoscience of the future
  • 'special pleading' - a Letter to The Guardian, January 23rd 2012
  • End piece


  • Part Four - The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain (continued)



    Note: This is a particularly lengthy Web page.

    This page continues to discuss the subjects raised in Part Three. The amount of data submitted to the Editors has necessitated the creation of an additional page.

    The Department of Health and Dr. Sinason

    From the beginning of the SRA Myth, which could trace its history all the way back to the original false allegations in the United States in 1983, SRA Myth advocates have sought one thing; official recognition of their cause. That is that covens of satanists and witches are rife across the Western world, murdering and eating babies and young children, and repeatedly sexually and physically assaulting the remainder, some of whom are allowed to escape as 'survivors'. The 'Myth was initially promoted as being a vehicle for religious fundamentalists to associate homosexuals as being pedophiles. American feminists and lesbians joined this movement (see Myra Riddell) and it spiralled out-of-control rapidly. It moved on to being a means for both fundamentalists and feminists to punish women who had found a 'third-way' in their lives - of being able to work and maintain families - by giving them heart-stopping fears that the daycare centres who looked after their children during the working day were full of (initially) homosexual male satanists and female lesbian witches. 'Choice' or 'equality' feminists who had fought for women's rights throughout the 1960s and 70s had largely won their battles - and those victories had enraged both the religious militants and the feminists who maintained fantasies of Vast Conspiracies of patriarchal organised child abuse. Although sometimes presented as being an 'anti-man' moral panic, the statistics for the SRA Myth years equate to the witch-hunts of the 17th century in the American Colonies and England; once again 65% of those wrongfully accused were women.

    Dr. Sinason's passion for the SRA Myth, though not matched with an equal desire to actually prove its existence, has centred for many years upon getting others to accept it. Following the submission of Professor Jean La Fontaine's report into the 'Myth in England and Wales to the Department of Health in 1994, the remaining advocates for the 'Myth - mainly comprising fundamentalists and feminists, through the RAINS organisation, had striven to get an opposite result - to get the British Government to recognise their obsessions. Accordingly, in 1996, thanks to intensive lobbying, an unauthorised and sympathetic official in the UK Department of Health commissioned a report from Dr. Sinason and her colleague, Dr. Rob Hale to perform the research. Over £20,000 in public funds was contributed, and access was provided to a Metropolitan Police detective.

    The report, perhaps predictably, determined that SRA was rife in the land. But even with the access to a police Detective, the report was unable to provide any proof, other than Dr. Sinason's assertion that her numerous 'survivor' clients - mostly middle-class young white women, proved SRA exists. Regrettably the 'evidence' for this assertion came not from genuine clinical evidence, but mostly from lengthy phone calls with women alleging they had been grossly abused by satanists in the past. The Department of Health declined to accept the findings, even (as they had paid for it) preventing its publication on the grounds they didn't wish to be associated with it.

    For Dr. Sinason it looked like the end of the road. The Portman and Tavistock NHS Trust pulled the plug on her activities, ensuring that she now depended on her Clinic for Dissociative Studies. That would have been it, had it not been for the strong lingering support for the 'Myth then, and still, existing within the NHS and other organisations. Accordingly, under the banner of 'DID' - Dissociative Identity Disorder - of which Dr. Sinason insists can only be caused by ritual abuse, the Clinic has been able to continue, funded by the taxpayers money through NHS referrals, and the hard work that Dr. Sinason puts in, constantly engaged in public-speaking events promoting the SRA Myth and the Clinics' work.

    In these pursuits, Dr. Sinason has tasted huge success and disastrous blunders. For blunders, her uncanny means of ensuring journalists have no desire ever to deal with her is a huge impediment to any progress in persuading the public at large and the government in particular, that satanists and witches are at large across the nation. The sorry saga of Dr. Sinason's dealings with the Press, and the embarrassment caused to some journalists and editors (notably at The Independent) who have been tricked by her sometimes kack-handed efforts to kick-start the SRA Myth moral panic all over again, can be be found under the entry for Sophie Goodchild.

    Whilst British newspapers are now understandably wary of Dr. Sinason, the BBC, in contrast, appears to adore her. On 9th February 2000, on the release of her now-derided report to the Department of Health, the BBC's flagship news programme, Today, broadcast on Radio 4, dedicated much of entire morning show to her and her theories. Listeners to the 'show' might have been bemused to hear of tales of widespread satanic abuse, though perhaps wondered where the evidence for such was. To date the BBC, and in particular the Today producers have declined any opportunity to apologise for providing such airtime for the hoax. That famous interview, perhaps one of the lowest moments in the history of BBC radio broadcasting, is discussed in detail in the section The BBC and Valerie Sinason.

    Dr. Sinason herself commented on the negative feedback she received after the show, but mentions how 'shocked' the presenters of the Today program were on listening to her words. Other than brief appearances on Woman's Hour (also a Radio 4 programme), Dr. Sinason has struggled to gain national prominence, notably because of a perception that she will try to foist any duff hoax on any gullible journalist or editor. She is nonetheless, together with David Icke, perceived as the national face of belief in the 'Myth, at least amongst those aware that the obsessions continue to persist,

    On the influential Today programme on 9 February 2000 I spoke of a clinic database of 76 children and adults who alleged to have witnessed appalling crimes within the context of ritual abuse. The programme correctly commented that I would separately be sending a pilot study report co-written with Dr Robert Hale to the Department of Health. I mentioned that some patients coming to the Clinic for Dissociative Studies brought proof that they had not been registered as children. This is a shocking fact and not surprisingly caused shock. Also included in the programme was a woman survivor with whom I have no connection who described seeing children kept in a cage. The Daily Mail provided a banner headline conflating these two episodes. ‘Do Satanists really keep babies in cages in modern Britain – or has this woman [me] duped the BBC’s most prestigious news programmes?’
    (Source: Do I contradict myself? Valerie Sinason, extracted from Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity - Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder)

    As it is, Dr. Sinason had duped the BBC’s most prestigious news programme and had done it thoroughly. Since February 2000 though, the Today programme hasn't been too enthusiastic about inviting her back.

    The core problem of 'evidence' remains for SRA Myth proponents. Even with the assistance of a Metropolitan Police detective being attached to her investigation and subsequent report, no evidence of ritual abuse could be found or presented that would ever make it to even a charge by police, let alone a court case. This crucial weakness underpins the means for SRA Myth True Believers to progress in their passion.

    It would be wrong though to single-out Dr. Sinason as being the only psychotherapist/psychoanalyst enthusiast for the SRA Myth in the UK. As these pages have perhaps demonstrated, others in the profession and the professions institutions, such as through the British Psychotherapy Association (BPA) and its membership bodies, are equally enthusiastically willing to advocate and promote the SRA Myth, particularly through the Dissociation vehicle.

    Trauma, disability, attachment and the promotion of the SRA Myth

    Advocating for the SRA Myth requires the adoption of a particular perspective. Not least is the assertion that the absence of evidence is in itself conclusive evidence for its existence. This perspective though is difficult to maintain and even tougher to use in persuading other professionals that something that can't be found is absolutely present and rife.

    One strategy that the psychotherapy profession in the UK has employed in its advocacy of the SRA Myth, and the one most associated with Dr. Sinason and her colleagues at the Clinic for the Study for Dissociative Disorders, is to piggy-back onto legitimate fields of research and diagnosis. These are notably in the provision of psychotherapy for the intellectually disabled, the now-popular focus on the nature of trauma, and the study and application of Attachment Theory, most notably that developed by John Bowlby (1907-1990). Weaving the SRA Myth into all three of these varied elements is a tough task, but one which Dr. Sinason and her colleagues at the 'Clinic and elsewhere have pursued with varying degrees of success.

    Valerie Sinason has every right to claim knowledge on the subject of intellectual disability. Prior to her conversion as primarily an advocate for the SRA Myth with the publication of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (1994) (see the extensive analysis of this book at Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Routledge, 1994) she considered herself an authority on the subject, having written Mental Handicap and the Human Condition: New Approaches from the Tavistock (1992), Understanding Your Handicapped Child (1993), and having worked with psychoanalyst Neville Symington since 1979 at the Tavistock Clinic. From 1994 though, Dr. Sinason's chose a course, that although seemingly financially lucrative at the time, ensured that she probably wouldn't be easily recognised as a leading pioneer in her field. From 1994 her published titles increasingly reflected her obsessions with the SRA Myth, through the constant and insistent promotion of the idea that the UK in particular is awash with secret conspiracies of ritual abusers.

    Unfortunately other professionals working in the field of intellectual disability haven't always been willing to acknowledge Sinason's contribution to the cause sufficiently. So it is that they have had to be told precisely what she has done for them, through the words of fellow SRA Myth advocate and co-editor of Forensic Aspects of Dissociative Identity Disorder (2008) with fellow True Believer Adah Sachs, Graeme Galton. In The Contributions of Valerie Sinason (2002) Graeme Galton makes it pretty clear that his fellow SRA Myth champion should be acknowledged for what she has done for the study of intellectual disability;

    The work of Valerie Sinason, a child psychotherapist and adult psychoanalyst, has been of major importance in the field of learning disability. Sinason's clinical and theoretical contributions to psychotherapy in this area of extreme psychopathology are examined in detail and an assessment is made of the extent to which these contributions represent major advances in the understanding and treatment of mentally handicapped patients. A detailed examination of the clinical and theoretical insights that emerged from her work with learning disabled patients shows the major impact she has had in promoting the use of psychoanalytic psychotherapy with such patients.
    (Source: New Horizons in Disability Psychotherapy: The Contributions of Valerie Sinason (2002) Free Associations, volume 9, pages 582-610)

    If having a colleague and fellow SRA Myth advocate having to tell the world how good you are seems a little vain, then Dr. Sinason matched it the following year, once again in the magazine Free Associations produced by leading SRA Myth 'True Believer' British publisher, Karnac Books. With Valerie Sinason Talks to Graeme Galton the desire to self-promote through a professional confidante was executed again. That tendency though is party driven by problems in getting newspaper journalists and editors willing to have anything to do with her.

    It could perhaps have been hoped that Dr. Sinason would manage to keep her work in intellectual disabled away from her promotion of the SRA Myth. As early as the 1994 publication of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse though the two fields of her work had merged, typified by the extraordinary, and short, essay Learning disability and ritualistic child abuse by her mentor, then-retired Professor Joan Bicknell, and whose name adorns the Joan Bicknell Centre in London, consulting for disabled clients.

    Professor Bicknell's stupendously bizarre essay claims that a network of witches covens throughout Britain entice teenage girls to join-up, particularly those who are intellectually-disabled. Her paranoid fantasies extend to the suggestion that children with special needs who miss school, are doing so, not for legitimate reasons, but rather because they are being abused in witches covens by (it has to be assumed) their witch mothers.
    The synergy of the SRA Myth and the intellectually disabled is difficult to fathom, but without doubt has a certain attraction to those in the psychotherapy/psychoanalysis professions who try to promote the 'Myth. The Recovered Memory Therapy industry which is largely associated with the 'Myth has long depended on a stream of (predominantly) middle-aged white females, preferably from middle-class backgrounds, to feed its client base. These generally comprise clients that come from the following sources;

    • Genuinely abused in childhood, and can be persuaded to believe that the abuse was satanic in nature.
    • Subject to depression, mental illness and subsequently referred to a psychotherapist who is an enthusiastic SRA Myth advocate (with or without funding from the NHS)
    • Persuaded by feminist/Christian fundamentalist rhetoric such as through reading The Courage To Heal: A Guide for Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse (1994) by Ellen Bass and Laura Davis, that they have been satanically-abused in childhood and subsequently forgot about it.

    The difficulty with this model is that financially it is increasingly fraught with business risk; the model depends to a significant degree on the willingness of middle-aged white women to believe they have been satanically abused in childhood. In such 'victims' it is particularly difficult to find any sign of the gross injuries such people should exhibit. In addition such women have to be prepared to accept that they have developed Multiple Personalities at some point in their adulthood to both shield them from the horror of what was performed on them, and also to enable their satanic masters to employ them as part of a robot Horde of mind-controlled agents to do their bidding.

    In the US, litigation against psychiatrists, psychologists and psychotherapists employing DID and the SRA Myth as a means of addressing what they both thought-of as a huge hidden international conspiracy and a lucrative opportunity to be exploited has significantly come unstuck, with multi-million dollar payouts to those women who realised they had been 'stitched-up like a kipper'.

    The False Memory Syndrome Foundation in the US was the precursor to numerous national false memory societies to be found in many Western countries, mostly English-speaking and all predominantly Protestant - nations where the SRA Myth was observed, and where Recovered Memory Therapy was and is employed by psychiatrists and psychotherapists. The victims of the RMT 'industry' came to light in the mid-1990s onwards - comprising exclusively women who realised their newly-discovered memories were utterly false, and the families accused of having abused the women as children, often in bizarre fantasies of satanic ritual abuse, had been often torn apart. The FMSF, who many SRA Myth/DID/RMT advocates claim is a front for the CIA/satanists maintains a list of civil cases that it is aware of. Some of cases are reprinted below;

    Althaus v. Cohen, Court of Common Pleas, Allegheny Co., PA, No. GD92020893. In 1994, jury awarded $272,232 to 17-year-old girl and her parents. In 12/96 trial judge affirmed jury decision in strongly worded ruling, noting that as girl's charges became "progressively more outlandish," the stories were never challenged, in fact, the therapist refused input from parents. "Expert testimony demonstrates overwhelmingly that Cohen deviated from that standard [of care]." The girl entered therapy when her mother became seriously ill. Criminal charges of childhood sexual and ritual abuse against parents were filed, but later dropped.

    Hamanne v. Humenansky, U.S. Dist. Ct., 2nd Dist., MN, No. C4-94-203. In 1995, jury awarded over $2.46 million to woman after finding psychiatrist negligently failed to meet recognised standards and directly caused injury. Woman sought treatment for anxiety after a move, but was diagnosed MPD, and told she experienced childhood sexual and ritual abuse despite contrary evaluations and lack of memories of abuse. Treatment included hypnosis, guided imagery, sodium Amytal, anti-depressants, lengthy hospitalisations. No informed consent. Also awarded $200,000 to husband for loss of consortium.

    Halbrooks v. Moore, Dist. Ct., Dallas Co., TX No. 92-11849. In 1995, jury found therapist guilty of negligence and that his actions were proximate cause of damage to his former client. Awarded $105,000 and attributed 60% negligence to defendant therapist. Woman had sought treatment for recurring depression and familial conflicts, but claims therapy caused her to have false memories of childhood sexual and ritual abuse and to be mis-diagnosed MPD. The treating hospital settled prior to trial for nearly $50,000.

    Carlson v. Humenansky, Dist. Ct., 2nd Dist., MN, No. CX-93-7260. In 1996, unanimous jury verdict found that psychiatrist failed to meet recognised medical standards and directly caused injury. Awarded $2.5 million. Woman had entered therapy for depression and marital problems, but claims therapy caused her to develop false memories of childhood sexual and ritual abuse. Treatment included sodium Amytal, guided imagery, hypnosis.

    ...

    Mark v. Zulli, et. al., Superior Ct., San Luis Obispo Co., CA, No. CV075386. In 1995, a settlement was reached with the primary therapist who treated a woman for unexplained chest pains after witnessing a serious accident. The therapist told her the chest pains were body memories of childhood sexual and ritual abuse. The therapy included hypnosis and relied on The Courage to Heal. Eventually the woman was diagnosed MPD with 400 personalities. The primary therapist had no insurance and settled for $157,000.

    Fultz v. Carr and Walker, Circuit Ct., Multnomah Co., OR, No. 9506-04080. In 1996, two treating therapists settled out of court, one for $1.57 million, the other for a confidential amount. Patient had sought help for mild depression and weight problems, but she claims the therapists misdiagnosed childhood sexual and ritual abuse and MPD. Her preschool children were also treated and persuaded they were abused by a cult. The treating therapist assisted in obtaining restraining order against patient's parents and siblings.

    Rutherford v. Strand, et al, Circuit Ct., Green Co. MO, No. 1960C2745. In 1996, a church in Missouri agreed to pay $1 million to a woman and her family who said that under the guidance of a church counsellor, the woman came to believe that her father had raped her, got her pregnant and performed a coat-hanger abortion - when in fact, she was still a virgin and her father had had a vasectomy.

    Cool v. Olson, Circuit Ct., Outagamie Co., Wisc. No. 94CV707. In 1997, after 15 days of courtroom testimony, defendant agreed to settle for $2.4 million. Testimony described how psychiatrist induced horrific false memories of childhood sexual and ritual abuse, including demonic possession and misdiagnosed MPD. Therapy techniques included hypnosis, age regression, exorcism and drugs which caused hallucinations. The patient had originally entered therapy for bulimia and help after a traumatic event had befallen family.

    Burgus v. Braun, Rush Presbyterian, Circuit Ct., Cook Co., IL, No. 91L08493/93L14050 In 1997, on the day scheduled for trial, a $10.6 million settlement was finalised. The patient originally sought treatment for postpartum depression but was diagnosed MPD as result of supposed childhood sexual and ritual abuse including cannibalism, torture. She claims psychiatrist utilised suggestive techniques, but failed to obtain informed consent. Her preschool age children were also hospitalised, diagnosed MPD and treated for SRA.
    (Source: Legal Issues Pertaining to Retractors, The False Memory Syndrome Foundation)

    The therapy techniques hypnosis, age regression, exorcism and drugs which caused hallucinations aren't necessarily unusual aspects of psychiatry in the US and UK, then-and-now. In 2011, in a review of The Rite - Hollywood's effort to recapture the days of The Exorcist clinical and forensic psychologist Dr. Stephen Drummond discussed psychotherapies beginnings;

    Exorcism can be said to be the prototypical form of psychotherapy. Despite the secular scientific persona of most mental health professionals today, simply scratching the surface of rationality and objectivity reveals a secret exorcist: Like exorcists, psychotherapists speak in the name of a "higher being," be it medical science or some psychological, metaphysical or spiritual belief system. They firmly (and, in the case of biological psychiatry in particular) literally believe in the physical reality of the pathological problem manifested in the patient's symptoms and suffering, and dispense drugs and/or encouragement while joining with the patient in a sacred "therapeutic alliance" against the wicked and debilitating forces bedevilling them. Notwithstanding today's economically-driven, simplistic trend toward brief psychotherapies such as CBT and myriad psychopharmacological treatments, sooner or later one inevitably is confronted in clinical practice with strikingly similar phenomena and principles to those educed by traditional exorcists: Psychotherapy, like exorcism, commonly consists of a prolonged, pitched, demanding, soul-wrenching, sometimes tedious bitter battle royal with the patient's diabolically obdurate emotional "demons," at times waged over the course of years or even decades rather than weeks or months, and not necessarily always with consummate success.
    (Source: Exorcism as Psychotherapy: A Clinical Psychologist Examines So-Called Demonic Possession, by Dr. Stephen A. Diamond, Ph.D, Psychology Today, 5th February 2011)

    In the UK, where litigation is far harder to pursue and where the English and Welsh High Courts have repeatedly protected medical professionals from the consequences of poor professional judgment and low ethical standards, the impact of the risk of being sued hasn't been quite so extreme on SRA Myth/Recovered Memory-advocating therapists. This has ensured that the UK remains the only nation in Europe with an organised academic and practising therapist establishment that is committed to a belief in the SRA Myth.

    There are though exceptions, such as in Scotland with the Katrina Fairlie scandal that came to light in 2007.

    Despite the low rate of litigation in the UK, the pool of available white, often middle-class females appears to be drying-up, as feminist/christian fundamentalist influence declines and the age group most vulnerable to being persuaded of the existence of SRA Myth grows older. A key feature of the SRA Myth is that during the 'crazy years' of 1988-2003, when SRA myth allegations were made that saw children removed from parents and carers - only to be returned when the allegations were revealed as bunkum - almost all of the families so accused were socially disadvantaged, poor, and invariably unable to afford the protection of a decent lawyer to articulate the ridiculousness of many of the claims. The first page of this Section discusses the abuse of such families in The Evil, Satanic Poor.

    With the initial burst of false and increasingly bizarre allegations that accompanied the SRA Myth in the UK in the early 1990s coming to an end, the Recovered Memory Therapy movement, imported from the USA, and once again the creation of colluding feminists and religious fundamentalists spurred-on by a subset of psychiatrists and psychotherapists, took-up the initiative. Being unable to find evidence of satanic rituals in the 'first-pass' of the SRA Myth - no bodies, no satanic implements, no videos of ceremonies, no physical injuries, no confessions, alters or robes - advocates resorted to claims that the satanic rituals had all occurred in the past - to children, who as adults had simply forgot what was done to them, until it was revealed through intensive therapy.

    Yet psychotherapy, and in particular long courses of therapy are not generally available to the socially disadvantaged. With the exception of those who were genuinely mentally ill (see The Carol Felstead/Carole Myers scandal) the clients of psychotherapists who are determined to be victims of satanic ritual abuse are, as mentioned often before, almost exclusively female, white, middle-class and invariably from privileged, often pampered pasts. Best of all such people have access to either sufficient income to pay for psychotherapists, or medical insurance wlling to 'stump-up' for the bills.

    Yet there is a limit to how many white middle-class, and typically middle-aged women will provide sufficient 'trade' for SRA Myth/RMT proponents to thrive on. Challenging budgets mean that in the UK particularly, NHS psychiatrists are less willing to forward a client claiming they have been mind-controlled since birth to the Clinic for Dissociative Disorders. The risk of legal redemption against a psychotherapist is perhaps the greatest threat; as increasingly women realise they had been 'had' by the RMT movement, and they and their suffering families resort to seeking financial compensation by means of redress.

    In response to this there seems to be recognition amongst therapists that intellectually, developmentally and even physically-disabled individuals represent the best opportunity to maintain the SRA Myth. With many utterly dependent on carers and Local Authority support (which can be withdrawn if necessary, should individuals or their carers get 'awkward') and in particular with some groups found to be vulnerable to suggestibility - and best of all, not easily able to gain independent legal advice or the assistance of 'proper' therapists, the move to applying the SRA Myth to these groups seems to be a sensible business model.

    Such a move though, risks seriously antagonising both the disabled and their advocates if they realised they were being used as a vehicle for the continuation of long-derided fantasy. Persuading such groups that intellectually disabled individuals are being or have been satanically-abused by CIA or MI5 agents intent on creating dissociative multiple identities in their victims through gross satanic sexual and physical abuse to turn them into mind-controlled robots, is a tough proposition. Nonetheless, outside of her SRA Myth-advocacy, Dr. Sinason herself has a long-established career in pushing the line that the intellectually disabled are particularly vulnerable to abuse, and many independent studies agree that this is so. Suggesting that those abusers - the carer community - are also satanic abusers (on occasions paid-for by MI5 or the CIA) is only one further step.

    It appears that commencing in 2000, that moves to employ a campaign to publicly support the rights of intellectually disabled individuals to received psychotherapy services, whilst at the same time using those very individuals and their support groups as a vehicle for the continuation of the SRA Myth, actually happened.

    Throughout Dr. Sinason's work on intellectual disability, trauma plays a key role. The connection though can be subtle, but Dr. Sinason has identified trauma as being a key cause of what she terms 'Secondary Handicap'.

    In an interview with Editor David O'Driscoll in 2010 about the re-issue of her book Mental Handicap and Human Condition for the newsletter of the new Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability of which Valerie Sinason is now President, she explained how successful the approach of referring to 'trauma' inflicted on the intellectually disabled requiring psychotherapy services, had been on the Department of Health;

    Why did you have it revised?
    1. Mental handicap and the Human Condition has been reprinted almost yearly and because it is largely charting the detailed to and fro of therapy sessions a lot remains timeless and not in need of revision. However, there were three major omissions in the book that I did feel concerned about. One was the work on dissociative states in people with learning disabilities, one was the importance of group work and a third was on assessments of capacity to mother in women with a learning disability. I am pleased to say that I have made up for two of those deficiencies. There is a detailed chapter on group-work which I find a crucial element of treatment to offer as well as a chapter on working with ritual abuse and dissociative identity disorder in a young woman with a severe intellectual disability.
    ...
    I also felt both sad and angry in terms of how sceptical so many people were when the book came out that people with intellectual disability could make use of talking therapy and that so many had been abused. Even though the Department of Health has since validated all the things I and people like Joan Bicknell, Sheila Hollins, Pat Frankish and Nigel Beail had been saying, the emotional cost to all the clients who were not listened to was enormous-and still is.

    Indeed, even though the Department of Health have accepted the extra vulnerability to abuse, we are now in a strange top-heavy situation where it is recognised at the top but the meaning and consequences have not filtered down adequately and the forces of denial are still there. Children and adults with disabilities are still not being heard in terms of the trauma they have gone through.

    What changes have you seen since 1992 in the field of psychotherapist and learning disability?
    The Department of Health has been a true leader in terms of supporting legislation that aids people with disabilities. There is greater general awareness on the right for access to psychotherapy and the enormity of abuse. However, the reality of feeling close to the true feelings of someone who experiences the deep loneliness of difference is not any closer to being bridged. Ironically, it is the same original pioneers who carry on with the work and that encompasses the IPD membership! Trauma also remains unbearable despite the greater intellectual awareness of it. There is also a problem with success. One of the problems that can come with something being more recognised is that it can get incorporated into a formal fold in which polite professional dissociation takes the place of what Dr Deborah Marks so beautifully coined "psychoanalytic advocacy".
    (Source: IPD Newsletter)

    Dr. Sinason's reference to Even though the Department of Health has since validated all the things I and people like Joan Bicknell, Sheila Hollins, Pat Frankish and Nigel Beaill had been saying is significant; Dr. Joan Bicknell as mentioned had contributed her extraordinary chapter detailing her belief that witches covens were enticing British homeless and wayward girls into their grasp to Valerie Sinason's Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse in 1994. How much influence Professor Bicknell's belief in witches and a network of witches covens across Britain had and has on her peers, students and indeed civil servants in the Department for Health is subject to debate, and these issues are discussed in the section dedicated to her essay.

    The also-mentioned (Baroness Professor) Sheila Hollins, (Dr.) Pat Frankish and (Professor) Nigel Beaill, who had also contributed to the 1994 book, are all Trustees of the IPD - The Institute for Psychotherapy and Disability - investigated later on this page at The Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability.

    'Trauma' plays a key part in the conspiracy theories based upon Dissociation and the SRA Myth. Satanist-practicing mind-controlling child sex abusers and eaters-of-babies are supposed to use physical and mental trauma in an effort to create 'alters' - the dissociated multiple-personalities with which they can do their abusers bidding.

    For the SRA Myth-believing therapist, the connection is clear - the more the trauma, the more obvious it is that the client/patient has been a victim of satanic ritual abuse in the past. It is impossible to find cases of dissociation even in a mild form, let alone the extreme 'multiple personality disorder' form, outside of the Western world. Even victims of immense trauma from historic events like the Nazi concentration camps, Rwanda, the Pol Pot genocide campaign and more recently in Bosnia, haven't produced individual cases, let alone legions of dissociative identity disorder-suffering children and young adults. As detailed before in these pages; if anything the problems such victims suffer is trying to forget the traumas inflicted on them, particularly as many have severe physical injuries to remind them each day.

    Perversely, the wicked but invisible satanists are apparently able to inflict their traumas on children without signs of physical injury, although Dr. Sinason and other 'Myth advocates such as Susie Orbach claim that the body magically 'remembers' trauma, to the point that burn marks and bruises will appear on the bodies of Western white women undergoing regression therapy (though no therapist has quite got around to filming this phenomena yet).

    Weaving her work on intellectual disability with a narrative that incorporates mentioning the SRA Myth on occasions requires Dr. Sinason to make some pretty substantial jumps, and for the reader to willingly go along with it.

    Case example - Ms A.
    Ms A., after speaking of the physical and sexual violence she experienced from her care worker, whispered "If I get a baby from all that, will it be thick like me? Will I have to kill it, you know, like you can when it is a baby like that".

    It is hard for disabled abuse victims to differentiate societal wishes to stop someone like them from being born and actually killing them after they are born, especially when they are being sadistically abused.
    (Source: Abuse of People with Learning Disabilities and Other Vulnerable Adults by Leila B. Cooke and Valerie Sinason, Advances in Psychiatric Treatment, 1998 volume 4, pages 119-125)

    For the intellectually disabled, Dr. Sinason invented the term Secondary Handicap, a psychological construct that victims of severe trauma would build to buffer themselves against the memories they held. The theory fits perfectly in bridging the gap between Dr. Sinason's often valid work performed before 1994 in the intellectual disability field, and her obsessions with the SRA Myth and dissociative identity disorder.

    The snag is, the evidence for Secondary Handicap as a protection against trauma seems to be non-existent, and only Sinason's immediate peers and colleagues, most notably SRA Myth advocates, seem to have written about it.

    In Secondary Handicap & Learning Disability: A Component Analysis by Robert Jones, Carmel Harrison and Melany Ball of the School of Psychology, Bangor University in Wales, make an effort is made to comprehend Dr. Sinason's theories;

    Secondary Handicap as a Defence Against Trauma
    The third type of secondary handicap that Sinason (1992) outlines is that which is a defence against a person’s traumatic life experiences. People with learning disabilities are reported to seek protection against the memories of the traumas they have faced. These traumatic memories within this population can be in relation to the trauma of the original organic handicap, or due to trauma resulting from sexual or physical abuse. It should be noted in this regard that over the past two decades, Sinason has been particularly instrumental in raising awareness of the vulnerability of people with learning disabilities to abuse (Galton, 2002). The psychoanalytic interpretation of secondary handicap as described by Sinason is not new and owes much to Freud’s original description of secondary gain (Freud, 1901), Winnicott’s description of the ‘false self’ (Winnicott, 1965), and Symington’s (1981) suggestion that a learning disabled person might exaggerate his or her disability as a defence against the pain of the original handicap.

    Nonetheless, with the publication of Mental Handicap and the Human Condition (Sinason, 1992), Sinason presented the most detailed and clearly articulated account of the phenomenon and this source has clearly been the most influential in terms of theoretical analysis and service provision (Galton, 2002).

    The type of therapy that Sinason proposes, is firmly nested within the psychoanalytic psychotherapeutic tradition. It is summarised by Galton (2002 pp. 586-587) as follows:

    ‘The therapist must acknowledge to the patient that there is a better functioning self underneath his or her twisted movements and guttural sounds. The therapist needs to acknowledge the angry, hurt, and painful feelings that lie behind the handicapped smile. There follows an opportunity to treat the more pathological kind of secondary handicap represented by the disturbed, envious, and destructive aspects of the personality. The therapist becomes an auxiliary brain, helping thinking and filling in missing words or sentences, being careful not to continue this when the patient is capable of managing without it (Hollins, Sinason & Thompson, 1994). This is likely to be a period of crying, rage, grief, and depression as the patient mourns their lost healthy self, their limitations, their dependency and their terrible feeling of aloneness (Sinason, 1995). The trauma can be remembered, acknowledged and healed, in a safe setting with the therapist as protector’ (Sinason, 1986).

    The Search for Evidence
    In keeping with much psycho-analytic writing, Sinason’s account of secondary handicap is presented in descriptive narrative form. While this undoubtedly finds a receptive ear with a psychoanalytically orientated audience, the wider professional community requires more than a descriptive anecdotal account of concepts, however intuitively appealing or articulately presented. The present authors, therefore, attempted to find evidence to support the construct of secondary handicap in the wider literature on learning disability. The present authors, therefore, attempted to find evidence to support the construct of secondary handicap in the wider literature on learning disability.

    Method
    The following terms were input into three search engines, Web of Knowledge, PsycINFO and CINAHL, which scoured a multitude of databases for the words in question:

    • Secondary handicap and learning disability

    • Secondary handicap and mental retardation

    • Secondary handicap and mental handicap

    • Secondary handicap and intellectual disability


    • Despite such extensive searches, there did not appear to be any large-scale quantitative evidence in support of the existence of secondary handicap in learning disabilities. Rather the relevant literature consisted of a number of theoretical articles expanding on the description of the phenomena, often accompanied by anecdotal accounts and case details from authors engaged in psychoanalytic therapy with people with learning disabilities (e.g. Banks, 2006; Beail, 2003; Gaedt, 1995; 2001, Frankish, 1992; Galton, 2002; Sinason, 1986;1992). Once again however, although compellingly written, such accounts contained the views of the authors on the existence of the phenomenon, rather than any form of verifiable independent evidence pertaining to the existence of secondary handicap.
    (Source: Secondary Handicap & Learning Disability: A Component Analysis by Robert Jones , Carmel Harrison and Melany Ball of the School of Psychology, Bangor University)

    A notable aspect of the paper above is that it notes that the only other practitioners to have apparently observed (and subsequently written about) 'secondary handicap' also suffered in that 'such accounts contained the views of the authors on the existence of the phenomenon, rather than any form of verifiable independent evidence pertaining to the existence of secondary handicap.

    Of those other authors mentioned, 'e.g. Banks, 2006; Beail, 2003; Gaedt, 1995; 2001, Frankish, 1992; Galton, 2002' two of them - Dr. Beail and Dr Frankish are addressed in the following section about the IPD - The Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability, of which Dr. Sinason is President. Galton - Graeme Galton is referenced often in these Index pages, most notably for his paper proclaiming the contribution of Valerie Sinason to the intellectually disabled in The Contributions of Valerie Sinason (2002) and of course being co-author of desperately-poor SRA Myth advocacy tome Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder (2008) (see Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder - taking psychotherapy to a new academic low). Of the five authors mentioned in the extract, three are deeply associated in advocating for the SRA Myth, not including Dr. Sinason herself.

    Despite having the flaw of not being observed beyond a core of believers who include a high proportion of SRA Myth True Believers, Dr. Sinason's theory of Secondary Handicap has managed to make headway amongst British psychotherapists, many already taken-in by the 'Myth, and practising Recovered Memory Therapy in the hope of awakening memories of satanic abuse from their clients' past. It appears as the core diagnosis in an entire chapter of Witnessing, nurturing, protesting-Therapeutic responses to sexual abuse of people with learning disabilities (1996) by Alan Corbett (a committed Irish SRA Myth advocate discussed later on this page), Tasmin Cottis and Stephen Morris, whilst Intellectual disability, trauma and psychotherapy (2008) by, again, Tamsin Cottis is riddled with references to 'Secondary Handicap' and satanic abuse on pages 25, 30, 73, 74, 75 and 76.

    The Centre for Child Mental Health & the SRA Myth

    In addition to intellectual, developmental and physical disability, some headway has been made by Dr. Sinason in trying to attach the SRA Myth to the 'childhood trauma' field of study. Much of this is the result of recent developments in neuroscience - notably research that has identified the impact of trauma on children through permanent changes to their brain cortex.

    Connecting this research with the SRA Myth is a little hard, but again the basic essence is; the greater the perceived trauma or changes to the brain, then surely higher the likelihood that the child has been satanically abused (SRA being the greatest form of trauma imaginable.) Rather than being a little suspicious of this argument, some have regrettably embraced it with huge enthusiasm. Amongst the most enthusiastic is psychotherapist Dr. Margot Sunderland, of The Centre for Child Mental Health, located at 2-18 Britannia Row London N1 8PA.

    Dr. Margot Sunderland
    Dr. Margot Sunderland


    The CCMH has amongst its aims;

    • To present to professionals and parents, top international speakers, all of whom are involved in groundbreaking work with troubled children and young people. Over the years, hundreds of acclaimed child and family mental health professionals have presented lectures, trainings and workshops at the Centre.
    (Source: CCMH - Aim of the centre)

    That sounds perfectly reasonable and laudable. Unfortunately, in amongst the CCMH's Chairs, it has a leading SRA Myth True Believer, one Professor Brett Kahr, who we met earlier as the Series Editor for fellow SRA Myth advocates Graeme Galton and Adah Sachs 2008 book Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder, see Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder - taking psychotherapy to a new academic low.

    CCMH


    Dr. Kahr is also a Trustee of the IPD - the Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability, and The Paracelsus Trust, a charity that raises finance for the Clinic of Dissociative Studies. Both of these organisation are investigated and discussed below.

    The course Working with extreme trauma and dissociative disorders held as the CCMH's premises on March 1st 2011, presented by Valerie Sinason, incorporated learning how to recognise the signs and symptoms of trauma (it wasn't clear if Dr. Catherine Gould's Satanic Ritual Abuse indicators was employed) together with the somewhat disturbing subject - how to raise the awareness of professionals and parents to early signs of 'alarm' in terms of social resistance in infants and children. Once again the echo of fundamentalist Dr. Gould's indicators comes to mind, not least because one of them is ‘child resists authority’. Finally the giveaway that the course was really nothing more than an SRA Myth-promotion event was the final aim, to gain a more in-depth working knowledge of dissociative disorders, selective mutisim, and childhood depression, severe learning difficulties in young people, and what can be done. The course did point to a possible direction that SRA Myth advocates may be attempting to pursue - that is to equate ASD - Autism Spectrum Disorders as being Dissociative Disorders, and therefore using the 'Myth advocates argument that as most DID is caused by satanic abuse, it must mean that therefore autistic children must be victims of the said satanic abuse. It seems likely though that if any hint of this theory reaches the likes of the NAS - National Autism Society, then Dr. Sinason and Dr. Sunderland will find little sympathy for their plight.

    The idea though that autism is caused principally by child abuse isn't particularly new - the child development writer Alice Miller determined to ignore research into environmental and genetic factors altogether, and decided for herself that autistic children must be the product of abusive parents. This theory in turn stemmed from The Refrigerator Mom promoted by Bruno Bettelheim (see Bruno Bettelheim (Autism & MSBP/FII), though earlier explanations for autism hark back to it being blamed on witchcraft - with modern SRA Myth advocates apparently trying to promote that theory back into vogue.

    CCMH


    It seems unlikely that Dr. Margot Sunderland is unaware of Dr. Sinason's obsessions with the SRA Myth; they both appeared as guest on a September 2002 edition of BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour (see Women's Hour -Child Abuse) and Dr. Sinason was introduced as "Director of the Clinic for Dissociative Studies". Woman's Hour, like the Today news programme has maintained a torch for the SRA Myth over many years, principally because of a mixture of feminist and religious fundamentalist influence amongst the commissioning editors and producers of the programme.

    In September 2008, Dr. Sunderland and Dr. Sinason appeared at the conference Psychological Trauma and the Child - The trajectory from child to adult, held in London. In addition to Dr. Sinason and Dr. Sunderland was leading SRA Myth True Believer Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, plus Dr. Felicity de Zulueta, an NHS consultant and a frequent contributor to SRA Myth publications and attendee at SRA Myth events.

    With a member of the Chair committee being a leading recognised SRA Myth advocate, and with Dr. Sunderland's engagement with the "shit-house-rat-crazy" branch of psychotherapy well documented, it may not be outrageous to classify the CCMH as an SRA Myth-promoting organisation. A disturbing element is that the CCMH contributes to both public statements and government policy, most notably by the Department of Health, in the field of child protection.

    As mentioned Dr. Sinason's opportunities to negotiate with the Department of Health directly are somewhat limited. For this 'proxies' are needed, such as her professional colleagues, or indeed entire organisations, such as Dr. Margot Sunderland's CCMH. However conducting an effort to promote an obsessional belief in the 'Myth to the likes of the Department of Health, even when there are civil servants quite inclined to such a view, is hardly effective. It appears Dr. Sinason has recognised this, and in response, formed a psychotherapy institute to fulfil the need.

    How Dr. Sinason managed to merge her obsessions with the SRA Myth and her work with the intellectually disabled, through the guise of the IPD - the Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability deserves investigation.

    The Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability

    The IPD was established in May 2000, the same year as Dr. Sinason's and co-partner in the Clinic for Dissociative Studies Dr. Rob Hale's report was delivered to the UK Department of Health. The report concluded, though once again with a fatal lack of veritable evidence, that the SRA Myth was a given fact. The Department of Health responding by consigning the report to the bin as meaningless garbage.

    The IPD, unlike the Clinic' exists under the guise of plausibility. Yet as a vehicle with which to pursue the desire to have the SRA Myth accepted by, most importantly, Dr. Sinason's and others, psychotherapy peers, it performs the role perfectly. Unfortunately the flaw in the process is that the Institutes Trustees largely comprise of individuals with a history of advocating for the SRA Myth. Furthermore these Trustees seem unable to stay away from their enthusiastic promotion of the SRA Myth, and thus reveal too much of the IPD's core underpinning as a result. Finally the veneer of respectable academic authority is unable to survive even brief scrutiny. Fortunately for Dr. Sinason and her peers, brief scrutiny appears beyond the ability of British psychotherapy professional institutions.

    The IPD web site states the Institutes public aims;

    The Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability exists as an organisation to develop, accredit and regulate psychotherapists who work with people with disabilities.

    Established in May 2000 our initial focus was on the needs of people with learning disabilities, as this reflected the expertise of founder members. Over time, our perspective has broadened to include those individuals who have physical disabilities.

    IPD has been recently accepted within the UKCP as a Listing Member Organisation of the Council for Psychoanalysis and Jungian Analysis. The next stage is for us to develop our accreditation criteria to reflect the broad range of therapeutic approaches represented within the current membership of the Institute.

    The founder members have spent the last thirty or more years acquiring knowledge, applying expertise and evaluating outcomes, prior to taking the step of forming the Institute. Their motivation has come from the needs of individuals with learning disabilities to have an opportunity to benefit from therapies that are readily available for non-disabled people.
    (Source: ipd-institute of Psychotherapy and Disability)

    The desire to gain membership of the UKCP (The United Kingdom Council of Psychotherapy) was perhaps the primary purpose of the IPD. Although it could be expected that the UKCP would be a little suspicious of the intentions behind the IPD, judging by those on its list of Trustees, and their previous history. As was discussed in Page 3 of this extended Entry, concerns about Believers in the SRA Myth amongst the profession are not a priority for the psychotherapy bodies in the UK.

    Ostensibly the aims of the IPD are laudable and there is no reason to doubt that Dr. Sinason and her cohorts have nothing but positive thoughts to express in their offer of psychoanalytical services to intellectually-disabled individuals. The issue is - have those very individuals determined to maintain their enthusiasm for the SRA Myth and is the IPD no more than a vehicle for promotion of the 'Myth? Another way of perhaps approaching the issue is is a belief in the SRA Myth a fundamental requirement to be enthusiastic about the subject of provision of psychotherapy services for the intellectually and/or physically-disabled?

    As mentioned earlier though, the IPD's list of Trustees does sound like a roll-call of honour for SRA Myth advocates. This is of course quite possibly a co-incidence. Such is the preponderance of belief in the 'Myth amongst UK psychotherapists, conceivably it might be impossible to randomly gather any sizeable group of them together and NOT find at least one who was a True Believer. With the IPD Trustees though, the proportion of SRA Myth True Believers is, though it is for the visitor to this Web Page to judge, ridiculous.

    The President of the IPD is Valerie Sinason.

    Brett KahrProfessor Brett Kahr is of course the Series Editor for leading SRA Myth-advocating British publisher Karnac Books (see Oliver Rathbone) and thus commissioned Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder discussed in Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder - taking psychotherapy to a new academic low. This volume was edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton (2008), seemingly in an effort to rubbish their own profession of psychotherapy whilst at the same time providing a platform for the likes of witch-hunter and SRA Myth fantasist Dr. Ellen P. Lacter, discussed in Dr. Ellen P. Lacter - American witch-hunter. The book also provided a platform for the 'Illuminati' fantasies of Valerie Sinason in a homage to David Icke. As a True Believer and advocate for the SRA Myth, Dr. Sinason couldn't have a more committed associate in the IPD than Dr. Kahr. As mentioned earlier he is also on the Chair committee of the Centre for Child Mental Health with Dr. Margot Sunderland. Professor Kahr easily trips over the threshold to be called an SRA Myth True Believer.

    Richard CurenRichard Curen is the IPD Treasurer and Chair of the Survivors Trust, a charitable organisation that describes itself as;



    ...representing 125 agencies within the specialist voluntary sector, working with survivors of rape, sexual violence and childhood sexual abuse. The organisation is recognised by both the Department of Health and the Home Office.


    The Survivors Trust is a leading advocate organisation for the SRA Myth, although its individual associate members may or may not be aware of quite how enthusiastically the organisation promotes the 'Myth.

    In 2007 at The Survivors Trust Second National Conference, Held at the University of Warwick 10th and 11th December 2007, Dr. Sinason attended and gave a talk on satanic ritual abuse, not bothering it seems with trying to cloak the subject in a mist of 'dissociation'. At least one delegate was gushing in his/her appreciation of what she had imparted;

    "Effortless delivery and style, perfect vocabulary, illuminating vision on satanic abuse. Fascinating and shocking at the same time. Riveting."
    (Source: Conference Report)

    In attendance at the Conference was New Labours Solicitor General Vera Baird QC MP, who gave a keynote speech, and according to the Conference report, representatives from the following organisations were also present;

    Specialist rape or sexual abuse organisation - 83
    Police - 13
    Home Office - 4
    NHS - 5
    Student / University - 4
    Affiliated to a non-‐specialist rape or sexual abuse organisation - 10
    ISVA - 3
    Other ␣ 4


    Other charities advocating for the SRA Myth were also present and sometimes presented on a stand, including First Person Plural and the Richmond Fellowship who provided a display of 'survivors' art.

    It isn't clear if any of the 13 representatives of the Police or the four from the Home Office attended Dr. Sinason's presentation, and indeed if they did, if any reported back to their Chief Constables or senior civil service managers, her concerns that satanic British and American military staff and officers from the CIA and MI5 are (apparently) engaged in violent sex abuse of children on behalf of the 'Illuminati' elite in an effort to create dissociated mind-controlled slaves.

    Dr. Sinason is also a patron of CARA (Centre for Action on Rape and Abuse) based in Chelmsford, in the County of Essex, England. CARA is committed to the idea that police officers (presumably from Essex Police constabulary) and social workers (presumably from Essex County Council) have amongst them satanists who take part in rituals (see the Entry for Lindsey Read). A meeting such as the Survivors Conference would give her and other advocates every opportunity to persuade members of other police forces (notably the Metropolitan Police) to investigate both Essex police and the British security services.

    Fortunately Metropolitan Police officers have frequent contact with Dr. Sinason on an official basis. This is discussed in a later section on Page 5.

    Richard Curen is also a member of the International Association for Forensic Psychotherapy. "Forensic Psychotherapy" is the profession that his colleague Brett Kahr has apparently done his best to torpedo with the commissioning of Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder. He is also a member of another charity, Respond which is also a leading SRA Myth advocacy source. Another IPD Trustee and committed SRA Myth advocate, Alan Corbett, discussed later on this page, is also a former Director of Respond.

    David O'DriscollDavid O'Driscoll is a relative unknown in the SRA Myth world. He is though Assistant Director of the Respond charity. He has a background in learning disability services and is working as a psychotherapist in the NHS in Hertfordshire in the East of England. He is a founder member of the IPD and edits its newsletter.


    From April 2011, Mr. O'Driscoll's biography and photograph no longer appeared on the IPD Trustees web page, but there is no indication on the IPD site or elsewhere that he had resigned.



    Sheila HollinsSheila Hollins (Baroness Professor Hollins, having been elevated to The House of Lords in October 2010) is easily the most prestigious member of the IPD's Trustees. As Professor Sheila Hollins FRCPsych she has published with Dr. Sinason in the past, with Psychotherapy, learning disabilities and trauma: new perspectives (2000) in The British Journal of Psychiatry, setting out the frames of reference for the IPD. At the time she was working in the Department of Psychiatry of Disability, St George's Hospital Medical School, London. A former President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists (2005 and 2008) and co-author of well-received books such as You and Your Child Making Sense of Learning Disabilities (2005) and Young People and Crime Improving Provisions for Children Who Offend (2006). She retired from clinical practise in 2006. It is a mystery why she had determined to be associated with the IPD, rather than starting off her own Institute.

    From April 2011, Baroness Hollins biography and photograph no longer appeared on the IPD Trustees web page, but there is no indication on the IPD site or elsewhere that she has resigned. he is though still registered as a Director of the IPD (see Companies in the UK record for the IPD.)

    Nearly 18 months into being a Baroness, as of February 2012 she hadn't been able to get around to registering her Directorship in the Register of Lords' Interests for the House of Lords.

    Register of Lords' Interests

    Seeing as Baroness Professor Hollins speaks on the subjects of mental health and disability, it would perhaps be expected she would declare her interest and connection with the Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability, not least because a sizeable number of its senior staff are associated with advocating for the SRA Myth.

    Baroness Hollins and Dr. Valerie Sinason are apparently seeking to run 'evenings' with other 'senior people in the profession' at the Freud Museum. Dates to be announced. There will be three a year.' Further details when posted will be found here.

    Baroness Hollins and Dr. Sinason have co-authored a series of "Books Beyond Words" guides, including Going to Court and Jenny Speaks Out. Without Dr. Sinason she has authored or co-authored other similar books, such as Looking after my breasts and the unfortunately-titled Looking After My Balls.

    Both Baroness Hollins and Valerie Sinason worked under the auspices and guidance of Professor Joan Bicknell. It isn't clear if her paranoid fantasies about witches and a network of covens trying to entice British girls to them was adopted by Baroness Hollins. Dr. Sinason's belief in witchcraft is already well-documented in her own words.

    Pat FrankishDr. Patricia Frankish B.Sc(Hons) has degrees in Psychology and humanities and masters in Clinical Psychology. On her Web site Pat Frankish Psychology she describes herself having "wide experience of psychological issues across age groups. She has a specialist interest in early personality development and the consequences of disturbance through traumatic life events.

    She is an active member of the British Psychological Society and was Chair of the Division of Clinical Psychology 1993-1995 and President of the Society 1999-2000. She is also registered with the Health Professions Council (HPC). Her Work with early emotional development in people with learning disabilities is published and presented to international audiences
    ."

    Unfortunately, Dr. Pat Frankish's history with the British Psychological Society has been tainted by her involvement as the chair of the disciplinary committee that tried to disbar child psychologist and autism expert Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown through a protracted three-year process that finished in 2008. The entire sorry tale is detailed in Christina England's online work The Professional Assassination Of Autism Expert Lisa Blakemore-Brown. The case, which rendered the BPS a laughing stock was (and remains) extensively discussed through numerous web forums, including Dr Aubrey Blumsohn's The Shame of the British Psychological Society - Last chapter in the Lisa Blakemore Brown saga.

    Despite the embarrassment of the Lisa Blakemore-Brown saga, Dr. Frankish remains a key figure in the BPS, contributing to the catchy-named conference Joint Congress of the European Association for Mental Health in Intellectual Disability & IASSID Challenging Behaviour & Mental Health SIRG held in Manchester, North-West England in early September 2011. The conference featured numerous co-founders of the IPD, and the core of True Believers in the SRA Myth in the UK with the exception of Adah Sachs, Graeme Galton, Brett Kahr and David Icke. The conference is discussed in its own section here

    As with Baroness Sheila Hollins it is initially a mystery as to why Dr. Frankish should choose to be associated with the IPD, rather than establish her own Institute to address her skills and desire to aid those with learning disabilities. Further investigation though reveals she chaired a debate at a past Clinic for The Study of Dissociation/RAINS conference at The Bowlby Centre in September 2009 Ritual Abuse & Mind Control - the Manipulation of Attachment Needs that also featured as key-note speaker Dr. Ellen P. Lacter, whose descent into paranoia, allied to a fascination with witch-hunting, is described in Part Three of this Entry.

    She is also the senior Trustee of The Paracelsus Trust, a front charity to raise funds for the Clinic of Dissociative Studies (discussed later). As a psychologist she is bound to the HPC's ethical and professional code, and this is referenced on her Web site. It appears that she is providing training facilities for the IPD (though as discussed later she neglects to mention this on her Web site). Dr. Frankish easily trips over the threshold to be called an SRA Myth True Believer.

    Nigel BeailProfessor Nigel Beail, although not providing a photograph and biography on the IPD site, is in fact Professor Nigel Beail, currently Consultant Clinical Psychologist and Head of Psychological Services for Barnsley Learning Disability Service and Honorary Chair in Psychology at the University of Sheffield in the North of England.

    He is also the IPD's Secretary and a member of the Executive Committee of the European Association for Mental Health in Intellectual Disabilities. In 2004 he was appointed by the UK Minister of Health to the Mental Health Bill Implementation Advisory Group at the Department of Health.

    Unlike Baroness Hollins, Dr. Beail has a well-established history of advocating for the SRA Myth, and is certainly a True Believer with the bells-and-whistles that comes with it, including the 'modern' David Icke-inspired element. He too attended the conference at The Bowlby Centre in September 2009 Ritual Abuse & Mind Control - the Manipulation of Attachment Needs which featured Dr. Ellen P. Lacter as key-note speaker. Indeed his speech Ritual Abuse and Learning Disability followed that of fellow IPD Trustee Adah Sachs, who in turn had followed Dr. Ellen P. Lacter.

    From April 2011, Professor Beail's biography and photograph no longer appeared on the IPD Trustees web page, but there is no indication on the IPD site or elsewhere that he had resigned. Once again Dr. Beail easily trips over the threshold to be called an SRA Myth True Believer.

    Perhaps not entirely surprisingly, Prof. Beail's 'full list of publications' doesn't include his early SRA Myth advocating works (see Prof. Nigel Beail's Publications) although his association with the SRA Myth and its place in contemporary British history, particularly when it was deeply associated with extreme far-Right religious fundamentalism imported from the USA, is well documented.

    Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse


    Professor Beail's history with an obsession with the SRA Myth goes back all the way to its beginnings almost in the UK. He contributed Fire, Coffin and Skeletons to Dr. Sinason's infamous Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (see the extensive analysis of this book at Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Routledge, 1994) way before advocates of the 'Myth even became overtly fascinated by DID/MPD (though the subject did appear in the book) and certainly not the paranoid fantasies about the CIA/MI5 and the 'Illuminati'. Indeed Dr. Beail's SRA Myth obsessions pre-date the entire plethora of David Icke inspired (or inspired by?) conspiracy theories. In 1994 in the UK, poor and disadvantaged people were being branded satanists and witches, but that was soon to rapidly change. In 1995 he co-authored Sexual abuse of adults with learning disabilities in the Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, and was unable to avoid mentioning the SRA Myth at a time when academic peer review standards in many psychology and psychiatric journals had temporarily lapsed or been abandoned altogether.

    The most disturbing aspect of his inclusion amongst the IPD's Trustees - amongst which he doesn't particularly stand-out, is his means of having his voice heard by the British government, presumably in advocating for the 'talking therapies'. In February 2011, lobbying by psychiatrists, psychologists and psychotherapists had managed to secure enhanced funding for the 'talking therapies', as reported by the BBC. It would be difficult to not assume that the increase in provisions for therapy, particularly from psychotherapists like those provided by the IPD, wouldn't result in a peculiar increase in allegations that their patients had been 'satanically-abused'.

    It isn't clear if in his dealings with Government, Dr. Beail takes the opportunity to voice concerns that the British security services are (apparently) engaged in satanically abusing children in a effort to create legions of dissociated mind-controlled robots.

    Roger Banks(adapted from his Trustee entry) Professor Roger Banks is the Chairman of the IPD and another co-founder. He is a former Vice-President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists and now College Lead for Mental Health in Primary Care. He is also a Consultant in the Psychiatry of Learning Disability with North Wales NHS Trust and Honorary Senior Lecturer in the College of Health and Behavioural Sciences at Bangor University. He is a fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists and co-editor of the College Report on Psychotherapy and Learning Disability (2004) and the joint report (with BPS and RCSLT) on Challenging Behaviour - A unified approach (2007). He was also a member of the scoping group that produced the report on Psychological Therapies in Psychiatry and Primary Care (2008). He is also an honorary fellow of the Royal College of General Practitioners, and flies helicopters as a hobby.

    Dr. Banks history with the SRA Myth is seemingly non-existent. It is a mystery why he has determined to associate himself with the IPD, rather than form his own Institute around him.

    The IPD's Trustees round-off with clinical nurse Isabel Robinson, psychotherapist Shula Wilson and an unknown, Nancy Sheppard, all of whom who have no known associations with the SRA Myth. A new Trustee listed, Alan Corbett, is detailed on this page further below.

    In essence the IPD looks like an organisation with a split personality - 12 known Trustees in all, of whom five (including Alan Corbett) are heavily associated with the SRA Myth - its President Dr. Sinason, Adah Sachs, Professor Nigel Beail and Dr. Pat Frankish and Mr. Corbett. One, Richard Curen is associated with a charity noted for its support of the 'Myth (to the point of inviting Dr. Sinason to come along and speak on the subject). David O'Driscoll also has only a vague connection to SRA Myth advocates before the IPD.

    Three have no known association with the 'Myth, and two - Professor Banks and Baroness Professor Hollins can call themselves genuine giants in their professions, and wouldn't normally be expected it seems, to have fallen into the mire of those around them they are now associating with. Baroness Professor Hollins though has had a long association with those believing in satanism and witchcraft.

    There might just be a lingering suspicion that somehow the UKCP (United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy, and a related organisation - the CPJA (Council for Psychoanalysis and Jungian Analysis) were completely unaware that Valerie Sinason and many of the fellow IPD Trustees were in fact SRA Myth advocates. Perhaps it could be believed that Dr. Sinason and the other Trustees noted for their belief in the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' side of psychotherapy, psychiatry and psychology might have just been pursuing another part of their professional activities, and it it simply coincidental that many of them share an obsession for the 'Myth.

    Unfortunately no such get-out exists for the UKCP and CPJA. Their 'inspection' of the IPD, just prior to approving its membership of the two organisations was conducted at the Clinic for Dissociative Studies, on January 31st 2009. Strangely none of the 'inspectors' noted that their inspection was being conducted at the very heart of SRA Myth advocacy in the United Kingdom;

    Report following visit on the 31 January 2009 to The Institute for Psychotherapy and Disability in response to their Application for membership of UKCP and CPJA

    The Visitors:
    James Barrett
    Jane Haberlin
    Alan McConnon (UKCP)

    IPD:
    Pat Frankish (Founder member)
    Valerie Sinason (President)
    Brett Kahr (Founder Member)
    Shula Wilson (Full Member)
    Reed Cappleman (Student)

    The meetings took place between 9.30 and 3.00 at Valerie Sinason's Clinic for Dissociative Studies in North London. We were provided with a room in which the three of us could confer, and with a sustaining lunch and refreshments.

    It is our recommendation that the Institute for Psychotherapy and Disability be accepted as a Listed Member Organisation of the Council for Psychoanalysis and Jungian Analysis.

    It became clear to us over the course of the visit that IPD constitute a substantial body of members (currently 64 Full Members and 17 Associate Members) whose work is not only expressing the needs of a population until now unrepresented in the psychoanalytic culture of theory and practice, they are offering perspectives that invigorate the fundamental aspects of our work. Psychotherapy with those with disabilities has the needs of an emergent field that will enhance the psychoanalytic body of work, as work with the elderly and children have done.
    (Source: Report following visit on the 31 January 2009 to The Institute for Psychotherapy and Disability in response to their Application for membership of UKCP and CPJA)

    The inspectors from the CPJA and UKCP apparently missed noticing that three of the five IPD staff and Trustees they were meeting with are leading SRA Myth advocates in the UK - Dr. Sinason herself, Dr. Brett Kahr and Dr. Pat Frankish.

    The IPD's registered address is 1 Northcliff Road, Kirdon Lindsey, Gainsborough, DN1 4NJ. Strangely enough Gainborough is the home town for the next organisation to be discussed. The IPD and the Clinic for Dissociative Studies share another connection; a charity formed to raise finance for the Clinic.

    Whilst the IPD ostensibly appears to have been setup for the purpose of improving the provision of psychotherapy services for the learning disabled, its direct influence as an Institute on policy in Great Britain since its establishment in 2000 has been precisely zero.

    This though doesn't present a complete picture. Though the IPD might be frozen-out on being able to claim to have made a significant impact, its individual members, and particularly its Trustees, with the exception of Dr. Sinason, who struggles to be invited to join any organisation not of her own inventing (though with one exception listed further below), have managed to gain important positions in other organisations and committees advocating for the learning disabled in the UK.

    The two principal organisations that advocate for the learning disabled and their carers in the UK are BILD, the British Institute of Learning Disabilities, with forty years experience gained from its establishment in 1971, and the LDC, the Learning Disability Coalition which brings together fourteen other organisations such as The Downs Syndrome Association, The National Forum for People with Learning Difficulties and the National Autistic Society.

    These groups can speak in a united and cohesive form more powerful than their individual voices. None of these organisations and coalitions will have anything to do with the Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability. Indeed the obsessional beliefs in the SRA Myth/DID promoted by IPD Trustees; that the intellectually and learning disabled are invariably victims of satanic ritual abuse (committed by their carers and others) are such that the IPD is never likely to make any headway using its own name, ever.

    This observation though isn't the case with the work of the individual Trustees of the IPD. Working on their own, many of them have buried themselves deep into the structures of key committees and organisations such as BILD. The impact of these people on, for instance, the British Institute of Learning Disabilities is uncertain, almost certainly IPD Trustees in such positions will try to introduce a belief in Dissociative Identity Disorder and the SRA Myth onto other management staff, and have it reflected in official policy. The snag of course is that even a cursory review of the IPD will reveal its SRA Myth/DID-obsessional Trustees. Organisations like BILD are not naturally inclined to accept theories that have their origins in extreme far-right religious fundamentalism from the USA, and the risk of having say BILD mentioned as sharing a strategy foisted upon it that sounds suspiciously like the ravings of David Icke ensures such a move is not likely to 'fly'.

    IPD founder Trustee and SRA Myth-believer from the very beginning, Professor Nigel Beail is a Trustee of the British Institute of Learning Disabilities. As with Dr. Pat Frankish he is a member of the British Psychological Society, being a committee member of the Society's Faculty for Learning Disability.

    Baroness Sheila Hollins is also a Trustee of the British Institute of Learning Disabilities.

    BILD last had anything to do with Dr. Valerie Sinason in 1994, just before she became deeply associated with her obsessional belief in the SRA Myth, publishing her paper The treatment of people with learning disabilities who have been abused in J. Harris and A. Craft's People with Learning Disabilities at Risk of Physical or Sexual Abuse.

    IPD founder Trustee and current Chair Dr. Pat Frankish is a Member of BILD and has been since 1974.

    To its credit BILD, perhaps the most vulnerable of the British learning disabled advocate/support groups to the SRA Myth sect, has managed to keep such influence from its own British Journal of Learning Disabilities journal, published by Wiley (fortunately not Informa PLC whose enthusiasm for the SRA Myth is already documented). The Editorial Board is SRA Myth True Believer-free, and although Professor Beail et al sometimes get their articles published in the Journal, they too are thankfully SRA Myth and even DID/MPD-free.

    In summary, although the IPD has appeared to achieved little, on an individual basis, its Trustees have managed a thorough infiltration of at least one major learning disability organisation - BILD. Nonetheless the Web site for the IPD reflects the total lack of achievements to-date. Having an organisation like BILD 'stuffed' with SRA Myth believing Trustees is invaluable for the SRA Myth advocates cause, but no immediate impact on BILD is yet discernible.

    Although British psychology suffered hugely during the 'Myth years, and plenty of SRA Myth-believing psychologists can be found, The British Psychological Society, even having had Dr. Pat Frankish as a brief President, has remained relatively unscathed. Its journal The Psychologist has only published two DID articles - 2009's The interpersonal civil war by Rebecca Johnson (volume 22, number 4) and more recently an advertisement in 2011 for Through the eye of the Trauma Storm: EMDR in the Treatment of Trauma promoting a seminar on Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing treatment, one of the more 'shit-house-rat-crazy' theories that infests modern psychiatry, psychology and psychotherapy in the US and UK, and is hugely popular with SRA Myth/DID therapists. It has to be assumed that wiser heads prevail in British psychology most of the time, ensuring the profession doesn't descend into the abyss of becoming an outlet for the meandering obsessions of the likes of Professor Beail, Dr. Sinason, Dr. Frankish, Dr. Ellen P. Lacter and David Icke.

    Psychotherapy on the other hand is almost certainly a "lost" profession in the UK; many of its primary professional institutions are riddled with SRA Myth True Believers to the point that the same organisations are willing to advertise SRA Myth events on their official web sites (see Page Three of this extended entry). With many of its professional bodies compromised and even with its chief academic book publishers (Routledge/Informa PLC and Karnac) now inclined to dish-out conspiracy-theory volumes in competition with David Icke, it is hard to envisage an easy route to a future whereby psychotherapy isn't regarded as a sad joke in the UK. There are some signs of shoots of recovery appearing, notably through the INTEGRITY group, but these are rare and only in their infancy. Psychotherapy offers much to address many of the problems that beset inhabitants of the modern world, but its innate ability to dig itself in a pit, and then keep digging, is almost legendary. For the foreseeable future though, the beneficiaries of the current British psychotherapy environment appear to include a large number of English-speaking, white middle-aged women born into privilege and inclined to claim they are victims of satanic ritual abuse, then be diagnosed as having multiple personalities after extensive therapy and reading lots of books.

    This raises the question then of what precisely is the IPD established-for, and why do its Trustees persist with it? The clue of course is clearly stated in its founding aims;

    To become an accrediting body for disability psychotherapy


    By ensuring that the IPD became an accrediting body, the Institute was able ensure that psychotherapists trained to work in the learning and intellectually disabled fields are suitably equipped with the Trustees peculiar 'take' on the likes of DID and of course a belief in the SRA Myth. There is no discernible evidence that the IPD exists for the benefit of the disabled, and every evidence that it exists for the further continuance of the promotion of the SRA Myth amongst British psychotherapy.

    As noted earlier in the section Trauma, disability, attachment and the promotion of the SRA Myth, other professionals working in the field of intellectual disability don't appear to have been sufficiently willing to acknowledge Dr. Sinason's contribution to the cause sufficiently. This was addressed by simply having one of Dr. Sinason's peers, Graeme Galton, 'vanity' interview her.

    Likewise the other Trustees of the IPD appear to be suffering the same problem; intellectual disability experts and professionals just don't seem to be showing enough respect to the various SRA Myth advocates who dominate the IPD.

    The Trustees have therefore responded through the simple expediency of having them interview each other in public, in an effort to get this snag rectified, and for the public and others to precisely understand the contribution of the 'Pioneers of Disability Psychotherapy' in a series of staged interviews between October and December 2011 (Treating with Respect: Conversations with the pioneers of disability psychotherapy).

    Run from The Freud Museum in Hampstead, London, the first 'conversation' occurred on Thursday 13th October with Baroness Hollins in Conversation with fellow IPD Trustee Dr. Roger Banks.

    On the second evening on Tuesday, 15th November, SRA Myth True Believer Dr. Pat Frankish was in conversation with Mr. Alan Corbett, a 'new', or rather previously unannounced IPD Trustee and committed SRA Myth True Believer.

    On the final evening, Thursday, 15th December, 2011 Dr. Sinason was in conversation with yet another fellow leading SRA Myth True Believer and IPD Trustee Professor Brett Kahr, whereupon there was a book launch of a revised edition of Dr. Sinason's book Mental Handicap and the Human Condition: An Analytic Approach to Intellectual Disability.

    If anyone was left in doubt that the Trustees of the IPD, and in particular Dr. Sinason, had managed to keep their obsessions with the SRA Myth away from their 'pioneering' IPD work with intellectual disability, then unfortunately Dr. Sinason herself scotched any such hope in an email reply for the IPD's newsletter in May 2010, when asked why there was need for a new edition of the book, by IPD Newsletter editor David O’Driscoll;

    Why did you have it revised?
    1. Mental handicap and the Human Condition has been reprinted almost yearly and because it is largely charting the detailed to and fro of therapy sessions a lot remains timeless and not in need of revision. However, there were three major omissions in the book that I did feel concerned about. One was the work on dissociative states in people with learning disabilities, one was the importance of group work and a third was on assessments of capacity to mother in women with a learning disability. I am pleased to say that I have made up for two of those deficiencies. There is a detailed chapter on group-work which I find a crucial element of treatment to offer as well as a chapter on working with ritual abuse and dissociative identity disorder in a young woman with a severe intellectual disability.
    (Source: IPD Newsletter, May 2011, reply from Dr. Valerie Sinason in response to email from the editor)

    By which time the 'Pioneers of Disability Psychotherapy' had finished their not-likely-to-be-too-probing-interviews, hopefully all those who had attended will have been sufficiently appraised of the contribution of the SRA Myth True Believer IPD Trustees in their cause. Or perhaps they will have recognised an 'orgy of vanity'.

    By mid-2011 the IPD 'Trustees' page no longer featured photographs of David O'Driscoll and Baroness Hollins, nor mentions, however brief, Professor Beail. Dr. Sinason, Dr. Frankish, Professors Roger Banks and of course long-time SRA Myth enthusiast Brett Kahr remain pictured. The more recent appointees have been joined by Irish psychotherapist Angelina Veiga.

    One further Trustee, apparently appointed in 2001 but not announced on the Trustee page until mid-2011 destroyed any suspicion that the IPD might be trying to lose its association with the SRA Myth. If anything the organisation is becoming more engaged with the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' side of British psychotherapy, with those who have the most to lose in terms of professional credibility - such as Professor Beail and Baroness Hollins, perhaps not so enthusiastic about their True Belief

    Alan Corbett(adapted from his Trustee entry) Alan Corbett, another Irish psychotherapist is perhaps one of the most fascinating of modern SRA Myth advocates. A psychotherapist and Board Member of The International Association for Forensic Psychotherapy (see Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder - taking psychotherapy to a new academic low, he is also a 'delegate' for the Council for Psychoanalysis and Jungian Analysis (an organisation dripping with belief in the SRA Myth). In addition he is a former Director of leading SRA Myth/DID-advocacy charity Respond, a role shared in common with fellow IPD Trustee Richard Curen mentioned earlier. Mr. Corbett and Dr. Sinason have led the desire for the IPD to set-up an Irish branch, and a previous initiative with the Callan Institute, St John of God Community Services Limited in Eire might make that desire come true. Mr. Corbett is also Clinical Director of ICAP - Immigrant Counselling And Psychotherapy - a London-based charity established in 1996 by an Irish founder.

    But it is with Mr. Corbett's history with Irish charity CARI - The Children At Risk in Ireland Foundation, with whom Mr. Corbett was National Clinical Director from 2003-2006 that this IPD Trustee will forever be remembered in Irish history for;

    DEVIL-worshipping perverts are abusing children in sick sex rituals across Ireland, a leading charity has claimed.

    The evil pedophiles subject their victims to horrific violence and demonic ceremonies before using them as sexual sacrifices for the devil.

    Alan Corbett of Children At Risk In Ireland (Cari) said: "We have heard of people operating in groups of perhaps six or seven to commit their crimes and terrorise their victims into keeping quiet.

    "We have had a number of cases where sophisticated networks of abusers commit horrible crimes of abuse in an organised way.

    "It is often backed up by a very strange belief system which they believe justifies the abuse and the crimes they perpetrate.

    "People tend not to want know much about this, but when you work with the cases the details of the abuse is devastating."

    Traumatised therapists on Cari's help line received several shocking calls from victims of the devil-worshipping pedophiles.

    Today we can reveal the twisted groups:

    ABUSE toddlers as young as two

    SACRIFICE animals to Satan as they threaten victims with violence

    BELIEVE what they are doing is sanctioned by the devil, and

    AVOID prosecution by threatening violence or death if victims talk of the ceremonies.

    Mr Corbett said the Satanic abuse was a growing problem and it was time for the public to address the horrific crimes.

    He said people who worship the devil hunt in packs, luring victims to secret hideaways and subjecting them to terrifying ordeals in the name of Satan.

    His comments came after the charity received a number of distressing calls to its helpline from victims of the satanic abusers.

    Mr Corbett said most of the terrified callers refused to reveal their names or details of where the abuse took place for fear of retribution from the evil gangs.

    But he revealed the therapists heard of torture, ritualistic sacrifices and sick devil worshipping ceremonies at the hands of Satanists.

    He added: "It sounds like something from a movie, but rituals, the reciting of Satanic verse and other bizarre ceremonies all seem to form part of the paraphernalia of this kind of abuse.

    "These kind of dreadful crimes can only be perpetrated by abusers who have quite an unusual system of belief.

    "There is every chance the people involved have normal jobs and lead normal lives outside of the crimes."
    (Source: KIDS IN SATANIC SEX HORROR; Experts warn devil worship pervs are abusing children, by Stuart Maclean, Irish Daily Mirror, 7th March 2005)

    Perhaps not entirely surprisingly, with Mr. Corbett gone, CARI rapidly dropped its association with SRA Myth advocacy, though seeing as he had previously joint-authored Witnessing, nurturing, protesting-Therapeutic responses to sexual abuse of people with learning disabilities (1996) with regular colleague Tamsin Cottis and Stephen Morris, and with satanic abuse mentioned on pages 25, 30, 73, 74, 75 and 76, and a forward by none other than Dr. Valerie Sinason, most organisations would have been wary. As it is CARI appeared to have skipped discussing Mr. Corbett's work in the job interview, and in particular his obsession with satanic ritual abuse. An effort to confirm if CARI are still, as an organisation, committed to the SRA Myth proved unsuccessful; the organisation refuses to discuss its policy. Conceivably some lingering belief in the 'Myth persists in the charity, but with little opportunity to express itself.

    A CARI conference said to have been set to discuss the SRA Myth allegations disappeared without trace. With the 'survivors' strangely unanimously refusing to reveal their names or details of where the abuse took place for fear of retribution from the evil gangs and presumably using untraceable phone lines, there wasn't much for the An Garda Síochána to pursue, and indeed there is no indication from Mr. Corbett that he was able to get around to informing the police with his information. He does though claim to be a lecturer on the Trinity University MSc in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy and on the Garda Síochána course on specialist interviewing of children and adults with intellectual disabilities who are victims of sexual crime (from IPD Trustees) giving him every opportunity it seems to report his SRA Myth suspicions directly to Garda officers.

    The Irish Daily Mirror rapidly dropped the story (the lack of any evidence or corroboration being major factors) and the British edition didn't run Stuart Maclean's 'story'. Not many years later Maclean made his way to South Africa, his journalistic career finished.

    Mr. Corbett though made his way to England, where amongst the fellow Trustees of the IPD and the Council for Psychoanalysis and Jungian Analysis he would be amongst kindred spirits. Once again a firm belief in the SRA Myth would be a key element in continuing as an IPD Trustee, though perhaps it was wise not to mention yet another SRA Myth True Believer to the world immediately after escaping Eire for England. In 2008 he contributed to intellectual Disability, Trauma and Psychotherapy (2008) edited by Tamsin Cottis, who he has previously collaborated with.

    Unencumbered with the burden or desire of having to secure evidence for outrageous statements and judgements (a core philosophy it seems in 'forensic psychotherapy') Mr. Corbett will most likely prove to fit-in just perfectly into the British psychotherapy profession.

    Whilst most organisations would be wary of any association with the SRA Myth, that natural instinct, as has been demonstrated, isn't universal. Even Dr. Valerie Sinason, in addition to her being an IPD Trustee, has managed at least one position of prominence. She is a member of the Advisory Council of Norwood, a British learning disabilities charity, whose President is former newspaper industry star Richard Desmond, and who can include amongst their Patrons The Queen and Cherie Blair. The Norwood organisation is fully aware of Dr. Sinason's obsessions with DID and the SRA Myth;

    For the last decade she has also been at the forefront of the growing awareness and understanding of ritual abuse and the ways that psychoanalytic psychotherapy can be used to treat its victims.

    Valerie played a key role in developing the current understanding of the psychodynamics of this abuse. This controversial work has also focused on establishing the traumatic aetiology of dissociative identity disorder (DID) and has highlighted its link with ritual abuse.
    (Source: From Norwood profile for Dr. Valerie Sinason)

    Just how much of Valerie Sinason's passion in combining both her work in intellectual disability with her obsessions with the SRA Myth and DID have taken hold in the Norwood organisation is unknown, but few organisations, certainly a charity for the intellectually disabled would normally reference 'ritual abuse' in its public web pages. Certainly fellow Advisory Council members, including Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, Dr. Danya Glaser of Great Ormond Street Hospital and Dr. Richard Trompeter also of GOSH would normally be expected be aware of their fellow members' public Norwood profile. Professor Simon Baron-Cohen though took the time to communicate with this web site, to comment that the details of Dr. Sinason's profile were beyond his knowledge.

    The GOSH members are partially absolved - belief in the 'Myth had been long-established at the hospital for over two decades, though management has attempted to stamp-out religious fundamentalist and feminist obsessions amongst the staff since the late 1980s. Dr. Danya Glaser though probably has no time whatsoever for Valerie Sinason, if she's even aware of her, and in particular her corruption of John Bowlby's work. As the co-author of Understanding Attachment and Attachment Disorder (2006) and a particular enthusiast for Bowlby, the manner in which SRA Myth proponents have taken-over his legacy would be likely an anathema for her (see The SRA Myth and the destruction of John Bowlby's legacy. Understanding Attachment and Attachment Disorder co-authored with Vivian Prior is discussed in the entry for Candace Newmaker.)

    Confusingly for conspiracy theorists who are inclined to 'shit-house-rat-crazy' obsessions, Norwood's Chairman Bernie Myers is a director in the Rothchild group of companies - the Rothchild's being a favourite target for the likes of David Icke and far-right and 'left-leaning' paranoids. Such news doesn't sit well also with those who also believe The Tavistock Clinic, whom Dr. Sinason and attachment pioneer John Bowlby - discussed on page 5 worked at, were also part of some State-sponsored mind control operation. How much Dr. Sinason's/David Ickes universe has seeped-into Norwood and its senior Trustees and Advisors is open to speculation.

    The 8th European Congress of Mental Health in Intellectual Disability



    8th Congress


    Held at the Palace Hotel in Manchester, North West England on 1-3rd September 2011, the Congress - correctly titled Joint Congress of the European Association for Mental Health in Intellectual Disabilities and the IASSID SIRG for Challenging Behaviour and Mental Health, co-sponsored by the British Psychological Society, was an opportunity for both the Trustees of the IPD and leading SRA Myth/DID advocates to gather together. Leading SRA Myth and conspiracy theorist Professor Nigel Beail played a key part, leading the "Great Psychological Therapy Debate". As with similar professional conferences, papers were presented in individual sessions to the attendees peers.

    Of those attending and speaking and/or presenting papers, Trustees of the IPD/SRA Myth advocates comprised a large minority. For the most part, with the exception of Dr. Valerie Sinason (who seemingly never misses a chance to roll any profession - in this case psychology, rather than the normal psychotherapy discipline - off a cliff) the attendees managed to stay away from the obsession with the SRA Myth/DID.

    Baroness Sheila Baroness Hollins, provided a keynote address on the 1st September, with Better Lives and Better Mental Health for Children and Young People with Intellectual Disabilities. She was described as Professor of Psychiatry of Disability at St George’s University of London. The session was chaired by fellow IPD Trustee/founder Nigel Beail, who was described as President of the European Association for Mental Health in Intellectual Disability.

    Professor Beail, in addition to opening the conference and chairing various sessions, presented his papers Psychological Therapies Outcome Scale for People who have Intellectual Disabilities and The impact on support staff of applying mechanical restraints to people with self injurious behaviour, being described as working at Barnsley Learning Disability Service and University of Sheffield.

    Fellow IPD Trustee/SRA Myth/DID advocate Dr. Pat Frankish also chaired sessions, ran a workshop and presented four papers, including the intriguingly (and sexist) titled - Giving up men – or reaching a sense of self as separate and complete and described herself as Consultant Clinical psychologist and Disability psychotherapist, Pat Frankish Associates, Pat Frankish Psychology & Psychotherapy Consultancy Services, Ltd, England. It is Dr. Frankish who amongst the IPD Trustees/SRA Myth advocates attending has the most input into the Congress gatherings of psychologists in Europe, having contributed to the organisation of many such meetings before.

    Richard Curen, also an IPD Trustee and at the periphery of the SRA Myth True Believers amongst its retinue, presented The Challenges of Paraphilia and Paraphilia-related Disorders in Men with Intellectual Disabilities – How Psychotherapy can help to address these behaviours and was described as being from Respond.

    Professor Roger Banks co-presented Human Rights - at what cost?, described as being from the University Health Board Wales where he is Consultant Psychiatrist, Head of Learning Disability Programme/Learning Disabilities at Bryn y Neuadd Hospital, Llanfairfechan (and increasingly falling-off the scale in his profession).

    Valerie Sinason was unfortunately the one IPD Trustee/SRA Myth/DID advocate who gave the game away. She presented Dissociative Identity Disorder and Challenging Behaviour in The Buckingham Suite on 1st September, and was described as V .Sinason, Clinic for Dissociative Studies. The Challenging Behaviour is an old theme from Dr. Sinason, referencing how 'survivors' challenge professionals and others with their stories and insistence that they have been ritually abused and are 'multiples'. Although like a stuck record, seemingly unable to escape the desire to try to persuade her peers and others that satanic abuse and DID/MPD are rife and that Britain and America's military and security forces are chock-full of satanists, it is often forgotten that before she engendered herself to US-derived far-right fundamentalist paranoias and David Icke, Dr. Sinason was a highly respected authority in the field of intellectual disability. Unfortunately in recent times she and her fellow SRA Myth True Believers at the IPD have had to take steps to encourage their peers to appreciate precisely how much respect should be given.

    (Source for the above Congress Program PDF).

    Perhaps surprisingly, not one of the IPD Trustees; Baroness Sheila Hollins, Prof. Nigel Beail, Dr. Pat Frankish, Valerie Sinason and Richard Curen who attended and spoke/presented at the The 8th European Congress of Mental Health in Intellectual Disability, probably the annual highlight of the intellectual disability mental health professional European peer gatherings, felt able or comfortable enough to mention that they were founders and/or Trustees of the IPD. Even on her own page listed on the 8th Congress web site Dr. Frankish wasn't inclined to mention the Institute for Psychotherapy and Disability even though she presented a keynote speech.

    Professor Sheila Baroness Hollins, also on her own page for the 8th Congress couldn't quite get around to mentioning the IPD and her weighty connection with it, even though she too was honoured in presenting a keynote speech.

    And this might seem rather odd, because what better a venue than the European Congress of Mental Health in Intellectual Disability would there have been to publicise the IPD?

    The reason for not doing so can only be speculated-upon. If it was concern that the IPD is seen in some quarters as being no more than a front for SRA myth/DID advocates, then Dr. Valerie Sinason mangled that strategy outright with her Dissociative Identity Disorder and Challenging Behaviour. A simpler explanation is that Baronness Hollins, Prof's Banks and Beail, Dr. Frankish and Mr. Curen simply feared that if some or all of them mentioned the IPD, it might draw unnecessary attention to the Institute, which doesn't necessarily sit well amongst their 'true' professional peers. Once again though, Dr. Sinason mangled that strategy, if it existed in the first place. Certainly some of the attendees not already aware of Dr. Sinason's reputation would have searched the Web, and from there, not too hard to see the IPD connection...and then the connection with Baroness Hollins, Frankish, Beail, Banks and Mr. Curen.

    Only the absence of Brett Kahr, Adah Sachs, Graeme Galton and David Icke prevented the 8th European Congress of Mental Health in Intellectual Disability getting a "full house" of all of Great Britain's leading SRA Myth/DID advocates in one place together at the same time. But even so, managing to get 6-out-of-10 present was an unparalleled feat that few other professions would be jealous of.

    The Paracelsus Trust

    UK charity (number 1114980) The Paracelsus Trust has been in operation since 2007. The charities registered office is that of psychologist Dr. Pat Frankish in Gainsborough, England - one of the Trustees of the IPD. The charities stated aims, as detailed to the Charity Commission is;

    To provide financial support for patients of the Clinic for Dissociative Studies where their normal NHS funder is unable to help & to provide advance funding where the normal funder will pay but payment might be delayed too long that the patient might be at risk. i.e assistance with housing, night-time protection that is unique to patients at risk of continuing Ritual Abuse, urgent respite.
    (Source: Declaration of charity description to Charity Commission of England & Wales by The Paracelsus Trust)

    The Charity Commission entry also notes that the charity only operates in London. For 'survivors' outside the well-heeled capital, and particularly those who cannot attend the CDS's address in Harley Street, they will apparently have to make their own arrangements to fight off satanists.

    The charity shares Trustees with the IPD. In a similar way to her unwillingness to mention the IPD at the 8th European Congress of Mental Health in Intellectual Disability Dr. Frankish doesn't mention that she is a Trustee of the IPD or the senior Trustee of The Paracelsus Trust on her Web site and doesn't even link to either the IPD or the charity on her Links page. Another part of her business is Frankish Training which offers a unique range of training courses in Disability Psychotherapy that are available through this site, increasing the availability and accessibility of training in this vitally important area though no mention is made if that training will incorporate an introduction to the SRA Myth. The Links page for Frankish Training DOES include a link for the IPD, although Dr. Frankish neglects to mention she is actually a Trustee of the Institute itself, or that apparently her training company is performing the training for the IPD. The joy of membership of the UKCP for the IPD, is that psychotherapists trained by the IPD (including presumably their special introduction to the SRA Myth) gain membership of the UKCP automatically, enabling the 'Myth to continue to persist in its domination of the UK psychotherapy profession;

    Of the CPJA requirements that are not met are those with regard to trainees' personal therapy, although this is the subject of continued debate in the organisation. The IPD requirement is for once a week for one year of the training. Also, the training is currently run by a linked organisation, Pat Frankish Associates not specifically by IPD. We think it should be kept in mind that throughout our history creative founder members and initial trainees have not had the qualifications that have subsequently been developed. As matters stand those eligible to be put forward as registrants through CPJA by IPD will be psychoanalytic psychotherapists who have completed the IPD requirements for Full Membership.
    (Source: Report following visit on the 31 January 2009 to The Institute for Psychotherapy and Disability in response to their Application for membership of UKCP and CPJA)

    An interesting exercise would be to imagine how long a prospective trainee at the IPD is going to last if he or she expresses doubt or incredulity at the SRA Myth.

    The charities other Trustees comprise six individuals. Included amongst them are;

  • Mr. Brett Eric Kahr
  • Lady Xenia Bowlby
  • Ms. Orit Badouk-Epstein

    The chairperson is Deborah Briggs, a 'Trauma Counsellor' working in Leicester, England, and who was a signatoree in early 2012 to a letter which introduced 'Myth-watchers in the UK to a new organisation - The Committee on Ritual Abuse (see 'special pleading' - a Letter to The Guardian, January 23rd 2012 .

    Ms. Badouk-Epstein we know from being a co-editor of Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs, having presented at the parent conference in 2009. The conference featured notable 'shit-house-rat-crazy' and witch-hunter Dr. Ellen P. Lacter, ensuring that professional credibility was a sure no-hoper.

    Brett Kahr we know of course from being himself a Trustee of the IPD, and one of the most enthusiastic SRA Myth True Believers to be found in the UK today.

    Lady Bowlby is the wife of Richard Bowlby, the son of John Bowlby (1907-1990) perhaps the greatest British psychologist (and psychiatrist and psychoanalyst) to-date, and definer of attachment theory. His son is Sir Richard Bowlby. The manner in which John Bowlby's reputation and scientific legacy have been trashed with the now endemic association with SRA Myth advocates is discussed on page 5 at The SRA Myth and the destruction of John Bowlby's legacy.

    Dr. Sinason, Dr. Roger Banks and Dr. Sheila Hollins, together with Dr. Pat Frankish have worked together in the past, but after the formation of the IPD, they worked together to ensure that the Royal College of Psychiatrist's was the victim of the most outrageous instance of being taken-for-a-ride. With a Working Group investigation and report on Psychotherapy and learning disability, the four, neglecting to mention in the submitted working document accepted by the Royal College's Council that Dr. Sinason was the IPD's founder and President, took the opportunity to push the Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability, without the awkward question as to its association with the SRA Myth (Banks, Frankish and Hollins being Trustees for the Institute, which isn't mentioned either);

    The Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability
    The recent launch of the Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability provides a regulatory body and a home for those individuals who have been promoting psychodynamic approaches for many years. The Institute is accepting members who have experience in psychotherapy with people with learning disabilities; currently these are mainly psychotherapists who have worked with adults with learning disabilities or learning disability professionals who have provided psychotherapy with a qualified supervisor. Inevitably some people within this new field have managed with peer supervision to develop their skills and expertise. It is expected that progress will be made towards securing funding of research, promotion of appropriate posts for therapists and proper regulation of those in practice. The Institute has a Training Committee and is working towards the development of a set of accreditation standards for courses that would lead to qualification. This process will take several years.
    (Source: Psychotherapy and learning disability, Council Report CR116 March 2004, Royal College of Psychiatrists (Approved by Council: April 2003))

    Despite trying to be a 'serious' piece of academic work, seemingly in a effort to ensure that Dr. Nigel Beail, another senior Trustee of the IPD didn't feel left out, the References pages of Psychotherapy and learning disability managed to incorporate an entry for;

    Beail, N. (1994) Fire, coffins and skeletons. In Treating Survivors of Satanic Abuse (ed. V. Sinason), pp. 153–158. London: Routledge.


    and even Dr. Sinason's much-derided masterwork was determined to be an accurate resource;

    Sinason, J. & Svensson, A. (1994) Going through the fifth window: ‘Other cases rest on Sundays. This one didn’t’. In Treating Survivors of Satanic Abuse (ed. V. Sinason), pp. 13–21. London: Routledge.


    (Both quotes from pages 61 and 63 of Psychotherapy and learning disability, Council Report CR116 March 2004, Royal College of Psychiatrists (Approved by Council: April 2003))

    It seems that the vital training of psychotherapists geared towards intellectual disability will be conducted in the United Kingdom, by an Institute officially condoned by the UKCP (United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy) and green-lighted by the Royal College of Psychiatrists, but which is stuffed to the brim with SRA Myth advocates.

    With the Trustees of the IPD riddled with enthusiastic SRA Myth promoters, the question has to arise as to what the Institute for Psychotherapy and Disability actually exist for? Is it to promote the access of psychotherapy services for the intellectually and physically disabled, or is it simply a vehicle to enable Dr. Sinason, Dr. Frankish, Dr. Nigel Beail and their associates Richard Curen and David O'Driscoll (plus quite likely Dr. Sheila Hollins and Dr. Roger Banks) to evangelise their obsessions with the SRA Myth to a wider (and mostly willing) audience that includes psychotherapists and members of the Royal College of Psychiatrists?

    The problem though still remains in getting otherwise sane individuals and fellow professionals to accept the 'Myth, in the absence of any verifiable evidence.

    A particular feature of Dr. Sinason's enthusiasm for the SRA Myth through the Clinic for Dissociative Studies is that she has stated that she has patients at the Clinic who still undergo ritual abuse, and yet continue to be 'treated' at the clinic. This was revealed in her 'vanity' interview with fellow SRA Myth enthusiast Graeme Galton;

    GG: I know that some of the patients being seen by the clinic are still being ritually abused. And this must raise important ethical issues for you as a clinician. Have you been able to get any support regarding these ethical issues from the psychotherapy or psychoanalytic professional bodies?

    VS: No. We have written to them all and had acknowledgements, but had no response. Of course, how can there be if there is not enough of a body of us who have written in? I'm about to be sending off again, not just by myself, but also with other therapists from different trainings, a shared letter to say, `We are at risk, and the patients are at risk, in the absence of guidance in the ethical code'. Patients are at risk from their therapists' bodies not having a certainty around this. You see, if you have a total certainty that outside reality doesn't count, that it's inner work, it's easy.
    (Source: Valerie Sinason Talks to Graeme Galton, (Spring 2003) Free Associations”, Vol 10, part 4, No 56, Autumn 2003, published by Karnac Books)

    Dr. Sinason's rambling reply didn't perhaps meet the expectation that she would say something like "we address the ethical issues by getting them placed under police surveillance, tracking the victims and then having the perpetrators arrested on-the-spot, another conviction secured and another success chalked-up to the Clinic and the Metropolitan Police!" Regrettably, as discussed in The burden on RAINS members, and also in Retail therapy? Trying hard not to find evidence of ritual abuse amongst the Index pages for Beatrix Campbell OBE, it seems the last thing advocates for the SRA Myth want to do is actually find any ritual abusers and have them stopped.

    Trying to actually keep tabs on a victim of ritual abuse is quite hard, principally because it seems they don't actually go anywhere, and certainly not to be abused. This in an unusual essay in Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder (2008) by an SRA Myth-believing retired British detective;

    A woman told the psychiatrist that she was being taken out regularly and hurt, and that people were leaving dead animals on her doorstep. I arranged for fixed cameras to be put in place that would show anyone coming or going from her house. I did not tell her or the psychiatrist that I was doing this. Two weeks later the woman reported that she had been taken out and hurt again. But when we looked at the tapes, we could see no evidence for anything she'd described. I discussed it with the psychiatrist, who was quite taken aback and asked the woman about it. The woman said that she had left the house by another route, through a window, and that was why the camera had missed it.
    (Source: Unsolved: investigating allegations of ritual abuse by Chris Healey, page 27, from Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder (2008) Edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton Series Editor: Brett Kahr).

    The ethical problems for the Clinic and Dr. Sinason herself, in how to deal with patients still allegedly being abused, isn't half-as-difficult as those confronting the Metropolitan Police. These issues will be discussed later.

    Dr. Sinason though isn't the only British psychotherapist who has related that they have a client being ritually abused, and in response couldn't get around to doing anything about it.

    In Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs (published by Karnac Books in association with The Bowlby Centre, March 2011), former Chair of The Bowlby Centre, consultant psychotherapist with the Clinic for Dissociative Studies and co-editor and contributor Rachel Wingfield Schwartz relates her eight years of therapy with a client 'Jodi';

    Jodi reached the point where she knew inside herself that she had to try to work through the guilt and self-hate about being made to be a perpetrator. When Jodi had reached puberty, as with all female ritual abuse survivors, she was forced to kill her baby, whose birth had been prematurely induced by the cult doctor.


    In the course of the eight years, Wingfield Schwartz is apparently aware that her client is in a cult. How much of this a skeptic is supposed to believe is debatable. For most people it might be right to say that if they were told by someone of a baby-murdering cult, they would do everything and anything to ensure no other babies were killed. But 'Jodi' has other concerns beyond her account of killing her baby; her brother remains in the cult;

    There was, however, one final and fundamental conflict around attachment still to be faced. Jodi was finally able to let her dead baby go, but her brother was very much alive. He was still living at home, and Jodi did not know the extent of his continued involvement with the cult.
    (Source: Chapter 2 'An evil cradling'? Cult practices and the manipulation of attachment needs in ritual abuse by Rachel Wingfield Schwartz - published in Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs)

    And? Well that's it. Dr. Schwartz relates that with her assistance 'Jodi' wrote a letter to her brother, and presumably escaped the cult. In the meantime, over the course of the eight years, Dr. Wingfield couldn't seemingly bring herself to mention the existence of this alleged baby-killing cult to her fellow in the Clinic', Dr. Valerie Sinason, who maintains a direct line to Metropolitan Police detective DCI Clive Driscoll (see The Metropolitan Police and Valerie Sinason). As with Dr. Sinason, the belief by Dr. Rachel Wingfield Schwartz isn't matched with the passion and determination we would expect from most people having been given such news. And not only did she have no interest in doing what the vast majority of people would do in such circumstances (perhaps even some fellow psychotherapists)...even when the revealing of such a cult (if it exists) would satisfy the core lack of evidence that dogs the SRA Myth...even when she acted in a grossly unethical and unprofessional manner...Dr. Schwartz had no hesitation in being able to write about it. That much she felt compelled to do.

    The question of belief and truthfulness by the psychotherapists of the Clinic for Dissociative Studies The Paracelsus Trust supports unfortunately extends beyond Dr. Valerie Sinason and Dr. Rachel Wingfield Schwartz. Dr. Adah Sachs, on the regular staff of the Clinic' and a collaborator with American witch-hunter Dr. Ellen P Lacter (see Dr. Ellen P. Lacter - American witch-hunter co-edited with Graeme Galton Forensic Aspects of Dissociative Identity Disorder” (Karnac, 2008) (see Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder - taking psychotherapy to a new academic low. She contributed her own essay Infanticidal attachment: the link between dissociative identity disorder and crime to her own book. As is the case with Dr. Sinason and Dr. Wingfield Schwartz, she relates the tales of her anonymous 'clients' - this one called 'Jane';

    Jane, fifteen, told me a lot of stories about the pets that had died in their house, and how upset she was when the man in the pet shop, to whom she went for advice, tried to comfort her by saying that ‘these things just happened’. She went on to tell me the details of how the dog bit her because he was scared, because the pet rat had bitten him; and that the pet rat was missing some toes and was bleeding.

    Jane was brought to hospital in her parents’ arms, literally dying. Her bodyweight was at 50% of normal, a level of starvation from which recovery is rare in medical literature. The obvious question, why did the parents wait so long before seeking help, was not answered; but it is hard to miss the infanticidal intention of such lack of action. She was not psychotic, and, I would add, not symbolic. She was a survivor of ritual abuse, in a family where children were made to cut, kill and eat body parts of animals from an early age, as part of their ‘training’. Her stories about the dead and mutilated animals were not, as I first suspected, a symbolic description of her own self-hatred and death-wish. She didn’t want to die. She wanted someone to notice what was actually happening at home; hence her upset about her unsatisfactory ‘consultation’ with the man in the pet shop. What she told me was a concrete description of actual events, and her refusal to eat was her revolt at being forced to ingest the body parts of her pets. Her story had a partial corroboration.
    (Source: Infanticidal attachment: the link between dissociative identity disorder and crime by Adah Sachs, pages 134 and 135 of Forensic Aspects of Dissociative Identity Disorder (Karnac Books, 2008) edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton. This essay was also published as Infanticidal Attachment: Symbolic and Concrete in Attachment: New Directions in Psychotherapy and Relational Psychoanalysis, Vol. 1, November 2007: pp. 297–304 published by Karnac Books)

    At first look, this case seems a certainty for the prized prosecution and hard evidence that the SRA Myth advocates do so well to try to avoid securing. An underage girl is brought into hospital, severely malnourished, and relates a story of ritual abuse and the eating of animals. Certainly we might assume, social services and the police will have been informed by the hospital (Dr. Sachs wouldn't have had to worry herself over doing this) and certainly they'd have raided the child's home and found the evidence, even before any disclosure to Dr. Sachs. And if by some chance the family had spirited-away the remaining animals and the bones, then for sure the likes of DCI Driscoll would have arranged a surprise visit and search, perhaps a year later.

    But no. Unfortunately this case didn't make it to the Press, or the Courts, even with as Dr. Sachs puts it her story had a partial corroboration.

    Beyond that, Dr. Sachs says no more. What partial corroboration? How did the case go? Did the RSPCA (the British Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) get involved at least with a prosecution? What was the nature of the rituals? We the reader, skeptic and True Believer aren't to be told. And so it is left to us to fill in the gaps.

    For instance, what were the pets? Were they mice, hamsters, cats and dogs, parrots, lambs, furry bunny rabbits?

    Or, would it be possible that the child lived on a farm, and the 'pets' were chickens, ducks, geese, pigs? Would it be possible that the 'rituals' referred-to were the slaughter and preparation of these former pets? Is it possible that the girl went right off eating what she actually got to see grow-up before they reached the dinner table. Why would 'ritual abusers' bring one of their own into a hospital, and even allow her to be seen later by a psychotherapist? Wouldn't 'ritual abusers' just let her die?

    Unfortunately all the above questions are unanswered speculation. Dr. Sachs wasn't able to get around to providing that kind of detail and the editorial peer review committee of the Karnac Books-published journal Attachment the essay also appeared in doesn't seem to be the place for applying rigorous standards of academic writing and research (see The SRA Myth and the destruction of John Bowlby's legacy. Nor would the series editor of the Forensic Psychotherapy Monograph Series that Forensic Aspects of Dissociative Identity Disorder was published under, True Believer and Paracelsus Trust Trustee Brett Kahr be a likely source of rigorous editorial control. And certainly fellow True Believer Oliver Rathbone, the publisher of Karnac Books, or any of his staff, seem highly unlikely to raise a quizzical eyebrow when checking the galleys.

    So, as with Wingfield-Schwartz' 'Jodi', Dr. Sinason's numerous anonymous client accounts and Adah Sachs 'Jane' the crucial questions go unaccountably missing. Fortunately the target audience for books like Forensic Aspects of Dissociative Identity Disorder and Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs plus the journal Attachment will generally lap-up anything they read about SRA and/or DID without hesitation. Which may explain the unwillingness of Sinason, Sachs and Wingfield-Schwartz et al to try to publish in genuine academic journals.

    What should be made of this distinct unwillingness to involve the police, or even contemplate some sort of personal activity, such as paying for a private detective or photographer to follow the client and secure sufficient evidence of the satanic cult to persuade the police without involving the client? The subject is discussed with respect to Britain's leading group of SRA Myth advocates at The burden on RAINS members. Although it might be assumed that any therapist or counsellor having anything to do with the SRA Myth or DID/RMT/Mind Control is by default a RAINS member, this seeming apathy is difficult to explain, particularly, as mentioned, SRA Myth/DID/RMT/Mind Control proponents, whether they be Beatrix Campbell OBE, Dr. Valerie Sinason or Survivors Trust CEO Fay Maxstead are always vulnerable to the charge that the 'Myth has no supporting evidence, and they are simply engaged in a moral panic that's an extension of the Great European Witch-hunt.

    The obvious answer is, as detective Chris Healey found through his career, particularly on one occasion when he had an alleged cult member placed under video surveillance, it is more than likely that the only ritual abuse and the only satanists abound are those in the imaginations of the 'survivors' and the therapists.

    It might be possible to conceive that psychotherapists like Rachel Wingfield Schwartz have concocted some sort of misplaced professional confidentiality justification in their minds to explain this lack of enthusiasm for exposing the cults and ritual abuse that their clients are encouraged to reveal. Tempered with the knowledge that there is no point really looking for the satanists 'cos they don't exist in any case leaves a nasty taste in the mouth. Are they writing their accounts with any attempt at honesty, or are those accounts nothing more than propaganda - an effort to encourage belief in something that isn't actually present, but is rather useful for lining their bank accounts?

    Therapists like Adah Sachs and Rachel Wingfield Schwartz aren't the only unusual characters in the 'SRA Myth world'. The 'survivors' themselves, replete with plummy English home counties accents and routinely boasting educations at only the most prestigious schools and universities (such as Wingfield-Schwartz's 'Jodi' who attended a top drama school - apparently paid-for by her satanist ritual abusing parents) abound. The barrister Lee Moore, who founded the ACAL - the Association of Child Abuse Lawyers - and who actively encouraged the mangling of Britain's children's residential homes with an avalanche of false but financially-lucrative allegations against care-home workers (such as soccer manager Dave Jones) claims to have been ritually abused through childhood - by a family that paid her to get both a top primary education and to get though law school. The poor and ethnic minorities are not well-represented amongst US and UK SRA Myth and DID 'survivors'; typified by the glaring lack of anyone who isn't white and middle-class posting themselves switching to a 'little' alter on YouTube, with a squeaky voice and an obvious tendency to keep saying 'blankey'.

    Below is a half-hearted effort by a 'multiple' to tick all the boxes that those purporting to suffer DID with 'little' alters - this one with the ever-present 'blankey'.

    To Blankey From Timmy

    In the video below, the same 'host' introduces her new alter - Cube, explainng that her sister 'Katie' turned into a cat, whilst another alter 'committed suicide', emphasising the difficulty that many DID 'survivors' have in coming up with interesting alters.

    DID/MPD Introducing Cube

    But though easily ridiculed for their lack of practical passion in pursuing their alleged satanic abusers, both the 'survivors' and the psychotherapists are trumped by a middle group - the lay counsellor - often drawn to DID and the SRA Myth through religious belief. For these individuals, there is no escape in condemnation for their apparent apathy.

    Sue Cook is a trained 'sensorimotor' psychotherapist - a favourite form of psychotherapy for SRA Myth advocates, as it renders the anti-science of 'body memories' down to a form of treatment that enriches the pockets of a particular kind of psychotherapist who likes to get their hands literally on their clients. In the UK perhaps the most famous practitioner of sensorimotor psychotherapist is 'serial credential creator' fundamentalist Norma Howes who possesses a special distinction in contemporary British social history, having been the first to introduce the the SRA Myth to English shores, direct from America.

    Sue Cook though has largely avoided such controversies, working closely with the Clinic for Dissociative Studies, and living in the splendour of Surrey, the richest county in England.

    In her contribution to Forensic Aspects of Dissociative Identity Disorder, Opening Pandora's Box Mrs. Cook (it isn't necessary for a psychotherapist to have a degree, let alone a qualification in anything) explains both her belief, her encounter with a 'survivor' of an alleged satanic cult, and her willingness to well...not let the whole thing bother her too much.

    Laura told me that she was the eldest daughter and, as such, was considered to "belong to Satan" and to exist solely for ritual purposes. Laura said that her mother singled her out for particularly sadistic treatment from birth to the age of 15, when she was forced to leave home three days after giving birth to a baby, who was taken from her. She lived on the streets in London for the next two years. During her first 15 years there had been chronic neglect, brutal cruelty, and emotional deprivation. She was rarely in school, suffered bad health, and had no friends.
    ...
    As a committed Christian, I have no problem accepting the existence of evil as real and the existence of Satan who has power to destroy and instigate all manner of trauma, hate and depravity. I know that I could not underestimate the spiritual assaults and oppression that I might be subject to when dealing with a client who had grown up in such an evil environment. I had to consider whether I could handle such a challenge and what I was going to put in place to prevent myself from being overwhelmed. Prayer was then, and still is, a great resource for me, giving me strength, comfort, perseverance, peace, and even courage, because I often felt very daunted by the task I faced in the early months and the years that have followed.
    ...
    Why did neighbours, teachers, nurses-anyone-not notice something was amiss and report it? How come when Laura did manage to speak up and ask for help, no one listened and no one checked her story? How could these sorts of things happen in the midst of a civilised society and escape notice? What Laura and I only discovered years later, from her other personalities - was that neighbours were involved in the ritual group, as were teachers at her school and the family doctor, so that those whom Laura thought as a child might offer her safety were perpetrators too.


    Having set the scene, with a patient who is apparently a member of sadistic satanic cult that has its roots deep within the community (teachers, nurses, the local doctor) what does Sue Cook do? Fortunately with access to DCI Clive Driscoll through the Clinic for Dissociative Studies she appears to have actually arranged for something to be done. And with even just a name and address it seems unlikely that this widespread satanic cult wouldn't be identified.

    Many times after she left I would sit on my sofa and cry. I would wander around the house distracted and unable to settle to any task. Often I would phone my supervisor and, without going through the details, because that increased my distress, I would tell her about my feelings of horror and helplessness and ask her to pray with me, which she readily did.
    ...
    Accounts of torture were followed by being buried alive, followed by cannibalism and child sacrifice, and so it went on. Much of my secondary trauma was due to the extreme forensic nature of the abuse. Every incident was a serious crime that would warrant years of imprisonment. Laura was describing an underworld that was far more depraved and lawless than anything depicted in Dickensian England. The intensity of my exposure was another factor. I was not listening to just hours of details of abuse, as many therapists who work with less traumatised do, but hundreds of hours of hard-core criminal acts, which takes its toll.
    ...
    Seven years into therapy, it would appear, from the revelations of many new personalities that have emerged over the years, that none of Laura's family members are safe. In the first 18 months we did not know this and subsequently Laura continued to go back to the group to be hurt herself and, under duress, commit criminal acts against others during ceremonies.
    ...
    There was never any talk of reporting to the police the catalogues of horrific crimes that she had described to me. The whole process would have been too traumatic for Laura, who had not had any good experiences with the police up to that point. In recent times, however, Laura has begun to liaise with a police unit that is unusually well informed about DID. She and other personalities have had some very positive experiences talking about both past abuse and recent criminal incidents, which are being investigated currently.

    Seven years later, as I hear almost on a weekly basis many new revelations about Laura's family, those children may well be at risk, but as I am not in possession of their personal details we cannot make any checks. Laura assures me that they are safe; but how does she know for sure? That question niggles away at me and I feel quite helplessly in a dilemma.
    (Source: extracts from Opening Pandora's Box by Sue Cook, published in Forensic Aspects of Dissociative Identity Disorder, Pages 158-165 (2008) edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, published by Karnac Books)

    The question is of course, is that enough? Could a "committed" Christian be satisfied with simply listening to the revelations from someone such as 'Laura' over the course of over seven years? Or wouldn't they be tempted to do what a Christian would perhaps be expected to normally do - to challenge evil in all its form, to never cease fighting that perceived evil and preventing it with their dying breath? In Sue Cooks case, simply providing therapy sessions was sufficient. She was and isn't tempted in trying to identify the individuals who came into contact with 'Laura', has never considered any 'extra-curricular' activity. Fortunately the satanists take no interest in Sue Cook. Perhaps not surprisingly, though published in 2008, the police unit that is unusually well informed about DID hasn't it seems three years later managed to make any headway. It seems that Sue Cook had found a 'survivor' who would be a certain source for actually uncovering a sadistic satanic cult, whose identification hasn't yet been managed in over two decades. For certain DCI Driscoll would have moved heaven-and-earth to get 'Laura' placed under covert surveillance, even if she wasn't willing to assist. Regrettably once again, Mrs. Cook fails to mention of anything quite so obvious.

    A key 'feature' of Sue Cook's essay was that despite apparently suffering from years of horrific abuse, not a single mention is made of any physical injuries, scars, fractures or even so much as a scratch or bruise on 'Laura'. One obvious question is; in over seven years plus of therapy, did 'Laura' ever make any allegation or retrieve from memory any account that was ever verifiable? And if she did, why didn't Mrs. Cook mention this to be so in her essay?

    Whilst ordinary people might spend every waking moment hunting and challenging the alleged satanists if they ever heard in person even a fraction of what Sue Cook relates, such natural emotions are devoid amongst those who advocate for the SRA Myth and DID/RMT/Mind Control. Both the 'survivors' and those who unquestionably believe them are the opposite of what we expect; each hopelessly unwilling to do that one, seemingly simple thing in a world of digital technology; to provide any evidence that can corroborate their allegations.

    With Clinic for Dissociative Studies counsellors like Sue Cook writing of her conviction in a widespread network of satanists operating in British society, then for sure its clients/patients would require considerable support, and indeed the staff of the Clinic would need immense support to ensure their safety. What then, does The Paracelsus Trust actually do?

    If indeed it provides "financial support for patients of the Clinic for Dissociative Studies where their normal NHS funder is unable to help & to provide advance funding where the normal funder will pay but payment might be delayed too long that the patient might be at risk. i.e assistance with housing, night-time protection that is unique to patients at risk of continuing Ritual Abuse"...then it doesn't have to do any of this too often. The charity's income is minuscule and the amount it actually spends even less;

    The Paracelsus Trust income 2007-2010


    Although it may be many other things, no-one could accuse the charity of being some money-making scam. In four years of financial record-keeping from 2007-2010 The Paracelsus Trust has only received £12,980 in income, and had spent just £1,736, £1,321 of that between April 2009 and March 2010. In the course of that same year the charity only attracted an income of £619, it's worst year to-date, whilst in the reporting year 2008-2009 it only spent a paltry £15 (a taxi fare?)

    In the financial year ending 31st March 2011, things improved somewhat. Now the income was £19,676 (perhaps a sum left by a benefactor in a will?) In the section below, some of that expenditure and income can certainly be explained.

    Protecting the clients of the Clinic from their ritual abusers would normally be expected to be an expensive undertaking, what with travel, board, perhaps a bodyguard or two, specialist protection against the Illuminati/satanic CIA and MI5 agents...Yet The Paracelsus Trust, even if reimbursed by the NHS, appears to have managed to do it on-the-cheap.

    With the charities income dropping to its £619 low-water mark by April 2010, something would have to be done.

    The response was the organisation of first meeting of the Campaign for the Recognition and Inclusion of Dissociation and Multiplicity, set for Saturday 12th March 2011 in London. Any expenditure in setting-up the meeting and any income derived from it would appear in that year-ending 31st March 2011 sum of £19,676 received, and £8,588 spent.

    March 12th meeting


    The meeting gathered together all the 'usual' charities, religious and feminist groups that are normally found pushing the SRA Myth at any opportunity, and provides a reminder that RAINS - the original subject of these Index pages, is still to be found;

    Presentations from survivors of abuse and those living with DID, and sessions chaired by representatives from key support groups including First Person Plural, PODS, TASC, RAINS, TAG, NAPAC and the Survivors’ Trust

    The admission price of £10 certainly couldn't be claimed to be an attempt to boost the coffers of The Paracelsus Trust substantially, which appears to have under-written the cost of the event, using the money apparently set-aside to secure sanctuary for ongoing victims of satanic abusers. The charity could only hope to elicit genuine tax-deductible donations from attendees.

    The contact for tickets was a little mystery in itself; Dr. Amelia Roberts of 815 Finchley Road, London NW11 8AJ, rather than one of The Paracelsus Trust's registered Trustees. 'Dr. Amelia Roberts', unknown for any previous public connection with the SRA Myth, is in all probability Dr. Amelia Roberts, an educational psychologist (one again emphasising the continuing problems the British psychology profession has with the SRA Myth) who runs an independent consultancy Dr. Amelia Roberts - Educational Consultancy. Her role apparently doesn't require registration with the HPC as a Practitioner Psychologist.

    The meeting on the 12th March was to be followed-up by a private meeting for 'key policy influencers' the next week.

    Dr. Roberts provided a summary of the meeting of the 12th March, but perhaps more importantly providing an insight into who attended the follow-up meeting on March 23rd at Church House, Westminster. With DID/MPD principally the preserve of white middle-class and middle-aged women born into privilege, it is difficult to comprehend how the Campaign will gain any of its sought-after 'recognition' beyond being a source of useful income for a minority of like-minded professionals.

    Nonetheless the list of speakers at the 23rd March event, though not including any government Ministers or senior members of the NHS (or at least not known-of yet) did include some surprises;

    The Metropolitan Police, the only police force in the Western world which is wedded to the SRA Myth was officially represented by DCI Clive Driscoll, a Detective with a long history of supporting the 'Myth, even in its current 'CIA satanists' phase.

    Other speakers listed, or who had contributions read-out were;
    • Sir Richard Bowlby - son of John Bowlby (see The SRA Myth and the destruction of John Bowlby's legacy
    • Professor John Morton . A Neurologist with a long-term enthusiasm for the now much-derided 'recovered memory therapy' which scythed through a generation of US and UK women in the 1990s. Prof Norton works at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience Institution at the University College London
    • Kathryn Livingston (the founder of leading SRA Myth 'survivor' charity First Person Plural)
    • an unidentified 'GP Commissioner' (a 'General Practitioner'? The term for community doctor in the UK. This individual is believed to be religious fundamentalist and committed SRA Myth True Believer Dr Ruth Cureton, who organises her courses for predominantly white middle-class and middle-aged women in wealthy English rural locations.
    • A statement from Remy Aquarone (President: European Society of Trauma and Dissociation) which is the European equivalent of the far-right-wing US ISSTD
    • Psychologist Dr. Pat Frankish (Chair of Paracelsus Trust and Trustee of the IPD)
    • Fay Maxted (CEO of the Survivors Trust, already discussed on this page as a leading SRA Myth-promoting charity in the UK)
    • Beric Livingstone (Business Manager for the Clinic for Dissociative Studies). Probably the most important speaker as finding a source of DID cases or 'survivors' is vital for those in the DID/MPD industry
    • Dr. Sue McPherson, Lecturer for Qualifying Doctorate Clinical Psychology at the University of Essex, and a former Clinical Effectiveness Officer at the Tavistock & Portman NHS Trust, which had also hosted Dr. Valerie Sinason.
    • Peter Saunders (Founder of the National Association of People Abused in Childhood - NAPAC)
    • Dr. Guinevere Tufnell, a Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist at the Traumatic Stress Clinic at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children in London and a key enthusiast for EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) treatment - one of the more 'shit-house-rat-crazy' theories that infests modern psychiatry, psychology and psychotherapy in the US and UK.
    • and of course
    • Dr. Valerie Sinason


    Dr. Roberts review of the gathering also included a listing of the organisations supporting the Campaign, though there weren't really any surprises;

    The Paracelsus Trust
    The Clinic for Dissociative Studies
    First Person Plural (FPP)
    Partners of Dissociative Survivors (PODS)
    National Association of People Abused in Childhood (NAPAC)
    Hearing Voices
    Deep Release
    European Society for Trauma and Dissociation
    The Survivors Trust
    The Bowlby Centre
    Trauma and Abuse Group (TAG)
    Trauma and Abuse Support Centre (TASC)
    Ritual Abuse Information Network (RAINS)
    The Pottergate Centre for Trauma and Dissociation
    Respond
    (Source: Campaign for the Recognition and Inclusion of Dissociation and Multiplicity: April 2011 Report, compiled by Dr. Amelia Roberts)

    As detailed, to that list can be added The Metropolitan Police. A notable absentee from the list was any cult survivor or cult information organisation or charity - simply because such groups want nothing to do with SRA Myth advocates, and regards them as a cult in themselves.

    Dr. Roberts revealed the long-term aims of the 'Campaign'. Incredibly the case of Colin Batley was mentioned, though this conviction if anything did harm to the SRA Myth advocates passion, being totally devoid of DID or MPD (or murders, eating babies, involvement of the CIA/MI5, or well, satanism).

    Clearer research, starting with a research overview of the information currently available about Dissociation and Multiplicity
    An academic rebuttal of the La Fontaine Report 1994 particularly in light of the recent high profile conviction in Wales.
    Educating Lawyers and the Crown Prosecution Service about DID
    Possible working group/parliamentary committee to be formed to keep issues alive on the parliamentary agenda.
    (Source: Campaign for the Recognition and Inclusion of Dissociation and Multiplicity: April 2011 Report, compiled by Dr. Amelia Roberts)

    The 'academic rebuttal of the La Fontaine Report 1994' is particularly revealing - displaying perhaps an uncommon recognition that the SRA Myth proponents still haven't bothered to get around to providing any credible source of proof in their fantasies.

    Educating Lawyers and the Crown Prosecution Service about DID also belies huge possibilities. With DID-trained CPS staff and with enthusiastic officers like DCI Clive Driscoll it isn't beyond the realms of possibility that an over-enthusiastic pairing of SRA Myth-believing police officer and CPS lawyer will combine to arrest, say the head of Britain's MI5 security service (currently Jonathan Evans) for conspiracy to satanically abuse children (and of course being a key cog in the machine of the 'Illuminati'). The possibilities with such training seem unlimited.

    An audio compendium record of the Campaigns first meeting, though with little audience participation, has been provided by leading SRA Myth advocacy charity TAG (Trauma and Abuse Group) here, although after over eleven minutes, some listeners might be craving the sound of anyone who doesn't sound like a white middle-class, middle-aged woman with a Home Counties accent.

    Strangely, rather than running the campaign in a traditional manner - that is meeting regularly to encourage participation and enthusiasm - this Campaign is taking an alternative route - skipping 2012 altogether and scheduling its next gathering in March 2013.

    In January 2012 it was revealed through a letter to The Guardian that Valerie Sinason and other SRA Myth advocates in the UK had established yet another grouping, this time called the "Committee for Ritual Abuse". The nature of the letter and the implications for The Guardian are discussed in the section 'special pleading' - a Letter to The Guardian, January 23rd 2012

    Treating 'survivors'



    For the DID/SRA 'survivor', invariably one of those said white middle-class and middle-aged ladies, or their therapists, pampered in the past and having received a privileged upbringing, what would suffice? What would satisfy such people? What would be enough to quell their needs?

    Perhaps some readers might think the obvious answer would be revenge. Strangely though, revenge is well down the list of needs, so far down the list that it has actually dropped off it. In the audio recording linked-to above, or indeed in any of the DID/SRA Myth 'survivor' literature, web forum postings, DVD's and seminar transcripts, 'revenge' just doesn't feature one bit. Despite that many 'survivors' insist ritual abusers are still hard-at-work, some even meeting-up with their victims regularly. It might be expected that with so many DID 'survivors' apparently skilled in the arts of assassination and covert spying, they'd have at least one amongst their number who wouldn't hesitate to collect some seriously incriminating evidence against their abusers with a telephoto lens or long-boom microphone, or perhaps leave the police the body of a ritual abuser, splayed-out across his or her torture dungeon 'spinning wheel', having been shot by an expert sniper SRA 'survivor' with DID.

    In one of the many numerous 'anonymous' accounts by 'survivors' that dominate recent SRA Myth-advocacy books published in the US and UK, that peculiar lack of interest in seeking revenge, or at least pursuing the alleged-but-never-named abusers to ensure they can't continue their nefarious operations is starkly demonstrated. It can't be emphasised enough that despite an extraordinary number of SRA Myth/DID/RMT/Mind Control self-help groups and charities in operation throughout notably the US and UK, and even with many psychotherapists and psychiatrists having enjoyed a well-funded life from the 'Myth and DID/RMT, no-one has in over two decades, got around to thinking maybe a reward for information sufficient to break a satanic cult might be an idea. In the extract below 'anonymous' doesn't get beyond the 'thinking about it' stage, though perhaps most people wouldn't hesitate if what is alleged happened to them;

    The child is killed and then there is a bloodbath as X cuts him into pieces. All I remember is blood, blood, blood. I am still bleeding profusely because I have just given birth and of course the baby's blood is splattered everywhere-how could such a tiny body hold so much blood?-and then they tie me to a cross. They turn the cross upside down so that I am hanging upside down tied to the cross. Everyone is running around and screaming, elated, wild, it's a celebration after all-it is Good Friday. I'm hanging upside down on this cross with blood streaming out of me, wild and crazed, and I feel like such an idiot, such a fool. I hate myself, I hate all of them, but I am no better than them. I hate everyone and everything. That part of me often wants to go out on a killing rampage, to go out with a machine gun and just blow people up.

    That was the beginning of the end for me. That experience was just too much. I started breaking down, I started not being able to function because it had all become too much to bear. X completed the programming. He had an ECT machine, which he then used to scramble my mind. He was trying to cover his tracks.
    (Source: Love is my religion, by 'Anonymous', published as chapter 4 in Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs - published by Karnac Books in association with The Bowlby Centre, March 2011)

    Such thoughts though never (ever) give any bother to the survivor community. Few SRA Myth 'survivors' like the idea of claiming publicly that they were horrifically abused by satanist cults throughout their childhoods - only for incriminating photographs of them as happy and active schoolgirls on yachting holidays or visits to Provence with their 'satanic' families to be revealed. Though claiming to have been horrifically abused (though remarkably injury and scar-free) such survivors want in principle one thing - therapy. Lots of therapy. Indeed a lifetime in therapy where they can relate their survivor stories to a professional more than willing to believe them unreservedly and with no hesitation in taking their bit from the NHS's valuable budget, would be just perfect. In Great Britain the 'survivors' and psychotherapists would prefer it if the NHS paid for that therapy, through the nations taxpayers;

    In Utopia, it would be a simple trip to the empathic, well-informed GP who would refer you on immediately (preferably same day) to a consultant who is aware of power dynamics and how frightening and destabilising that can be for you, and who considers you to be the expert on you, and that he or she is there merely to guide and assist. Then, courtesy of the Utopian Health Service, you would be offered one, maybe two, sessions of suitable length per week with a local psychotherapist who is experienced in working with dissociative disorders (and doesn’t take more than four weeks’ holiday per year and is never sick), who is able to offer you a perfect blend of attachment-based individual psychotherapy utilising up-to-date resources, techniques and modalities such as Lifespan Integration and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, and lasting as long as you need it. There would then perhaps be follow-up services – counselling or other support for your partner if you have one, a knowledgeable prescribing doctor who can help you with short-term crises or with areas of difficulty such as insomnia or pain, without giving you anything that will dull the limbic system to such an extent that you are unable to engage with therapy. And perhaps help with the costs of transport, perhaps a home help if you are physically disabled as a result of either the dissociation or the trauma itself, support for your children if you have any, dentists and opticians and family planning nurses and all sorts of NHS staff who are knowledgeable about dissociation and trauma and who work sensitively and effectively with you to help you access all aspects of healthcare without it being re-traumatising.

    Ah yes, Utopia.
    (Source: The Sixty-Four Billion Dollar Question: Unique Answers to the Question of Who Funds Therapy, by Carolyn Spring. PODS - Partners of Dissociative Survivors February 2011 Newsletter)

    A fascinating web forum thread, asking what would be a sufficient amount of therapy, also provides an insight into the nature of the DID 'survivors';

    Oh wow, I see that the little ones have certainly already had their two cents in! Wow! I guess I am going to have to win the lottery soon so I can afford to get the to twenty hours of therapy a week! I only have a minute online right now but I would like to add in there that massage therapy for me would certainly fit into my treatment plan very nicely. I hold so much tension in my body. Once every couple a months visits to my masseuse aren’t cutting it for me. We could add her to the treatment team. Plus any other sort of body work type stuff there might be out there in the world. And Jodie could use some art therapy. Okay, there’s my 2 cents now too caroline
    (Source: What would a perfect treatment plan look like? Web forum discussion thread)

    A recent 'feature' of modern-DID 'survivors', particularly in the US, is the presence of 'littles' - that is personalities who act as small children, demanding attention and gifts and comfort from those around the 'survivor'. In addition, DID 'survivors' are now able to perform the arbitrary bringing-forth of their multiple personalities or 'alters' from their 'system' - so that writers on Web forums will collectively call themselves via the third-person vernaculars 'us' and 'we'. All of this challenges the original premise and diagnosis of MPD/DID, in that the 'core' personality would in the past, simply report a gap in their memory when an alter was present. Now, multiple alters can apparently appear at will, with no loss of memory for the core personality. Often those claiming to have DID with 'littles' will inadvertently employ wording or spelling that is distinctly adult-like, mixed-up with less-than-subtle efforts to suggest a child, or rather in the case below, a group of children are writing.

    – How many times per week or per month would you meet with your therapist? How long would your sessions be?

    5 days a week / 2-3 hrs a day

    – We think we’d want to have puppies there to hold and play with and pet when we are sad or scared and have a mini zen garden thing (those tiny sandboxes) and markers and paper and silly putty (cause silly putty is good to play when when you are super scared to say stuff) We do not like sitting on couches or chairs cause we like to sit like in kindergarten “indian style” so we would want it in a room that still has blankeys and pillows and we can sit on the floor we want a counsellor that is quiet and strong but does not let us just sit there we want them to talk to us and start conversations and have their idea of what they want us to talk about when we get there so they are leading us into where we need to go so we only gots to worry about how to get the scary stuff out before it eats us up cause we do not like secrets and they could know more than us about what the body person is feeling because then they could help give her assignments to make her think and work through stuffs…(and on and on)
    (Source: What would a perfect treatment plan look like? Web forum discussion thread)

    'Alter envy' appears to be increasingly prevalent, particularly amongst the American middle-class, middle-aged white women who comprise the 'survivor' DID base, though this is being increasingly challenged by a new generation of teenage US DID self-diagnosed sufferers, who claim their 'alters' are aliens or vampires. It isn't sufficient to have one alter, or even two. A dozen appears to be the minimum, and indeed the amount of 'abuse' a 'survivor' can claim to have undergone, and consequently the amount of sympathy and attention they can expect to receive, is linked to the number of alters they claim to possess. Some 'survivors' will willingly go out-on-a-limb to claim a hundred alters, some will even will claim over a 1000 alters are present (see How many alters is normal?).

    Alter Bloat, when individuals claim increasingly preposterous numbers of alters is apparent amongst those asked how many alters their 'system' supports. Whilst Pamela Edward and to a lesser degree Christine Sizemore-Cooper, discussed in The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy could make no claim to having vast numbers of 'alters', in the case of Pamela, having DID was a crippling condition. In the 21st century though, DID is far less a burden, more perhaps, almost a fashion statement.

    The British PODS (Partners of Dissociative Survivors) charity September 2011 newsletter provided a telling insight into Alter Bloat, reprinting some of the answers subscribers gave on its web forum when they were asked how many alters they had accumulated. Although it is easy to be cynical, the quotes do provide a fascinating peep-hole into the nature of a small minority of white Western women (and some males) in modern times.

    Perhaps not surprisingly, at least one 'survivor' references the 'DID-caused-by-the-military' stratagem. Some of the accounts challenge the concept that DID is a means for Western white women to channel-away memories of extreme trauma into compartmentalised personalities, only then able to come 'forward' during times of stress, a-la United States of Tara style. Modern DID 'survivors' appear to have the ability to call forth their alters at will. In addition, as discussed earlier, the ability of the 'core' host personality to be able to interact with their alters, rather than simply lose time to amnesia when they 'take-over', makes a nonsense of the entire DID concept that is seen as a shield from bad memories. That isn't achieved if the 'core' is able to have a chat/sing with their alters Gollum/Smeagol-like'. In 'classic' MPD/DID the host never had any interaction with the alter;

    My counsellor thinks 5 or 7 of us turned up at the session last week … My hunch is that many stayed away.
    ...
    Some of us were created by outside people so that they could use us for specific tasks. They are often in groups like the soldiers who don’t have to work for Dad any more and they can help us instead.
    ...
    So far we have managed to identify 67 different personalities, although there are probably more who deliberately keep themselves off the list and hidden. We do not have different names, so identification has been very difficult.
    ...
    The way we have managed to achieve this is by each personality who is willing to do so sitting at the computer and typing a description of themselves and the others that they are in contact with. Someone else will then come along, type a bit about themselves and who they know. As others see us differently than we see ourselves, the descriptions get altered slightly each time.
    ...
    My alter count is 30 at the moment but it’s hard to keep track and often a couple will integrate and then a new one appears somewhere else. They all have names but sometimes they are horrible names that someone else (inside or outside) has called them, so I always ask if they want to change it. The personalities are really distinct – some are terrified of things that other parts love, but my therapist can often see that there are similarities between characteristics in the same way you can sometimes see with siblings. Each has a very different relationship with my therapist depending on their age and experience – some want her to be their mum and are very attached; some swear at her; some are indifferent; and others are mildly intrigued by things like her jewellery or her ornaments on the shelf. They get very indignant if my therapist gets their name wrong, which is hard as some sessions can have lots of quick switching!
    ...
    91 as it stands today … I can either see them or hear them. The majority stand around me, in a kind of circle. One comes forward when needed and the others sit behind waiting to see if they are needed. I have names for the majority and ages for most, and I can distinguish between them. I call them my ‘family members’ as I don’t like the term ‘alters’ – they are my family and I love them.
    ...
    It does fluctuate slightly – I gained some when I gave birth and again when I moved jobs etc, but the most significant ones who aid my day remain static and clear in my head.
    ...
    My team is made up of myself, P and approximately 30 others. Some of them are individual with sexes, races and ages and a set look. Some of them don’t come out at all and most of the team doesn’t know much about them. We have quite a few littles that are under the care of a newly appointed protector, Kurt.
    (Source: Extracted from PODS September 2011 Newsletter)

    DID 'survivors' on FaceBook are unlikely to attract attention if they claim just one or a few alters, so the trend for Alter Bloat is rising steeply and has been for several years.

    One of the most obvious instances of Alter Bloat concerns the British alleged DID patient and former long-term client of Valerie Sinason, Kim Noble (see Chapter 32 - Internal and external reality, Establishing parameters - Rob Hale and Valerie Sinason which includes details of Ms. Noble's famed celebrity performances. For her October 6th 2010 appearance on Oprah Winfrey's Show (Mrs. Winfrey having been a long-time advocate for the SRA Myth and DID/RMT in-collusion with religious fundamentalists) Ms. Noble claimed to have 20 multiple personalities.

    Come Friday 30th September 2011, during the promotion running-up to the publication of her book All of Me (6th October 2011) Kim Noble was interviewed by The Guardian - the British newspaper most associated with the promotion of the SRA Myth and DID/RMT in the late 1980s and 90s. In Kim Noble: The woman with 100 personalities, by Amanda Mitchison, the number of personalties has risen by 80 - from 20 to 100, in just over a year. Where did the new additional 80 personalities come from? And what would have caused them to be claimed? Had Ms. Nobel undergone huge trauma in the intervening year, greater than that which had caused her original MPD? If so, why hadn't she mentioned it to Amanda Mitchison for the interview. And why hadn't Amanda Mitchison noticed the discrepancy - seeing as the Opray Winfrey Show she referred-to in her article was actually titled An Oprah Show Exclusive: One Mom, 20 Personalities and the title of her article, as presented to her Guardian Editor was Kim Noble: The woman with 100 personalities?

    The subset of predominantly middle-class white women who count themselves as being 'survivors' (it is never clear how the alleged ritual abusers actually allow anyone to survive) make for an attractive market for both psychotherapists and authors, and even better authors who are psychotherapists. The US Web site Psych Central maintains a forum for DID/ritual abuse 'victims', enabling them to tell each other how each is suffering. Perhaps horribly predictably, not one 'victim' will recount how they spent the previous night and early morning armed to the teeth hunting-down satanists. The forum includes a 'sticky' posting of US-centric recommended books and other media and organisations for DID/'survivors', providing a pointer to just how lucrative the DID/MPD industry is, and how vital it is that its privileged 'customers' remain pampered, with a sufficiently high disposable income to afford to buy the books, attend the seminars and conferences, and purchase and watch the DVDs. The list includes titles published by religious fundamentalists and feminists (such as the Ellen Bass/Laura Davies books) providing some evidence of the continuing collusion between both the groups which commenced in the 1980s. For what is supposed to be a rare condition, more is written about DID than virtually any other mental condition bar depression.

    • A Safe Place, Leston Havens
    • Adults Molested as Children, Connie Saindon, MA, MFCC, CTS
    • American College of Physicians complete home medical guide
    • American Psychological Association
    • Amongst Ourselves, Dr. Tracy Alderman and Karen Marshall
    • Assessment and Treatment of Multiple Personality and Dissociative Disorders, J. P. Bloch
    • Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity, Valerie Sinason


    • Beauty for Ashes, Receiving Emotional Healing, Joyce Meyer (abuse survivor)
    • Becoming Kate, Theodore J. Jansma, Jr., Ph.D. and Katharine St. Clair
    • British Psychological Association


    • Can I Look Now, Rachel Downing MSW, LCSW
    • Canadian Psychological Association
    • Childhood Antecedents of Multiple personality Disorder, Richard Kluft
    • Clinical Features and Treatment, Colin Ross M.D.
    • Colin A. Ross Institute for Psychological Trauma


    • Del Amo Hospital Torrance California
    • Diagnosis and Treatment of Multiple Personality Disorder, Frank Putnam
    • Dissociation - a Journal put out by ISSD
    • Dissociation in Children and Adolescents, Frank Putnum
    • Dissociative Disorders a Clinical Review, David Spiegal
    • Dissociative Identity Disorder: Diagnosis, Clinical Features, and Treatment, Colin Ross, M.D.
    • Double Vision, Anna Richardson
    • DSM IV - Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 4th Edition
    • DSM IV TR - Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 4th edition Text Revised


    • E Pluribus Unum, Out of One...Many, Sandy Sela-Smith, Ph.D. & Benjamin B. Keyes, Ph.D.
    • European Federation of Psychologists' Association
    • Faith Trust Institute (religion and abuse)
    • Family Secrets, John Bradshaw
    • First Person Plural, Cameron West, Ph.D.
    • Forest View hospital Grand Rapids Michigan
    • Free of the Shadows: Recovering From Sexual Violence, Caren Adams and Jennifer Fay
    • Free Your Mind, Ellen Bass


    • Getting Through the Day, Nancy J Napier
    • Girl Interrupted, Susanna Kaysen


    • Handbook of DSM IV - TR explains DSM IV
    • Healing the Divided Self
    • How Long Does it Hurt?, Cynthia L. Mather


    • I Cant Get Over it, Aphrodite Matsakis
    • I Never Told Anyone, Ellen Bass
    • I Thought We'd Never Speak Again, Laura Davis
    • Imagery in Healing, J. Achterberg.
    • Invisible Heroes, Belleruth Naparstak
    • ISSD- International Society for the Study of Dissociation website


    • Journal of Trauma and Dissociation, ISSD
    • Joyce Meyer Ministries, Abuse and the Miracle of Recovery


    • Laura Davis Website
    • Life After Trauma: A Workbook for Healing for Survivors of Sex Abuse, Lynn Finney JD, MSW
    • Little Girl Fly Away, Gene Stone


    • Managing Stress through Art, SIDRAN
    • Many Voices, Newsletter and Website for Hope and Recovery, Lynn W.
    • Mary Ellen Copeland website
    • Memory and Abuse: Remembering and Healing the Effects of Trauma, Charles Whitfield
    • Moon Shadows, Collin Ross, M.D.
    • More Than One, Terri A. Clark, M.D.
    • More Than Survivors, James G. Friesen, Ph.D.
    • Multiple Personality Disorders from the inside out by Barry Cohen
    • Multiple Personality, Reality and Illusion, Video Narrated by Chris Costner Sizemore.
    • ..(The Real Eve of the Three Faces of Eve)
    • Multiple Selves, Multiple Voices, Phil Mollon.
    • Multiples Guide to Harmonized family living, Tammy Colleen Whitman and Susan Shore


    • NAMI - Website and nation wide agencies
    • Nancy J Napier website
    • New York Society for the Study of Multiple Personality and Dissociation


    • Our Stunning Harvest, Ellen Bass
    • Outgrowing the pain by Eliana Gil
    • Overcoming Anxiety, Panic and Depression, James Gardner M.D.
    • Overcoming Panic, Anxiety and Phobias, Shirley Baboir LCSW, MFCC


    • Reach for the Rainbow, Lynne D. Finney, J.D., M.S.W.
    • Reaching for the Light, Emilie Rose
    • Recreating Yourself, Nancy J Napier
    • Relax into healing, Nancy Hopp
    • Repressed memories. Renee Fredrickson


    • Secret Survivors, E. Sue Blume
    • Self Hypnosis in 2 Days by Freda Morias
    • SIDRAN website
    • Silencing the Voices, Jean Darby Cline
    • Songs for Two Children, Colin Ross, M.D.
    • Stedman's Medical Dictionary 27th edition
    • Sybil, Flora Rheta Schreiber


    • The Age of Terrorism, Walter Laqueur
    • The American Psychiatric Association
    • The Anger Workbook by Lorraine Bideau
    • The Anxiety and Phobia workbook, Edmund Bourne
    • The Big Book of Relaxation, Robert Epstein
    • The Body Remembers, The Psychophysiology of Trauma and Treatment, Babette Rothschild
    • The Castle of the Pearl,Text and Workbook, Christopher Biffle
    • The Courage to Heal, Text and Workbook, Laura Davis
    • The Depression Workbook, Mary Ellen Copeland
    • the dissociative identity disorder sourcebook, Deborah Bray Haddock, M.Ed. M.A., L.P.
    • The Gayle Encyclopedia of Genetic Disorders
    • The Haunted Self: Dr. Onno van der Hart &
    • The Merck Manual of Medical information
    • The Myth of Sanity, Martha Stout
    • The New Personality Self Portrait, John Oldham
    • The Obsidian Mirror, Louis Wisechild
    • The Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Sourcebook, Glenn R. Schiraldi, Ph.D.
    • The Relaxation and Stress Reduction Workbook, Martha Davis Ph.D.
    • The Relaxation Response, Herbert Benson
    • The Scarred Soul, Tracy Alderman, Ph.D.
    • Through the Open Door - Secrets of self Hypnosis, Kevin Hogan
    • Timberlawn Mental Health System Dallas Texas
    • Too Good for Her Own Good, Claudia Bepkjo and Jo-Ann Krestan
    • Too Scared to Cry, Psychic Trauma in Childhood, Lenore Terr
    • Trauma and Recovery, Judith Lewis Herman, M.D.
    • Treating Dissociative Identity Disorder, Ivan Yalam and James Spira
    • Treatment of Multiple Personality Disorder, Bennett Braun


    • Understanding Self Injury, Kim Trautman and Robin Conners
    • United We Stand, Eliana Gil
    • Unity and Multiplicity, J. O Beahrs


    • When Going Through Hell Doesn't Stop, Douglas Bloch
    • When Rabbit Howls, Truddi Chase
    • Women Who Hurt Themselves, (Traumas Reenacted), Dusty Miller


    • For reading beyond the usual:
    • The Abuse Excuse (people who only use being abused as an excuse for crime), Alan M. Dershowitz
    • The Gift of Fear Survival Signals That Protect us from Violence, Gavin DeBecker
    • The Lucifer Effect Understanding How Good People Turn Evil, Philip Zimbardo
    • The Feeling Good Handbook, David D. Burns, M.D.
    • Breaking Free, Beth Moore
    (Source: Resources for Trauma, Dissociation & Treatment, posting by 'JD', 26th July 2008, Psych Central Dissociative Disorders forum)

    What are Western white middle-class DID women like?



    As detailed before, SRA Myth 'victims' possess many emotions; indeed they could be said to be more 'needy' and 'emotional' than most people. Those emotions though don't include a desire for revenge, and certainly nothing so altruistic as a desire to prevent the unnamed wicked satanists from going about their business, inflicting ritual abuse on another generation of children. Thinking about other, more recent victims of alleged ritual abuse is once again never (ever) discussed in the 'survivor' community. Rather it is Me! Me! Me! orientated.

    The constant need for 'validation' of DID 'survivors' is perhaps one of their most pressing concerns. For the most part this involves proclaiming to the world their 'multiplicity' - as a sort of badge-of-honour (discussed later.) That pursuit for validation though can take other forms. For instance, in this instance, from a male DID 'survivor' the 'need' to watch sadistic movies with a best friend;

    This evening I was having a conversation with my bestie about sadistic abuse. Comparing the sadistic abuse I endured to the sadistic abuse from a film I had just watched. If you’re wondering why I do that, it helps to validate my experience.
    (Source: Catching triggers like bullets, published on the Crazy In The Coconut blog, January 21st 2012)

    A particular feature of DID 'survivors' is that are perhaps the vocal of all mental illness sufferers. The concept of a modern DID 'survivor' who keeps a low profile is unheard-of. If they are determined to be 'multiples' - either self-diagnosed or invariably, following extensive therapy, DID 'survivors' spend huge amounts of time telling all and everyone, through any means possible. With such a relatively wealthy group, having access to PC's with which to surf the Web ensures that there are plenty of YouTube videos, online newsletters, web forums and home pages, Podcasts and emails generated to maintain the "our club" social status of the DID 'survivor'.

    For DID 'survivors' YouTube has become a fantastic resource and perhaps the vehicle for the ultimate expression of narcissism, whilst allowing those who study the promotion of DID to have an insight into the predominantly white, middle-class and English-speaking females who claim to suffer from it.

    MPD/DID Meet the Alters, Richi, Beth, Mimi and Hari


    Whilst it seems unlikely that British 'Myth 'survivors' will get all the free psychotherapy consultations they crave, the African women and girl victims of modern organised rape will struggle to even receive basic medical care for their horrific physical injuries, let alone psychotherapy sessions.

    With The Campaign for the Recognition and Inclusion of Dissociation and Multiplicity dreaming their dreams of a DID-savvy CPS and Parliamentary committee, RAINS, the longest-serving of the 'Myth advocacy organisations, continues to trade, notably in the region of Great Britain that saw its original genesis; Nottinghamshire. The Broxtowe SRA Myth scandal of 1988 saw the 'Myth established in England and it would take another six years for the bizarre combination of religious fundamentalists and feminists that drove it to be defeated (though not destroyed). RAINS though persists, like the Clinic for Dissociative Studies, a focus for 'shit-house-rat-crazy' paranoid fantasies;

    RAINS - emotional freedom


    Strangely, though perhaps not coincidentally, the 'INTRODUCTION TO EMOTIONAL FREEDOM TECHNIQUE' course held at All Hallows Church Hall, Pierrepont Rd, West Bridgford, Nottingham NG2 5BP, happens to be just 1.8 miles from the Meadows Medical Centre, Nottingham NG2 2JG - the working address of paediatrician Dr. Sandra Buck, whose history of RAINS in Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK (2008) was the original inspiration for these pages.

    On the next page, the last of his Extended Entry, the future for the SRA Myth/DID and Recovered Memory Therapy is discussed.

    Go to Page Five



"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind

Please note that on June 8th 2012, this site will be shutting-down. Our host service - hostcell.net will be shutting-down entirely, as its CEO Nahian Choudhury was involved in a serious car accident recently.

Dramatis Personae will resume on the Web in the near future when a new host is found (we have one in mind already).

Our thoughts are with Nahian and his family and the employees of hostcell.net.

Best regards - the editing team



Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS (Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support) Part Three



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

This Entry traces the establishment and history of the RAINS organisation, belief in the SRA Myth in the UK, and its impact on Child Protection policies and practises in Great Britain since 1989. The Entry is strongly related to the lengthy but more general discussion about the SRA (Satanic Ritual Abuse) Myth that dominates US and UK contemporary social history to be found at Beatrix Campbell (OBE)

Part One is listed under Dr. Sandra Buck, principally because it investigates the RAINS organisation, using Dr. Buck's written history as the primary source.

Part Two is an analysis of the 1994-published book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, and is therefore titled under the name of its editor, Dr. Valerie Sinason, one of the primary advocates in the United Kingdom for the SRA Myth after 1994. It is split into three sub-pages - A, B and C, to ease readability.

Part Three (this page) and Part Four discuss the nature and extent of belief in the SRA Myth in the early 21st century in the United Kingdom, with particular emphasis on the psychotherapy/psychoanalysis profession in the UK. It is titled under Dr. Sinason and David Icke, the two primary public faces of belief in the SRA Myth in the UK. Part Five extends Part Four to another page, whilst investigating the subject of Recovered Memory Therapy.

The Index editors would like to extend their thanks to a number of British academics, NHS staff, mental health professionals, serving police officers and social workers who have contributed specific information and opinions for this Entry.

Because of the amount of data provided, this Entry has been split over five pages.

Go to the first page;
Go to the second page
Go to the fourth page
Go to the fifth page

Dr. Valerie Sinason

Valerie Sinason (Dr. Ph D MACP M Inst Psychoanal.)

British psychoanalyst and psychotherapist, conspiracy theorist, campaigner, poet, author and editor.





David Icke

David Icke

British conspiracy theorist, campaigner and author.






Section headings

  • Part One - the SRA Myth in England & Wales and RAINS

  • Introduction
  • The SRA Myth, MPD/DID and RMT
  • Satanic Ritual Abuse indicators
  • The SRA Myth arrives in England & Wales
  • Broxtowe
  • Pembroke
  • The Shieldfield Scandal
  • Scotland
  • The importance of 'Michelle Remembers'
  • Dr. Sandra Buck's history of RAINS
  • RAINS consolidates
  • RAINS & fundamentalism
  • Rochdale
  • Conflict with The Jet Report
  • Mind Control - the SRA Myth takes a new turn
  • Professor La Fontaine's Report
  • The Evil, Satanic Poor - Part One


  • Part Two - A Chapter-By-chapter Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (Routledge, now Informa PLC, 1994)

    Go to Page Two for a detailed Contents listing of the sub-pages.

  • The essay contributors - then & now
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Sub-Page 1
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Sub-Page 2
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Sub-Page 3
  • An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Sub-Page 4


  • Part Three (this page) - The Nature & Extent of belief in the SRA Myth in Great Britain in the early 21st century

  • Individual and Institutional members of RAINS
  • Wolverhampton City PCT and RAINS
  • The Metropolitan Police & RAINS
  • The burden on RAINS members
  • SRA Myth True Believers in the public eye - Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke
  • The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy
  • Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder - taking psychotherapy to a new academic low
  • Dr. Ellen P. Lacter - American witch-hunter
  • The Institutions of psychiatry, psychology, psychotherapy/psychoanalysis & the SRA Myth
  • psychotherapy/psychoanalysis
  • The regulation of psychotherapy
  • Psychiatry, Psychology and the SRA Myth
  • Psychotherapy/psychoanalysis and its submission to David Icke
  • The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain

  • Part Four - The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain (continued)

  • The Department of Health and Dr. Sinason
  • Trauma, disability, attachment and the promotion of the SRA Myth
  • The Centre for Child Mental Health & the SRA Myth
  • The Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability
  • The 8th European Congress of Mental Health in Intellectual Disability
  • The Paracelsus Trust
  • Treating 'survivors'


  • Part Five - The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain (further continued)

  • The London Safeguarding Children Conference and Valerie Sinason
  • The Metropolitan Police and Valerie Sinason
  • The Carol Felstead scandal
  • The BBC and Valerie Sinason
  • The CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) and Dr. Valerie Sinason
  • The SRA Myth and the destruction of John Bowlby's legacy
  • Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs (Karnac Books, March 2011)
  • Attachment Therapy
  • Recovered memories, body memories and the pseudoscience of the future
  • 'special pleading' - a Letter to The Guardian, January 23rd 2012
  • End piece


  • Part Three - The Nature & Extent of belief in the SRA Myth in Great Britain in the early 21st century

    Page Three of this Entry investigates and discusses the state of continuing belief in the SRA Myth in Great Britain, with particular emphasis on public-funded bodies, psychotherapists/psychoanalysts, psychologists and psychiatrists.

    Note: This is a particularly lengthy Web page, having inherited sections that previously resided on Page Two, before that was dedicated to an Analysis of the book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse

    Individual and Institutional members of RAINS

    RAINS membership is subject to a membership fee. The organisation is naturally unwilling to disclose their membership. It is not the role of this Index entry to publicly identify members, even when their identity is known to the editors.

    Dr. Buck provides an insight into how RAINS thrives in the 21st century;

    ...as of 2003 has supported more than 500 professionals and carers. These include clinical psychologists, counsellors, psychotherapists, psychiatric nurses, social workers, rape crisis and other helpline councillors, doctors (including GP's), police, probation and prison officers, clerics, psychiatrists, nurses, foster parents, carers and staff from the NSPCC (National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children). Members come from all over the UK, as well as Eire, Belgium, Sweden and Germany. Individual members link up with professionals around the world. In 2003 we still had nearly 200 active members.
    (Source: Pages 316 Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK by Sandra Buck M.D)

    Original co-founder, feminist/fundamentalist Judith (Dawson) Jones apparently left RAINS in 1993.

    What do RAINS members do?

    The membership has changed over the years and probably reflects organisational responses to what happened in Nottingham, Rochdale, The Orkneys and The Department of Health report by Jean La Fontaine. Social workers were the largest group to be represented in the early years, but only four have joined in the last four years...The largest groups of people joining now are counsellors, psychotherapists and Helpline counsellors. Individual members write letters to TV producers and newspapers, etc. Joan Coleman has been very active in this regard. As co-ordinator, most contacts come through her now, and she has taken most of the workload for the network to continue.
    (Source: Pages 320 Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK by Sandra Buck M.D)

    A membership of 200 indicates RAINS is far more than simply a loose collection of obsessed satanist and witchcraft hunters, pining for past times (the 1980's, not just the 17th century) and hoping that their message that a Vast Conspiracy of satanists inhabit the British Isles and other European nations will finally be believed by the media and political establishment. It can surmised that these satanists and witches are believed to be located within poor and socially disadvantaged communities (a focus of RAINS members attentions in the past) - killing and eating babies, and torturing children on a nightly basis, as well as practising complex Mind Control in their living rooms (presumably between episodes of EastEnders and Coronation Street).

    Wolverhampton City PCT and RAINS

    Not mentioned by Dr. Buck is that organisations can join RAINS. Once again, a list of these isn't published.

    One organisation that is definitely a member of RAINS, might strike many people as surprising - not least because it is a mystery why any organisation - in this case Wolverhampton City Primary Care Trust for the NHS would actually tell the world it is a genuine, signed-up, subscription-paying member of an group whose place in contemporary British social history isn't very positive.

    Wolverhampton City PCT


    It isn't clear why Wolverhampton City PCT, whose Chief Executive is Mr. Jon Crockett, and Chairman Jim Oatridge, OBE, would select RAINS as its chosen partner for its Sexual Abuse Service, when there are other, less 'damaged' organisations to be found that can offer a wider choice of services above and beyond Satanist-hunting. Coventry PCT for instance, also in the West Midlands of England partners with Conventry Rape & Sexual Abuse Centre. Although many Rape Crisis Centres are enthusiastic advocates for the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth (see Lindsey Read), CRASAC isn't one of them. It seems unlikely that both the CEO or Chairman aren't aware of what is presented to the public on their Web site. Another mystery is of what use RAINS would be as a major partner to a Primary Care Trust; RAINS doesn't 'do' ritual abuse, as in 'ritualised abuse' - child sex abuse in a ritual setting - it only 'does' Satanic Ritual Abuse, as Dr. Buck has stated, and is repeated here again;

    We continue to use the term ' ritual abuse,' whilst recognising that sadistic torture and mind control is the reality. In the UK, the majority group we have identified can be described as Satanists (Sinason, 1994)
    (Source: Page 311 Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK by Sandra Buck M.D)

    If Wolverhampton City PCT required help with say women requiring rape counselling, children who are victims of sexual assault, incest or anything other than claiming they have been satanically abused, RAINS isn't going to be much use.

    One question might be; how many believers in Mind Control and a vast conspiracy of Satanists do staff and/or management at Wolverhampton City PCT are there? And how many believers in the SRA Myth are there amongst the secondary mental health teams within the city of Wolverhampton.?

    Another question might be, how many other NHS Primary Care Trusts are also signed-up with RAINS, if any? Or is Wolverhampton City PCT the only one, and it just happens to be a bit daft publicising the fact to the world?

    The Metropolitan Police and RAINS

    There is a (perhaps) reasonable suspicion that the Metropolitan Police in London, England, numbers amongst its staff members of RAINS, due to its enthusiasm for the SRA Myth. Valerie Sinason, the most enthusiastic campaigner in the UK advocating for the SRA Myth and the perceived threat of Mind Control, provided an insight into the degree of conviction that the 'Met has, in providing a direct line to her Clinic;

    Since 2000, the Clinic for Dissociative Studies has had a named Detective Inspector to call on.
    (Source: Where are We Now? Ritual Abuse, Dissociation, Police and the Media by Valerie Sinason, Graeme Galton and David Leevers, published in Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century (2008), paged Page 368)

    Graeme Galton, Dr. Sinason and her husband, Mr. Leevers paper continues throughout to enthuse about the passion with which the Metropolitan Police goes about its belief and support for the SRA Myth, though apparently the dedicated officers are stymied by senior management from providing 24x7 support. Valerie Sinason's connection with RAINS is such that it is rare for her to appear at an event promoting the 'Myth without RAINS involvement, and seeing as you can't 'join' her Clinic for Dissociative Studies, RAINS appears the only alternative if a sense of membership of a group is required. The advert for the 2001 RAINS conference, shown below, was printed in the The Police Federation Journal for May 2001.

    The Dark Side of the Rainbow


    It seems unlikely though that the Metropolitan Police are fully paid-up subscribers of RAINS. More likely individual officers maintain their membership, though their subscription fees might not be paid as work expenses.

    Sinason, Galton and Leevers precede their paper with a quote from Colonel Korbus Jonkers, now retired former head of the South African Police Occult Unit, previously discussed at RAINS consolidates.

    "Now that my work has been successful over this period, they (detectives) are learning that you cannot find evidence for what you don't think exists. Untrained or sceptical police look past the evidence if it is about the occult. They want to prove the case but don't look deeper".
    (Source: Where are We Now? Ritual Abuse, Dissociation, Police and the Media by Valerie Sinason, Graeme Galton and David Leevers, published in Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century (2008), paged Page 363)

    It isn't quite certain why a quote from Jonkers, recognised almost universally as the 20th centuries leading witch-hunter, would be chosen for the title page of the essay. Dr. Sinason though did work with Colonel Jonkers (ret.) and has apparently returned to South Africa every year since 1994. An interview with Colonel Jonkers after his retirement reveals some of the elements that make his police work so attractive to Dr. Sinason and to 'Myth True Believers in the UK. The quote also provides an insight into the fermenting of the campaign, popular in many African states including Nigeria and South Africa, that children can be witches;

    Have you ever come into contact with someone that has been possessed?
    Yes, many times. It’s a reality. If you talk about black witchcraft as well, in the sangoma aspect you find it a lot. The way black witchcraft works seems impossible to believe, for example: I was called out by a black pastor in Kwazulu Natal and there was an eleven year-old girl that had been left for a few weeks in the presence of a sangoma who was supposed to bring good luck to her family. So eventually this girl became possessed and the parents said: “There is something wrong here,” so they took the child to a black pastor for help who in turn called me. I flew down, very upset about the situation. When the pastor was praying, apart from hearing many different voices coming from her throat, blood was squirting from her breasts and I thought, I don’t believe what I’m seeing now. So eventually, after he had prayed, he spoke to one of her multiple personalities and suddenly ants started running out of her breasts.

    Ants?
    Yes, ants. So that suddenly stopped. The pastor had a lot of other pastors and therapists there and they were watching all these events unfold. All of a sudden a small tortoise climbed out of the girl’s navel. A small tortoise! When they saw this happening they all ran off so that there were only three of us left in the room. Everyday people never see this kind of thing. If you told me this story I would say “don’t talk nonsense to me” because my thoughts are based on reality. If you see it for yourself it’s different. It was witchcraft and it is a reality; it does exist.
    (Source: Dr. Kobus Jonkers, God's Detective)

    Through Valerie Sinason, The Metropolitan Police retained Colonel Jonker's as a paid consultant in the famous 2002 Thames Torso killing scandal, enabling him to bring his distinct form of evidence collation, and his unique means of dealing with black people, to British shores.

    As mentioned, the African continent still suffers from the social nightmare of belief in witchcraft, even in the 21st century. Yet the SRA Myth years had shown the ease with which even Western societies are vulnerable to such obsessions;

    As of 2006, between 25,000 and 50,000 children in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, had been accused of witchcraft and thrown out of their homes. In April 2008, Kinshasa Police arrested 14 suspected victims (of penis snatching) and sorcerers accused of using black magic or witchcraft to steal (make disappear) or shrink men's penises to extort cash for cure, amid a wave of panic which blew across the entire West African region. Arrests were made in an effort to avoid bloodshed seen in Ghana a decade ago, when 12 alleged penis snatchers were beaten to death by mobs.
    (Source: Wikipedia entry for Witchcraft)

    South Africa was the training ground for Dr. Sinason and Detective and witch-hunter Kobus Jonkers her specific instructor. South Africa persecution of children branded as witches and wizards is as equally violent as that found in West African states;

    (Reuters) - Murder and persecution of women and children accused of being witches is spreading around the world and destroying the lives of millions of people, experts said Wednesday.

    The experts - United Nations officials, civil society representatives from affected countries and non-government organisation (NGO) specialists working on the issue - urged government to acknowledge the extent of the persecution.

    "This is becoming an international problem - it is a form of persecution and violence that is spreading around the globe," Jeff Crisp of the U.N.'s refugee agency UNHCR told a seminar organised by human rights officials of the world body.

    Aides to U.N. special investigations on women's rights and on summary executions said killing and violence against alleged witch women - often elderly people - were becoming common events in countries ranging from SOuth Africa to India.

    And community workers from Nepal and Papua New Guinea told the seminar, on the fringes of a session of the U.N.'s 47-member Human Rights Council, that "witch-hunting" was now common, both in rural communities and larger population centres."
    (Source: Killing of women, child witches on rise, U.N. told, by Robert Evans, Reuters, Geneva, 23rd September 2009)

    A recent report provides some indication as to how the issue is growing, particularly in Africa. Children Accused of Witchcraft in Africa, An anthropological study of contemporary practices in Africa, prepared by Aleksandra Cimpric of UNICEF Dakar detailed the historic basis for the practice, and the influence of Christian Revivalist churches in Africa.

    It isn't certain how much encouragement to pursue alleged women and child witches has been provided by Western Christian fundamentalists, but certainly the British and American SRA Myth advocates, such as witch-hunter Dr. Ellen P. Lacter plus Dr. Sinason, a grateful student of witch-hunter Korbus Jonker, hasn't contributed positively to helping stamping-out the practice. The issue also causes some difficulty with Western feminists, once again particularly in the US and UK, notably because it draws attention to their collusion with fanatical religious fundamentalists in the witch-hunting craze of the late 1980s and 90s.

    It was reported on May 21, 2008 that in Kenya, a mob had burnt to death at least 11 people accused of witchcraft. Tanzania’s unwritten anti-witchcraft policy is strongest in the Meatu district where half of all murders are “witch-killings” and in 2008, following the murder of 25 albinos, President Kikwete publicly condemned witchdoctors for killing albinos for their body parts which are thought to bring good luck. We Nigerians are not saints either.

    Christian pastors in Nigeria have been involved in the torturing and killing of children accused of witchcraft. In Akwa Ibom and Cross River states for instance, about 15,000 children branded as witches ended up abandoned and abused on the streets. Over the past decade, over 1000 children have been murdered with some being publicly set on fire. Church pastors in an effort to compete favourably, establish their credentials by accusing children of witchcraft. When repeatedly asked to comment about the matter, most church pastors refused to comment.

    Elsewhere, in Gambia, about 1,000 people, according to Amnesty International, were accused of being witches. They were locked in detention centers in March 2009 and forced to drink a dangerous hallucinogenic potion. Every year, hundreds of people in the Central African Republic are convicted of witchcraft. (Source: Nigerian witches: where are you? By Adepoju Paul Olusegun, Nigerian Village Square, April 18, 2010)

    Further discussion about the belief in the existence of witchcraft, and speculation that SRA Myth advocates do their best to give the impression that they would like to see a resumption of the Great European Witch-hunt of past centuries, can be found in the section Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs (Karnac Books, March 2011). A belief in a vast conspiracy of satanists and in particular witches and the existence of witches covens was prevalent in Valerie Sinason's 1994 book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse and is discussed in Chasing Witches - An analysis of Chapters 16, 17, 28, 29 and 18.

    The Metropolitan Police perform a vital function in London, not least because it is both the home of the British government and an international city that hosts numerous events with leaders of world commerce and politics. Quite how MI5, the national security service in the UK, will make of the knowledge that the 'Met has an official relationship with an organisation that professes believe in the SRA Myth and Mind Control is open to speculation. Certainly it would make the recruitment of Special Branch officers from the London force a little problematic.

    The issue of the Metropolitan Police's strange fascination with Valerie Sinason and the Clinic for Dissociative Studies is further discussed in Part 4 of this index entry, The Metropolitan Police and Valerie Sinason

    The direct line to the Metropolitan Police, established in 2000, doesn't appear to have been used much. Where are We Now? Ritual Abuse, Dissociation, Police and the Media was written in 2007 or early 2008, and if the facility is still enabled, then a decade has passed, with the 'named Detective Inspector' (not a Detective Constable, or a Detective Sergeant, but an 'Inspector') having perhaps been waiting in vain for Dr. Sinason or a member of staff to ring with the address of a gathering of Satanists or a coven of witches.

    The burden on RAINS members

    Whilst the impact on the children who were taken forcibly from their homes is well documented, particularly for the Rochdale Langley Estate children, now grown up, with childhoods damaged or ruined by SRA Myth-obsessed social workers and police officers, what of the RAINS members themselves?

    What has been the burden they have had to carry, particularly for Dr. Buck herself.

    At the end of The RAINS Network in the UK she provides a brief insight into that burden;

    Confronting the atrocities that are reported by children, adolescents and adults changes your life. People find that colleagues at work do not want to know (Hopkins, 1989). They become secondarily traumatised from the accounts they hear, and then by the reactions of colleagues and 'superiors' (Dawson & Johnston, 1989). Personal relationships are strained (Youngson, 1994). We obviously need to find more creative ways for the intellectual considerations to be presented in a way people can understand. Putting your head on the block is not attractive when you already feel severely traumatised from the work. Support systems to help workers were in place in Nottingham, but the management silenced the staff. The full story about what happened in Nottingham has still not been heard.
    (Source: Pages 323 Ritual Abuse in the Twenty-First Century, The RAINS Network in the UK by Sandra Buck M.D)

    Dr. Bucks closing paragraph is though, way too brief. There must be more of an impact on herself and her RAINS colleagues.

    Readers of this Entry may or may not agree with the assertion that if an individual, say yourself, was given knowledge or convincing information that Satanic Ritual Abuse actually existed, involving the seemingly routine killing and eating of babies and other examples of intense human and perhaps spiritual evil, then it would be impossible for that individual to simply work as a 'counsellor' of survivors of such activities, perhaps just run a Web site advocating for its existence, even edit a book, submit articles or attend conferences. Indeed a primary concern it could be suggested, would be for such an individual, now furnished with such terrible knowledge, to persevere to prevent it from ever occurring again, and their mental health would be impacted both by the knowledge they had gained, but also by the passionate knowledge that the knowledge, by implication, forced them to do absolutely anything to prevent murders and baby-eating, even at the expense of lawful behaviour. Leaving it to the police or other authorities would be insufficient an excuse, particularly as some SRA Myth advocates believe that police officers and social workers have Satanists amongst them (see the Index Entry for Lindsey Read).

    So is it outrageous to say that such an individual, in possession of knowledge that had now become a terrible burden to them, would dedicate their remaining life to eradicating the satanists? Every single waking minute would be dedicated to the cause of finding the satanists, and if necessary, taking action outside the bounds of the law to deal with the baby-killer-eaters.

    At this point, if you, the Visitor, can't envisage being in that state of mind with such knowledge, then the remainder of this Entry won't be of much interest.

    Dr. Buck and other True Believers in the SRA Myth in the UK, such as Bea Campbell (OBE), Judith (Dawson) Jones, Dr. Sara Scott, Sarah Nelson, Dr. Liz Kelly, Joan Coleman and the hundreds of current or former members of RAINS, together with thousands of christian fundamentalist believers have never got around yet to telling, what we have to assume, to have been absolutely millions of person-hours that they have surely dedicated in searching British cities and towns and its rural countryside every single day and night, in the hunt for the satanic ritual abusers, for the last 22 years. Indeed millions of pounds must have been spent by them on surveillance equipment.

    Yet, in not a single one of any of the accounts given by an SRA Myth advocate has any hint of such an impact on lifestyles been made, suggested or even vaguely detailed. A discussion about the seeking lack of interest in purchasing and using retail surveillance equipment to prove Satanic Ritual Abuse can be found at Retail therapy? Trying hard not to find evidence of ritual abuse) that details the ease with which professional retail surveillance equipment can be purchased by members of the public. True Believers haven't quite got around to, even anonymously on foreign Web sites, to publishing the names and photographs of the satanists arriving or leaving their gatherings, even perhaps Purlitzer Prize-winning pictures of them engaging in their murderous practises. Nor has any True Believer organisation in the last 22 years in the UK, or even longer in the US got around to offering a substantial reward to the supply of convincing evidence of Satanic Ritual Abuse (surely 'satanists' - particularly those on Britain's deprived council estates couldn't turn down an offer of a few hundred thousand pounds?)

    Although perhaps disingenuous, it seems that the people who most believe in the SRA Myth are the very same people who are the least capable of doing anything about challenging it if there was any validity to it. Indeed they show every indication of not wanting to risk stumbling over convincing evidence of it, should it somehow be available.

    An insight into the nature of the resources employed by seeming anti-satanic social workers was revealed in a posting from a mother on the SAFF web site in 2010;

    Our 2 children are home schooled and some kind christian person has reported them to social services for not receiving a suitable education (we use the Steiner method) When they found out we are pagan they set out to either get them in school or put them in care. The social worker lied through her teeth she said we had 6 black cats, we have 1 snow spot Bengal. She looked in one cupboard out of 11 double and said there was little food she declined to look in the two chest freezers (in hindsight she may have worried we would push her in) the school they are determined to get them in is Roman Catholic and as such they would have to be baptised They have stopped us moving near a suitable school IE non denominational by saying we will disappear in a net-work of non Christians and Satan worshipers and the children are at risk of neglect, abuse, and maybe worse. If anyone has any ideas or advice please get in touch. Thank you.
    (Source: Re: School and Social Services UK - SAFF forum posting - 1st September 2010)

    Sheila C. Youngson, who had attended the 1996 Better The Devil You Know RAINS conference, was then a Counsellor in Counselling and Therapy Service at Normanton and District Hospital, Castleford West Yorkshire. She contributed Chapter 34 - Ritual Abuse: The personal and professional cost for workers to Valerie Sinason's Treating the Survivors of Satanic Abuse. It was reprinted online in 2006 in one of the few academic journals that still sports enthusiasm for the SRA Myth - Child Abuse Review, whose Associate Editors and Editorial Board include employees of the NSPCC, a representatives from the Metropolitan Police, Great Ormond Street Hospital and, up until only recently Dr. Liz Kelly - all noted for continuing belief in the SRA Myth, together with a number of academics from English and foreign universities. The paper, presumably peer-reviewed by the Child Abuse Review review committee identified negative changes in behaviour and in physical and emotional health amongst workers. Support and supervision requirements are also addressed, as is the possibility/probability of threat and intimidation.. The paper though didn't detail that if SRA Myth advocates are genuine, then they are unlikely to live in decent housing; probably having double or treble-mortgaged to the hilt to fund their endless hunt against satanists in their free time. Certainly Dr. Buck is unlikely to enjoy the normal trappings of being a paediatrician - no comfortable home to call her own, no decent car, no foreign holidays. Being a True Believer in the SRA Myth means Believing in the concept that humans are capable of acts that dwarf even the atrocities of Rwanda and the killing fields of Pol Pot's Cambodia. Every penny, every waking hour at work will have (it has to be assumed) been spent satan-hunting.

    Sheila C. Youngson is now Senior Associate Lecturer and Deputy Clinical Director, Clinical Psychology Training Programme at the University of Leeds in North England, one of the few academic institutions in England with a reputation for continuing believe in the fundamentalist-inspired 'Myth. Surprisingly, despite her obvious belief in the 'Myth, she neglects to mention it on her cv, although it seems unlikely that any True Believer who believed that children were being routinely murdered and babies being eaten on an almost daily basis, would be able to simply put the issue on the 'back burner' in their mind. Her paper Ritual abuse: Consequences for professionals is also the best known and long-lived of her work, and a crucial part of contemporary British history.

    Sheila C. Youngson


    Neither Sheila Youngson or Dr. Buck refer to the incredible stress imposed upon 'ritual abuse workers' in their daily duties. Using the criteria published by fundamentalist Dr. Catherine Gould, and employed by RAINS members during the 'crazy' years, it must be galling for practitioners like Dr. Buck and her fellow True Believers to be presented with a child, presumably from a socially deprived family, who might to them show signs of having been satanically abused; perhaps by a lack of interest in going to Church, or having a fear of doctors, or having a learning disorder. In the past it would have been possible to call a likewise-minded social worker, perhaps even a RAINS-member police officer, and thus accuse the family of being satanists, have them arrested in the early hours one morning after having their front door stoved-in...have their children removed from their beds, screaming, still sleepy, by armed policemen.

    Now though in the twenty-first century, such a response is, even in an NHS Trust in Nottingham, somewhat difficult to organise. For SRA Myth practitioners and believers it appears help to solve this impasse came in the form of the MSBP (Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy) vehicle, that happened to come to the fore in the English and Welsh child protection system, just as the SRA Myth ran out-of-steam. MSBP's relationship with the use of Witchcraft allegations is discussed at length in the Index entries for Sir Roy Meadow and Bruno Bettelheim. In addition Nick Land, a Clinical Director of Learning Disability Services and Forensic Services at Tees, Esk and Wear Valley NHS Trust and a member of the Christian Medical Fellowship, has explained how it is possible to diagnose demonic possession in an NHS patient (he reckons it is over-diagnosed).

    Dr. Valerie Sinason, discussed in some detail in later text on these pages, extends the SRA Myth to incorporate the paranoid delusions that the West's security services, notably the CIA and MI5, incorporate satanic practices in their operations; sexually abusing and torturing children in satanic rituals to create dissociative mind-controlled agents (the dissociation doesn't appear to kick-in whilst they are children, and the victims have to wait until adulthood before any impact is ascertained). In her 'vanity' interview, conducted by colleague Graeme Galton, himself a leading SRA Myth advocate, she avoids discussing her fantasies about MI5 and the CIA, but does provide some impact on how being an SRA Myth enthusiast has had on her life;

    GG: On that point, I'd be very interested to know what sort of personal impact this work has had on you.

    VS: It's been huge. Family and friends might tragically even be able to document it better than me, in that it changed my life. We can often talk about, and truthfully, about learning from the patient and how understanding something profound, from privileged access to another, changes us. But this is on a totally different level. I'd say it tested every friendship, every relationship, in different ways along this 12-year period.

    I would say, initially, there was the issue of how people dealt with my secondary traumatisation, where I could not think, speak, anything else in any moment of private time. So everybody close to me will have suffered from not having the me that they knew. I could not have done this work with young children. Then there was the fear it brought to those close to me that their lives could be in danger, before we understood properly how these mafias operated, where the patient's terror that everyone they cared about would be hurt, which they had been brought up to believe, made them feel any therapist they went to, and any family of that therapist, and any friends of that therapist, would be hurt. Whilst we could do our best to contain the fear of the patient in the session - and look, I'm using the dissociative `we' instead of `I' at this moment - I could feel, am I doing something that's going to bring danger to those close to me? There were people who could not bear it and we stopped seeing each other. There would be parties where I would just nab somebody, talking about this subject, not realising I was in a traumatised state. And, I'd say for one year after the first English case, I was looking under the car expecting a car bomb, I was expecting the phone to be tapped, I was treating every call to any friend as if someone was listening, which was affecting how I communicated. I was torn over any conference I was in that was publicised, did that mean abusers were going to be there? Would that threaten patients I saw? It was endless. It took a year before I thought there was an ordinary world which existed as well as this. Then there was a period of getting to grips with the subject, researching it, feeling I had a grasp of the basic themes that were repeated in different ways in everyone.
    (Source: Valerie Sinason Talks to Graeme Galton)

    Strangely the huge multi-generational international satanist conspiracy that Dr. Sinason writes of (see discussed extensively in Part 4 of this Entry) shows little inclination to extend a paw to swipe her or her colleagues away. Indeed, the Vast Conspiracy has never blown-up, kidnapped, threatened, murdered, or even got around to turning Dr. Sinason, Dr. Galton or any of her cohorts (including the telephonist or receptionist at the Clinic for Dissociative Studies) into a crazed, mind-controlled robot assassin. There is no doubt a complex, cunning reason for this that SRA Myth advocates can proffer for this, over-and-above the obvious one that the Vast Conspiracy is no more than a delusion.

    An as-yet-unreported perspective, but perhaps worthy of research and an academic paper, would be to investigate the stress that is imposed upon non-believer NHS staff who work with True Believers in the SRA Myth, particularly those with children. For instance an NHS worker with a moody teenager who didn't fancy going to Church and reads Harry Potter books would potentially be at risk of being labelled a satanist or victim of satanists or witches if they took their child or baby into their work premises to be examined by a True Believer colleague. This situation becomes even more exaggerated when the subject of the 'Mind Control' version of the SRA Myth comes into play, which is discussed later.

    Eventually the members of RAINS, and the other SRA Myth believers will surely publish some insight into the extraordinary personal impact that their exclusive knowledge has burdened them with; the broken relationships, the cancelled vacations, the huge debts incurred buying equipment and petrol for their cars whilst searching...the constant lack of sleep, the endless psychological damage incurred by the knowledge that somewhere, satanists are no doubt eating all the babies they can. Colleagues and peers of Dr. Buck herself must have wondered why over the last few decades, she has looked totally shattered, utterly worn-out from the endless hours searching, constantly searching the county of Nottinghamshire and beyond; its numerous council estates and rural wilds - searching for a trace of the satanists...perhaps a licensed shotgun in the back of her car, just in case she has to intervene straight away to prevent a baby being murdered and/or eaten. Of course, no such insight will appear; the enthusiasm with which True Believers profess their commitment to the SRA Myth is only matched by their distinct unwillingness to ever go look for any evidence of its existence.

    The personal burden on the advocates for the SRA Myth does not compare well with that of pioneering social worker Margaret Humphreys CBE who exposed the forced emigration of ten-of-thousands of English and Welsh children to Commonwealth countries in a campaign whose intensity led caused her health to suffer badly as well as her marriage. Dr. Sinason and the other True Believers appear to have had a far easier ride through the intervening decades.

    In the Internet Age, the public want and demand photographs, videos, digital recordings, material suitable for CNN transmissions. In an effort to address the glaring shortcomings in evidence - over the course of over twenty years no one across the world has photographed a satanic cult even parking their cars up for a monthly meeting, let alone uncovered mass graves full of the remains of those sacrificed. The advocates have had to tack on an increasingly number of even more ridiculous claims to the Ritual Abuse moral panic. At present these are Multiple Personality Disorder, Mind Control and Recovered Memory Therapy. The latest 'add-on' is that the multi-generational CIA-funded satanic cults practising Ritual Abuse are actually a front for 12-foot tall alien lizards that control mankind, though this version of the SRA Myth is restricted in the main to the a new generation of conspiracy theorists, led by David Icke

    In Great Britain, promoting the SRA Myth to a skeptical modern public has proved difficulty, not least because of the problems mentioned above. Additionally it is a struggle to persuade potential believers that the CIA are casting their satanic net beyond American shores. Recovered Memory Therapy, Multiple Personality Disorder and Mind Control managed to be imported into the beliefs of British SRA Myth True Believers, which remains, as during the original SRA Myth period in the UK - from 1988 (Broxtowe) to 2003 (The Island of Lewis) to be a minority of psychotherapists, psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, paediatricians, police officers and judiciary.

    Belief in the SRA Myth has proven remarkably resilient to the ravages of time. Although the heyday of the 'Myth was the period 1988-1994 in England and Wales, plus a brief return to the 'crazy' times with the Scottish Island of Lewis fiasco in 2003, advocates for the 'Myth can still be found. Amongst the psychotherapy profession in Great Britain, finding a True Believer who doesn't believe in the SRA Myth is particularly difficult. Amongst the psychiatry and psychology professions, 'Myth believers are not so commonly found, but are still numerous enough to make at least a sizeable minority of the professions' memberships in the UK.

    As Dr. Buck herself has noted, membership of RAINS amongst social workers has declined over the years, and the emphasis has changed to Belief being embedded amongst psychiatrists, psychotherapists and general therapists. In England and Wales, belief in the 'Myth is constrained principally by one major element; in twenty-three years its proponents have been unable to find a single verifiable trace of physical or forensic evidence for its existence. Not a single individual has been jailed after a finding of guilt in a criminal court for offences involving genuine involvement in satanic rituals in the UK - although the Pembroke scandal with its evidence chock-full of magical and fantastical allegations that defied the rules of physics and known reality, comes closest (and is also a case that SRA Myth advocates are not the least inclined to quote). The use of satanic imagery and paraphernalia, such as with Colin Batley in South Wales certainly counts as sexual abuse with satanic overtones - though without the use of torture, cannibalism, sacrifice or even mock sacrifice that are staple parts of what most people imagine to be satanic ritual abuse elements, however imaginary. Professor Jean La Fontaine detailed the existence of such paedophile activities in her report to the British government in 1994 (see Professor La Fontaine's Report).

    In the intervening time since the 'crazy years' of the 1990s, some narrowing in the nature of believers in the US and UK has taken place. The US version of the 'Myth was originally hugely public-led, driven by concerned parents who, due to the nature and preponderance of evangelical christian belief, were perhaps more vulnerable to the idea that satan himself was stalking the land. In the US version, although there were many academics and professionals at the time who were firm believers in the 'Myth, its profile was more in keeping with a societal spasm or 'moral panic'. Belief in the 'Myth in both countries is now centred amongst particular professions. Social work is notably absent from the list of professions still impacted by the 'Myth. Although there are constant references to British child protection social workers who are convinced in the presence of a huge Satanic conspiracy, or that many women, notably mothers, are witches, the numbers concerned and obsessed with such beliefs is believed to be relatively low, and located only in Local Authorities where Directors of Children's Services are influenced by religious fundamentalists beliefs, or allow belief in the 'Myth or the vision of women as witches to persist.

    Belief in the 'Myth outside the US and UK is relatively unknown. Only in Australia and New Zealand can True Believers still be generally found - thanks in part to the considerable investment by religious fundamentalists and feminists in exporting the 'Myth there in the 1980s and early 1990s.

    In recent years Sweden has seen a shift towards belief in satanic ritual abuse, though this has been driven by a desire by Swedish feminists to label males as being demonic/satanic. Once again collusion with religious fundamentalists is in full swing. Sweden's particular issues are addressed in the entry for Angela Wileman.

    As mentioned earlier, the English, Welsh and Scottish versions of the 'Myth in the late 1980s and '90s were less public-panic driven than its US counterpart, and instead depended on a core of evangelical christian fundamentalists, feminists (notably Beatrix Campbell (OBE) and a minority cross-section of the child protection social worker, police officer, psychiatrist and paediatric professionals. In addition there were a small number of politicians, newspaper editors, journalists, and judiciary who contributed to its establishment. These Believers incorporated a wide cross-section of personal beliefs, from extreme religious fundamentalist passion, to radical feminism, atheism, secularism and some points in between. A feature running throughout was that Believing individuals were able to temporarily abandon previous stances and adopt convictions in the existence of the fantastical and magical.

    Continued advocacy in the 'Myth in Great Britain has now coalesced into a number of active organisations, plus a number of public bodies who include members who have incorporated the 'Myth, either into their own working philosophy, or on occasions into the organisations they work for. These notably include;

    • The Department of Health
    • Wolverhampton City NHS PCT
    • The BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) - though only the central management of the Corporation, most notably that of Radio 4
    • The Metropolitan Police
    • The Guardian Media Group (newspapers)
    • The SNP (Scottish National Party)
    • The Scottish Labour Party


    In addition a small publishing industry, producing SRA Myth advocacy texts is present in the UK, and roughly equates in size to that found in the US. Religious publishing, from fundamentalist groups also produce a large number of individually-small volume printings, and on occasions the larger publishers, notably of psychotherapy and psychiatry textbooks will 'crossover' to cover religious themes.

    SRA Myth True Believers in the public eye - Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke

    Faces or voices of those who advocate for the 'Myth and who might be even vaguely recognised by the British public are rare beasts. Bea Campbell (OBE) will easily win any competition on the subject, having been the chief promoter of the 'Myth in the late 1980s and early-to-mid 1990s, trumping even the best efforts of vocal religious fundamentalists at the time. The 'Myth years probably sealed her place in British contemporary history, dwarfing any other supposed feminist work or social commentary.

    Whilst this Entry discusses the work of Great Britain's two leading proponents for the 'Myth - namely Dr. Valerie Sinason and David Icke, neither have been able to match the enthusiasm with which Beatrix Campbell OBE pursued her obsessions; melding the British Left and extreme far-right religious fundamentalists together in a fashion that created an indelible mark on so-called political 'progressives', that is still visible today.

    Nonetheless, beyond just vague references to other SRA Myth advocates, such as the US psychiatrist Roland Summit, Ms. Campbell OBE makes no public statements about her involvement in the 'Myth scandals, and to date no journalist, particularly from the BBC, has been willing to ask any of the perhaps obvious questions. An interview, or even an autobiography from Ms. Campbell OBE would be a huge contribution to British contemporary history, providing an insight into how the British left submitted to the passions of fundamentalism, to the point that even Marxism Today in 1991 became a mouthpiece for the Christian Right in the UK (see Martin Jacques).

    In her absence we are left with the two faces most easily identified with continuing belief in the 'Myth; psychotherapist/psychoanalyst Dr. Valerie Sinason and conspiracy theorist David Icke. In recent years the views of Dr. Sinason and David Icke have overlapped, and there is little discernible 'clear blue water' between either.

    David Icke, former soccer goalkeeper, television sports presenter and UK Green Party spokesman is perhaps the leading conspiracy theorist to be found in the world today. Although this the Dramatis site rarely employs quotes from Wikipedia, this entry provides a concise summary of his beliefs, espoused in numerous books and countless public presentations and seminars.

    Icke's basic argument is that humanity was created, and is controlled, by a network of secret societies run by a race of interbreeding bloodlines originating in the Middle and Near East in the ancient world. Icke calls them the "Babylonian Brotherhood." The Illuminati, Round Table, Council on Foreign Relations, Chatham House, the Trilateral Commission, the Bilderberg Group, the IMF, United Nations, the media, military, science, religion, and the Internet are all Brotherhood created and controlled. The Brotherhood is mostly male. Their children are raised from an early age to understand the mission; those who don't are pushed aside. Key Brotherhood bloodlines are the British House of Windsor, the Rothschild's, the Rockefeller's, European royalty and aristocracy, and the Eastern establishment families of the United States. The origin of the bloodlines is extra-terrestrial. At the apex of the Brotherhood stands the "Global Elite," the same group identified throughout history as the "Illuminati"; at the top of the Global Elite stand the "Prison Wardens." The goal of the Brotherhood—their "Great Work of Ages," or the "Brotherhood Agenda"—is world domination and a micro-chipped population.
    (Source: Wikipedia entry for David Icke)

    What isn't emphasised in the summary is that the key part of Icke's beliefs; the extra-terrestrials that ultimately rule mankind are supposed to be 12' shape-shifting reptiles capable of taking-on human form. That human form apparently can be many of the worlds key leaders and celebrities, and indeed many of Ickes supporters spend endless hours determining who in the world of politics and entertainment is actually a shape-shifting 12' reptile. Current convention amongst the conspiracy-theory brigade is that Britney Spears and Lady GagGa are almost certainly mind-controlled Illuminati-leading individuals, and possibly shape-shifting reptiles to boot. Worse is to befall anyone unfortunate to be born Sagitarian (and American, and female, and regularly seen on television) especially of course, Hanna Montana;



    Britney Spears
    Christina Aguilera
    Nicki Minaj
    Anna Nicole Smith
    Nelly Furtado
    Miley Cyrus
    Hopefully Taylor Swift will be okay…
    (Source: Origins and Techniques of Monarch Mind Control - posting in the Comments section, Secret Arcana web site)

    Wrapped-up into the miasma that is David Icke's world is a distinct and absolute belief in the SRA Myth, typified by his seminar, entitled Satanic Child Abuse Mind Control (14 YouTube videos);



    The opportunities afforded by having the 'lizard' conspiracy theory and the SRA Myth merge into one, doesn't appear to escaped Mr. Icke, who unwittingly provides a pointer as to how easy it is for ideas in the media and those found on the Internet (including his own) to become incorporated in the 'survivor' world of those who claim to have lived through satanic ritual abuse;

    And I got a call from a lady in America who is the head of Parents Against Ritual Abuse. And I was talking to her, again, not about shape-shifting reptilians, but about the ritual abuse of children in America, and she said during this conversation, "Do you know, about 12 of my clients have actually reported that, during the rituals, they've seen the participants turn into reptiles." And, she said, "I've always taken it to be that they're dressing up to confuse them."
    (Source: The Biggest Secret - An Interview With David Icke - 1999)

    Although easily dismissed as being the from the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' brand of conspiracy theorist, many elements of Mr. Ickes belief system - Mind Control, DID/MPD, Satanic Ritual Abuse are key features of RAINS, as described by Dr. Sandra Buck on the first page of this Index entry.

    Such beliefs also appear to correlate with the core beliefs of Valerie Sinason, the other leading SRA Myth advocate in the UK. This section will include an examination of both David Icke and Valerie Sinason's beliefs, using their written published work.

    Dr. Valerie Sinason is a psychotherapist, poet and author. She has written nearly a dozen books on various subjects, including poetry collections. She is a founder and Director of the Clinic for Dissociative Studies, established in 1998, in London, England. The CDS isn't the only center of psychotherapy belief in the SRA Myth in the UK, The Centre for Attachment-based Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy (CAPP), The Traumatic Stress Service at the Maudsley Hospital and the Pottergate Centre for Dissociation and Trauma in Norwich maintain careers for professionals convinced of a belief in the SRA Myth. All of the institutions except the CDS recognise Dissociation as a general clinical term for numerous conditions, whilst the CDS will only recognise Dissociation as being caused solely by ritual abuse. Associates of the CDS are enthusiastic True Believers in the SRA Myth, and practise a form of pseudoscience characterised as such;

    "There are gnomes in my garden that always make themselves invisible when anyone tries to observe them."
    (Source: Definition of pseudoscience, from Introduction: false assumption of modern astronomy)

    The primary Associates of the CDS are notable in both their conviction in the existence of satanic ritual abuse, but also their belief in a worldwide conspiracy, enacted by the 'Illuminati' and/or the CIA or MI5, to generate an army of mind-controlled robot humans through the application of satanic ritual sex abuse of children and adults. This is supposedly performed with the deliberate aim of provoking the creation of multiple personalities through the process of Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) in its most extreme form - that being the creation of multiple 'alters' or multiple identities. Most of these theories originate from extreme right-wing religious fundamentalists in the US, tracing their history back to the mid-1990s when the SRA Myth began to take-on increasingly absurd 'baggage'. None of these theories are particularly new and all of them have been imported from US sources.

    Although an enthusiastic SRA Myth advocate, Dr. Sinason missed being a significant character during the initial 'moral panic' that took place in the UK between 1988 and 1994, much of which was based on the perception that satanists and witches were rife across the land, sexually abusing, killing and eating babies and children.

    Dr. Sinason's initial contribution to the SRA Myth was in the form of her book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (1994) published by leading SRA Myth publisher - Routledge. The book, as mentioned on the first page of this entry (see Conflict with The Jet Report), holds the distinction of having been voted by 150 of her peers as the second worst psychiatry publication of the last Millennium. It was beaten into second place only by;

    1. Ralph Rossen: Acute arrest of cerebral circulation in man, 1943. Here, "scientists" stopped the blood flow to the brain in 100 prisoners and 11 chronic schizophrenics by pressing the carotid artery in their necks, reporting the not surprising discovery that "no significant improvement in the psychiatric status of the schizophrenia patients was noted after repeated and relatively prolonged periods of arrest of cerebral circulation."
    (Source: The Ten Worst Publications in the History of Psychiatry)

    Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse


    See the extensive analysis of this book at Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Routledge/Informa PLC, 1994.

    Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse was contributed-to by many of the leading lights of the SRA Myth at the time. The volume is published by British publisher Routledge, sold first to Taylor & Francis Group, and now merged with Informa PLC. Routledge, now a division of Taylor & Francis, continues to publish Dr. Sinason's work with enthusiasm, publishing a second edition of her Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder, 2nd Edition on November 26th 2010.

    Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity


    A new book, the similarly-titled Trauma, Dissociation and Multiplicity was originally scheduled for July 2011, but appeared late in 2011. It continued Informa PLC's (the owner of Routledge) distinction, led by Chairman and CEO Peter Rigby (not to be confused with Peter Rigby, the British entrepreneur and head of SCC) to be the leading non-religious British publisher supporting the SRA Myth. Bizarrely, Attachment, Trauma & Multiplicity gets an online review on the Routledge web site, from none other than leading SRA Myth advocate and 'shit-house-rat' theory promoter - one Dr. Colin A. Ross, suggesting that belief in the SRA Myth is deeply embedded at the publisher;

    "This new edition of Attachment, Trauma & Multiplicity captures the state of the art in Great Britain. It is a most welcome addition to the dissociative disorders field". - Colin A. Ross, M.D., President, The Colin A. Ross Institute for Psychological Trauma, Richardson, Texas, USA.
    (Source: Colin A. Ross review for Attachment, Trauma & Multiplicity).

    A review from Dr. Ross, even a positive one, is not necessarily something to be sought-after. As well as allegations of abuse against some of his patients (see Dr. Colin Ross - psychiatry falls off a precipice), Dr. Ross is willing to provide negative insights into the nature of the psychotherapists who promote dissociation (see End piece).

    Dr. Ross does tend to express opposing opinions on any subject concerning the SRA Myth, and a congratulatory statement in one publication can often see a condemnation from him in another.
    A belief that military and security organisation employ trauma-based satanic ritual abuse of children, to turn them into dissociated mind-controlled robot slaves, dominates Dr. Sinason's most recent work. Bizarrely, Routledge, as mentioned, now, as mentioned a specialist division of Taylor & Francis, itself owned by Informa PLC, publishes in the military, security and strategic studies spheres, as well as psychiatry and psychotherapy. This has led a situation whereby Routledge's specialist professional military and security purchasers of its books are being collectively and routinely accused to include child abusing, mind-control-imposing satanists; determined repeatedly in writing by an author of the same publishing house - a situation perhaps unique in the world of publishing.

    Dr. Sinason claims to have been a witness in cases that would appear to employ the English and Welsh family courts;

    She specialises in disability, trauma and abuse and is regularly used as an expert in court cases.
    (Source: flyer for Sexual Abuse Agencies - Fife)

    It isn't clear if Dr. Sinason also operates in the Scotland, where Belief in the SRA Myth is at its most predominant in all of Europe, though not quite as extensive as the belief in evil witches practised by the Rumanian government.

    Core to Dr. Sinason's belief in a huge, secret, organised ritual abuse organisation worldwide, is the concept that adults, notably white English-speaking middle-class women, will fragment into numerous multiple personalities, as a result of severe trauma inflicted through torture and sexual abuse, and that the ritual abuse was and is being inflicted deliberately to cause the victims' minds to fragment.

    Dissociation though is a wide subject, ranging from the day-dreamy state of adolescent boys, the stunned disconnection from the world caused by surviving a terrorist bomb attack, to the rare full-blown phenomena that is multiple-personality disorder (currently known as DID - Dissociative Identity Disorder). The principle problems with the MPD mechanism is that it is routinely diagnosed as being schizophrenia (there are over 250,000 schizophrenics diagnosed in the UK alone). Another primary problem with the theory that MPD is caused by childhood trauma (notably ritual abuse) is that psychiatrists and psychotherapists simply don't see children with MPD (this is discussed at length in The SRA Myth, MPD/DID and RMT). That problem is substantial; for the most part DID/MPD is diagnosed only after extensive therapy from a psychotherapist. A minority of patients exhibit the symptoms beforehand, though invariably only after engaging in substantial research on their own part. Finding 'multiplicity' or multiple personalities amongst children, even adolescents isn't just rare, it is incredibly rare, though in theory the Nazi's "Final Solution", Pol Pot's Cambodia, and the Rwanda genocide and Bosnia conflicts alone should have produced tens of thousands of deeply dissociated children amongst the traumatised and abused young survivors, including those with multiple personality disorder symptoms.

    Dr. Sinason together with other SRA Myth advocates has determined that it is virtually impossible to have DID without a ritual abuse element involved, thus differentiating herself and a few similarly-minded peers from the rest of her psychotherapist profession, including those recognised as leading authorities on the subject of DID.

    Internationally, the largest amount of DID is diagnosed in connection with disclosures of ritual abuse (Becker, Karriker and Overkamp 2008; Sachs and Galton 2008; Sarson and McDonald 2009), hence the discrediting of or inability to perceive the possibility of the one existing automatically precludes rational thinking about the other.
    (Source: Introduction Page 12, Attachment, trauma & multiplicity, second edition, edited by Valerie Sinason - 2011 by Routledge - sample chapter)

    This poses a crucial, though previously unpublicised problem for Dr. Sinason's publisher, Routledge; she declines to acknowledge the work of their other published (and somewhat more respected) peers, who publish through the same publishing company, and who certainly have no interest in acknowledging her. There is the additional problem of dealing with DID sufferers and their advocate groups who believe that DID can be caused by other factors other than ritual abuse, and object to the constant association with 'shit-house-rat-crazy' conspiracy theories that Dr. Sinason and her cohorts evangelise about.

    It is useful to look closely at the references Valerie Sinason provides, as SRA Myth advocates invariably reference other material in the hope that it makes their work look a little more 'academic'; Becker, Karriker and Overkamp 2008 refers to the Extreme Abuse Survey performed by DID/SRA Myth advocates with 'survivors' and their therapists worldwide.



    Of 1000 EAS respondents who replied to the item: "Secret government-sponsered mind control experiments were performed on me as a child", 257 (26%) said "Yes," and 219 of those 257 remembered seeing perpetrators wearing white doctors' coats. Of 451 respondents to the Professional Extreme Abuse Survey, seventy-one professional helpers from at least six countries reported work with survivors reporting government mind control experimentation"
    (Source: Torture-based mind control: psychological mechanisms and psychotherapeutic approaches to overcoming mind control by Ellen P. Lacter, extract from Page 65 of Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs - edited by Orit Badouk Epstein, Joseph Schwartz and Rachel Wingfield Schwartz, Karnac Books, March 2011)

    Over 170 of the respondents claimed to have been trained as a mind-controlled government assassin through satanic abuse performed by government agencies. That the EAS would be used by Valerie Sinason as 'valid' research is one thing. That it appeared in a Routledge/Informa PLC 'academic' book purporting to be a valid source is another.

    The EAS is regularly referred-to by SRA Myth/DID advocates as an authoritative source of material. These pages too reference its sometimes hilarious findings and assertions.

    The profession of psychotherapy is normally perceived by lay people to be split between those who tend towards Freudian concepts, and those who don't. In reality though there is a second, more subtle division; between those who believe utterly in a huge world-wide conspiracy of satanists, practising ritual abuse on children, and those who regard it as bunkum; the ultimate in pseudoscience concepts.

    Dr. Sinason's conviction that there is a world-wide conspiracy of MI5 and CIA officers who are satanists and practising ritual abuse on children (intended to cause fragmentation of their personalities) leaves behind the 'Classic' version of the SRA Myth that was given a distinct Britishness slant in the late 1980s and early-to-mid 1990s, with its visions of ghosts and flying witches. This is superseded by the distinct American-derived 'Mind Control' version.

    Much of the theory for the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' derivative can be ascertained from psychologist Corydon Hammond's speech to his peers in 1992 - The Greenbaum Speech - Hypnosis in MPD: Ritual Abuse discussed on the first page of this Entry. In 1992, a number of psychologists like Dr. Hammond confirmed the worst fears of many in the profession; that the paranoias and fears of many patients had taken hold amongst practitioners themselves. Psychiatry and psychotherapy too suffered the same indignities, leaving many in the respective disciplines aghast at how easily the 'loony' element had taken control.

    Translating the ideas of leading psychologist Corydon Hammond to suit a British scenario is tough - principally because although in the US, paranoid conspiracy theories about the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) have been rife within the Right and Left for decades, such claims have made little headway in the UK. When asked why satanists would be spending so much effort on perfecting Mind Control, Dr. Hammond answered straight-forwardly;

    People say, "What's the purpose of it?" My best guess is that the purpose of it is that they want an army of Manchurian Candidates, ten of thousands of mental robots who will do prostitution, do child pornography, smuggle drugs, engage in international arms smuggling, do snuff films, all sorts of very lucrative things and do their bidding and eventually the megalomaniacs at the top believe they'll create a Satanic Order that will rule the world.
    (Source: The Greenbaum Speech - Hypnosis in MPD: Ritual Abuse, speech by Dr. Corydon Hammond)

    In her essay From Social Conditioning to Mind Control contributed to what purports to be a serious psychotherapy volume - Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder, edited by SRA Myth True Believers Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, Dr. Valerie Sinason promotes her views to the full, and in doing so, reaches the same level of conspiracy paranoia that David Icke professes.

    In the following extracts, Dr. Sinason emphasises her idolising of first Dr. Hammond, leading SRA Myth/alien abduction/CIA conspiracy theorist Dr. Colin Ross, and finally David Icke;

    Mengele's scientific experiments at Auschwitz, and others at Dachau, allowed brainwashing experiments to be attempted that involved the use of drugs as well as electric shocks, other torture, and criminally created DID. Mengele was also known as "Dr Green". The psychologist Corydon Hammond (1992) has risked major discreditation - but has also received gratitude-for speaking about these issues. Here do we put the testimony of survivors, such as Lieutenant Romola, who testify to a Dr Green, a Nazi?

    Operation BLUEBIRD was approved by CIA director Allen Dulles in 1950 and renamed Operation ARTICHOKE IN 1951. Research by Colin Ross (2006) shows that the creation of dissociative identities was fully endorsed. As well as being potential couriers and spies, the subjects could function, in effect, as the human equivalent of a tape recorder, a computer, or camera and be amnesic for the entire episode. The memorised material could then be retrieved by a programmer using a previously implanted code or signal.
    (Source: From Social Conditioning to Mind Control, page 174, an essay contributed by Valerie Sinason to Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, 2008. Series editor Brett Kahr, published by Karnac Books)

    Dissociation as a creative defence against relational trauma is appalling enough to consider, thinking of a overwhelmed small child dealing with impossible burdens. However, to consider the deliberate creation of a fragmented mind enters another sphere of intentionality, with links stretching back to Auschwitz and then back further to earliest history.

    Indeed David Icke (2002), who deals with a variety of both verified and unverified mind-control issues, focuses on Mengele's realisation that torture and making someone watch torture could shatter "a person's mind into a honeycomb of self-contained compartments or amnesic barriers" (p. 282). Colin Ross (2006), in his rigorously researched study of CIA papers, shows that the Manchurian Candidate is fact and not fiction, and he describes the experiments conducted by psychiatrists to create amnesia, new identities, hypnotic access codes, and new memories in the minds of experimental subjects. How can we hope for police investigations when it is an actual government-sponsored agency that has committed the crime? What are the links to British equivalent crimes? Indeed some of the survivors who showed evidence of mind-control procedures lived on or near military bases. (Source: From Social Conditioning to Mind Control, page 179, an essay contributed by Valerie Sinason to Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, 2008. Series editor Brett Kahr, published by Karnac Books)

    In the above extracts, Dr. Sinason manages to 'press all the buttons' that entitle her to the exclusive 'shit-house-rat-crazy' conspiracy club; Corydon D. Hammond, David Icke and Colin A. Ross. The "Lieutenant Romola" referenced earlier in Dr. Sinason's academic paper, details a scene, horribly reminiscent of one from cheesy British 1980s B-grade horror movie Lifeforce. Dr. Sinason recounts her apparent encounter with one these mind-controlled military robots, who had somehow managed to break his programming enough to tell a UK community doctor. Apparently having flown to England to kill someone, he had forgotten who it was, and had thus got himself checked-in to a mental institution. With fellow SRA Myth True Believer Dr. Hale, she attended as an independent observer, in a moment that can only be described a 'cinematographic', with the patient providing his own special effects.

    As we entered the single room off the main ward, Lieutenant Romola (not his real name) raised himself wearily on the bed. The senior registrar introduced us and then left us. Romola was a muscular man with olive skin and shock of dark hair and terrified eyes with large dark circles round them. He looked as if he had not slept for ays. He stared at my colleague, Dr. Margot. She did not move or blink under the intensity of his scan.

    "You know, don't you," he said with a strong clear American accent.

    "Something," she said. "Where have got to?"

    He waved at the hospital side room deprecatingly. "This is where I go telling the truth. In England. Not Russia, not America. England."

    "Yep. That's how it is," said Dr margot.

    "I need the delta de-activated, or I am a vegetable here for life."

    "Know who it's aimed at?"

    "No."

    "No wonder you needed help. You're a life-saver," Dr Margot replied.

    "Thank you."

    I was as surprised by Dr Margot's language as by the man's and had no idea what they were talking about.

    "How did you find out about the delta?"

    His face suddenly changed, and a metallic robotic sound came from his mouth. "This is Level 33. You should not be here. Unauthorised personnel. Everyone on this level will be wiped out in ten seconds if you do not give the correct password."

    I looked in terror at Dr. Margot, who remained calm. Romola's heart rate was speeding up, and his face was turning blue.

    "I need Level 33 password now. i order you," barked margot, suddenly, like a colonel.

    A shy, low voice came out of Romola's mouth and provided the password, a number, and margot repeated it with great authority.

    Romola relaxed, and the blue color started moving from his face. Another sound came from his lips, which sounded like lift doors closing and opening.

    This procedure continued with a stop at different "levels" until we reached the ground.

    Suddenly another sound came from Romola's mouth. This sounded like the voice on a telephone-answering machine. The voice gave out telephone numbers, which Dr. Margot wrote down. Then came a man's voice, which I had not heard before. There was no affect in the expression of the voice.

    Then everything went silent again.

    Romola's face changed dramatically. A new beatific expression came over him. He looked at us and said, "Thank you for coming. I can take over from here. You may watch. I have deleted the name. That man is now safe. He will not be killed."

    There was silence.

    "What a beautiful garden," he said, "everything is green here." Suddenly the smile left his face. "You, here. I should have known it was you, Dr. Green. I do not have to obey you any more."

    His face shut down, blank like a computer screen.

    After what felt like an eternity, but was probably ten or fifteen minutes, Romola stretched his arms and legs and sat up. He looked at us, stunned. "I feel like a new man," he said. "What happened?" He looked at Dr. Margot and her pad with the phone numbers. "You did it. You have taken it out."
    (Source: From Social Conditioning to Mind Control, pages 168,169,170, an essay contributed by Valerie Sinason to Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, 2008. Series editor Brett Kahr)

    Dr. Rob Hale or Dr.'Margot' haven't as yet got around to publishing their accounts of what rightly seems to a significant event for Dr. Valerie Sinason, and one certainly worthy of further investigation, perhaps by a decent journalist. Regrettably Dr. Sinason didn't appear to think of that at the time, and hasn't done so since.

    Whilst Dr. Sinason references David Icke, the compliment is paid the other way. In the quote below, David Icke adds his comments to a Daily Mail report published at the time when Dr. Sinason and colleague Dr. Hale's report for the British Department of Health had been submitted (though it was never subsequently released to the public, having been determined to be garbage). Dr. Sinason might have objected to being referred-to as "Miss Sinason" by David Icke;

    The London Daily Mail newspaper has reported that Britain's police headquarters, Scotland Yard, is investigating Satanism in the UK and the evidence presented to them completely validates the claims made in The Biggest Secret about the ritual sacrifice networks.

    The scale is much greater than portrayed here, but it's a start in the massive task of lifting the veil and exploding the collective human mind out of it's lethargy and denial.

    My comments below are in brackets.

    David Icke

    Daily Mail, Thursday, February 10, 2000.

    Claims that babies may have been sacrificed by devil worshippers are being investigated by Scotland Yard, it emerged yesterday.

    Detectives are probing allegations of murder and cannibalism following research into Satanic abuse funded by the Department of Health.

    The report, due out in the Spring, is expected to include claims that babies are conceived specifically for the purpose of being tortured and killed.

    (The women, often kept in captivity, to give birth to these babies are known by Satanists as "breeders" as explained in The Biggest Secret)

    Their births are not registered which, it is alleged, makes it difficult for police to trace the culprits. The disturbing allegations are bound to reopen the debate on whether ritual abuse exists in Britain.

    (In fact, Britain is the global centre of the Satanic ritual network run by the reptilian bloodlines).

    The claims come from leading psychotherapist, Valerie Sinason, who conducted research for the report. She told Radio Four's Today programme: "I am completely convinced that there is a small amount of organised and ritual abuse in this country which, I think, has a definitely Satanist belief in it or is used by pedophiles to make their rituals more terrifying."

    (In truth, I repeat, the scale of this is fantastic and goes right to the "top" of the British establishment - the British Royal Family.)

    Miss Sinason has interviewed 76 children and adults who claim to have witnessed appalling crimes at Satanist ceremonies. She claims to have evidence that babies were born specifically for ritual abuse, as well as photographs of ritual sites, mutilated animal remains and victims' injuries. One 27-year-old victim, identified only as Teresa, told the Today programme: "There are children who are born for the purpose of sacrifice and they would be kept until that time came."

    Police sources confirmed that a nationwide probe had begun and that officers were looking into claims that babies may have been sacrificed.

    Acting Detective Chief Inspector Clive Driscoll, who is in charge of the Scotland Yard Inquiry, said: "We are taking the research extremely seriously.."

    (We shall see about that in due course. These Satanic networks include so many leading figures in government, police, and the legal profession, including judges, that so many such "inquiries", even when conducted by genuine police officers, end up being squashed. We will keep you posted on the outcome of this one.)
    (Source: David Icke News Room - LONDON POLICE INVESTIGATING CLAIMS OF BABIES "BORN FOR SACRIFICE")

    The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy

    The multiple personality disorder-believing faction amongst those who profess a fascination with the SRA Myth pose a difficult problem for professionals who trade in the DID 'industry'. That Dissociation exists is in little doubt - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is increasingly recognised as a devastating side-effect to victims of trauma; most notably feelings of detachment from reality, or from the self, are often recognised by dedicated professionals. 'Dissociation' or the study of dissociation isn't the source of any difficulty; tacking-on DID, or MPD with its ritual abuse 'baggage' is.

    The idea though that severe trauma - most notably ritual abuse - performed by (invariably quoted) satanists or witches, or the CIA, or MI5 (satanists or otherwise) or inter-generational satanic families (acting through the CIA/MI5 etc. or otherwise) to deliberately create victims with fragmented personalities, unfortunately doesn't stand up to scrutiny.

    If satanists or 'generic' ritual abusers were able to create MPD 'alters' through the application of sexual and physical abuse in ritual abuse, then for sure we would see numerous children, both now and observed in the past, who exhibited such behaviour, even if the diagnosis wasn't realised there and then, but was interpreted later - such as how we can now identify great figures in science and literature who saw the world through 'different eyes' who we can now claim were probably autistic. As it is there is no such trace of MPD amongst children, now or in the past. Dr. August Piper was quoted on the first page of this section, and is repeated here;

    The logic of the claim that childhood trauma causes MPD demonstrates a final serious flaw. If the claim were true, the abuse of millions of children over the years should have caused many cases of MPD. A case in point: children who endured unspeakable maltreatment in the ghettoes, boxcars, and concentration camps of Nazi Germany. However, no evidence exists that any developed MPD (Bower 1994; Des Pres 1976; Eitinger 1980; Krystal 1991; Sofsky 1997) or that any dissociated or repressed their traumatic memories (Eisen 1988; Wagenaar and Groeneweg 1990). Similarly, the same results hold in studies of children who saw a parent murdered (Eth and Pynoos 1994; Malmquist 1986); studies of kidnapped children (Terr 1979; Terr 1983); studies of children known to have been abused (Gold et al. 1994); and in several other investigations (Chodoff 1963; Pynoos and Nader 1989; Strom et al. 1962). Victims neither repressed the traumatic events, forgot about them, nor developed MPD.
    ...

    In 1988, Vincent and Pickering noted that in the published reviews of the literature, exactly one case presenting in childhood was reported in the 135 years prior to 1979. After reviewing the literature published since 1979, they were able to gather a mere twelve cases. (It seems, however, that Vincent and Pickering had to stretch a bit to find even those — four of the twelve were examples not of MPD, but rather of something the authors called “incipient MPD.”) Nine additional cases were found by Peterson (1990).

    These minuscule numbers, standing in stark contrast to the thousands of adult cases discovered in recent years, reveal the third weakness: if MPD results from child abuse, then why have so few cases been discovered in children?
    (Source: Multiple Personality Disorder: Witchcraft Survives in the Twentieth Century by August Piper Jnr. The Skeptical Inquirer, Volume 22.3, May / June 1998)

    This core issue remains at the heart of the MPD diagnosis. It would be impossible to say 'debate' because no such debate exists; enthusiasts for DID/MPD invariably reply to such difficult questions by simply accusing the skeptic of being a satanist for even raising such queries. Yet the core issue remains; believers in DID (and Recovered memory Therapy) believe that severe trauma, notably sexual abuse incurred in satanic ritual abuse causes amnesia (memory loss) and on occasions, the creation of other personalities.

    The concept of amnesia after severe trauma isn't that new; a theme of memory loss after accident or injury can be found amongst the episodes of 1960s and 70s TV dramas, such as The Saint or UFO. But the idea though that girls, particularly white girls, from middle-class families, are able, by design or through some as yet unrecognised ability, to totally forget abuse until far later in life, is unique - a creation that is entirely due to the influence of Dr. Lawrence Pazders Michelle Remembers (see The importance of 'Michelle Remembers') whilst 'Multiple Personality Disorder' can trace its history back to the end of the 19th century, and in the 20th century, to the book Sybil and its subsequent movie adaptations (though the story of Sybil is now accepted by many to be a fraud).

    Where though are the MPD children? MPD/DID enthusiasts like Dr. Valerie Sinason appear able to find MPD patients, often after many years of therapy. Dr. Sinason is also of the opinion that child 'multiples' exist, but they weren't asked the right questions as children to disclose their multiplicity (though she declines to point to any research indicating this). Dr. Colin Ross, as detailed in the End piece to these entries, confirms that the DID patients he sees are often victims of their own (psycho)therapists;

    DID cases with significant iatrogenic elements are seen on a regular basis in our Dissociative Disorders Program. Iatrogenic DID is a fulfilment of the therapist's needs and expectations, and is caused by the therapist's cueing, leading questions, suggestions, and reinforcement of iatrogenic symptoms. Not uncommonly, the therapy described meets criteria for a destructive psychotherapy cult (Singer, 1995).
    (Source: Oxford textbook of psychopathology - 1999, edited by Theodore Millon, Paul H. Blaney, Roger D. Davis, page 477, Dissociative Disorders by Dr. Colin A. Ross, published by the Oxford University Press)

    New York columnist Joan Acocella" chronicled the nature of psychotherapists obsession with unearthing multiple personalities, in Creating Hysteria: Women and Multiple Personality Disorder (1999). In the lengthy passage below, Elizabeth Carlson's story of how she was led into the crazed world of multiple personalities, by her therapist, Dr. Diane Humenansky, is compellingly told, though Dr. Humenansky refused to talk to Ms. Acocella;

    According to Carlson, Humenansky also used a method called guided imagery, in which the patient is talked through an imaginary scene in order to awaken buried memories. In one scenario Humenansky told Carlson to picture herself going downstairs. Look for an altar, Humenansky said. Carlson saw a stone slab. Look around for candles and daggers, Humenansky said, Carlson saw them. Now look for the baby, Humenansky said. Carlson does not remember at what point her own imagination, primed by the books and videos, took over, but soon she saw a pregnant woman, and then the baby was born, and then the afterbirth was sitting on the altar, and people in hooded robes were eating it, and so was she. (That was the first of many cannibalism scenes Carlson recovered with Dr. Humenansky. Today, she still has nightmares about them.) The therapy sessions often ended with Carlson weeping uncontrollably. Carlson says Humenansky would give her tranquillisers and tell her to chew them, so that they would take effect faster.

    At the same time that Carlson, under Humenansky's guidance, was recalling the abuse that caused her personality to split, the two of them were also "mapping the system" -- that is, identifying the different personalities. Ever since Sybil it had been accepted that any moderately elaborated MP system was likely to include child alters. Carlson obligingly dug up hers. One was Little Miss Fluff, a nickname that she had been given as a girl because she liked frilly dresses and crinolines. Another was Suzarina: that had been her imaginary playmate when she was a child, and it was decided that the playmate must have been an early alter. To fill the Eve-Black slot, Carlson came up with Wild Child, a teenage tramp, and Nikita, a more mature temptress. Sybil had had two male alters; so, quite soon, did Carlson. She also located two nuns, Sister Mary Margaret and Sister Mary Theresa (the latter wanted to join the Peace Corps), and a scared, depressed old lady called the Old Lady.

    Some of these alters were discovered through "journaling," a technique recommended by MPD experts. Carlson was told to keep a journal; then, going over it, Humenansky picked out recurrent thoughts and identified them as alters, or as traces of abuse memories. When Carlson's mood changed -- indeed, when she changed her hair or clothing style -- Humenansky told her she had "switched," or changed alters. If she showed up for her session in a short skirt, that meant Nikita was "out." If she was depressed, that was the Old Lady taking over. With each new personality they unearthed, Carlson was asked to supply the name, but if she drew a blank, Humenansky did the naming.

    In the middle of the treatment, according to Carlson, Humenansky went to the ISSMP&D conference in Chicago and returned with the news that MPs also tended to have lesbian, animal, and devil personalities. Carlson thereupon produced something that growled and that they figured was either an animal or a devil. She also came up with a lesbian alter. Humenansky urged her to get in touch with this side of herself, so Carlson went to a strip club with a lesbian friend, got drunk, and tried, with little success, to have sex with her.

    Interestingly, though -- and this seems to be the case with a number of MPs who have not yet written memoirs -- Carlson never quite got the hang of multiplicity. To this day, she doesn't know how many personalities she had.

    "After twenty-five, I lost count," she says. Humenansky had Carlson write down their names, ages, and key memories on index cards for reference. Still, Carlson says, "I couldn't keep the damn things straight." Once, she lost the card file, and they had to do the whole thing all over again.

    There were times when she would walk into Humenansky's office and say that she didn't want to recover memories or explore alters that day. She just needed to talk. She recalls:

    Dr. Humenansky said, "Well, who am I talking to?" And I would say, "This is just me." She said, "No, I want to know which alter I'm talking to."

    "It's not an alter," I said. "It's just me." Finally she got out an index card and wrote down, "Just Me."

    Later, Carlson says, Humenansky put her under sodium Amytal ("truth serum") and asked her, "OK, who's the 'Just Me' person?"
    (Source: Pages 8,9 and 10 Creating Hysteria: Women and Multiple Personality Disorder (1999) by Joan Acocella)

    Joan Acocella rel="external">
    Joan


    Concerns that therapists have been the primary cause of incidents of multiple personality aren't new in history. The explosion in MPD/DID diagnosis of white middle-class women in the US during the 1990s was of extraordinary proportions, but others had seen the risks to women from therapists long before, through a process already mentioned in the Dr. Colin A. Ross extract above, known as Iatrogenesis (inadvertent adverse effects or complications caused by or resulting from medical treatment or advice).

    The literature on secondary or multiple personalities also contains debates on these issues. In one of his first publications of clinical observations made with hypnotic alters, Pierre Janet (1887, p. 472) commented on the possibility of artefacts. That is, he warned therapists about the danger of suggesting to the subject phenomena observed in previous sessions. Janet also realised that once he had named a personality the personality became more life-like (Janet, 1889, p.318). In addition, he argued that one of his subjects ' (Leonie) previous hypnotic experiences with other hypnotists account- ed for some of the dissociative behaviour he originally observed (Janet, 1919/1925, Vol. 1, pp. 188-190).

    William James (1890) suggested that: " It is very easy in the ordinary hypnotic subject to suggest. during trance the appearance of a secondary personage... One has ... to be on one's guard in this matter against confounding naturally double persons and persons who are simply temporarily endowed with the belief that they must play the part of being double."

    Later authors writing about MPD presented similar ideas. In an analysis of the Doris Fischer case, T. W. Mitchell (1921) argued that the therapist and the patient may have been in a hypnotic rapport. This could have led to "consciously or unconsciously given" suggestions to the patient. Brown (1926) considered the possibility that MPI) may he the result of artefacts induced by the " hypnotic methods of investigation and treatment employed by their observers ", and Harriman (1943) questioned to what extent were such cases "due to the interpretations which have been assigned to automatic behaviour or to rules indirectly suggested to these subjects ...."
    (Source: Page 36, 37 Iatrogenesis and Dissociation: A Historical Note by Carlos S. Alvarado, Al.S., NI. A, published in the journal Dissociation, Vol. IV, No.1, March 1991).

    There is unfortunately another perspective to take over MPD/DID. Why is it the diagnosis only applies to (predominantly) white middle-aged women in the Western world?

    The International Criminal Court, UN War Crimes Tribunal, International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, or indeed no other war crimes or genocide tribunal currently sitting or held in the past has ever heard of any testimony regarding the creation of multiple personality disorders amongst any women or children victims of atrocities.

    And the atrocities are often beyond comprehension. In particular the use of rape as a 'weapon-of-war' has been established in use in the past, and continues in use even in modern times, notably in Africa. Systematic rape of women was also employed in Bosnia. An estimated 200,000 women were raped during the battle for Bangladeshi independence in 1971. The Japanese Army raped thousands of women (and often children) during the 1937 occupation of Nanking.

    And not just rape. Amnesty International has reported the use of rape and torture outside the Western world on an epidemic scale;

    In Colombia, rival groups rape, mutilate and kill women and girls in order to impose "punitive codes of conduct on entire towns and villages", so strengthening their control

    ...

    International courts have tackled some cases in Bosnia, where Muslim women were forced into sexual slavery in the town of Foca in the 1990s, and in Rwanda, but the vast majority of perpetrators act with impunity.

    Representatives of the 200,000 "comfort women" forcibly drafted into military sexual slavery by Japan from 1928 until the end of World War II are still fighting for restitution.

    Far from colluding, women from Korea, China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Malaysia and East Timor were "severely coerced" into prostitution, says Ms Sahgal.

    And whether a woman is raped at gunpoint or trafficked into sexual slavery by an occupying force, the sexual abuse will shape not just her own but her community's future for years to come.

    "Survivors face emotional torment, psychological damage, physical injuries, disease, social ostracism and many other consequences that can devastate their lives," says Amnesty.

    "Women's lives and their bodies have been the unacknowledged casualties of war for too long."
    (Source: How did rape become a weapon of war? BBC website)

    For women outside the Western world, notably non-white women, it seems they do not possess the means to have their minds fragment into multiple personalities, deliberately or otherwise, to 'protect' them against the knowledge of the horrors they have undergone. MPD/DID enthusiasts like Dr. Valerie Sinason stress that MPD can be both deliberately caused (such as by the CIA/MI5) or as a consequence of severe physical or sexual abuse by ritual abusers, together with the means to utterly forget the abuse (though forgetting about a violent encounter and a violent predator goes against all of the survival instincts that mammals, including humans, normally possess). Yet finding a victim of ritual abuse with physical injuries is like finding hen's teeth; such people aren't reported, even by SRA Myth advocates. Often 'victims' of SRA are found to be virgins, or show no signs of having been pregnant.

    Yet a child victim of an African civil war who has been raped will have severe physical injuries they will retain for life. For instance, as mentioned earlier, the long-running conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo sees rape employed on a mass scale.

    Lisa F. Jackson, the director of the documentary The Greatest Silence: Rape in the Congo (2008) was able to witness the impact on the lives of such victims - notably their inability to forget - and certainly not to fragment into Multiple Personalities.

    It could have been meeting the four-year-old, raped by a man in her village, whose eyes, like Immakilee's, seem to have widened permanently. Or encountering the woman who stands up at a gathering, and gives, as Jackson says "the most unbelievable monologue I've ever heard" about women being raped, and forced to miscarry, and to "drink the blood from [their] wombs". In the decade-long conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, an estimated 5.4m people have died, and 200,000 women have been raped. "In the little village that I went to," says Jackson, "they would appear at my door, lining up before breakfast, wanting to talk. Sometimes I would videotape them when there was no light; I couldn't even get an image. And still they would be waiting in line."
    (Source: The victims' witness, by Kira Cochrane. The Guardian, Friday 9 May 2008)

    Thus it appears that if the views of SRA Myth advocates are to be believed, only white Western women have the facility to fragment into multiple personalities, in the face of alleged gross sexual and physical abuse, or are able to forget entirely about the alleged experiences until they reach middle-age. For the rest-of-the-worlds women, this facility is denied to them - they must endure their suffering without the ability to fragment, or 'conveniently' repress their memories of such events. The editors have found one report of the impact the rape of DRC women and girls can have on the victims, and this report simply included 'MPD' amongst a lengthy checklist of symptoms. Regrettably no NGO (Non-government-organisation) or investigator has quite got around to finding any examples of such amongst the tens of thousands of violently-abused victims.

    The snag with this theory - of being able to simply forget abuse and trauma - is that it goes against both scientific study and what we know throughout history. The problem isn't that victims of abuse forget what was done to them, but rather, they can't stop remembering. It seems though that in the late 20th century, Western white middle-class women, particularly in the US, were being told they had an ability never before possessed by human females of the past, ever.

    Numerous studies in children (Terr, 1983; Malmquist, 1986; Pynoos & Nader, 1989) and adults (Leopold & Dillon, 1963) have shown that psychologically traumatic events are vividly though not always accurately recalled and are frequently followed by intrusive recollections in one form or another. The problem following most forms of trauma is an inability to forget, rather than a complete expulsion from awareness, and amnesia for violent events is rare.
    (Source: Sydney Brandon, M.D. and others, Recovered memories of childhood sexual abuse: implications for clinical practice published in the British Journal of Psychiatry, April 1998, page 300)

    Is DID though an exclusively Western obsession? In the Western world, particularly in the US, the testing regime of MDI: Multi-Scale Dissociation Inventory, QED: Questionnaire on Experiences of Dissociation, SCID-D-R: Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Dissociative Disorders–Revised and the other dozen-or-so possible tests that can be applied appear to be geared to the very demographic population that report DID/MPD;

    These tests need to be administered by a PhD level Psychologist or other Mental Health Provider (regulations differ from state to state in the US). This is because considerable skill is needed for accurate interpretation of the results. The further removed in culture the person taking the test is from a white, middle class American, the more care is required to interpret the results and the less reliable it is likely to be. Greater accuracy is believed to occur if a professional asks the questions, rather than it being reduced to a pen and paper test. The more tests that are used, the more likely it is that the final result is valid. The tester also needs to be comfortable with the fact that Christians believe it is not unusual to contact angels, demons and God. Otherwise some of the answers could be wrongly interpreted as psychosis or deliberate fabrication.
    (Source: Psychological Tests to Diagnose Dissociative Identity Disorder)

    Does this facility to fragment through MPD/DID, and to forget about the experience altogether until it is recovered in middle-age through Recovered Memory Therapy point to some sort of evolutionary advantage white Western women have over other ethnicities? Or is it perhaps that white Western women endure more pain and suffering by the alleged satanists, than say the four-year-old girl in the DRC (though without any consequent physical injuries)?

    Psychologist Eli Somer PhD of the School of Social Work, Haifa, Israel researches dissociation. Although he was able to find, from an anthropology point-of-view, examples of 'dissociation trance' in non-Western culture, often entered-into deliberately through dance and song, together with references to demonic possession in some societies (some Western religious fundamentalists regard DID as being caused by demonic possession), he was unable to find any equivalent to Western middle-class white women's ability, willing or otherwise, to allegedly fragment into multiple personalities in the face of abuse. As is frequently noted, DID amongst Western white women is often identified as a complex form of malingering, or narcissism, with the subject, bereft of physical injuries, often having never conceived and on occasions still a virgin in adulthood. The victim or 'survivor' is invariably one who had been in receipt of a privileged background and upbringing, and will go to great lengths to seek and secure both attention and medical resources (such as endless psychotherapy and/or counselling sessions).

    Hacking believes that multiple personality disorder/dissociative identity disorder is a recent and local phenomenon, stemming from nineteenth -century Western culture. A similar social constructionist view was presented by Spanos who argued that whether enactments of multiple identities serve the purpose of promoting a religion or simply of getting care and attention for someone who feels they do not have enough, those enactments are guided by rules and expectations specific to the time and culture in which they are manifest, which are understood and given legitimacy by the authority figures involved (be they members of the clergy or psychotherapists) and the observing audience. I agree with Spanos that Western culture many of the features of these conditions, but biologic and psychologic mechanisms are arguably mediated not primarily by local locals healers but by higher-level cultural idioms and meaning systems. Individualism, differentiation of the self, growth of the feminist movement, rising societal awareness, and concern over the issue of child abuse are powerful sociocognitive forces that have clearly been constructive in Western dissociation.
    (Source: Culture-bound Dissociation: A Comparative Analysis, by Eli Somer, PhD Page 222, Psychiatric Clinics of North America volume 29 - 2006, page 222)

    Other papers from the 1990s purported to have conducted research in some non-North American countries - Japan and the The Netherlands and Turkey (a NATO member state) and claim to have found evidence of DID/MPD in similar proportions to that in the US. Whilst The Netherlands suffered a moral-panic SRA Myth craze in the 1990s, Japan and Turkey certainly didn't. Dissociative symptoms and reported trauma among patients with spirit possession and matched healthy controls in Uganda (2010) by M van Duijl, E. Nijenhuis, IH Komproe, HB Gernaat, JT de Jong JT attempted to explore the relationships among spirit possession, dissociative symptoms and reported potentially traumatizing events in Uganda, by determining if 'spirit possession' was the result of trauma.

    The nearest study that can be equated to the Western white DID/MPD diagnosis is The clinical characteristics of possession disorder among 20 Chinese patients in the Hebei province of China (1998) by AC Gaw, Q Ding, RE Levine and H Gaw H. This studied 'possession disorder' amongst a group of Chinese patients. Unlike Western DID/MPD 'survivors', the subjects were rural uneducated poor. Major events reported to precede possession included interpersonal conflicts, subjectively meaningful circumstances, illness, and death of an individual or dreaming of a deceased individual. Possessing agents were thought to be spirits of deceased individuals, deities, animals, and devils. Twenty percent of subjects reported multiple possessions. The initial experience of possession typically came on acutely and often became a chronic relapsing illness. Unlike the Western DID/MPD conspiracy theories, there is no trace of severe physical and/or sexual torture, no appearance from Chinese security forces, aliens, 12'-high lizards or intergenerational satanist families, hypnosis or hallucinogenic drugs being applied.

    Religious fundamentalist psychologist and leading ISSD member George F. Rhoades Jnr, who was discussed on page one of this extended entry about his less-than-biased entry about Satanic Ritual Abuse for the Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology (see Psychiatry and Psychology in the US and the SRA Myth (2005) made an effort to try to prove DID is prevalent outside the Western world, and notably the US with his book Trauma and Dissociation in a Cross-cultural Perspective: Not just a North American Phenomenon co-written with Turkish psychiatrist Vedant Sar.

    Unfortunately his bias was emphasised by his own brief biography on the 'About the Editors' page;

    He is an international author and speaker conducting workshops/trainings in Hawaii, USA, Canada, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East on anger management, trauma, dissociation, and Satanic Ritual Abuse
    (Source: 'About The Editors' Trauma and Dissociation in a Cross-cultural Perspective: Not just a North American Phenomenon - 2005 edited by Vedant Sar M.D and George F. Rhoades Jnr, published by Haworth Press)

    Perhaps not entirely surprisingly, the publishers Howarth Press, are an imprint division of British publishers Taylor & Francis, part of Informa PLC, a major publisher of conspiracy theory and SRA Myth/DID 'True Believer' books, and publisher of the ISSTD's Journal of Trauma & Dissociation. A lengthy discussion about Informa PLC's enthusiasm for publishing in the SRA Myth/DID field can be found under the entry for Peter Rigby.

    With the whole world to choose from, Dr. Rhoades and Dr. Sar didn't exactly break new ground. A pre-publication review by Dr. Colin A. Ross (see Dr. Colin Ross - psychiatry falls off a precipice) perhaps didn't help establish any serious credentials for the book, whilst the range of countries considered - Argentina, China, France, Germany, Hawaii (Dr. Rhoades home state), Iran, Israel, Northern Ireland, The Philippines and Puerto Rico skipped the risk of going to any of the countries - such as recent conflict zones such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Bosnia/Croatia, Somalia, Iraq and Afghanistan, where according to the trauma=DID theory, True Believers would be expected to find multiple personalities in droves. To the various authors credit they struggled and admitted their results didn't correlate with any satanic ritual abuse instances in most countries, except of course Australia, New Zealand and the UK, all of which suffered 'moral panics' with the SRA Myth, particularly when feminists and religious fundamentalists engaged in collusion.

    Strangely the editors and contributors didn't get around to visiting or writing about any of the other nation that saw SRA Myth allegations, notably Canada and The Netherlands. The lack of coverage for Canada is particularly intriguing as that nation is very much regarded as the 'home' of the SRA Myth, and in particular the British Columbia town of Victoria (see The importance of 'Michelle Remembers').

    To date, no academic or practitioner, particularly amongst the DID/MPD enthusiast community, has been willing to research the incidence of DID amongst say victims of organised rape, torture and abuse in non-Western nations, such as, as detailed, the Democratic Republic of Congo. Indeed by way of example, Trauma and Dissociation in a Cross-cultural Perspective: Not just a North American Phenomenon doesn't reference any country (or continent) with a majority population of people who would regard themselves as black.

    In early August 2011, the BBC, working in conjunction with the Bureau of Investigative Journalists sent an undercover team into the one-party state of Ethiopia, to investigate claims that the government was using development aid as a tool for political oppression.

    What they found went way beyond the practice seen in other countries as well as Ethiopia of withholding funds to villages that voted for opposition parties; they found evidence of sustained systematic rape and torture of women and girls over extended periods, and the incarceration and torture of men deemed to be opposed to the ruling political party.

    What the team found, broadcast on the BBC's Newsnight program on 5th August 2011 Ethiopia 'using aid as weapon of oppression' were women and men who certainly remembered everything that had been inflicted on them, in precise detail. The Western white middle-class woman's facility to simply forget anything allegedly traumatic inflicted on them was again, denied to them. As throughout human history and across the world today, suffering, physical, sexual or emotional suffering, could simply not be conveniently forgotten about, compartmentalised through the wonderful utility of 'Dissociative Identity Disorder'.

    One explanation for this of course, could conceivably be that the systematic rape and physical abuse of girls and women in places like the the DRC was simply not the "right kind" of abuse to create DID, in a similar fashion to the way British train-line operators will complain about the "wrong kind of leaves" or the "wrong kind of snow" when trying to explain why their services grind to a halt during the autumn or winter. DID white middle-class 'survivors' share a particular distinction too; unlike non-DID survivors of severe childhood sexual abuse, few of those (well actually none) who claim to have been victims of ritual abuse will exhibit the obvious signs of severe sexual and physical abuse; the scars (other than those self-inflicted), intestinal and gynaecological tears, the x-ray-able signs of former fractures. In response, 'survivors' claim their abuse was of a much more subtle kind, involving drugs, spinning tables, inflicted pain that left no marks and of course hypnosis. In response to such abuse they claim that they were subsequently fractured, deliberately or as a consequence of their abuse, into multiple personalities, whereupon they simply forgot about their abuse until later years.

    On one known occasion, the Western middle-class diagnosis of DID and its rhetoric has been applied to the cultural acceptance of demonic possession. A similar state exists with MSBP - Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy, employed, though with less regularity, against British women, often with autistic children. In the UK, US and some Third World nations, MSBP is a moniker for an accusation of witchcraft by-any-other-name, and this use has been identified in, amongst other countries, India. The Index entry for Dr. M. Somani references his academic paper "Witchcraft's syndrome: Munchausens syndrome by proxy", published in the January 2002 edition of the International Journal of Dermatology

    Dr. S.M. Razali, working at the Department of Psychiatry, School of Medical Sciences, University Sains Malaysia, provided another illustration of how Western obsession with a diagnosis can be applied to the identification of witchcraft and demonic possession in women and girls. Using a Western designator provides for huge opportunities for say witch-hunters in Africa and Asia; enabling them to escape censure in the West by simply adopting a Western 'standard'. Proposed changes to the DSM-V psychiatry manual in the US, to render DID for 'globally' relevant will probably result in more instances of women being burnt -to-death, not accused of being witches, but rather being accused of DID (see 'special pleading' - a Letter to The Guardian, January 23rd 2012.)

    A 21- year old Malay girl was brought by the parents to the psychiatric clinic of USM Hospital, Kelantan, Malaysia. The state of Kelantan is in the north-eastern region of the Peninsular Malaysia and it shared a common border with southern Thailand. She presented with recurrent episodes of not being herself for the past two weeks. The episode lasted between 20 minutes to l hour. During the attack her behaviour was totally changed. She talked irrelevantly in Thai, had labile affect, demanding and seemed to detach from reality. The family members believed that an evil spirit possessed her. She had an argument with the parents prior to the illness. She asked them to reject a marriage proposal from an influential family because she already had a special boyfriend. Although the proposal was politely turned down, the members of the rejected family were not happy because their reputation would be damaged. Since then the patient was noticed to be quite and withdrawn. Five days later she developed an episode of abnormal behaviour. The patient was brought to see a few bomohs but not much improvement The bomohs reinforced the belief that she was possessed by an evil spirit which act on the behalf of a powerful sorcerer from Thailand who was engaged by the rejected family. This explains her ability to converse in Thai during dissociative state.
    ...
    The session started with a middle age medium contacting a familiar spirit to assist him. After 10 minutes he went into trance as soon as the spirit entered his body. While in trance he tries to communicate with evil spirits from the patient's body. After a few minutes it was observed a recurrence episode of abnormal behaviour and the patient went into trance. Both of them then communicated in Thai; it was understood that the medium was persuading the evil spirit to leave the body. The evil spirit finally agreed to leave her and promised not coming back. Twitching of the patient's both hand and feet was observed as the evil spirit leaving the body. As soon as the spirit left her she emerged from the trance refreshed, greeted by friends and relatives who had been watching this ceremony. Since then she made a full recovery.
    (Source: Dissociative trance disorder: a case report, by S.M RAZALİ, published in the Eastern Journal of Medicine 4 Volume 2, pages 83-84, 1999.)

    The term 'special pleading' is used to identify instances when proponents of an idea try to to claim an exemption to a generally accepted rule. Advocates for the SRA Myth/DID/RMT and 'Mind Control' have resorted to 'special pleading' numerous times over the decades, in an effort to explain why evidence is utterly missing in providing at least hints that satanic or ritual abuse might be actually taking place, or that organised, even transgenerational groups of satanists exist. For the most part the Special Pleading is employed to explain that the hopeless lack of evidence is in itself convincing evidence, in that it proves just how well the satanists/ritual abusers have hidden their tracks. During the SRA Myth 'crazy' years of the 1980s and 90s in both the US and UK, this form of Special Pleading was employed both by religious fundamentalists and feminists, though to normally negative responses.

    'Special Pleading' hasn't been employed yet to explain why only white Western middle-class women are seemingly able to forget severe sexual and/or physical abuse, whilst women and children from the non-white regions of the world are denied such a facility. Yet if faced with such a question, it seems unlikely that any SRA Myth/DID proponent will be able to avoid having to employ Special Pleading, perhaps with 'not the right kind of rape or torture'. To date no advocate has been publicly asked to explain their position on this subject.

    For the skeptic, it isn't simply a case in believing that severe abuse leads to a loss-of-memory (the core to the Recovered Memory Therapy movement) or that severe abuse can provoke the creation of multiple personalities. Rather the skeptic has to be prepared to believe that these facilities are available only to white Western middle-class 'survivors', and that black people and other ethnicities are simply incapable of such abilities, even in the face of unimaginable pain, loss and grief. By rights locations like the DRC should be a magnet for DID/MPD advocates desperate to prove that trauma = dissociation identity disorder. Yet not a single psychotherapist from the West has bothered to travel with that aim in mind.

    As mentioned earlier, the theory of the Recovered Memory Movement is that faced with severe trauma, humans will promptly forget all about it. It seems though to fly-in-the-face of all logic - how on earth would the victim know when to take the opportunity to flee or defend themselves if the opportunity arose? If the trauma was somehow compartmentalised through the creation of multiple personalities, how would that improve the survival chances of the victim, particularly as the SRA Myth narrative routinely relates the eating and murder of babies and children?

    If DID/MPD is to be believed as being created as a response to trauma as a built-in defence mechanism, perhaps to ensure that the 'original' personality forget the events, then as a survival mechanism for those 'victims' in immediate peril, it appears particularly useless. One of the most convincing and documented MPD sufferer is Chris Costner-Sizemore whose life was filmed as the movie Three Faces of Eve (1957). An American white lady, her personalities, she says, came about from seeing instances of death regularly in her early childhood, and seeing her mother seriously injured. None of the events though directly threatened Ms. Sizemore physically. Rather it appears she did fragment, in an effort to deal with the trauma of what she had seen over an extended period of time. As an example of MPD, SRA Myth advocates are reluctant to quote Ms. Sizemore, because she believes that one psychiatrist Corbett H. Thigpen, who coined the term 'MPD', created at least one of her personalities 'Jamie' - the first instance of iatrogenic creation of a personality. Satanic Ritual Abuse, the CIA and intergenerational satanists played no part in her MPD. If anything the obsessions of the SRA Myth advocates have scuppered any attempt to have DID/MPD taken seriously. Even Dr. Thigpen became a distinct opposer to the MPD theory, recognising the ease with which therapists could create personalities, both deliberately and by accident.

    Below is an interview with Chris Costner-Sizemore, conducted by the BBC's Stephen Sackur;



    The second half of the superb interview, discusses the iatrogenic creation by Dr. Thigpen, and the predominance of DID sufferers from the US. A somewhat random cannon, Ms. Sizemore strives to seek more support for MPD/DID sufferers, but drops in occasional criticisms, such as;

    Stephen Sackur: So do you think people are misusing this?

    Chris Costner Sizemore: Oh yes, oh yes. I had one person tell me 'well I just want to be famous, so I'm going to be multiple'.


    Yet evidence of the concept of Dissociative Identity Disorder being caused by extensive and vicious childhood abuse (though not necessarily sexual in nature and not related to the fantasy of satanic or ritualised abused), does exist. The nature of such documented cases is such that, as with Chris Costner-Sizemore, the DID/SRA Myth enthusiasts and advocates are quite unwilling to use or quote such individuals as examples.

    Unlike the vast majority of DID 'survivors' who come from a middle-class and privileged background and manage to 'survive' their childhood tortures at the hands of alleged satanists without any gross physical injuries, signs of malnutrition, and, regrettably, often with their virginity intact or with no sign of having been pregnant, Pamela Edward, born in a working-class environment and bereft of an education, just doesn't fit the 'template'.

    One of seven children born into a poor Merseyside family, Pamela was physically abused throughout her early childhood, deprived of food and certainly deprived of any maternal attachment;

    Pamela was born in Merseyside in 1972, one of five girls and two boys. For much of the time, the children were kept locked in a filthy bedroom, the bedsheets permanently damp with urine. They were so hungry, they were forced to creep downstairs at night and stuff slices of bread into their knickers. If they were caught, they risked ferocious beatings. One of Pamela's sisters, Kira, remembers having to drink her own urine to quench her thirst.

    The local Social Services were aware of the problems but failed to intervene until Pamela was taken into care, aged five. According to their reports, she was "a very disturbed and unhappy little girl", and in a state of severe malnutrition. Her hands and feet were blue with cold, she was covered with burn marks, her buttocks were bruised and blistered and she was prone to "smacking and pinching herself, repeating phrases to herself such as 'Pamela wants a biscuit. Pamela's a naughty girl.' " She was not toilet trained and unwilling to eat solid foods. "Mrs Edwards grumbled about Pamela being 'a dirty bitch'," the report continued.

    Pamela's father is now dead. Her mother, according to Modell, refuses to acknowledge that the abuse took place and did not want to cooperate with the making of the programme.
    (Source: Being Pamela... and Sandra, Susan, Andrew and Margaret, by Elizabeth Day, The Daily Telegraph, 5th June 2005)

    David Modell filmed Pamela over two years of her life, in the care of 20-odd professionals, needed to give Pamela some chance of living the life denied to her in childhood. A clip from the film can be viewed on his site under the title of work, Being Pamela.
    Yet unlike the middle-class 'multiples' so easily encountered on numerous web sites, Pamela's multiplicity came as a last resort, in the face of terrible suffering. In previous times she would have been consigned to an asylum most likely, but in the modern world she is looked-after in the community, with the assistance of up to 20 helpers and at a cost of £500,000-a-year.

    Pamela demonstrates that behind the claim that child abuse can cause DID in some survivors there is some genuine, though rare (none of her equally-abused siblings have DID) validity. Paranoid theories that the CIA/MI5/intergenerational families of satanists routinely ritually torture and eat infants and children and leave them accidentally or deliberately 'multiple', whereupon they sail through their lives unhindered by gross injuries or the impact of immense early childhood suffering, just don't wash when compared to Pamela Edwards. Many middle-class 'survivors' claim to have lived extensive lives as assassins or spies, or sex slaves (or even all three) and enjoyed the benefit of total amnesia of what happened to them, until visiting a psychotherapist or reading a book like The Courage to Heal.

    Perhaps not entirely surprisingly, as previously mentioned, Pamela Edwards, like Chris Costner-Sizemore, isn't quoted by the DID 'survivor' community, DID/SRA Myth psychotherapy advocates in the US or UK like Dr. Sinason, or even other conspiracy therapists like David Icke; she simply doesn't fit the modern 'template' for a multiple.

    'Valid' survivors' - able to attend the seminars, buy the books and DVD's, tell each other (and the rest-of-the-world) their recovered memory stories, doubtlessly diminish the genuine suffering of such people as Pamela and Ms Costner-Sizemore. To a substantial degree, Pamela's story has been appropriated and corrupted by psychotherapy and a white middle-class 'me too' generation attracted to the condition of DID, but without the attendant physical and mental trauma that accompanies genuine survivors. A key feature of Pamela is that the creation of her 'multiples' didn't enable her to forget the abuse - her multiple personalities are anything but benign, cartoon-like characters that often accompany middle-class 'multiples'; her's are violent, raging creatures born from genuine suffering.

    For the True Believer and the white middle-class Western woman convinced of her multiplicity, her certain-to-her past ritual abuse at the hands of evil satanists, or CIA/MI5 agents (or satanic CIA/MI5 agents if you will) or even just Mum and Dad and their fellow multi-generational satanist family-friends, questions that doubt their authenticity are meaningless. Although routinely associated with malingering, BPD (Borderline Personality Disorder), narcissism and of course 'traditional' schizophrenia, DID/MPD, particularly in those 'survivors' of claimed ritual abuse, does provide such individuals with the satisfaction of belonging to a 'club' of like-minded people. Whether it be via Internet forums, newsletters, or through attending the seemingly endless and numerous conferences, courses and seminars promoting DID. A cheaper alternative is to simply maintain a growing bookcase of ritual abuse/DID-related titles. Whatever the budget though, the community of DID-sufferers is hugely attractive to those who prefer to keep well away from those with a darker skin, or perhaps don't speak English as a first language.

    The Julie Atwood cartoon below emphasised the white, middle-class female nature of the DID/RMT industry. Initially it looks like group therapy, but rather it is supposed to illustrate the clients 'alters' - other women and girls, the accompanying 'littles', and of course, the all-knowing and all-seeing male therapist.

    Dissociative identity disorder


    Is it perhaps likely that the MPD/DID 'industry' is nothing more than a Western creation, a means for white Western women to gain attention to themselves, for psychotherapists who diagnose them to get a little richer, and for middle-class white religious fundamentalists and feminists to cry 'wolf', whilst at the same time trivialising the suffering of non-white women throughout the rest of the non-Western world, or even non-middle-class women who genuinely suffer DID? The bolting-on of the concept that Western white women suffer extreme abuse in childhood, forget about it entirely, only to then develop multiple personalities in later life and have their memories of the abuse retrieved through Recovered Memory Therapy has been about since the mid-1990s, after both mechanisms were employed to address the glaring problem of there being no evidence of SRA. The third 'bolt-on' - Mind Control was added shortly after, principally in an effort to explain how the 'survivors' had mysteriously forgot what had apparently been done to them. Yet after nearly two decades of the full-blown DID/RMT/Mind Control version of the 'Myth, it is difficult to see it in any other light than being inherently racist.

    Dr. Sinason herself contributed statistics and referenced others that suggest to us that DID would be easy to identify in locations such as the DRC, where trauma, rape and abuse had impacted on vast numbers of women and children.

    Professor Peter Fonagy has evaluated the aetiology of DID from trauma at 90%. (McQueen, Kennedy, Sinason and Maxstead 2008). North et al (1993) found that DID was not only linked to a high childhood sexual abuse rate but also 24%-67% occurrence of rape in adult life, and 60%-81% suicide attempts. Putnam et al (1986) in the USA looking at 100 DID patients found that 97% of the hundred had experienced major early trauma, with almost half having witnessed the violent death of someone close to them.
    (Source: Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity 2nd edition - November 2010, by Valerie Sinason, published by Routledge)

    An obvious question is, if 97% of 100 Western DID 'survivors' witnessed the 'violent death of someone close to them' - wouldn't that make it easy to find children and adults with DID amongst those who had witnessed mass executions and slayings in the likes of Rwanda and Bosnia's Srebrenica, let alone the Nazi concentration camps? If Western middle-class and middle-aged white women represent, as is often portrayed by SRA Myth advocates, an epidemic of DID/MPD, then should Africa not be producing a 'pandemic' of DID? At the time-of-writing no SRA Myth/DID advocates have chosen to visit the DRC, to assist an NGO in determining a strategy to identify victims with MPD. Being amongst the most poverty-stricken of populations, the DRC's rape victims may perhaps be of little interest to psychotherapists used to feeding-off the considerable disposable incomes of their normal middle-class Western client base.

    Perhaps worst of all, the Recovered Memory Therapy 'survivor' lobby, and most blatant of all the 'survivors' who claim to be victims of SRA and consequent MPD/DID have no hesitation in devaluing the accounts of real survivors of childhood sexual abuse and incest, as they frantically try to outdo one another with more lurid accounts. Mark Pendergrast, the acclaimed author of Victims of Memory (1995) referred to this tendency in a letter to the Editor of the New Yorker Magazine, about Philip Gourevitch's book "The Memory Thief", an account of fake Holocaust survivor Binjamin Wilkomirksi/Bruno Doessekker, who had never had to suffer the nightmare of the concentration camps, but had rather, grown-up in a privileged family in Switzerland.

    One of the most striking parallels is the desire to dwell on their supposed past trauma. One retractor I interviewed (someone who has taken back her "memories") told me that she founded a survivor group that soon split into two groups. The real survivors - - those who had always remembered being sexually abused -- were very disturbed by the lurid, graphic tales that the recovered memory survivors insisted on telling at great length. The real survivors didn't want to talk about it much, nor did they cry and scream and roll on the floor. Similarly, Gourevitch quoted Wilkomirski's American publisher, Arthur Samuelson: "He [Wilkomirski] cried everywhere we brought him.... I know a lot of survivors -- and one thing they have in common is they don't cry. This guy couldn't stop."

    Fragments itself is similar to books of false sex abuse memoirs and stories, based on recovered memories. The stories are grotesque and disturbing in the extreme. The victims undergo sadistic cruelty that defies belief -- except that people are so horrified and moved that they do believe. Real survivor stories tend to be more muted, poignant, and coherent, with horrors and torture, all right, but not the gratuitous violence of horror film and nightmare. The false reports feed what Daniel Ganzfried accurately calls "the pornography of violence."

    When Wilkomirksi/Doessekker told Gourevitch, "To disbelieve me is to participate in my further victimisation," I recognised the statement from innumerable recovered memory sex abuse survivor handbooks. It is playing the victim role to the hilt. Like many of the sex abuse "survivors" I interviewed, Wilkomirksi/Doessekker is not really interested in ascertaining the truth through research or science. He refuses to submit to a DNA test. "I know I can trust my memory," he says, and that is enough, just as one woman whose case I documented was examined by doctors and found to be a virgin, but that did not sway her from her accusations of childhood rape. Also, as Gourevitch points out fleetingly, the actual truth of the memories is, incredibly, irrelevant to this subset of therapists. The truth doesn't matter -- it's the emotion.


    As noted numerous times in this section, privilege plays a key part in 'recovered memories'.

    Wilkomirksi/Doessekker is probably one of the 10% of the population who are highly fantasy prone and easily hypnotisable. Like most of the women who recovered false sex abuse memories, he is also a child of privilege. It is an irony that the self-proclaimed "survivors" in fact had relatively pampered childhoods. "He doesn't need to make a living," Daniel Ganzfried said of Wilkomirksi/Doessekker. "The issue is boredom." I think that is too pat and judgmental, and it ignores the very real suffering of those who come to believe they endured hellish childhoods, even when they didn't.
    (Source: Both quotes from Mark Pendergrast, Letter to the Editor, published in The New Yorker magazine, July 1999, published with the kind permission of the author.)

    The wealth of those who claim 'repressed memories' of abuse has been noticed by others in addition to Mark Pendergrast;

    Dr. Susan Clancy, a memory expert at Harvard University, explains that according to her research, "[E]vents that are terrifying or violent are always remembered -- often all too well. Events characterised by discomfort, shame and embarrassment may be forgotten, but this forgetting is due not to dissociation but to voluntary, active and conscious efforts to suppress painful memories.

    "There are no scientific data that trauma victims dissociate and forget their abuse.

    "Proponents of [recovered memory] theory need to spend less time talking with relatively affluent patients seeking explanation for their psychological distress and more time talking to real victims of childhood sexual abuse -- people who often lack the resources to seek therapy."

    Indeed, persons claiming to have repressed memories of ritual abuse have been overwhelmingly female, white, middle or upper class -- among the more privileged citizens of the globe, they come to believe that they are uniquely oppressed and uniquely damaged by childhood trauma that they didn't even remember.
    (Source: In The Wood with a Hood - the Repressed Memory Movement, author unknown, from Imaginary Crimes - true stories of people convicted of crimes without evidence)

    A typical example of a white middle-class privilaged SRA Myth and MPD/DID 'survivor' is Mikael Caillier. Her blog, My Clouds, My Storms and Multiple Personality Disorder gives her a platform for her public trumpteting of her recovered memories in middle-age of childhood satanic abuse (causing later multiple personality disorder diagnosed by a therapist).

    Being a victim of satanism pretty much guarantees I am always affected by this holiday and My Halloween Condition pretty much tells how I usually cope with that.
    (Source: Another Halloween, Mikael Caillier's personal blog, posted 28th October 2010)

    Typical of many other white middle-class and middle-aged 'survivors' of alleged satanic abuse, Mrs. Caillier had managed to forget entirely what she would decades later recover through Recovered Memory Therapy;

    I didn't recall the satanic aspect of my abuse for a while, months maybe. I remember as early as age two being prostituted by my mother. The people I was turned over to used me for the purpose of making pornographic movies of children.

    As I got older the movies got more perverted. I'm not sure how old I was the first time I was put up on a rack. But I do know that I was tortured in that manner many times and always there was a camera going.

    I remember many times having joints dislocated as my limbs were being stretched all four directions. At the same time sexual things were being done to me. I also remember learning that it was important not to scream. Screaming made the film more interesting. As long as I acted like it didn't really hurt, then it was no longer fun to torture me.

    Eventually they quit putting me on the rack but put other children there for me to watch. They learned that while they couldn't get me to be upset by being tortured, they could torture someone else and push my bottons. But eventually I learned not to be affected by that as well. As long as I didn't show any emotion, I was not a valuable commodity in their films.
    (Source: So What Did Ritualistic Abuse Mean to Me, a Victim? From Mikael Caillier's personal blog, posted 11th August 2007)

    In the horribly predictable fashion that accompanies belief in the 'Myth, Mrs Caillier survived her satanist abusers, and natually no trace of the films has come-to-light (nor of any other victims, 'survivors' or not) across the intervening decades.

    The horrific of her parents upbringing though is equally difficult to discern. Being child-abusing satanists it could be comfortably presumed that they wouldn't be too enthusiastic about ensuring a happy future for their child.

    Instead they funded and inflicted the horror of a privilaged education for little Mikael, sending her to the exclusive Catholic Girls School St. Mary's Academy in Portland, Oregon between 1961-1964.

    Unlike Pamela Edward, little Mikael's supposed horrific (though somewhat rather privilaged) childhood didn't leave her too traumatised. With her husband Dave she runs Rising Rainbow Arabians from Graham, Washington (she isn't apparently too desperate to escape the alleged satanists geographic Pacific Coast) breeding and trading Arabian stallion horses - perhaps the ultimate expression of privilage.

    Scandalous Legacy


    The nearest effort to try to determine that DID is present in the Congo was by C.A.R.E Incorporated, an SRA Myth and DID/MPD fundamentalist advocacy, who in 1999 published an account of Ndoki a form of what they determined to be witchcraft. The article then addressed how christian SRA Myth-believing communities should deal with the witches in their presence, who employed witchcraft against their congregations.

    Survivors in the United States and other Western countries, who have faced the terrible realities of being forced against their wills to engage in atrocious acts, know something about "hidden parts" who continue to go to coven meetings or use witchcraft. Survivors and those who work with them, who have placed their trust in Jesus the True Messiah, are perhaps the only people on earth who are specially equipped with the capacity to understand and be compassionate towards those who have "dark-selves". They are able to interceded for them with confident trust in God.
    (Source: DID and Ndoki, by Angela Stockamp)

    In May 2011 a report was published compiled by Amber Peterman of the International Food Policy Research Institute, Tia Palermo of Tony Brook University and Caryn Bredenkamp of the World Bank.

    3,436 congolese women were interviewed in 2007. Accordingly to the Associated Press, the researchers found that more than 40,000 women had been raped between 2006 and 2007. According to extrapolations, that means that nationwide, 29 Congolese women out of every 1,000 had been raped. That's 58 times the annual rate in the United Staters, which is 0.5 per 1,000 women.

    The New York Times reports that 12% of those surveyed said they'd been raped at least once, and 22% said they'd been forced to perform sexual acts or have sex by a partner.
    (Source: Congo Rape Epidemic is Even Worse Than Previously Thought, by Margaret Hartmann, Jezebel, May 11 2011)

    For Western white women, apparently having suffered from ritual abuse, and even the efforts of it seems, their national security services to turn them into mind-controlled slaves, then life for some is particularly easy. Although seemingly impossible, many 'multiples' that is people who claim to have DID/MPD don't suffer the awkwardness of having their 'alters' take over at inconvenient moments day or night. Instead all of them work in a 'system' an apparent shared experience whereby 'littles' - that is small children personalities, vie for attention and time from other adults, some male, some female, or even 'alters' that aren't human, such as spiders and lobsters, or often, aliens. A key 'feature' of modern DID 'survivors' is that they are aware of their alters, refer to themselves as 'we', which challenges the idea that DID/MPD is a facility to enable trauma to be diverted away, to be forgotten. If the original personality is aware of other personalities, what if anything has been achieved? In the postings below an Irish DID/MPD 'survivor' who apparently still meets-up with her ritual abusers, has to contend with the humdrum issues of life, the sheer brutality of having to live in the Western English-speaking world, a continent, a skin color and a life unimaginable from that of a raped little girl from the Democratic Republic of Congo;

    Its almost time to go visit Jess and their system. I leave for Dublin tomorrow morning. My parents are going with me to see me off on the plane on Thursday. My flights at 10 AM. Its an 8 hour flight. I think we land in o’hare at 12:30. Then I have a few hours wait (about 3 I think) before I fly to bloomington where Jess will pick me up. I cant wait to see Jess. I am so excited for it. I am doing all my last minute bits today. I went shopping this morning to buy a red cardigan. I got a nettie one which has short sleeves. It will match some of my string tops that I’m bringing. I also got factor 20 sunblock, because it was on sale. Jess had some I know, but when I spotted a deal I couldn't pass it up. I’ll need suncream the day we go to the zoo for sure. I dont want sunburn! On Sunday at the fun day I got sunburnt on my face and chest. Its pretty red and sore still. So i dont want a repeat of that. I also got some presents for my kids in Jess’s system today. And I had to get my eyebrows and lip waxed. And my shilax nail polish removed. Its a gel polish so when it gets put on it wont chip or come off unless you soak it in acitone. When I came home my sister did my hair. Its now a purply red color. I’ll post pics in a little bit. I also shaved my arms and legs so now I’m all beautified. I have a few last minute things to pack and I think I’m ready for vacation!

    ...

    We saw our psych doc yesterday. That went better than I hoped. She was really nice to me. I was the one out. I expected her to blow her top because the last time we saw her, which was back last march, we’d oberdosed and had been in the hospital and stuff. She hadnt wanted to admit us but then she did, for a few days, but someone signed us out against medical advice, and it was not cool. Then the home based crisis team got involved, but they decided not to take our case because they felt we had enough support with Joan and our psych doc. Anyway, back to yesterdays apt. We told her what happened recently with our darks meeting up with a cult related person and how we got hurt physically and sexually. She said that it was a real setback and how that sorta thing hadnt happened in a long time now. Which she is right about. We also talked some about the assessment we had, and how it kinda caused us a lot of system problems. She said that yes it did, and how we should be careful what we wish for because those type of assessments even though they are specialised are a lot of pressure, extra pressure on the system in general. We talked about our possibly going back to school and how would we continue to see her because we’d be in school full time. She said we’d maybe be able to work something out, and how the school would have to give us the time off. It was a good apt, nothing was changed medication wise, we’re still on our modecate injection once a month.
    Carol anne
    (Source: Postings on 'Manyofus's public blog')

    The nature of the SRA Myth 'survivors' is discussed further in The Paracelsus Trust.

    If DID/MPD exists, and there is certainly evidence of it - then it is an incredibly rare condition, and one accompanied by genuine evidence of physical injury and/or sustained abuse. Indeed to have DID/MPD we can assume that early childhood abuse was substantial and prolonged. SRA Myth/DID 'survivors' routinely attempt to circumvent the awkwardness of not being able to demonstrate evidence of childhood abuse through mechanisms such as describing 'spinning tables', electric shocks, the application of hypnosis and hallucinogenic drugs and gases, anything and everything to attempt to explain the missing scars, signs of broken bones and fractures, tears, rips and strains, even the lack of unhealthy pallor (from being out-of-the-sun for too long) and often, the intact hymens. Bolting-on conspiracy theories such as satanist from the CIA/MI5, as discussed below, appears nothing more than an effort to over-egg the obsessions.

    Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder - taking psychotherapy to a new academic low

    Promoting the SRA Myth and DID/RMT/Mind Control through the publication of quasi-academic text books has been a 'feature' of the current incarnation of the paranoid conspiracy community for several years now, in both the US and UK. A key difference between the two nations though has been the fact that UK publishers of 'Myth-promoting books are considered serious publishers of titles for psychiatry and psychotherapy/analysis. In the US, religious or spiritual-book publishers generally assume the task of pandering to the SRA Myth-believing audience, primarily comprised of English-speaking, white middle-class and middle-aged females. In the UK this task has been assumed by Informa PLC, who own the imprint Routledge through its Taylor & Francis division, and Karnac Books.

    In 2008 British publisher Karnac, known principally for publishing psychotherapy and psychiatry volumes, issued Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton's Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder. The book seemingly strived to cement the reputation forensic psychotherapy has already - that of being a pseudo-science riddled, 'shit-house-rat-crazy' element within psychotherapy. The choice of contributors and their essays would ensure the book was distinctly classified in the 'loony' field.

    Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder


    Valerie Sinason contributed an essay, already quoted-from earlier on this page, which included name-checking Dr. Corydon Hammond, David Icke and Dr. Colin Ross as reliable sources. The book was published under the Forensic Psychotherapy Monograph Series with the Series Editor being Brett Kahr and the 'Honorary Consultant' willing to put her name against the titles being Estela Welldon. Brett Kahr is listed as an Associate of the Clinic for Dissociative Studies, whilst the volumes editors Galton and Sachs are, as mentioned before, genuine Clinic Members (see Clinic Members). It seems unlikely that Dr. Kahr would be an Associate without being a fully-paid-up True Believer in the 'Myth - and not just the 'Myth alone, but all of its associated baggage, including the idea that CIA and MI5 officers are child-abusing satanists. Dr. Kahr's SRA Myth-believing pedigree is discussed on the following page of this Entry.

    As Series Editor of the Karnac Forensic Psychotherapy Monograph Series, Dr. Brett Kahr explained his passion for the new 'science' of forensic psychotherapy, and the basis for Karnac's publications;

    The volumes in this series of books will aim to provide both practical advice and theoretical stimulation for introductory students and for senior practitioners alike. In the Karnac Books Forensic Psychotherapy Monograph Series, we will endeavour to produce a regular stream of high-quality titles, written by leading members of the profession, who will share their expertise in a concise and practice-orientated fashion. We trust that such a collection of books will help to consolidate the knowledge and experience that we have already acquired and will also provide new directions for the upcoming decades of the new century. In this way, we shall hope to plant the seeds for a more rigorous, sturdy, and wide-reaching profession of forensic psychotherapy.
    (Source: Series Forward, pages xi and xii of Forensic psychotherapy and psychopathology: Winnicottian perspectives (2001) by Brett Kahr, published by Karnac Books)

    Forensic psychotherapy and psychopathology: Winnicottian perspectives


    Chapter Three of Forensic Aspects of Dissociative Identity Disorder, The Extreme Abuse Surveys: preliminary findings regarding dissociative identity disorder by Thorsten Becker, Wanda Karriker, Bettina Overkamp and Carol Rutz proves that the subject can be mildly amusing to those skeptics looking into the crazed world of the SRA Myth/DID/Mind Control paranoid conspiracy theorists. With a world-wide survey of people claiming that they had been satanically abused, forced to become DID and often employed by secret government agencies, perhaps not surprisingly, most of the respondents claimed to have been satanically abused, forced to become DID and employed by secret government agencies.

    By way of example, in the published 'cod science' results of 'Ideologically motivated crimes. Mind control (EAS only)', 175 (one hundred and seventy five) respondents agreed that;

    I have experienced mind-control programming through which I was trained to become an assassin
    (Source: The Extreme Abuse Surveys: preliminary findings regarding dissociative identity disorder by Thorsten Becker, Wanda Karriker, Bettina Overkamp and Carol Rutz, published in Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder, edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, Karnac Books, 2008)

    Of that 175 now-successfully-and-safely-retired assassins, 128 came from the US, 16 from Canada, thirteen from the European Union and 18 from 'other'.

    Obviously with 175 trained assassins amongst them, the SRA Myth/DID community is not only the richest group of survivors, being made up of predominantly white, English-speaking middle-class and middle-aged women, but also unquestionably the most dangerous and lethal lobby group in the world - able to no doubt deploy highly-trained and motivated assassins at any moment (if they can tear themselves away from watching an episode of the X-Factor whilst knitting another blankey.

    Whilst many 'survivors' claim to be trained assassins and spies. Strangely though, none of the supposedly immensely huge organisations that 'programmed' them, can be bothered to have such apparently former operatives like Trish Fotheringham 'bumped off' by a currently-employed Mind-Controlled assassin. The Entry for US SRA Myth proponent Neil Brick discusses this extraordinary number of SRA Myth/DID 'survivors' who claim to have been trained to be a mind-controlled assassins, a group he includes himself in.

    Although it can be thought that there might be genuinely serious practitioners of 'forensic psychotherapy' - any hope that the profession can be treated seriously was probably lost with the publication of Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder in 2008. But even in 2001 in Forensic psychotherapy and psychopathology: Winnicottian perspectives, Brett Kahr was unable to resist the temptation to add a bit of satanic ritual abuse mythology into the mix, setting the scene perhaps for the route he wished forensic psychotherapy would pursue;

    Valerie Sinason in her chapter "Children who kill their Teddy Bears", provides a chilling contribution to the study of the perversion of motherhood, describing her pioneering work with the survivors of satanist rituals and other forms of grotesque abuse.
    (Source: Introduction, page 9 of Forensic psychotherapy and psychopathology: Winnicottian perspectives (2001) by Brett Kahr, published by Karnac Books)

    The series of books from Karnac include another associated theme title: Psychic Assaults and Frightened Clinicians edited by John Gordon and Gabriel Kirtchuk. In early 2011 Karnac Books continued, like Routledge, with it's enthusiastic promotion of the SRA Myth, with the publication of Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs edited by psychotherapists Orit Badouk Epstein, Joseph Schwartz and Rachel Wingfield. Both publishers seemingly pursuing a marketing approach to mangle the reputation of psychotherapy, and their own publishing houses, once-and-for-all. The subject of the volume Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs is investigated and further discussed in Part Four of this entry, which continues the discussion about how psychotherapy in the UK continues to be identified with theories promoted by notably, David Icke. Karnac Books and Informa PLC (the owner of Routledge) are leading that charge - intent on ensuring that the profession of psychotherapy isn't just open to charges of being having fallen off a cliff into paranoia, but that the allegations can be presented with documented evidence they publish.

    Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs


    Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs struggled to find willing reviewers, and had to resort to comments from Sir Richard Bowlby and leading SRA Myth advocate Professor Brett Kahr, who described himself as being from the Centre for Child Mental Health, London (see The Centre for Child Mental Health & the SRA Myth), plus Professor John Read, from the University of Auckland, New Zealand, who, as one of the countries leading SRA Myth advocate, had attempted in the past to ban a 'proper' scientist - Professor Elizabeth Loftus, one of the worlds leading authorities on human memory, from a conference.

    Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs and Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder can be read as volumes in a series, and provide important indicators about the state of British psychotherapy in the early 21st century. That both books are published by a leading British psychotherapy and psychiatry academic book publisher - Karnac Books - is significant; the obsessions with the SRA Myth can be seen to hit 'mainstream'.

    Dr. Sinason and her similarly-minded peers make no effort to simply report what their 'survivor' patients are telling them - that they have somehow survived the attentions of a global satanic mind-controlling CIA-led satanist/satanic child abuse cult. That would be interesting from a clinician point of view and reporting such would be a legitimate contribution to the fantastic world of human imagination and sometimes mental illness. Instead though, Dr. Sinason and other advocates of the SRA Myth proclaim through seminars and essays like From Social Conditioning to Mind Control their unshakable belief in the 'Myth, employing the mechanisms that no evidence of it is definite evidence of its existence, and utterly captivated by it's baggage of Vast Conspiracies, existing beneath the surface of Western society, able to elude for decades, indeed hundreds of years, any form of detection. Dr. Sinason's enthusiasm for the 'Myth is only matched by her abject unwillingness to secure any cast-iron evidence for it.

    Yet Dr. Sinason writes repeatedly that her patients come to the Clinic, often terrified, sometimes even still being satanically abused. Her writings frequently relate case histories of patients in such dire straits. Yet, in over 21 years of operation, no-one even charged with a specimen offence, no newspaper reports of how a patient at the Clinic saw her (it is almost always white middle-class young women) abusers convicted in Court, sent to prison.

    If there was any suspicion that Dr. Sinason was simply skirting around the paranoid conspiracy theories as part of a more serious body of work, then her lengthy passage on the Illuminati dispels this utterly. In this passage from Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder she once again refers to her belief that satanic ritual abusers of children include 'CIA controllers', and, by implication, perhaps customers of her publisher Routledge;

    Illuminati is a name that refers to several groups-real, a mixture of truth and distortion, and fictitious. Historically, it refers specifically to an Establishment secret society founded in 1776 by Adam Weidshaupt. Whether people we encounter who say they are Illuminati, or have been hurt by Illuminati programs, are genuine descendants from the 1776 group, or from new groups seeking to link themselves to that history, or from those with a fictitious disorder, the point is that whatever the victim believes is what becomes internalized.

    Those who speak of links with the Illuminati see the fact that the Monarch butterfly returns to its home as symbolic, and they also point to the occult meanings of butterflies. The Gnostics saw the butterfly as a symbol of corrupt flesh, and psyche meant both butterfly and soul.

    Out of some people who show signs of Monarch programming, a significant number come from, or believe they come from, satanist or Luciferians bloodlines. It is reported that CIA controllers sometimes dressed up in satanist costumes to further traumatise the children, also providing a cover that would not be believed if the children ever spoke of the abuse. It is again a separate question as to whether the controllers were, in fact, using such names for the purpose of further hurting children and adults.

    I have to state here, as I have before (Sinason, 1994), that I am in no way saying satanism is equated with crime. Indeed, some satanists I have met are victims of disturbed sadistic clerics who have so threatened them with Hellfire that they have joined the other side as a defence against torture. There are satanists who would hurt no one-and some priests, vicars, rabbis, and mullahs who have.

    Within Monarch, several levels of programming can be accessed through Greek letters to gain the alter with the function that is required. The Greek letters that colleagues and I have heard are alpha, beta, gamma, delta (which was named by Romola), and omega (which is a "self-destruct" form of programming also known as "Code Green").

    I do not know how such ideas have spread and how many groups have borrowed the idea and technology from elsewhere, like a cook trying different recipes, or how much it comes from a shared experimental interest, power game, or belief system. Nevertheless, the crime of creating alters deliberately in this way is something we have seen, and the proof of this is within the DID.
    (Source: From Social Conditioning to Mind Control, pages 181 & 182, an essay contributed by Valerie Sinason to Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, 2008. Series editor Brett Kahr).

    A review of the Index and Bibliography of SRA Myth-advocacy books is always an interesting exercise. Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder is no exception, providing an insight into the influences on the essayists who contributed to it.

    'witchcraft' appears on pages 43, 187, 189 and 192.
    The CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) on 33, 34, 37-38, 40, 42, 43, 46 and 47
    MKULTRA on pages 34, 174, 175, 180, 183 and 188
    Mind control on 8, 14, 18, 21, 34-38, 40, 42-44, 48, 106, 127, 170, 173, 175, 177-180, 183, 185-186, 192
    satanic ritual abuse on 6, 34, 42, 48, 78, 141, 142 and 192
    satanists on pages 9, 13, 14, 16, 158 and 181
    torture on 18, 20-22, 34, 44, 131-133, 143, 161, 166, 172-174, 179, 181, 185, 187-190


    In the REFERENCES (the bibliography) section, the 'usual suspects' can be found, with a particular emphasis to be found on American SRA Myth-advocacy texts of the 1990s.

    Not unusually there is fundamentalist Andrew Boyd's Blasphemous Rumours: is satanic ritual abuse fact or fantasy? An investigation. This book had a significant impact on many, including David Icke and feminist Sara Scott, who even worked to promote a follow-up book by Boyd with a now long-derided television documentary (see Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse her co-authored essay in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse).

    Dr. Joan Coleman's loopy essay in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Satanic cult practices is listed.

    Cory D. Hammond's infamous speech is listed as Hammond, D.C ‘Hypnosis in MPD/Ritual Abuse usually known at “The Greenbaum Speech”) Talk given to the Fourth Annual Eastern Regional Conference on Abuse and Multiple Personality, Alexandria, VA, 25 June 1992. The Greenbaum Speech is discussed at Dr. Corydon Hammond - the rise of the mind-controlled satanically-abused robot slave (and other ramblings)

    For fictional excess, there isn't much to beat Hersha, L., Hersha, C Griffis, D and Schwarz T (2001) Secret Weapons: Two sisters’ terrifying true story of sex, spies, and sabotage.

    A quick review of Secret Weapons can be found below;

    Now in their late 30s, the Hersha sisters claim to have experienced chilling childhoods, recounted here by two Ohio-based investigators Schwarz (The Hillside Strangler) and former police captain and "ritual abuse expert" Griffis who say they have studied declassified CIA files and interviewed military personnel in an effort to bolster the Hersha memories.

    Before the age of seven, the sisters say, they were inducted into a covert, government-authorized, mind-control program designed to spawn spies and assassins. During weekends and summers, they were subjected to traumatising experiments. Cheryl tells of her days as a caged "lab rat," released to navigate electrified mazes. The two became "psychological captives," programmed to respond to code words. Following practice in weaponry, martial arts and flight training, altered identities were purportedly introduced. At 15, Lynn "was made part of a unit that experienced murder," and she assumed the identity of team leader "Lt. Rick Shaw." As the seductive "Samantha Gooding," Cheryl would paralyse her victims, and she later became the cocky chopper pilot "Sgt. Thomas O'Neil." Naturally, these two "men," long separated, were destined to meet: "Cheryl Hersha! It's me, Lynn, your sister. You've got to let me go. You can't shoot me." Credibility collapses, as improbabilities are piled on inconsistencies, and the truth is buried beneath simplistic, pulp-adventure prose. In closing, the authors claim that "Their story is true," following with an admission that they found no government documents about the program or the sisters. An elaborate disclaimer about the "presumed thoughts and imagined words of the participants" will lead many readers to ponder just how much real events have been fictionalised.
    (Source: Publishers weekly review of Secret Weapons : Two Sisters' Terrifying True Story of Sex, Spies and Sabotage - 2001, by Cheryl Hersha , Lynn Hersha, Dale Griffis & Ted Schwarz)

    Not worrying about its pulp-fiction pretensions, Graeme Galton and Adah Sachs listed Secret Weapons as being a serious piece of work.

    Joining it was the obligatory David Icke Alice in Wonderland and the World Trade Center Disaster: Why the official story of 9/11 is a monumental lie (2002)

    And going the whole-hog, Galton and Sachs add;

    Mark Philips and Cathy O’Brien – Trance Formation of America: The True Life of a CIA Mind Control Slave (2001)

    Fundamentalist Catherine Gould, famous for her Satanic Ritual Abuse indicators gets two listings. Serial psychotherapty-profession-abuser Phil Mollon is given multiple listings, together with the usual Randy Noblitt and Frank W. Putnam, a long-term SRA Myth/DID advocate favourite.

    In amongst the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' listings, shared with the likes of Cathy O'Brien and David Icke can be found four listings for poor attachment pioneer John Bowlby, his reputation shot to pieces with the unwelcome association with the extreme right-wing religious fundamentalist-driven conspiracy theories that infest Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder from cover-to-cover (see The SRA Myth and the destruction of John Bowlby's legacy).

    The rear-cover blurbs are contributed by Sir Richard Bowlby, the son of John Bowlby, who has presided over the trashing of his fathers reputation. He is joined by Dr. Arnon Bentovim, whose essay, co-written with his future wife in 1994's Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse helped confirm the perception that the SRA Myth in Britain during the crazy years had been jointly primarily pursued to demonise the poor and socially-excluded (see The Evil, Satanic Poor Part Two) and to chase imaginary witches and their covens. Estela Welldon, who was at the beginning of the founding of RAINS at the very beginning (see Valerie Sinason's own co-written essay in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Going through the fifth window commends the book in her role as 'Founder & Honorary President for life of the International Association for Forensic Psychotherapy', although thanks to Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder and its editors and contributors, there is no danger of that profession being taken seriously outside its own confines.

    Further discussion about the contents of Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder can be found in the section The Paracelsus Trust.

    Much of Dr. Valerie Sinason's conspiracy theory world can be sourced to extreme far-right fundamentalist sources. Her Illuminati obsession for instance, and in particularly her willingness to write (I)t is reported that CIA controllers sometimes dressed up in satanist costumes to further traumatise the children have a direct parallel in the often-crazed meanderings of US conspiracy theorists to whom the US government, anti-abortionists, non-believers and educated women are regarded as 'fair game'. Bizarrely, Dr. Sinason, who is Jewish, also comes within the scope of the inherent racism of such True Believers.

    The Illuminati couldn’t do it alone without its fronts. Satanists within the Network & the CIA took over Boy’s Town, NE in the early 1950s, & used that famous orphanage for a constant supply of boys for programming. Boy’s Town is perhaps the most famous, but there are whole long list of others. When the Monarch Programming started, the top men were Illuminati. Originally, Joseph Mengele was the lead programmer. He had already achieved the rank of Grand Master (later Ipssimus) within the Illuminati. He had become skilled in music, in Kabbalistic Magic, in dancing, in abortions, and in torture (by the way, Mengele had a sadistic mother) and programming children.

    ...

    The intelligence networks were started by and run by the Illuminati. They are Illuminati fronts. The use of slaves crosses many organisational boundaries within the overall Network. If a slave is to be used as a Delta model (assassination), they may be selected for strength and dexterity. The Delta Force is the army’s elite unit made up of Monarch slaves. If they are to operate as a Beta model (sexual slave), they will be chosen if they can master technique. Occasionally they might in some circumstances be selected for how pretty the programmers expect the child to become. Some parents have produced good looking children and are actually sought-after to bear children to sell into the Mind Controlled Slavery "Freedom Train" System.
    (Source: The Illuminati formula used to create an undetectable Mind Control Slave - by Fritz Springmeier & Cisco Wheeler)

    David Ickes views, which in turn lift much from the extreme far-right fundamentalist faction in the US, injected with a little sci-fi uniqueness (shape-shifting 12' aliens) also parallels much of Dr. Sinason's universe. Stating an opinion as unadulterated fact and then having it repeated by others in their works is a key feature of the "shit-house-rat-crazy" conspiracy theorist industry. For True Believers in the 'Myth, a conspiracy theory that suffers hugely from both a lack of evidence and a more distinct lack of interest by its advocates for actually securing evidence, it is deemed sufficient to simply quote others' Belief in the 'Myth; in the hope that doing so will present a veneer of academic respectability.

    The explosion in conspiracy theories across the middle-class Western world that have typified recent years perhaps has a simple explanation to help us understand why so many secularists and even some humanists are engaged with often crazed beliefs. Religious fundamentalists are of course excused; their pursuit of conspiracies and demons has been a core aspect of extremist religious thought and action for so many centuries that it is now almost routine. Amongst many US fundamentalists, God has been consigned to being a mere bystander, unable to intervene as (apparently) Satan, through his minions in the CIA and US Government, embark on hugely complex "false flag" exercises to provoke a "New World Order". The thought that rather the government and security services are simply stuffed to the eyeballs with fuckwits never crosses their minds.

    For the atheists, humanists and those at all points in-between, perhaps English Christian writer G. K. Gesterton's words from a past century fit well;

    It is often supposed that when people stop believing in God, they believe in nothing. Alas, it is worse than that. When they stop believing in God, they believe in anything.


    David Icke, as with Dr. Sinason in her essay From Social Conditioning to Mind Control for the most part doesn't bother with footnotes, verifiable sources, or any inclination to use any form of accepted evidence. ibid features hugely in the references page for chapters, when present. Icke though has never claimed to be an academic, let alone an 'expert'. He was a soccer goalkeeper and television sports presenter before having his cathartic insight. Here we meet one of Dr. Sinason's robot mind-control assassins, apparently in the mould of her Lieutenant Romola.

    Whatever precisely happened, Bobby Kennedy was murdered by the same forces that killed his brother and they used a mind-controlled assassin who has remained programmed and mentally scrambled ever since. It is by this same method of hypnotic mind control that many computer programmers in the UK defence industry have suffered bizarre "suicides" and other deaths. Many victims have worked for the General Electric Company and its subsidiary, Marconi, and yet another cover up has suppressed the truth.
    (Source: And the Truth Shall Set You Free (2004) by David Icke, page 287)

    As with Dr. Sinason, David Icke too shares an opinion about an Illuminati, a secretive organisation they believe are responsible for controlling Mankind's destiny;

    The Illuminati, the clique that control the direction of the world, are genetic hybrids, the result of interbreeding between a reptilian extraterrestrial race and humanity many thousands of years ago. The center of power is not even in this dimension -- it is in the lower fourth dimension, the lower astral as many people call it, the traditional home for the "demons" of folklore and myth. These fourth-dimensional reptilian entities work through these hybrid bloodlines because they have a vibrational compatibility with each other. This is why the European royal and aristocratic families have interbred so obsessively, as do the so-called Eastern Establishment families of the United States, which produce the leaders of America. Every presidential election since and including George Washington in 1789 has been won by the candidate with the most European royal genes. Of the 42 presidents to Bill Clinton, 33 have been genetically related to two people, Alfred the Great, King of England, and Charlemagne, the most famous monarch of what we now call France. It is the same wherever you look in the positions of power... they are the same tribe!
    (Source: A Concise Description of the Illuminati by David Icke)

    Icke though doesn't come up with his ideas in isolation. It appears there is a dissemination of paranoid concepts flowing between himself and the psychotherapists, whom Dr. Sinason can count as being a leader;

    And when I talk to therapists around the world who work with satanically abused people, those who survived, trying to give them their minds back, they tell me that the deities their clients tell them are used in these rituals today are exactly the same deities that the Babylonians were using and the Cainites were using and the Phoenicians were using, right back in the ancient world.

    So, The Biggest Secret for me, in summary, is that an extraterrestrial race has interbred with humanity, creating particular hybrid bloodlines which they can work through from this dimension very close to ours, and that as it expanded over the thousands and hundreds of years to the present day, they’ve managed to expand their power out of a power base in the Near and Middle East, other places too but particularly there, until today they are actually in control of the planet.
    (Source: Are Their Aliens Among Us? The Biggest Secret An Interview With David Icke by Rick Martin, published in The SPECTRUM, August 3, 1999, Vol 1 Number 3).

    David Icke adopted the SRA Myth, together with the fantasies of Mind Control and DID promoted by Dr. Sinason, Dr. Corydon Hammond and Dr. Colin Ross quite late in his latter-day career. However in The Biggest Secret (1999) he went into overdrive on the subject, differing little from Dr. Sinason's ramblings in From Social Conditioning to Mind Control published in Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder;

    ...this lady is so high in the Satanic hierarchy that even the Queen is, apparently, forbidden to speak to her during the ceremonies. She was genetically bred for this job and her mother is of French noble descent. Arizona told me that the reptilians do not appear to be that psychic, and I guess this has something to do with the lack of a fully formed emotional and spiritual level of being, and so they mind control and programme humans of particular bloodlines, like her, to perform the rituals and draw in the energies for them. She says she was personally programmed by Josef Mengele (she knows him as Green or Greenbaum), a shape-shifting reptilian, and the infamous Nazi mind controller and genetic manipulator, who escaped at the end of the war with the help of British and American Intelligence to continue his horrors in the United Kingdom, the United States, and South America.
    (Source: The Biggest Secret (1999) by David Icke, page 302)

    The Biggest Secret


    Whilst SRA Myth advocates of the scandals of the late 1980s, early 1990s and 2003 in England, Wales and Scotland never apparently hesitated to try to demonise the poor and disadvantaged in society (see The Evil, Satanic Poor), David Icke will never miss a chance for a little anti-semitism;

    The Satanists among the ‘Jewish’ hierarchy today still perform the same rituals while the mass of the Jewish people worldwide have no idea that this is so. Stories throughout the centuries to the present day of the sacrifice of children by Jewish fanatics at the time of the Passover can be seen to have a historical basis when you realise the true meaning of the Passover.
    (Source: The Biggest Secret (1999) by David Icke, page 307)

    In concert with Dr. Sinason, David Icke appears to have adopted wholly the entire SRA Myth, even incorporating a belief that the famous McMartin case in the US was all true, with secret underground tunnels having been magically filled-in, having been used to spirit children away from a daycare center in hot air balloons and jet aircraft (see Continuing collusion and future threats.) All of the scandals in the UK; Rochdale, Broxtowe (Nottingham) and of course Cleveland, were, he feels, absolutely spot-on examples of SRA. His belief echoes that of the leading SRA Myth advocates in the still-existing RAINS organisation, and amongst the psychiatry and psychotherapy professions, who have never been willing to recognise a lost cause with these cases.

    Often David Icke simply regurgitates the documented beliefs of leading SRA Myth advocates of the past and present, such as adapting Dr. Bennett Braun's 'Rule of P's' - revealing the public persona of secret satanic ritual abusers as being: physicians, psychiatrists, psychotherapists, principals and teachers, pallbearers, public workers, police, politicians and judges, priests and clergies of all religions, parents and providers of day care. Icke though doesn't bother providing a credit to Dr. Braun.

    In Britain there have been, among many others, cases in Orkney, Nottingham, Rochdale and Cleveland. Each time the social workers trying to expose Satanic abuse have been subjected to a blitz of condemnation by the mainstream media with the Mail On Sunday particularly vehement in its opposition. It went so far on one occasion as to describe the “spectre” of Satanism as “hysterical nonsense”. Such remarks are so at odds with worldwide evidence that they can only be the work of an uninformed idiot (quite possible) or someone who wishes the truth to remain uncovered.

    ...

    Satanic ritual abuse is a global network, another pyramid of interconnecting groups, with the high and mighty of society among their numbers, top politicians, government officials, bankers, business leaders, lawyers, judges, doctors, coroners, publishers, editors and journalists. All the people you need, in fact, to carry out and cover up your rituals and crimes against humanity. It is not that researchers see Satanists everywhere. The ratio of them in leading positions is very high because that’s the way it is meant to be. The Satanic networks control the system and so they ensure that there is a far, far, higher ratio of Satanists in positions of power than there are in the general population. The higher you go up the pyramids, the more Satanists you find. Most of the non- Satanists are filtered out before they reach those levels. The result of all this for the children involved is beyond the imagination of anyone who has not experienced the level of trauma that they must suffer.
    (Source: The Biggest Secret (1999) by David Icke, page 309)

    Whilst David Icke's adoption of the SRA Myth into his all-encompassing conspiracy theories isn't, it has to be said, too great a shock, what is perhaps jaw-dropping for lay readers is that psychotherapist Dr. Valerie Sinason should be referencing him in her work, when there is every indication that she assisted, in person or just through her previous work, with the incorporation of the 'Myth into his worldview in the first place.

    If it was thought that perhaps Dr. Sinason's written views were just an example of one extremist, then a researcher doesn't have to go much further to find someone similar.

    Dr. Ellen P. Lacter - American witch-hunter

    American SRA Myth True Believer Ellen P. Lacter is a frequent visitor to the United Kingdom, and can be regularly found attending the same events and seminars as Dr. Sinason. They routinely cross-reference each other in their work. In Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder Dr. Lacter's description makes it clear how easily experts with her view have hooks into the child protection and family justice systems;

    Ellen P. Lacter is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Registered Play Therapist and Supervisor, and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. She is Academic Coordinator of the Play Therapy Certificate programme at the University of California, San Diago Extension. She specialises in the treatment of dissociative disorders, ritual abuse trauma, and abused children and adults. She is an activist for survivors of ritual abuse and mind control.
    (Source: About the Editors and Contributors, page xx Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, 2008. Series editor Brett Kahr).

    Dr. Lacter's teaching role allows her to promote the religious fundamentalist-derived SRA Myth to trainee psychotherapists and even social workers, through the auspices of the University of California.

    Dr. Lacter's contribution to Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder, discussed in the previous section, is titled Mind Control: Simple to Complex and immediately follows Dr. Sinason's essay. It also comprises the final section of the book (ensuring that the last chance to rescue some kind of professional semblance of reality is lost by the editors Galton and Sach's). Dr. Lacter repeats Dr. Sinason's belief that the security services and military are chock-full of child-abusing satanists. Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder though is a hugely useful book, and is again recommended by this site; initially identifying organisations with a bent towards belief in the SRA Myth becomes relatively easy - simply check their online 'Recommended Books' and see if Forensic' is amongst them. In some quarters the tome is regarded as a serious piece of work, though it is unlikely a genuine professional will be able to 'swallow the camel' (a term a web site uses as its title for instances when you really have to go a long way to take in some unsubstantiated beliefs.)

    Many ritual abuse survivors report that other abuser groups with criminal, political, military, and espionage agendas infiltrate their familial cults to gain access to these readily programmable children to use them to serve their own agendas, often paying cult parents large sums of money to be able to program these children.
    (Source: Mind Control: Simple to Complex, by Ellen P. Lacter, page 189, Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, 2008. Series editor Brett Kahr).

    But Dr. Lacter doesn't end there. She describes how the likes of the CIA perform their nefarious schemes, torturing children;

    The child may be tortured on or in a device, and the personalities formed in this process then perceive themselves trapped on or in this device. Alternatively, an image of an object may be projected on the child's body or on a screen or in virtual-reality goggles, or a physical model of the object may be shown. The programmer then tells the child that this device or object is now within him or her. Because the mind of the small child does not easily discriminate reality from fantasy (this process relies, in part on the pre-school child's stage of magical thinking), the child now perceives the object as a structure within.

    Immediately after the structure is installed, the programmer will generally command traumatised personalities to go to places in the structures-for example, "Go inside the grid." The programmer will generally also install the perception of wires, bombs, and reset buttons, to prevent removal of the structure. The child is usually shown something to make him or her perceive these as real-for example, wires placed on body parts and a button on the belly-button.

    Program triggers, cues, and access codes are also installed, to gain future access to the structure and to programmed personalities. This permits the programmer to install, change, and erase commands, messages, and information and to retrieve information, all out of victims' conscious awareness. An erase code for the structure is also installed to allow the programmer to later erase a defective, outdated, or unwanted structure. I have witnessed survivors from distant geographical areas report the identical erase code for the same structure.
    (Source: Mind Control: Simple to Complex, by Ellen P. Lacter, page 190-191, Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, 2008. Series editor Brett Kahr).

    If perhaps there was any lingering doubt in Dr. Lacter's willingness to project an image of pure looniness - and a vicious looniness at that, then her own personal websites easily dispel that. Unlike other SRA Myth advocates, she gets to go out and actually pursue her obsessions, in addition to writing and talking of Satanists in the CIA and elsewhere. Although a Satan-hunter, she is primarily a Witch-Hunter, and perhaps America's genuine Witch-finder General, a role assumed in the UK by Beatrix Campbell (OBE) but now shared between Valerie Sinason and Dr. Joan Coleman, the founder of RAINS. Dr. Lacter's weekend hikes in the beautiful surroundings of Diego County, California, provide a good opportunity to hunt for sites she describes as well-camouflaged witchcraft ritual altars, so well-camouflaged that its takes a huge effort to follow Dr. Lacter's line-of-reasoning.

    Abusive Witchcraft Sacred Ground End Ritual Abuses


    Abusive Witchcraft Sacred Ground End Ritual Abuses


    Abusive Witchcraft Sacred Ground End Ritual Abuses


    Dr. Lacter accompanies her revelations with a written commentary of her investigations;

    Memories of Witchcraft ritual abuse, the personalities affected by these abuses, and Witchcraft programming, are almost always buried more deeply in the unconscious mind than the memories, personalities, and programming associated with Satanic ritual abuse and abuse by groups with political/military agendas. The abusive methods used by Witchcraft affect the psyche and spirit more profoundly, and block memory more effectively. In many cases of ritual abuse, one of the survivors parents (and the lineage on that side) was involved in Satanism, and the other parent (and lineage) was involved in Witchcraft. The side practicing Witchcraft will likely know everything that is happening on the Satanist side, but the Satanist side will not understand very much of what the Witchcraft side is doing.

    These pictures are posted here to expose abusive Witchcraft to the light of day, with the goal of helping ritual abuse survivors overcome the effects of Witchcraft ritual abuse.

    Witches would have chosen this site as a ritual site because it contains a number of features they view as holy. Note that the photographs of the oblong ring of rocks (about 26 feet in length) include a trifurcated tree, or three trees that have grown together. The number three is sacred in witchcraft. Such a tree would be considered sacred, thus the ring of rocks constructed around it.
    (Source: From Abusive Witchcraft 'Sacred Ground' End Ritual Abuses, by Dr. Ellen P. Lacter)

    As it is, Dr. Lacter's photographs of the 'witchcraft ritual site' is rather a burned-out area of Scripps Ranch, in North County San Diego. Apparently firefighters had moved some 'thins' (small trees/brush) out of their way when attending to a residential fire in the past.

    An interview conducted by Dr. Ellen P. Lacter of 'survivor' Trish Fotheringham provides another pointer to her dedication to the SRA Myth (this is also linked-to on the first page of this Index entry);



    How did Dr. Ellen P. Lacter's essay make it into Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder? Bizarrely enough even her paranoias are matched by other contributors in the book, and so don't seem too much out-of-place. The editors Graeme Galton and Adah Sachs seem convinced in her beliefs in CIA/military-driven satanic ritual abuse and torture. Adah Sachs has collaborated with Dr. Lacter in the US, so is familiar with her witch-hunting exploits and beliefs. As the editors seemed determined to produce a book specifically designed to embarrass 'forensic psychotherapy' - ensuring the term is forever associated with the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' element in British psychotherapy, then they should be credited with having achieved their goal.

    Much of the SRA Myth advocacy in the US is concerned with determining that US military personnel and members of the security services are routine torturers and committers of atrocities. Dr. Lacter herself presented at the 27th Annual Conference of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation, with her seminar Torture-based Mind Control: Psychological Mechanisms of Installation and Continued Control for one-and-a-half hours on Monday 18th October 2010. In addition to Dr. Lacter, Dr. Colin A. Ross, no stranger himself to being an (occasional) advocate for the SRA Myth, and the idea that the CIA are chock-full of satanic child sex abusers, attended and spoke on the 'prestigious' plenary panel. Other talks included, under the 'Paper Session for War & Torture' Development of an Online Screening and Prevention Program for United States Army Personnel Returning from Deployment, Unmaking the Torturer: Re-Establishing Meaning and Identity after Committing Atrocities, Entering the Abyss: Countertransference in Working with Torturers and Clinical Management of Military Sexual Trauma, all intent on labelling the US military as being the primary source of satanic crimes against children. Leading ISSTD member and long-time SRA Myth proponent Dr. Richard Kluft, is with Dr. Lacter, the most vocal is their committed belief equating of the US military as a haven for satanists.

    In the US it has become routine for SRA Myth-believing psychologists, psychiatrists and psychotherapists to refer to Homeland security personnel fighting in Afghanistan as being under the control of the Illuminati and of taking part in satanic rites. Interestingly the British book publisher, Taylor & Francis, a division of the Informa PLC, who also own Routledge, Dr. Sinason's publisher, 'sponsored' the ISSTD Conference refreshment break on Saturday 16th October 2010 (see Peter Rigby) presumably because Informa PLC has a substantial investment in books advocating for the SRA Myth.

    In the US, the ISSTD (the "T" for Trauma is a new addition) is the focal point for SRA Myth advocacy, with, as the Conference schedule makes clear, a belief in Mind Control being performed by the military/security services, being a central theme.

    Another key figure in the ISSTD is Bessel van der Kolk M.D. Dr. Bennett Braun, perhaps the most famous of therapists/psychiatrists to have been found guilty of systematic abuse of women under his care during the Recovered Memory Therapy craze of the 1990s, was a founder.

    The influence of the ISSTD on the image of psychiatry, psychology and psychotherapy in the US can't be easily ignored. Through its work, much of it dedicated to "dissing" the US military and security services, whilst promoting techniques and beliefs that many struggle to believe-in in the 21st century, the 'head doctor' professions have received a rough time.

    Martha A. Churchill, an attorney and President of the Michigan Association for Responsible Mental Health Practices pointed-out the manner in which the professions have gone off a cliff;

    This psychiatrist tries to cure mental illness with eye wiggles. He says that memory of childhood abuse is stored in the hips, elbows, and toes. And he wants to bill health insurers for his services, the same as other medical doctors, a concept called "parity."

    The eye-wiggle doctor, Bessel van der Kolk, M.D., is slated as the featured speaker for a professional seminar in Livonia this February. His therapies, euphemistically described as "innovative," are touted in the current newsletter of the Michigan Psychiatric Society under the heading, "Mark your calendars."

    Van der Kolk serves as a professor at Boston University, but that is not a big credential. Another psychiatrist, John Mack, convinces his patients that they were sexually molested by aliens aboard UFO's, and he is a tenured professor at Harvard.

    Lots of crazy fads circulate these days among mental health professionals, and even the most respected professional organizations do nothing about it. The legislature should not grant "parity" to mental health providers who could use these fraudulent treatments on unsuspecting patients.

    The van der Kolk program is sponsored by the Trauma and Dissociation Study Group of Southeast Michigan. The name sounds respectable, but these people specialise in the treatment of MPD, or multiple personality disorder. MPD adherents claim that the illness results from severe childhood trauma, especially torture by witches.

    The Michigan study group has a web site at www.traumahelp.org, where a list of members indicates they are concentrated in Royal Oak. The group boasts about being a chapter of the national ISSD, International Society for the Study of Dissociation. The ISSD works hard to make witch hunts respectable in mental health circles throughout the US and Canada.

    ...

    Keeping score of fraudulent mental health methods is a big job. I sat in on a seminar in Ann Arbor for mental health professionals where child sex abuse was given as the cause of just about every mental illness. It was the third in a series of seminars in Michigan for therapists, giving them continuing education credits.

    The speaker opinioned that schizophrenia is a diagnosis to ignore, except for insurance billing purposes. Treat everyone as a victim of childhood sex abuse, she added, and check for "body memories" to gain additional history about the patient's childhood.

    I sat next to two social workers from Community Mental Health of Washtenaw County, who took lots of notes. They may have actually believed the nonsense they were hearing, since mental health professionals pass these tales around without any interference from professional societies.

    Should psychiatrists and other mental health providers get equal pay for their treatment methods? Let's wait until they clean the junk science out of their closets. Meanwhile, parity should apply only for mental health treatments scientifically proven to be safe and effective.
    (Source: Junk Science Invades Psychiatry by Martha A. Churchill, The Detroit News, Friday, January 7, 2000)

    Skeptics might wonder how on earth the CIA and MI5's army of mind-controlled slaves are controlled. Dr. Lacter explains that it is all done with toll-free telephone calls. Other perhaps obvious questions are how is it none of the mind-controlled CIA assassins have been tasked to eliminate Dr. Sinason and her ilk, or how on earth the satanic mind-controlling forces ever allow anyone to escape their clutches? This though is variously explained as being because around the age of 30, many (almost exclusively white, middle-class) women find that the mind-control 'wears off' leaving them distraught. Only often after extensive and expensive therapy (often paid-for by the NHS in the UK) will the women be subsequently told by their therapists they have been subjected to ritual abuse at the hands of Illuminati mind-controllers, on some occasions from the CIA and MI5. This is turn will lead to many years of expensive therapy to 'de-program' the former slave, ridding her of all traces of the security services nefarious structures.

    As a 'play therapist' Dr. Lacter would probably find it impossible to keep her paranoid beliefs in the SRA Myth and her conviction that everything is the fault of the CIA from her normal work. As it is, American psychologists, just like physicians, are subject to ratings, principally because they have to run or be part of a business. Dr. Lacter gets some glowing reviews, such as;

    Ellen Lacter is an excellent doctor. I would highly recommend her. She is very experienced, an excellent psychologist, and is considered an expert in her field.


    Not all reviews though are similarly gushing;

    This woman manipulated me, conned me, lied to me, attempted to give me DID, gladly took heaps of my time and money, and what did I get in return? She made a 100% illegal, unwarranted CPS call on my former best friend, and because of that, I am now being stalked for life by people Ms. Lacter claimed she wanted to help me escape from!!!

    And by the way, her illegal CPS report was found to be baseless, since my former friend is not a child abuser. Ellen Lacter is greedy, phoney, in love with herself, and a horrible excuse for a human being let alone therapist- more like TheRapist of your wallet and mind.

    She did the exact opposite of what she promised, I AM NOW BEING GANG STALKED FOR LIFE DIRECTLY DUE TO A CRIME SHE COMMITTED! She also typically started my appointments late, yet would not allow me a simple 5 minutes after my own was up when I had waited 15 minutes after it was supposed to start.

    This woman gladly destroyed my life and had no remorse about any of it. She is evil.
    (Source: both quotes from Insiderpages - anonymous and unattributed/unverified recommendations - Dr. Ellen P. Lacter

    The Institutions of psychiatry, psychology, psychotherapy/psychoanalysis & the SRA Myth



    psychotherapy/psychoanalysis

    Dr. Sinason, though perhaps the most vocal, isn't by any means the only member of the British psychiatric and psychology professions to profess a True Belief in the SRA Myth. As discussed previously, obsessions with the 'Myth have dogged the two disciplines for over two decades, and still exert a stranglehold on both. Psychotherapy/analysis, principally from the psychology camp but still with a interest in psychiatry is almost utterly dominated by belief in the SRA Myth on both sides of the Atlantic. Indeed it is nigh impossible to find a psychoanalyst who expresses opposition to the belief that a worldwide conspiracy of satanists, led by security services such as MI5 and the CIA, routinely sexually abuse children in an effort to create an army of mind-controlled human robots. Even with that, numerous psychotherapists and psychoanalysts profess believes in concepts and myths that ordinary citizens have to take a deep breath to even read of, up to and exceeding advocating that aliens routinely kidnap individuals.

    As concern with psychoanalysis has increased amongst the general populaces of the US and UK, then the harder it has become for such individuals with the job title to find a way into the lucrative business of being 'expert' witnesses in a criminal court. During the 1980s defence lawyers (barristers) found it increasingly easy to rip psychoanalysts apart - not least because the various strands of the profession, pro-and-anti Freud were so at odds with one another. In response psychoanalysts have increasingly moved to acting as expert witnesses in the Family Court system, principally because the inherent secrecy, the lapse rules of evidence, the acceptance of conjecture and often wild opinion are allowed, if not encouraged. The Family Court also allows psychotherapists to exercise their personal prejudices in an extensive manner, free of the burdens of peer review and professional censure.

    As an adult psychoanalyst and child psychotherapist, Dr. Sinason occupies a role in a profession that is regarded by many with serious mistrust. Psychiatry, the study and treatment of human psychiatric illnesses, is in a process of transformation in the early 21st century, thanks to advances in genetics and neuroscience. Accordingly psychiatry is seen as a 'hard science' - a genuine scientific subject. Yet even as many of its practitioners strive to be regarded as a 'serious' professionals, there are many, notably in the US who appear to all they can to bring the discipline into disrepute, rendering it a laughing stock.

    Psychology is not some branch of psychiatry, and is in reality a different beast altogether. Although there are some attempts at relating neuroscience findings about the impact of trauma on children and adults and their subsequent personality changed, psychology is still regarded by many ads not really being a 'science' at all. Psychology, attempting to always catch-up with psychiatry, itself struggling by individuals willing to shoot the profession in the foot, employs reasoning and cognitive analysis to study the conscious and unconscious human mind.

    The greatest influence on psychology was Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) who had initially pursued a career in neurology and psychiatry. Freud's influence is huge in psychoanalysis, enabling the psychoanalyst is free to interpret a clients dreams, fantasies, dreams, free associations and fears. The idea is that confronted with the source of their psychological difficulties, the psychoanalyst can guide the patient to a satisfactory resolution. The actual process of counselling is called psychotherapy, so in reality all psychoanalysts are by default psychotherapists.

    A key feature of psychotherapy/psychoanalysis is that neither 'profession' is formerly regulated, and any regulation is voluntary. Whilst psychiatry is regulated in the UK, by means of all psychiatrists requiring a minimum of a medial degree (and therefore being subject to the General Medical Council - GMC), three organisations perform a voluntary role for psychotherapists/analysts in the UK; the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP), the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and the British Psychoanalytic Council (BPC - formerly the British Confederation of Psychotherapists). In addition, to confuse matters even more there are many smaller professional bodies and associations such as the Association of Child Psychotherapists (ACP) and the British Association of Psychotherapists (BAP) who play a small but important role in ensuring that the activities of their members are effectively unregulated by any definition of the word.

    A (generally) comprehensive list of the associations, councils and colleges a psychotherapist in the UK can join (if they wish) is shown below. Inside many of groups are dozens of associations, covering peculiar and specific forms of therapy, and/or regional designations;

  • British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP)
  • UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)
  • UK Register of Counsellors and Psychotherapists (UKRCP)
  • British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP)
  • British Psychoanalytic Council (BPC)
  • College of Sexual and Relationship Therapists (COSRT)
  • College of Psychoanalysts-UK (CP-UK)
  • Association of Child Psychotherapists (ACP)
  • British Association of Psychotherapists (BAP)


  • In 2010 and early 2011, discussions were taking place between some of the primary psychotherapy associations and the Health Professionals Council (HPC) with a view to bringing the psychotherapy profession under the HPC. The discussion took in a wide range of views, ranging from enthusiasm, to distinct opposition. Not all of the associations were inclined to take part.

    Psychotherapy's fear of regulation is perhaps understandable - the profession is riddled with SRA Myth believers and can't shake off the constant criticism that it isn't really a proper profession, and certainly not a scientific one - more a means for personal prejudices to find a well-paid home. In response to the HPC's proposals the UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) chair Professor Andrew Samuels, who is hugely opposed to regulation by the HPC, produced a document suggesting the HPC's system of 'fitness to practise' wasn't capable of the task.

    Unfortunately Professor Samuel's document, seemingly authored with others and quoted extensively at here was rambling drivel, of the very kind that critics routinely associate with psychotherapy. The document itself can be found at The United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy’s Critique of HPC’s Fitness To Practise System.

    The document was so poorly written, it even prompted HPC chief executive Marc Seale to write;

    I have carefully read the 21 page document. I am most disappointed by its quality. My first reaction was to draft a line-by-line repost to the many misconceptions, errors and gobbledegook contained in the document. However, given the quality of the document this would have been a lengthy and potentially time-consuming task.
    (Source: Regulation of Psychotherapy: HPC calls UKCP critique “gobbledegook”, posting by Zarathustra, on July 6th, 2010, mental Nurse web site)

    A posting on the Mental Nurse forum Regulation of Psychotherapy: More on the leaked UKCP document in May 2010, revealed pressing reasons why the UKCP and those inclined to the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' tendency in the psychotherapy profession in the UK have a fear of regulation; it would open-up them up to much scrutiny concerning their obsessions with Recovered Memory Therapy, the SRA Myth and alien abduction.

    On pages 5 and 6 of the document the authors take issue with the structure of HPC hearings. They don’t like the fact that the hearings are conducted in public. They don’t like the HPC being able to continue with a hearing if the complainant withdraws their complaint. What particularly grabbed my attention is that they don’t like third parties being able to make a complaint.

    (extract from The United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy’s Critique of HPC’s Fitness To Practise System
    This situation is made even more difficult by the HPC definition of a ‘service user’ as anyone who is affected by the practice of a registrant: relatives, carers and spouses thus become encompassed within the term ‘service user’. It is well-known that someone doing a therapy may make important changes in their relationships with those close to them, and that such changes are not always welcomed by the other party: distancing, divorce or dispute are not always easily tolerated. HPC’s framework would encourage complaints by those who believe that such changes are somehow due to the malign influence of the therapist, whatever the view of the client him or herself. Even if the therapist is exonerated, great damage will be done by the time the complaint is heard.

    To give an example, it appears that, encouraged by the False Memory Society (see the discussion on their website at http://www.bfms.org.uk/Image_Assets/Members%20on%20Regulation.pdf), people who say they have been falsely accused of abuse are planning to bring third party complaints against their alleged victims’ therapists to HPC. HPC’s decision as to a registrant’s fitness to practise will effectively become an adjudication as to the validity of the abuse claims. Whatever the truth of the abuse allegations, the alleged victims would be further traumatised by such a public process. [p. 6]
    (end of extract)

    I wasn’t aware of this until I read the link quoted above, but it seems the British False Memory Society (BFMS) have been taking an interest in the proposed HPC regulation. False memory syndrome has caused enormous damage. It involves fictitious memories, usually of childhood abuse, sometimes of wacky things like satanic ritual abuse and alien abduction, being generated in peoples’ minds by therapists using hypnosis, guided imagery and suggestion to look for “repressed memories”. The result has been false allegations, families ripped apart and in some cases innocent people going to prison for abuse they didn’t commit.

    The BFMS document states: (extract from The United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy’s Critique of HPC’s Fitness To Practise System
    It is not known if the HPC has much experience of dealing with complaints received from third party family members and certainly complaints about the influence of poor or unproven therapeutic practice will be new to them. Most of the therapy umbrella bodies have, in recent years, operated a complaints procedure under a voluntary code of regulation and it appears that in 99% of cases, third party complaints are rejected on the grounds that they can only handle complaints from direct recipients of the therapy.

    When the HPC assumes the role of regulating psychotherapists and counsellors the Council’s practise and policy could benefit enormously if BFMS members can to write to them, under the current public consultation process, to explain the damage caused to the family by a therapeutic process and how they have been denied any way of raising their concerns.
    (end of extract)

    It’s not hard to read between the lines of what they’re hinting at here. People wrongly accused of abuse due to false memory syndrome have tried to complain against the therapists who ruined their lives, and been told, “Sorry, you can’t complain, because you’re not the client.” They’ve noticed that if the HPC regulation comes in, they’ll suddenly be allowed to make the complaint they’ve previously been denied, and they’re itching to unleash a can of Fitness to Practise whoop-ass.

    I’d imagine that if there are any therapists out there who’ve gone digging for “repressed memories” with hypnosis and leading questions, some of them might suddenly find themselves feeling rather nervous.

    But of course, as the UKCP document explains, they’re merely concerned that, “the alleged victims would be further traumatised by such a public process.”

    Yes, of course. That’s what they’re worried about.
    (Source: The United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy’s Critique of HPC’s Fitness To Practise System, posting by zarathustra, Mental Nurse web site May 3rd 2010

    An example of how SRA Myth True Believers can hide in the British psychotherapy industry can be found in one of Dr. Sinason's latest books published by Informa PLC (through its Routledge imprint) - the 2nd edition of Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder (November 2010). The book brings the 'gang' comprising of Dr. Sinason and Associates of her Clinic for Dissociative Studies back together again in written form, together with some other leading lights of SRA Myth advocacy. Adah Sachs contributed As Thick as Thieves, or: the Ritual Abuse Family – an Attachment Perspective on a Forensic Relationship, Graeme Galton presented Dissociation Sounds More Scientific and Brett Kahr, series editor for Karnac Books (as working at the Clinic for Dissociative Studies) adds his Multiple Personality Disorder and Schizophrenia: an Interview with Professor Flora Rheta Schreiber, known famously for her 1973 book Sybil, which is the core originating text for religious fundamentalists, feminists and even secular belief in Multiple Personality Disorder. In late 2010 Debbie Nathan's meticulously-researched Sybil Exposed did precisely what the title suggested - exposing Schreiber's work to have been an extensive hoax.

    'External' contributors to Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder include Sue Richardson, most famous for being the social worker who chose to support Dr. Marietta Higgs in the infamous Cleveland RAD Scandal of 1987 that saw over 120 children removed and subsequently (but legally) abused by paediatricians using pseudoscience. Dr. Joan Coleman, founder member of RAINS and the author of the famous essay Satanic cult practices in Dr. Sinason's 1994 Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse contributed Dissociative Disorders: Recognition within Psychiatry and RAINS. Dr. Felicity De Zulueta emphasises belief in the SRA Myth in NHS institutions with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder and Dissociation: The Traumatic Stress Service In The Maudsley Hospital.

    For perhaps obvious reasons the essays contributed to Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder weren't previously contributed to peer-reviewed journals.

    The UKCP's somewhat clear belief in the SRA Myth was underlined in it's granting of Associate Status to the IPD - Institute for Psychotherapy and Disability, comprising of a large number of SRA Myth devotees, in late 2009 (see The Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability).

    One psychotherapy institute - the Association of Child Psychotherapists (ACP) has also demonstrated amply why extensive regulation and close supervision of psychotherapists is required, in this case openly promoting and advertising one of the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' seminars featuring the extraordinary Dr. Ellen P. Lacter, Dr. Sinason herself, plus Sue Richardson, Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton.

    Association of Child Psychotherapists

    Lay readers and non-'shit-house-rat-crazy' psychotherapists might wonder why the Association of Child Psychotherapists chose to advertise an event with devoted and genuine Witch-Hunter Dr. Ellen P. Lacter as keynote speaker?

    Members of the Association of Child Psychotherapists include those who act as "experts" in the English and Welsh secretive Family Court system. It isn't certain why the ACP has taken the line of being clear advocates for the SRA Myth, together with its Mind Control element - but during a time when the professionalism (and sanity) of its members was under scrutiny, certainly by the HPC, it certainly manages to make a case for itself to be wound-down and extinguished.

    In 2012 the fear of regulation of the psychotherapy industry in the UK by some of its practitioners coalesced into the form of a book from leading conspiracy-theory publisher Karnac Books, who routinely publishes books maintaining paranoid obsessions by its authors under the guise of the 'psychotherapy/psychiatry' moniker.

    Regulation in Action: The Health Professions Council Fitness to Practise Hearing of Dr Malcolm Cross - Analysis, History, and Comment by psychoanalyst Janet Haney (Karnac Books, January 2012) was written to draw attention to the threat of regulation by the HPC, a subject that fills many psychotherapists with fear, not least because their efforts to promote 'shit-house-rat-crazy' conspiracy theories may be challenged through professional regulation.
    Regulation in Action


    Janet Harney's volume was written around a HPC FPC (Fitness-to-Practise) hearing against psychologist Dr. Malcolm Cross. The hearing, involving a number of allegations, some sexual in nature, found that the practitioner has no case to answer. Psychotherapists though seized upon the case as being definitive evidence that State regulation of the psychotherapy profession in Britain would lead to abuse by the State. Perhaps somewhat strangely, some elements in the psychotherapy profession had determined themselves to be beacons against repression and State regulation.

    In January 2012, the very month of publication for Regulation in Action: The Health Professions Council Fitness to Practise Hearing of Dr Malcolm Cross - Analysis, History, and Comment, Karnac Books published Healing the Unimaginable: Treating Ritual Abuse and Mind Control edited by Canadian psychologist and conspiracy theorist Dr. Alison Miller, under the moniker of being a genuine psychotherapy volume. This latest conspiracy-theory book from Karnac perhaps emphasised the need for strict regulation of the profession of psychotherapy, not least because of the professions tendency to promote obsessions derived from extreme far-right sources.

    Healing the Unimaginable - Treating Ritual Abuse and Mind Control
    Healing the Unimaginable - Treating Ritual Abuse and Mind Control - Karnac Books 2012


    Further detail about Healing the Unimaginable: Treating Ritual Abuse and Mind Control can be found in the section discussing another Karnac Books conspiracy-theory volume, published in March 2011 - Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs

    Less than a year before the publication of Regulation in Action: The Health Professions Council Fitness to Practise Hearing of Dr Malcolm Cross - Analysis, History, and Comment by psychoanalyst Janet Haney, the same publisher had issued another book by psychoanalyst Mikita Brottman - Phantoms of the Clinic: From Thought-Transference to Projective Identification which discussed the existence of telepathy between client and psychoanalyst - ensuring that psychoanalysis can be seen as a profession worthy of rigid state regulation.

    Phantoms of the Clinic: From Thought-Transference to Projective Identification by Mikita Brottman (Karnac Books July 2011)


    Phantoms of the Clinic: From Thought-Transference to Projective Identification is further discussed in Psychotherapy/psychoanalysis, transferance and a belief in telepathy
  • .


It wouldn't though be correct to single out the Association of Child Psychotherapists or the UKCP alone as being the key professional bodies that promotes the SRA Myth in 2011. The ACP is an associate member of the British Psychoanalytic Council (BPC). The Council comprises a number of other Institutes and Associations, emphasising how difficult it is to impose professional standards on the 'industry'. These are listed here and include the British Association of Psychotherapists, The Institute of Psychoanalysis / British Psychoanalytical Society, The Lincoln Clinic and Centre for Psychotherapy, The London Centre for Psychotherapy, North of England Association of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapists, and The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust / Tavistock Society of Psychotherapists, which in the past was the leading psychotherapy institution promoting belief in the 'Myth (see .

The British Psychoanalytic Council has, even though it seems vital for the Council and it's member Associates to demonstrate to the public, other professions, and in particular the Government and HPC that the profession is genuinely free of its 'shit-house-rat' crazy element, no hesitation in promoting the SRA Myth through its official web site. In this case through the promotion of DID - Dissociative Identity Disorder/Multiple Personality Disorder, which Dr. Sinason has stated in writing is predominantly caused by satanic ritual abuse;

British Psychotherapy Council


It is perhaps for the likes of the BPC's membership associations (other than presumably the Association of Child Psychotherapists for sure) and the senior staff of HPC (Health Professions Council) to question why the BPC promotes the SRA Myth.

It would though not be accurate or correct to say that every psychotherapy/psychoanalysis institution is obsessed with the promotion in one form of another with the promotion of the SRA Myth. The The Institute of Psychoanalysis makes every effort to avoid any reference to the 'Myth and presents itself in a professional fashion. The Institute of Psychotherapy (it can be hard to keep up with all the different institutional names) has excised its references to SRA Myth-promoting events.

Others though, in addition to the BPC itself and The Association of Child Psychotherapists, such as BPC Associate member WPF Therapy, established in 1969 to provide range of psychodynamic and psychoanalytic trainings including training in adult psychoanalytic psychotherapy, feels no constraint in not only promoting the SRA Myth, but also actually sponsoring the lectures; this one previously detailed through the ACP advertisement, at the Religious Society of Friends, 173 Euston Road, London, NW1 2BJ

WPF Lecture with Valerie Sinason


WPF declares to the world through its web site that it work(s) through a network of 28 centres in London and across England. We see over 15,000 clients a year suggesting that the only rigorous oversight and regulation will oversight.

Another organisation, existing in the shadowy ground between 'charity' and a genuine business concern is Cambridgeshire Consultancy in Counselling, located at Cambridge Regional College, on the Science Park Campus, Cambridge. Their 'mission' is both provide counselling but also to "train counsellors to professional standards" for which on some courses a CPD (Certificate of Professional Development) provided.

Cambridgeshire Consultancy in Counselling has also determined that the next generation of British psychotherapists be fully conversant with the SRA Myth. On May 7th 2011, Dr. Sinason will be running one of her regular efforts to persuade more that Dissociation is rife. Although keeping the words "Ritual Abuse" out of the description, it seems unlikely that a course entitled "Dissociative States and Child Abuse" presented by Dr. Sinason will avoid promoting the SRA Myth in all its glory.

Cambridgeshire Consultancy in Counselling

Cambridgeshire Consultancy in Counselling


The course, and the others detailed provide a likely clue to the future of British psychotherapy, as it merges, seemingly willingly and enthusiastically, with the David Icke paranoid conspiracy-theory industry. This may leads to the possibility, not entirely unlikely, that future attendance of a David Icke seminar will lead to the issuing of a CPC (Certificate of Professional Development), such is the manner that the beliefs underpinning British psychotherapy now echo much of those of Mr. Icke himself.

Just how much belief in the SRA Myth there is amongst British psychotherapists rather than their professional institutions is obviously hard-to-determine. The number of courses advertised suggests that at least a sizeable minority either are True Believers or have at least attended a seminar or conference on the subject. Belief in the SRA Myth permeates throughout British psychotherapy, burdening it, together with it's opposition to homosexuality, with the label that it's practitioners are little more than witchdoctors (or indeed witch-hunters on occasions).

Clare Slaney is a Pagen Chaplain, a psychotherapist and a feminist - a difficult mix of beliefs and occupations, particularly as many feminists colluded and continued to collude with religious fundamentalists in their commitment to the SRA Myth (Pagen's are routinely associated with Satanists in their eyes). She provides an insight into how trainee psychotherapists are introduced to the SRA Myth, perhaps through what Cambridgeshire Consultancy in Counselling refer to as a desire to "train counsellors to professional standards". (Note Chaplain Slaney does reference this Web site in some of her blog entries).

During my training as a psychotherapist we endured 2, two hour sessions with a woman who described sexual abuse and Satanic abuse in frothing detail. The class clearly experienced trauma, people were weeping in each others arms at the end of her descriptions of systematic forced abortions and child torture for the purpose of Satanic ritual. She gave us all her contact details so we could arrange therapy privately with her if we needed it. She dismissed all questions with a statement along the lines of, “You need to decide if you’re an abuser, if you’ve been abused yourself, if you want to do anything about abusers or just leave children to be sexually tortured to death.”
(Source: Pagan Chaplaincy: The Depths of Human Darkness, by Clare Slaney on her blog. Posted 8th March 2011)

The comments following the blog entry do provide some comfort for psychotherapy in the UK; suggesting that there does exist those amongst it aware of the challenge facing the profession.

The regulation of psychotherapy

Genuine psychologists, encompassing a number of disciplines, are regulated through various means. 'Practitioner' psychologists, which encompasses most of the job titles are formerly regulated by the Health Professions Council (HPC) and subject to the same rules and ethical disciplines as other professionals under the HPC's remit.

Being a psychotherapist/psychoanalyst is considerably easier and professionally more secure than being a regulated psychologist, and an awful lot easier than pursuing a career as a psychiatrist.

Being unregulated, the professions of psychotherapist/psychoanalyst attract many varied types of individuals to it. Because it is the role of the psychoanalyst to interpret a clients 'self' - the personal beliefs, including religious, gender or political dogmas of the analyst can influence the eventual interpretation of the clients need for corrective psychotherapy and the nature (and length, and cost) of that therapy.

The impact of the hopeless lack of formal discipline and regulation, particularly in the UK, has enabled the growth of psychotherapists to cater for all needs, and even all prejudices. Through psychotherapy, extremist religious, feminist, and misogynistic tendencies amongst the professionals themselves are able to flourish. Psychologists and psychiatrists can equally vulnerable to such failing, but at the risk of being struck off by the GMC or HPC.

In February 2010, Patrick Strudwick for The Independent newspaper infiltrated the strange world of the psychotherapists and even some psychiatrists and possibly psychologists working in Britain who consider homosexuality to be a mental illness. His investigation had been prompted by the release of a report Professor Michael King of University College London, that one in six UK psychiatrists and psychotherapists have sought to reduce or change a patient's sexual orientation;

My investigation began last spring, shortly after King's report was published, when an evangelical group held a conference in a central London church for therapists wanting to learn how to "reorient" their patients. I wanted to know who these therapists were, what happened during the treatment, and what effect it would have on the recipient. I posed as a potential client wanting to be cured.

Two hulking security guards search me on my way in. Inside, there are two large lecture halls with more than 100 delegates. They are mostly men; they seem subdued, waiting for the show to start. Tables at the back of the hall display books on how to make people heterosexual.

The keynote speaker is Dr Joseph Nicolosi, an American psychologist and the author of some of the movement's core texts. He is the founder of the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH), one of the biggest international conversion organisations. He has a cropped beard and wears a crisp suit.

"Homosexual behaviour is always prompted by loneliness," he tells the rapt audience with big gestures and a dramatic voice, "It's a pathology, a struggle to connect with the male identity."

His thesis is faintly Freudian: a distant father and an overbearing mother create deep wounds in a child, which lead to homosexuality. He speaks about the work at his own Californian conversion clinic. "We advise fathers, 'If you don't hug your sons, some other man will.' We train the mothers to back off.'"

During the lunch break gay protesters gather outside the venue, kept back by a police cordon. I can hear the din of the chanting and the whistle-blowing. The organisers advise us to stay inside.

I approach a psychiatrist, David, who had earlier asked a question from the floor, to see if he will treat me for my homosexuality. David tells me he runs a clinic which helps men "reach their heterosexual potential". He won't treat lesbians. "I have resolved my own sexuality," he says, explaining that he is now married with children, and gives me his business card: it reads, "I took the road less travelled." David points out a female psychotherapist who also practices conversion therapy, so I go over and introduce myself – I call myself Matthew.

She looks homely and her hair is greying. Her name is Lynne. She too gives me her business card. She is a fully accredited member of the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists (BACP), the largest of the psychotherapy bodies.

(Patrick Strudwick covertly records psychotherapist 'Lynne' for a session)

I have a dictaphone taped to my stomach as I arrive at Lynne's large house, north of London. She had told me beforehand that she would charge me £40 per session and that she always prayed at the beginning and end of the sessions. I'm shown into a spacious living room.

"I love my work and in particular this whole area of SSA [same sex attraction]," she says, as we sit down. "It's such an important area to work in." She has a wholesome face and the suburban air of someone who, when not trying to convert you to heterosexuality, would probably be rustling up a jolly good Victoria sponge. Like those at the conference, she doesn't say "gay"; she only uses the term "SSA".

I ask how she views homosexuality – as a mental illness, an addiction or an anti-religious phenomenon?

"It's all of that," she replies.

And then we pray. "Oh Father, we give you permission to work in Matthew's life to bring complete light and healing into every part of his being." After asking God to heal me, she opens her eyes. "I know the boundaries to keep within," she says.
(Source: The ex-gay files: The bizarre world of gay-to-straight conversion, by Patrick Strudwick, The Independent, 1st February 2010)

In January 2011 it was revealed through a disciplinary hearing conducted by BACP that 'Lynne' was in fact British psychotherapist Lesley Pilkington.

Lesley Pilkington60, a psychotherapist for 20 years, faces being stripped of her accreditation to the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) after treating a patient who had told her he wanted to be “cured” of his homosexuality.

The patient was in fact a prominent homosexual rights campaigner and journalist, who secretly recorded two sessions with Mrs Pilkington, a devout Christian, before reporting her to the BACP.

...

In the disciplinary letter sent to Mrs Pilkington, she is accused by BACP of “praying to God to heal him [Strudwick] of his homosexuality”. She is also accused of having an “agenda that homosexuality is wrong and that gay people can change and that you allegedly attempted to inflict these views on him”.

Mrs Pilkington told The Sunday Telegraph: “He told me he was looking for a treatment for being gay. He said he was depressed and unhappy and would I give him some therapy.

“I told him I only work using a Christian biblical framework and he said that was exactly what he wanted.”

She estimates that in the past decade she has offered the SOCE method to about one patient a year, lasting typically about a year.

“We don’t use the word 'cure’ because it makes it [homosexuality] sound like a disease. We are helping people move out of that lifestyle because they are depressed and unhappy.

“We say everybody is heterosexual but some people have a homosexual problem. Nobody is born gay. It is environmental; it is in the upbringing.”

The SOCE method involves behavioural, psychoanalytical and religious techniques. Homosexual men are sent on weekends away with heterosexual men to “encourage their masculinity” and “in time to develop healthy relationships with women”, said Mrs Pilkington.
(Source: The therapist who claims she can help gay men go straight, by Robert Mendrick, The Sunday Telegraph, 16 January 2011

In April 2007, research commissioned by the BACP and conducted by Professor Michael King, Joanna Semlyen, Helen Killaspy, Irvin Nazareth and David Osborn, titled A systematic review of research on counselling and psychotherapy for lesbian, gay, bisexual & transgender people determined that one in six therapists see fit to offer gay clients treatments that aim to make them straight.

Under the headline ‘British therapists still offer treatments to “cure” homosexuality’, the Guardian reported that a survey (of 1,328 counsellors, psychotherapists, psychoanalysts and psychiatrists throughout the country) found that 222 practitioners had attempted to change at least one patient/client’s sexual orientation, while 55 said they were still offering the therapy. The fact that some of those practitioners are members of BACP prompted the following response from Phillip Hodson, BACP Fellow and Media Consultant, in the letters page of the Guardian the next day: ‘[BACP] is dedicated to social diversity, equality and inclusivity of treatment without sexual discrimination or judgmentalism of any kind, and it would be absurd to attempt to alter such fundamental aspects of personal identity as sexual orientation by counselling.’

And yet this is what a significant minority of counsellors working in Britain today are still attempting to do. ‘I think it’s probably the tip of the iceberg,’ says Michael King, Professor of Primary Care Psychiatry at University College London Medical School, and one of the three scientists responsible for the aforementioned research published in the BMC Psychiatry journal. ‘It was only a small minority, about four per cent, who said that they would treat someone who came and asked for help, but another 10 per cent said they would refer on to someone who would, so it looked like about 14 per cent thought it was an appropriate thing to do.’
(Source: The gay cure? By John Daniel, Therapy Today - The Online Magazine For Counsellors and Psychotherapists - references in article removed)

In such circumstances, with fundamentalist views towards homosexuality rife within the psychotherapy and counselling professions, an erstwhile belief amongst many practitioners in the SRA Myth probably isn't too much of a surprise.

On 10th December 2010, the unwillingness of the psychotherapy associations to submit to the normal standards of regulation and discipline that professions normally agree-to was amply demonstrated in the English and Welsh High Court. The BACP (British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy) who Lynne Pilkington, the gay-converting psychotherapist belongs-to (she was later in May 2011 told to attend 'extensive training and professional development' by the BACP , but not struck-off), reported a preliminary judicial review in its own words, even though the organisation agrees with the concept of regulation;

On Friday 10 December 2010 at 11am a Judicial Review permission hearing took place at the Royal Courts of Justice, brought by six psychotherapy and psychoanalytic practitioner groups to challenge proposals for the regulation of psychotherapy and psychoanalysis by the Health Professions Council (HPC).

The case was made on four interwoven points:

  • That HPC was acting ultra vires and unlawfully in making its recommendation to the Department of Health as it had not consulted on the primary task of whether or not psychotherapy and counselling did in fact require regulation
  • That the HPC made its decision and recommendations in breach of its stated commitment to investigate whether counsellors and psychotherapists needed regulating.
  • That the HPC did not take account of all relevant considerations and how the profession met the HPC's own criteria for regulation.
  • That the HPC unfairly cancelled the final PLG meeting and that the PLG was not consulted on the responses to the HPC's consultation.


The Barrister for the Claimants, Dinah Rose QC, rejected a suggestion by the Judge that this could be settled by a statement from the HPC to the effect that they were not making decisions but merely recommendations as the executors of a task set out in the White Paper. (There was conflicting documentation in correspondence from the HPC about the task that they had performed.) The Judge also ruled that 'out of time' argument was not applicable in the bringing of the legal action did not apply because of correspondence from the claimants showing that they were not happy with the process was within time and that responses from the HPC did not state accurately the task that they were carrying out.

Mr Justice Burton ruled in favour of the claimants. In addition to losing the claim, the HPC was also asked to pay one third of the claimants' legal costs. The case is listed for a full hearing in the Spring.
(Source: Report of the Judicial Review, extracted from the BACP web site)

In mid-February 2011, the umbrella organisation that co-ordinated psychotherapies fight against regulation, Alliance for Counselling and Psychotherapy announced that it believed it had won its fight against regulation;

The government announced today via a ‘Command Paper’ that currently unregulated professions, including counselling, and psychotherapy, will now NOT be subject to statutory regulation. A system of ‘quality assured voluntary regulation’ will be developed instead under the umbrella of the new Professional Standards Authority (previously CHRE). This means that practitioners will be free to choose whether to join an assured register and that there will be no protected titles.
(Source: Alliance for Counselling and Psychotherapy statement)

The decision, though not yet confirmed by the HPC, to let the psychotherapy profession escape regulation, appears to be a victory for its 'shit-house-rat-crazy' faction, particularly for those therapists who feared HPC investigation into their use of Recovered Memory Therapy. In Pages Four and Five this faction, perhaps the 'loudest' element in British psychotherapy, is investigated and discussed.

The passion with which some determined UK psychotherapists have in challenging the professions self-destructive streak has coalesced into one distinct form, with the establishment of INTEGRITY Fashioned initially by Jocelyne Quennell Joanna North, who resigned from the UKCP (United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy) after seventeen and eighteen years membership respectively, in protest at the UKCP's stance against regulation by the HPC. Integrity represents perhaps the last best hope for the UK psychotherapy profession seemingly intent on continuing its death spiral plunge.

We believe that those who are working with children, families and adults in health, education, social care, private, charity and voluntary sectors need to be trained adequately meeting common threshold standards for education and fulfil requirements for ongoing fitness to practice and continuous professional development. We believe that independent complaints procedures are vital to ensure public protection and that current voluntary regulation is not working in this regard. The name ‘Integrity’ emerged from a vision to integrate psychological therapies more effectively into our society and we are suggesting that this is a matter of social responsibility that requires the transparency and accountability offered by statutory regulation.

We believe that the current option for regulation with the Health Professions Council (HPC) represents a real opportunity to engage in a full dialogue about the form and systems of regulation for all psychological therapies. This movement has started to represent those who are often silent for many reasons but are beginning to be willing to stand up for the values and principles embodied in professional statutory regulation.
(Source: Extract from Welcome to INTEGRITY)

The unwillingness of the BACP and other associations to be regulated correctly was amply demonstrated again with the BACP's roadshow Making Connections which visited several English, Welsh and Scottish towns and cities from April 2010 and is scheduled to finish in Norwich in March 2011. On the 18th October 2010 the show rolled-into York in Northern England, being hosted at the Royal York Hotel. An official BACP event, after a presentation by Heather Dale entitled Can ethics be sexy? (perhaps indicating the BACP attitude to the subject) the Keynote Speaker, introduced by one Anna Hamilton, was none other than Valerie Sinason.

BACP Making Connections - York Programme


As the leading psychotherapy association, what do other charities and groups expect BACP to deliver in terms of psychotherapy services?

Well, as far as NAPAC is concerned (a leading SRA Myth-advocacy charity in England and Wales, then BACP provides services to any of the following types of abuse in childhood: Domestic abuse, Sexual Abuse, Ritual Abuse perhaps, through a third-party, confirming the fascination and obsession the organisation has with promoting the SRA Myth at every opportunity and through every means available;

NACP


Psychiatry, Psychology and the SRA Myth

As with psychotherapy/psychoanalysis, finding advocates for the SRA Myth in the UK amongst the 'real' professions is terrifyingly easy, though their numbers are not so high. Although no professional institution for psychology or psychiatry is willing to advertise for SRA Myth courses or seminars, unlike the British Psychoanalysis Council and some of it associate members, there are numerous British psychiatrists and psychologists willingly able to be identified with their belief in the SRA Myth. For psychiatry, Ipswich-based psychiatrist Dr. Iain Kirkland Weir implicated in the Broxtowe Scandal of 1988, began a trend that continues today.

Historically, psychologist Dr. Helga Hanks, previously of Leeds University, was one of the first of her profession in England to be identified as a True Believer.

Dr Hanks was a supporter of 'satanic abuse' and a member of the Leeds team that included Drs. Jane Wynne and Christopher Hobbs. Their promotion of the now discredited 'anal dilatation' diagnosis of sexual abuse created havoc and injustice in Cleveland in 1987 when it was applied by Dr Marietta Higgs and others. Ms Saradjian, who has specialised in women as abusers, is also a believer in the 'recovered memory' method of accessing narratives that reinforce her ideology, including her belief in 'satanic abuse.'
(Source: Landmark decision in the High Court, by Margaret Jervis)

Another psychologist Dr. Jacqui Saradjian, most famous for her part in the Shieldfield Scandal is also an SRA Myth believer.

Other, modern examples are detailed on Page 4 of this entry.

Whilst other psychologists and psychiatrists may profess a belief in the SRA Myth - and anecdotal evidence from numerous parents and single women who encounter the secret family court system in England and Wales - suggest that there are many, their respective professional institutions, unlike psychotherapy and psychoanalysis, stay generally well away from the obsession.

Much of this is explained by a recognition of the dangers of recovered memory therapy by the professions of psychiatry and psychology in the UK. Psychotherapy/psychoanalysis, principally because of support for the SRA Myth amongst its own institutions, seems unwilling to shake off its association with the 'Myth;

In Recovered Memory Therapy, the assertion that persons have killed, mutilated and eaten their own or other children has not been subjected to empirical verification. No empirical demonstration has been made that adults can be programmed by clicks or tones. Cult ties to the CIA or aliens have not been demonstrated. Dissociative identity disorder has not been shown to be a reliable diagnosis, nor is there any verification that there is a cause/effect relationship between repressed childhood trauma, especially childhood sexual trauma and DID.
(Source: Page 87, Recovered Memory Therapy, from The death of psychotherapy: from Freud to alien abductions (2000) by Donald A. Eisner)

Whilst in the US and UK, public broadcasters and investigative TV documentaries like the BBC's Panorama have shied away from tackling the issue of unregulated psychotherapy and its victims, ABC - the Australian Broadcasting Corporation hasn't been frightened of addressing the issues head-on. In April 2010 its showcase documentary magazine series Four Corners which consistently betters anything produced from the US and UK broadcast Over The Edge about unregulated and rogue psychotherapist Matthew Meinck (see also Liz Mullinar).

The full documentary is available for viewing at ABC's home page for Four Corners - Over The Edge.

Psychotherapy/psychoanalysis and its submission to David Icke

The convergence of the views of David Icke and a sizeable minority of the psychotherapy profession - notably those who work with women through the use of Recovered Memory Therapy and even more disturbing, in Child Protection and Family Justice in the UK, is an obvious cause for huge concern.

In the US the manifestation of a belief in government-sponsored Mind Control was displayed with the shooting of American Democrat congresswoman Gabrielle Gifford's in Tucson, in mid-January 2011. She was shot and six bystanders killed, including a US judge and a nine-year-old girl, by a lone gunman - 22-year-old Jared Lee Loughner, a disturbed young man, but a distinct believer in the idea that the US government (through the CIA) employs Mind Control on its citizens.

'Infowars', a web site run by conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, whose web sites, books and radio shows feed the conspiracy theories of both Left and Right-wing fanatics equally, emphasised such beliefs in their coverage of the subject;

The CIA’s use of mind control to create killers is a matter of historical record. MK-ULTRA was the code name for a covert, illegal CIA human research program, run by the Office of Scientific Intelligence that came to light in 1975 through investigations by the Church Committee, and by a presidential commission known as the Rockefeller Commission. 14-year CIA veteran Victor Marchetti insists that the program is ongoing and has not been abandoned.

Whether or not Jared Lee Loughner acted alone is being investigated by officials. A second suspect in the shootings is still being sought. However, Loughner’s obsession with mind control is confirmed and given the historical connection between such events and the use of Manchurian candidates, nothing can be ruled out at this stage.
(Source: Arizona Assassin Obsessed with Mind Control)

In the UK, obsessions about Mind Control, driven by David Icke-following conspiracy believers and the psychotherapy profession haven't reached anything like the same explosive (and murderous) ignition point seen in the US. Yet the risk is present that the fantasies promoted by the likes of Valerie Sinason and Ellen Lacter, through British publishers like Informa PLC and Karnak Books - determining that the security services of MI5 and the CIA are stuffed-full of child sex-abusing, mind-controlling satanists - will actually resonate with a mentally-ill adult, provoking an attack on the police or security forces or the British government, or a US Ambassador...This subject is discussed on Page 4 in detail, with particular focus on the Metropolitan Police in London, who suffer the bizarre dichotomy of being enthusiastic collaborators in such obsessions, whilst being the police force whose city hosts the British security organisations MI5 and MI6, and also provides the British security services with the majority of Special Branch (SO15 in the Metropolitan Police) officers to provide an executive function for those very services.

The influence of David Icke and Valerie Sinason on child protection policy in Great Britain

David Icke's influence on child protection and family justice policy in the United Kingdom is generally perceived to be minimal. Although individuals within Government departments or police constabularies may believe the shared vision he and Dr. Sinason are willing to commit-to in writing and in seminars and lectures, there is no known occasion when David Icke has been invited to deliver his views to any official government or associated body.

Despite this, David Icke has on occasions managed to address those outside his immediate 'market' of conspiracy-believing-mainly-young-men. In England, an annual 'Rally Against Child Abuse' is held in August. Responsibility for the organising of the event passes from one organisation to another willing to take responsibility. In 2010 that organisation was the unknown religious then-Facebook-presence-only Cross of Change. As David Icke is a prominent advocate for the SRA Myth, he was invited and the Rally was publicised by other organisations including NAPAC - The National Association for People Abused in Childhood a prominent charity in the UK that is also a leading advocate for the SRA Myth. The demonstration managed the bizarre feat of weaving legitimate concerns about abuse of women, children and families by the secretive Family Court system, with the very mechanisms believed by many to be used to unjustly and incorrectly remove children from families and women - such as 'emotional abuse' and even on rare occasions, the SRA Myth.

UK rally Against Child Abuse


Perhaps surprisingly, a number of child protection-focused charities and organisations attended to listen to David Icke and others, and some seemingly had a thoroughly good time. One of the groups was SRA Myth-advocating Catford (London)-based UK and Eire charity 'One in Four' (the name refers to a statistical lie that one in four children will experience sexual abuse before the age of 18, but the criteria includes teenage girls being wolf-whistled-at) established by current executive director of Amnesty International Ireland, Colm O'Gorman;

1 in 4 at the UK rally Against Child Abuse


The march and rally culminated in London's Trafalgar Square on Saturday 7th August 2010. As expected David Icke was given a platform (one of the lions' plinths in the Square) and delivered a somewhat meandering speech incorporating his bizarre allegations involving dead UK politicians, Mind Control and Satanic Ritual Abuse. An excerpt can be found below. Bill Maloney of 'pie-n'mash' films, a leading SRA Myth and David Icke supporter (who filmed the video below) is a leading supporter of One in Four (see One In Four Supporters).



The organisation behind the hijacking of the 2010 Rally Against Child Abuse has continued its gestation. Against Child Abuse based in Northampton in the British east midlands, organised by an Emma Clarke - ACA Founder - doesn't disguise its 'shit-house-rat-crazy' conspiracy theory underpinnings - quoting "MKULTRA-tortured and CIA-trained assassin/Walter Mitty" SRA Myth enthusiast Neil Brick's S.M.A.R.T web site as a 'supporting organisation'. The S.M.A.R.T site, chock-full of far-right conspiracy theories about CIA satanic ritual abuse/mind control programming and of course the 'Illuminati' enthusiastically purports that the 'Myth is true, whilst frantically avoiding the difficult issue of why its founder can't be bothered to even try uncovering any satanic ritual abuse with a simple digital camera. Dr. Valerie Sinason is regularly referenced as an authoritative source, though David Icke gets not even a single mention.

Against Child Abuse


The ACA's next scheduled event was another "UK rally against child abuse", to be held once again at Trafalgar Square, London, in early June 2011, once again combining some legitimate concerns about the UK child protection system, with the "shit-house-rat-crazy" element.

Rally Against Child Abuse 2011


The ACA scheduled a 5-kilometre The Race Against Child Abuse around a park in Northampton on June 26th 2011 (the web site errors with the year) to fund it's annual 'Rally Against Child Abuse'. It isn't certain if David Icke attended to speak (or run) at either of the events, but the ACA's association with the daft conspiracy theory elements, derived from both the US and UK will probably ensure that its influence remains minor.

In the meantime the 'official" UK Annual March and Rally against Child Sexual Abuse, which perhaps unwisely allowed the ACA to hijack the 2010 event, struggles on, desperately ignoring any reference to the 2010 blunder. The next official rally, absolutely certainly NOT featuring David Icke, once again culminating in Trafalgar Square took place on 10th September 2011. Responsibility for the organisation of this event had been given to the perhaps more legitimate AMSOSA - Adult Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse in the UK. This group though employs some of the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' opposition rhetoric to those mistrustful of the Recovered Memory 'industry', and is 'supported' by the ACA (see Group links and events) suggesting some cross-contamination of the official "UK Annual March and Rally against Child Sexual Abuse" with the David Icke-inspired group.

Other than the 2010 'Rally Against Child Abuse' no other instances when David Icke has directly addressed members of the 'child abuse industry' in the UK can be found.

The same though cannot be said of Dr. Sinason. Her impact and influence on the child protection polices exerted in England and Wales (though nothing is known of Scotland) is by any margin, considerable. The following page of the Entry investigates the nature of this influence, notably on three organisations; The Department of Health for England and Wales, The Bowlby Centre, and as mentioned earlier and the Metropolitan Police, in Great Britain's capital, London.

go to Page Four



"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


The eleven pages under this menu section, and four sub-pages comprise a history of the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth in the United Kingdom from 1987 to 2011, and two pages refers to the American SRA Myth experience.

The SRA Myth 'moral panic' was probably the most significant social event in contemporary historical times for a number of countries. In the US the 'Myth years matched and quite likely exceeded the impact on American society that resulted from the Vietnam War. In the UK the SRA Myth events were significantly more important than the Miners Strike of 1984 and probably the most important events in British social history since the creation of the National Health Service. Any contemporary history text for either nation that fails to discuss the SRA Myth years is perhaps worthless, and is certainly inaccurate.

The impact of the SRA Myth is still being felt today in many Western countries. The liberal elite and Left were changed significantly, adopting the rhetoric of religious fundamentalism in the portrayal of opposition as 'evil' and 'satanic'. The well-documented collusion of feminists and religious fundamentalists caused a significant sea-change in the perspective of society towards the concepts of evidence, guilt and proof. A key feature of the SRA Myth years was the often-wholesale abandonment of forensic and medical science and evidence.

Most significantly the SRA Myth years provided an insight into the structure and nature of society in the US, UK, Canada, New Zealand and Australia - revealing that our concepts of liberal democratic society is merely gossamer-thread-like, and vulnerable to a return to the model to be found in the 17th century. Worse, those that we would normally expect to ensure Western societies at least displayed some hints of being 'progressive' were exposed to be 'regressive', willing to fall-back to old fears and belief in magic and religious imagery.

A risk perceived for this Web site is that the SRA Myth will dominate the pages, rendering it useless for anyone trying to research more recent contemporary social history events. As it is the SRA Myth does dominate that history; its impossible to escape from its influence and indeed, even after being rendered effectively finished in the mid-1990s in the US, and since 2003 in the UK, its impact can still be felt. In other countries, particularly New Zealand and Australia, the 'Myth is still to be found in operation, and its existence (or rather non-existence) has permeated into political thought for both the Left and Right.

In an effort to try to maintain some form of partitioning, most of the SRA Myth entries are maintained in their own sub-menu. Even so its difficult not to cross-reference them with other events and subjects discussed; for instance the entry concerning Attachment Therapy/Holding Therapy under Candace Newmaker cross-references the 'Myth abundantly.

The three pages for Beatrix Campbell OBE are essentially a history of the SRA Myth during its primary years - 1987 to 1994 in England and Wales from a socio-political perspective. Beatrix Campbell OBE is listed as the Index Entry due to her prominence in advocating for the SRA Myth together with religious fundamentalists during that period in time. The pages examine the causes of the SRA Myth, its impact on British social care policy, and the consequences the SRA Myth had on Leftist and liberal thought and policy from the 1990s onwards. The well-documented collusion between feminists in the white, English-speaking Western world and religious fundamentalists which began during the SRA Myth 'crazy years' is extensively discussed, together with the collusion between feminism and the RMT (Recovered Memory Therapy) movement, which continues even to this day. These pages will be reorganised in 2012 to remove the unnecessary cross-over with other pages in this section.

Bea Campbell (OBE) - Part One
Bea Campbell (OBE) Part Two
Bea Campbell (OBE) Part Three

The next accompanying five pages provide some cross reference with the Beatrix Campbell OBE pages but are primarily concerned with the history of the RAINS (Ritual Abuse Information and Support) organisation that was formed during the SRA Myth 'crazy years', and the SRA Myth false allegation events that took place during that period. The initial page was inspired by an essay published by British paediatrician Dr. Sandra Buck on the history of RAINS in 2008. As the nature of the 'Myth has changed, from one that predominantly involved the pursuit of socially disadvantaged families by labelling them demonic during the late 1980s and early 1990s, to the 'modern' version of the 'Myth, envisaging CIA and MI5 staff deliberately satanically-abusing children to create an army of mind-controlled robots, the only things that have remained consistent is the fundamental lack of evidence for SRA, and the existence of the RAINS organisation throughout.

Later pages are indexed under Dr. Valerie Sinason, and then finally Dr. Valerie Sinason and David Icke, in recognition of their positions as the primary proponents of the SRA Myth in Great Britain in modern times, taking over the role that was assumed by Beatrix Campbell OBE in the past. These pages are enormous, and the amount of detail and data is perhaps too much to comfortably fit in this web sites current format. In 2012 a pilot use of the 'Wiki' indexing engine will be conducted.

Page Two is dedicated entirely to the book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (1994) edited by Dr. Valerie Sinason. The book was published at the very cusp in history when the 'moral panic' engulfed Great Britain from 1988, and had changed, perhaps permanently, the nations' liberal elite and Left. The book is a key text in the study of contemporary British social history, and any history curriculum or sociology course that fails to include a study or reading of it is probably worthless. The analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse is split into four sub-pages, to ease readability. Even so the last page is excessively large, having been added-to with data received since the pages were initially published.

Page Three examines the parallel works of Dr. Sinason and the conspiracy theorist David Icke and include an analysis of their written published work and their parallel beliefs and references to one another. Page Four and Five continues with the same themes and includes a review of belief in the SRA Myth amongst the psychotherapy profession in the UK, together with the Metropolitan Police in London and other organisations and public bodies. A 'snapshot' of the nature of True Believers in the 'Myth in Great Britain in the second decade of the 21st century is provided, together with a discussion about the likely future for the 'Myth.

Dr. Sandra Buck - RAINS Part One
Dr. Valerie Sinason - RAINS Part Two
Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS Part Three
Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS Part Four
Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS Part Five

Pages Three, Four and Five of the RAINS history, which discusses belief in the 'Myth by psychologists, psychiatrists and most notably, psychotherapists in the UK have unfortunately become an runaway train, with huge amounts of information being regularly provided, chiefly from those is the said professions. Page Four become rather too unwieldy, and was split, creating a fifth page.

It was never the intention of the Editors to even write the first 'Dr. Sandra Buck - RAINS Part One' page, as the three pages listed under Beatrix Campbell OBE seemed to suffice. Publication though of Dr. Bucks's essay in 2008 prompted a substantial contribution from a visitor to the site, and from there, thanks to numerous contributions, these pages have ballooned in size. All told though, once again, we suspect that the pages are simply too lengthy for casual reading, and are really only useful for those researching the subjects. If you the visitor do manage to plough through them, then you have our heartfelt thanks (and apologies for their length).

The ninth page under this sub-menu is a re-printing of LesH's (Les Harup's) SRA Myth Chronology.

A Chronology for the SRA Myth in Great Britain - 1988-2009.

This was originally posted on the OpenSalon web site. Unfortunately the primary owners of OpenSalon, Kerry Lauerman, Thomas Rogers and Christopher Walsh, although supposedly 'liberal' and left-leaning, are in reality extremely critical of contributions that challenge advocates for the SRA Myth and its associations with extreme far-right religious fundamentalists. The steps taken against LesH's articles included their deletion without warning or explanation in a seeming effort to shut him up. The owners though do allow contributions from extremist groups that promote the 'Myth. Les's Chronology has therefore found a permanent home in the Dramatis Personae pages.

As well as OpenSalon, The Huffington Post web site is recognised as a primary means for extreme far-right religious dogma to infiltrate Leftist and liberal 'thought processes', typified by this comment in 2011 about those executed in the Salem witch trials of 1692;

Scholars are also casting doubt on the popular idea that those executed in 1692 were principled heroes who refused to repent for a crime they didn't commit

...and the less-than-subtle video Evolution of the Witch: Witchy Women of the Last 100 years

A history of the SRA Myth specific to the United States is forthcoming - based around an extensive entry called From Rocket-Ships in the Schoolyard to Camp Delta. This history is likely to divert from 'conventional' accounts, and from many contemporary history texts, most notably in addressing how the 'Myth in the USA drastically changed the modern US justice system, the liberal and leftist elite (through collusion with religious fundamentalism) and how scientific concepts were temporarily abandoned and replaced with beliefs in time-travel, magic and teleportation. There will also be an examination into the role that US civil liberties organisations, such as the ACLU took during the SRA Myth years, together with a review of continuing belief in the 'Myth amongst US child protection professionals today. As with the UK-centric pages, the US pages will include a number of historical revelations that may contribute to helping put the SRA Myth into context.

A 'taster' of what is to come in From Rocket-Ships in the Schoolyard to Camp Delta can be found on the tenth and eleventh page of this sub-menu. The first is;

Dr. Myra Riddell

Much of the original data for this Entry was provided by a leading US 'modern' feminist. The Entry, which deals principally with the betrayal of the US gay community by feminists and/or lesbians in the 1980s is likely to be expanded substantially in the future and was thus given its own page. This page perhaps diverts more than any other single entry or page elsewhere on the Site from conventional contemporary US social history. Since being originally published additional detail have been provided, which reflects in its size. The subject appears to have touched a raw nerve in some readers, who have responded by providing even more data and helpful resources.

The final page is concerned with feminist icon Gloria Steinem. It doesn't really provide any insights beyond what can be found already both on the web and in print, but the entry was growing exponentially with submitted material and so was ripe to be given its own dedicated page.

Future updates to these pages will include more detailed analysis of the SRA Myth in Scotland, from the early 1990s to 2003, and a more comprehensive study of the impact the SRA Myth had on Leftist and feminist thought in the UK from the early 1990s, all the way to the present day, together with how the SRA Myth changed the nature of the family courts in England and Wales.



index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


- Surnames B2



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

B2



Ian Blair (Warwick, Sir, QPM)

Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis (the Metropolitan Police) London, England. He was appointed to the position in February 2005.

As the Metropolitan Police's most controversial Commissioner in it's entire history to date, Sir Blair's time in office saw many crisis', not least the aftermath of the London bombings.

In January 2006 he provoked outage with his comments in media interest in the case of the two murdered by Ian Hunter in Soham, Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman;

"If you look at the murders in Soham, almost nobody can understand why that dreadful story became the biggest story in Britain."


Some commentators have observed that Commissioner Blair's statements provide an indication as to how police priorities in England and Wales are changing, particularly with respect to women and child victims of crime.

In January 2009 news reports detailed an alleged tendency within the Metropolitan Police to ignore allegations of sexual assault or rape involving its own officers or staff;

Over the past nine years there have been 62 allegations of rape against Met officers and civilian staff by members of the public and their own colleagues, so-called blue-on-blue rape. Only four of these cases resulted in a successful prosecution. A fifth accused was not prosecuted, though an internal investigation found that there was a case to answer. Instead, he was allowed to resign before his misconduct hearing.

In 2003 there were nine reported alleged rapes, resulting in only two convictions.

Since then no one has been successfully prosecuted, although in 2006 there were 16 reported rapes, eight in 2007 and five last year.

When the victims of a rape or sexual assault are members of the public, the figures show their complaint is highly unlikely to be upheld by the Met's Directorate of Professional Standards, the internal investigation unit known as "the Untouchables".

Just four of the 311 public complaints in the last nine years were substantiated following an internal investigation. Nineteen of these were complaints of rape by a Met employee on a member of the public - but none were upheld.
(Source: Metropolitan Police accused of protecting staff against rape allegations - by Michael Gillard - The Times, January 10th 2009)

Mr. Blair resigned as Commissioner for the Metropolis in October 2008.

(See also Colin Cramphorn, Terence Grange, Sir Roger Singleton)

Willem Blecourt

Author and editor of the regularly-revised academic volume Witchcraft and Magic in Europe: The Twentieth Century, which discusses the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth from the perspective of it being a repeat of the 'moral panic' that provoked the witch trials of the 16th and 17th centuries. The volume provides an insight into the nature of some experts in the field of MPD (Multiple Personality Disorder). A number of these experts operate in the secretive Family Courts in England and Wales and the US. The theory is closely identified as stemming from Christian Fundamentalist teachings and is invariably used as a key indicator of supposed past satanic abuse. As with the SRA Myth, MPD has been enthusiastically adopted by feminists, though unlike SRA, it is still routinely used as a reason to forcefully remove a child/children from women in secretive family courts;

Research in the USA has shown that the diagnosis of ritual or satanic abuse has often been made by a small minority of clinicians and that these believe the claims despite lack of reliable evidence for them (Bottoms et al, 1996). Those amongst them who are fundamentalist Christian in outlook may claim that one of the chief problems of the therapist is to distinguish between personalities that are actually intrusive demons, requiring exorcism rather than therapy, and true personalities.

(See also: Nick Land, David B, Allison, Bea Campbell (OBE), Dr. Sandra Buck)

Ivan Blumenthal (Dr, MB, ChB, MRCP, DCH)

Consultant paediatrician at the Royal Oldham Hospital. Dr. Blumenthal alleged a non-accidental injury in the case of two parents, known only as RK and AK and their daughter MK in September 1998, when the two- month-old baby was taken to the Royal Oldham Hospital with a broken femur. The non-English-speaking parents were interviewed by Dr. Blumenthal, but without the benefit of an interpreter. It isn't clear in Court records how Dr. Blumenthal could have investigated a child's' injury and come to a conclusion that it was a non-accidental injury without the benefit of being able to question the parents correctly with the aid of an interpreter;

A consultant paediatrician, Dr Blumenthal, interviewed the parents and grandmother early in the morning the next day, again without an interpreter. He noted that none of them appeared to know how the injury had occurred. He concluded that it was an inflicted injury and told the parents this.
(Source: CASE OF R.K. and A.K. v. THE UNITED KINGDOM, European Court of Human Rights)

The child was taken from the parents. and given into the care of an aunt by social workers, for seven months. The parents were interviewed by police (with an interpreter) and no criminal case was pursued. In March 1999 though the baby suffered a second injury whilst in her aunt's care. This time further testing (that the parents had requested in the past) for brittle-bone disease were performed, and osteogenesis imperfecta (brittle bone disease) was diagnosed. The baby was then returned to her parents.

The parents, supported by Emma Holt of Pannone solicitors pursued the hospital trust and Dr Blumenthal for negligence and breach of Article 8 (right to a family life) through the High Court in December 2002. This argument was rejected but leave to appeal to the Court of Appeal was granted. In July 2003 this Court rejected their appeal in this and two other similar cases. In April 2005 the House of Lords judged that the lower Courts had been correct. The parents then went to the European Court of Human Rights, which in September 2008 determined there hadn't been a breach against Article 8 but there had been a breach against Article 13 - there being no formal means of redress in English and Welsh law. The ECHR awarded £14,000 to the parents, plus costs.

A disturbing element in the case was the failure to respond to calls for brittle-bone disease to be tested as a likely explanation for the initial injury;

MK was diagnosed by the sixth respondent, Dr Blumenthal, a consultant paediatrician, as having an "inflicted injury", namely a spiral fracture of the femur. The police and social services were informed. Thereafter, Dr Blumenthal did not pursue other investigations for osteogenesis imperfecta. This was despite two letters which he received. The first, dated 19 October 1998, was from the Solicitor to the Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council, writing to note that Dr Blumenthal had discounted a diagnosis of brittle bone disease on the basis of observation and asking whether any further tests could be conducted to indicate a cause for MK's injuries other than inflicted injury. The second was a letter from the Council dated 8 December 1998, asking the doctor to address his mind to the possibility of a urine test to determine the existence of osteogenesis imperfecta
(Source: Judgement)

The case highlighted the lack of care to attention that invariably accompanies child protection investigations conducted by professionals in the United Kingdom; when often the 'worst case' scenario is pursued as the most likely explanation for an injury, rather than the worst case explanation being considered only after every other reasonable cause has been discounted. The tendency to immediately diagnose abuse is particular to only certain Western countries, notably the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. In other countries, particularly European nations such as Eire, Sweden, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Holland, Belgium and Finland, professional considerations are geared towards evidence-based methodologies, sometimes leading to conflicts when such professionals come into contact with the "British" way of doing child protection investigations. For further discussion see also Matthew Dean and Fran Lyon

The issue with Dr. Blumenthal and the diagnosis - or rather lack of diagnosis of osteogenesis imperfecta has a bizarre and extraordinary twist; Dr. Ivan Blumenthal had written in the past to a medical journal, as a paediatrician purporting to be knowledgeable about brittle bone disease, and one who felt confident enough in his ability to point out the imperfections of colleagues, in this case a Dr. H. Carty, a Consultant Radiologist at Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool, who had contributed a paper on the subject in a previous volume of the journal;

Brittle or battered?

Sir,

Most paediatricians know very little about osteogenesis imperfecta. From time to time they are called upon to give 'expert' evidence in a case where a child has unexplained fractures. In most cases the differential diagnosis is obvious, but in others not quite so straight forward as Dr. H Carty would have us believe.'

My concern is that paediatricians faced with the task of providing expert evidence will refer to Dr. Carty's authoritative annotation and inconsequence may mislead the court. It is in the mild case of osteogenesis imperfecta in which the sclerae are normal colour and the teeth normal that most diagnostic difficulty arises. Paediatricians faced with the onerous task of providing an explanation for fractures should bear in mind the following points (2):

* No family history is necessary for the diagnosis of brittle bones.
* Wormian bones are not a sine qua non for the diagnosis of osteogenesis imperfecta.
* Metaphyseal fractures are a feature of both abuse and brittle bones.
* Normal bone texture and a normal radiographic appearance of the rest of the skeleton at the time of the first fracture do not exclude brittle bones.
* The fact that no recurrent fractures occur while the child is in care does not exclude the diagnosis of osteogenesis imperfecta. The interval between fractures may be many months or even years.

I believe that in very rare instances at the time of court proceedings it may not be possible to differentiate accurately brittle bones from non-accidental injury on the medical evidence alone.


References
'Carty H. Brittle or battered. Arch Dis Child 198;63:350-2. 2 Paterson C R, McAllion S J, Shaw J W. Clinical and radiological features of osteogenesis imperfecta type IVA. Acta Paediatr Scand 1987;76:548-52.

I BLUMENTHAL
Oldham and District General Hospital,
Rochdale Road,
Oldham
OLI 2JH
(Source: Archives of Disease in Childhood, public Correspondence to the Journal - 1989, 64, 176-180)

The Editor of the Journal provided a means for Dr. Carty to respond directly to the letter from Dr. Blumenthal.

The strangest part of the mystery is that from the contents of Dr. Blumenthal's chastising of Dr. Carty, it appears the Asian family who had suffered so much in the case in 1998 would have benefited from Dr. Blumenthal's skills, most notably in that he emphasises the need to consider that osteogenesis imperfecta can be a subtle diagnosis, and a paediatrician who is considering that a fracture may be non-accidental, has to take care to be able to rule-out brittle-bone disease as an explanation. In the past, Dr. Blumenthal has engaged in the debate about evidence of child sex abuse discerned by paediatricians, noting that the use of photographic evidence be employed wherever and whenever possible (it was hugely missing in the Cleveland RAD Scandal, that continues to cast a shadow over the profession of paediatrics). There is every indication that Dr. Blumenthal is willing to engage with his peers to insist on high standards of care and quality investigations and examinations. He has chosen on occasions to challenge some of the presumptions in his profession, and do it from a position of knowledge.

Which leaves the obvious question; what happened between Dr. Blumenthal's contribution on the subject to the Archives of Disease in Childhood in 1989 and the moment he met the Asian family one day in Oldman and District Hospital in September 1998? The rejection of osteogenesis imperfecta as a cause of the injury was compounded by the two letters sent by Oldham council to him on the subject. How is it a respected paediatrician seemingly 'dropped the ball' with this case. Not just dropped it, but then picked it up and kicked it over the stands and into the car park. How did Dr. Blumenthal manage to provoke an event that went all the way to the European Court of Human Rights?

The case, beyond the finding of the ECHR - which the Labour Government contested on behalf of the United Kingdom, raises some issues;

It does perhaps give some weight to the idea that once a child protection healthcare or social work professional decides in their own mind that child abuse has taken place, such as in the determining of an NAI (Non-Accidental Injury) then it becomes very difficult, if not impossible to persuade the said professional of any other view. In this other, even lay people (Oldham Metropolitan Council) knew enough its seems to question why the necessary checks hadn't been done, twice.

Dr. Blumenthal is the author of the book Child Abuse: a handbook for Healthcare Practitioners (1994) described on its jacket as recent controversial coverage of child abuse cases in the press have ensured that all those involved in the care of children are acutely aware of the importance of correctly interpreting physical and emotional signs of abuse.

Dr. Blumenthal has been an expert witness in both the criminal justice and secret court system since 1982.

Further discussion about Dr. Blumenthal, and the question about the issues with respect to the General medical Council, can be found with the Entry for Dr. Camille de San Lazaro.

(See also: Private Healthcare Specialists, Dr. Margaret Crawford, Dr. Camille de San Lazaro)

Corellie Bonhomme

Mother of Fifi. Ms Bonhomme's story provided a somewhat terrifying insight into rumours that some social workers enthusiastically remove babies at birth;

"Ms Bonhomme, who lives in Dumfries, said only the baby's head had appeared when the door opened and social workers accompanied by sheriff officers came into the room at the hospital to serve a Child Protection Order to take the baby into care.

She said medical staff restrained her as she tried to clamber down from the delivery table to stop Fifi, now aged six months, being taken away.

"I had a needle in my arm and was on morphine and was having gas and air when I heard a midwife say, 'oh, there's social work involvement'.

"I was in the throes of labour, quite dilated and about to deliver. My back was bent backwards, the head was sticking out and I was just about to push the rest of the body out. I raised my head and saw two men and two women walk into the birthing room. "
(Source: Scotsman Newspaper)

Ms. Bonhomme had originally been in dispute with social services in Camden, London, having had two previous children removed by the London Borough, although a written apology from Camden about their social services departments behaviour had been received. She moved to Dumfries to start a new life but was pursued through the family justice system in Scotland, with Sheriff Kenneth Barr issuing a child protection order on the day of the babies birth - 15th December 2005. However when able to leave hospital, Ms Bonhomme fought the order and Sheriff Kenneth Ross rescinded it and the baby was returned. NHS Dumfries and Galloway apologised but the Social Services department declined the opportunity.

(See also Fran Lyon, Vanessa Brookes)

Christopher Booker

Lead columnist for The Daily Telegraph newspaper. His article 'Evil destruction' of a happy family discussed the case of "Mr. Smith" and "Mrs. Smith" (there real names concealed by gagging orders imposed by a secret Family Court). Following a police raid on their house by a seemingly extraordinary number of police officers, and accompanied by RSPCA inspectors seeking unlicensed guns-dogs that the family bred or cared-for, it transpired that some of the dogs were released into the house. After protesting to the police about the carnage and damage, both parents were arrested. "Mrs. Smith" suffered a miscarriage whilst in police custody. The father, a prominent Conservative constituency supporter, was charged with various animal-related offences, including tail-docking, though he was given a conditional discharge by a criminal court judge.

Having been arrested, the parents five-year old daughter, referred-to as Jenny, was left in the house, until social workers, called by police, arrived. The daughter was taken forcibly into care, based it seems on the fact that the interior of the family home was by then a shambles (having been rendered such by the raid).

From this point onwards the case against the parents became even more bizarre.

the social workers seemed determined to hang on to the child, now in foster care, on the sole grounds that they had found the house dirty and in a mess (the “animal entrails” played a large part in their evidence). This was despite the testimony of a woman PC (who had visited the house a month earlier on a different matter) that she found it “clean and tidy”. Two hundred horrified local residents, who knew the couple as doting parents of a happy, well-cared-for child, were about to stage a protest demonstration when they were stopped by the police, on the social workers’ instructions that this might identify the child.

For more than two years the couple have been fighting through 74 hearings in the courts to win their daughter back. From a mass of evidence, including psychiatric reports and tape recordings made at meetings with her parents (only allowed in the presence of social workers), it is clear she has been desperate to return home. The family believe that considerable pressure has been brought on the child to turn her against her parents.

One particularly bizarre psychiatric report was compiled after only an hour-long interview with the little girl. When she said she had once choked on a lollipop, this was interpreted as signifying that she could possibly have “been forced to have oral sex with her father”.

After the parents had been subjected to four different psychiatric investigations, which came up with mixed findings, they refused to submit to a fifth, and this apparently weighed heavily with the judge who last December ordered that “Jenny” should be put out to adoption.
(Source: 'Evil destruction' of a happy family - by Christopher Booker, The Telegraph, 18th July 2009)

The "bizarre" psychiatric report though isn't quite so uncommon in the secret court system. The term non sequitur refers to the Latin term for "it does not follow" - in the legal sense an argument in which the conclusion does not follow from the premise. In criminal law, defence lawyers and often judges will encounter a non sequitur very rarely, if at all during their entire careers, and when they do, written judgements invariably make it clear that they have been identified and recognised as such unique events.

In the secret court system operating in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland though, non sequitur's aren't just a rarity, they sometimes comprise an entire case, one non sequitur followed by another, followed by another. Examples (from written case papers) include;

The daughter reported that she invariably slept well in her bedroom, except late on Friday nights when the she related that the sound from motorcycles kept her awake. This is indicative of evidence that on Friday nights her father would enter her room and engage in sex acts until the early morning."

(the female child) reports that she doesn't like sugar-free Coke Cola, but prefers the 'full fat' original flavour. This statement should be interpreted to mean she does not like the taste of semen."


The first sentence in both extracts are the words of a child, interviewed by a psychiatrist. The second sentence is the psychoanalytical interpretation of the first sentence, as presented to the secret court, in writing. The non sequitur of course is that the conclusion does not relate to the premise. During the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth years (1988-2003) such non sequiturs weren't employed in 'Myth false allegations scandals, as the comments made by children in interviews or from recollections of dreams were taken as literal truth, both by religious fundamentalists and secularists, including feminist social workers. This was provoked by the then popular 'believe the children' campaign across the US, UK and other Western nations. The consequence though was that allegations of SRA that featured 'evidence' of witches flying, frogs being transformed into humans, real lions and magical events, failed consistently to interest most police officers, with the exception of those in Scotland and Greater Manchester. As the SRAS Myth subsided both fundamentalists and feminist supporters of the 'demonic' theory of child abuse realised that what children were said to have said would have to be 'reinterpreted'. In due course the use of psychoanalysis was found to fit the bill perfectly - enabling virtually any sentence a child says to a secret-court-appointed expert to be interpreted in any fashion deemed sufficient to suit the particular needs of the agencies enthusiastic about the child's removal from a woman or family. Since the mid-1990's non sequiturs provided through the use of experts interpretations have established themselves as being a primary source of 'evidence' against families and women in the secret court judicial system. The psycho-analysis theories of Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) taken to extremes, dominate Secret Court use of expert witnesses.

Taken outside the context of the secret court system, the judicious (sic) use of non sequiturs could find ample use in terrorist conspiracy trials in the criminal system. Using a similar writing style;

The suspect claims to be a Leeds United fan. This suggests that he had stored Semtex under his bed.

The range of possibilities with the widespread use of non sequiturs in British courts appears to be limitless.

The case Mr. Booker has written about has taken the term "bizarre" to new heights. Because the social services department had demanded that the daughter be subjected to a forced adoption, and the secret court system has agreed, the case nonetheless has to be reviewed by an independent social worker. In this case though the range of non sequiturs has conflicted just too much with reality;


I have now been able to read through many papers relating to the case, including the judgments resulting from the 74 hearings in which the parents attempted to get their daughter back. What stands out is the startling contrast between the two totally different versions of the case given by the social workers and the courts on one hand and, on the other, that presented by the parents themselves and by many who knew them. The latter include their GP, who recently wrote that he had never "encountered such a case of appalling injustice".

The most impressive document was a report by an independent social worker, based on many interviews with those involved, including the child herself and the chief social worker in charge of her. In measured terms, this made mincemeat of the council's case. Nothing about it is more suspicious than the contrast between descriptions of the "clean and tidy" home reported by those who knew the family well and the mess allegedly found by the policemen who burst into it mob-handed on the day in question.

The report found an equally glaring contrast between the social workers' insistence that the child was quite happy to have been removed from her parents, and the abundant evidence, observed at first-hand, that the little girl had an extremely good relationship with her parents and wants nothing more than to be reunited with them. The courts seem to have totally ignored this report, whose author last month expressed astonishment that the child had not been returned home.
(Source: 'Secret agenda' to score adoptions - by Christopher Booker - The Daily Telegraph, 22nd August 2009)

The case, though extreme, has been used extensively by campaigners for reform of the secret court system, indicating that both the secret courts and social services engage in unnecessary and abusive removal of children from their parents, often employing doctored or perjured evidence. The unusual elements in the case are notably that the child and family are well known by the community, and that so many professionals have been unwilling to 'go along' with the seeming conspiracy, providing potential grounds for the entire distasteful story to be revealed on appeal at the European Court of Human Rights.

The case of 'Emma and Martin' reported in 2004, revealed the risk parents face when taking an injured child to hospital, only to be accused of causing the injury themselves. The case, hugely documented by the couple, revealed how non sequitur evidence comes to be heard in secret court hearings, where hearsay evidence, opinion and prejudice are allowed to form the case against women and parents. The most regular accusation is that a woman is suffering from a mental illness, particularly if she dares to question the judgments of her, or resists the moves to forcibly remove a child for adoption;

Social services' energies, however, appeared to be devoted to establishing the couple's guilt. A week later, when their social worker applied for an interim care order, they found, again, that acts for which there was an innocent explanation counted against them. Their health visitor, to take just one example, reported that she had concerns because Emma had wanted appointments for her visits. "I merely wanted to know when she was coming, so Martin could come home from work to be there," says Emma.

Throughout the various stages of the proceedings, they felt as if evidence was selected to show them in the worst possible light. Thus, a single instance of Emma visiting her GP, complaining of feeling low, became "mental health problems". A row between herself and Martin in which she tripped over and needed stitches for a cut was cited as proof that theirs is a "violent relationship". Martin's attempt, 10 years ago, to help a young child being bullied by punching the 17-year-old ringleader became evidence of his uncontrollable nature: only the charges were noted, not his unconditional discharge.

...

Emma gives an example: "I was accused of being obsessed by hygiene because, when I changed my son's nappy, I didn't let him wander around without one for a while. What would they have said if he had wet himself and had to wear urine-soaked clothes?"
(Source: 'We can have any child in the world in this house, except our son', Daily Telegraph, 3rd August 2004)

In recent times, Christopher Booker has found the subject of the English and Welsh version child protection to be a rich vein to be tapped, resulting in articles such as Kent police take on the heavy work and Another social work scandal. He has reported repeatedly upon a developing scandal involving Haringey Social Services department and an African mother whose children were taken forcibly from her, using apparently spurious means and evidence. It seems likely that the scandal will break in the second quarter of 2011.

Such is the verocity of some of Mr. Bookers articles railing against the UK child protection and family justice system, that he provoked the Children Minister, Tim Loughton to issue a statement on the 3rd February 2011 in CommunityCare online condemning the Sunday Telegraph adoption campaign

Loughton told Community Care the campaign was "really unhelpful". "It is doing a lot of damage to the perception of adoption and threatens to undermine the confidence and morale of people working within the system," he said.

Loughton added that he was "very concerned" about any adoption cases that had gone "horribly wrong" and said he had met with the president of the family division at the High Court to address this. "I specifically discussed a number of cases with Sir Nicholas Wall last week and I am looking at ways as to how there can be further checks and balances on certain cases which are highly contentious."

But he continued to say these represented a "small number out of the 3,200 adoptions that happened last year and should not be seen as typical".
(Source: Children's minister condemns Telegraph adoption campaign, by Camilla Pemperton, CommunityCare, 3rd February 2011)

Sir Nicolas Wall is most 'famous' for his involvement as the judge in the orginal secret Family Court case that provoked the P,C and S scandal that ended at the European Court of Human Rights in 2002, with the British government found guillty of numerous human rights abuses in the case (see the extensive entry on the case for Dr. Clive Baldwin). It is uncertain how dedicated Sir Wall is in resolving the problems of the secret Family Court system in England Wales, based upon his attitudes displayed and documented in the P,C & S scandal.

Any possibility though that the Children's Minister was able to think he had the upper-hand, and perhaps a 'handle' on Mr. Bookers assertions about the dire state of child protection and family justice were to be short-lived. Indeed the Childrens Minister was publicly embarassed when another of the 'horror' stories was revealed, just nineteen days later, by The Daily Mail. Family torn apart in 15-minute court case: Judge condemned for decision to remove children, by Steve Doughty, published in The Daily Mail on the 22nd February revealed how a secret Family Court judge - Judge James Orrell;

ordered that three children should be taken from their parents after doctors gave evidence in his court about bruising to the ear of one young child.

The doctors said it was their opinion that the bruising could have been caused by pinching.

The ruling made at a family court in Derby was exposed after an Appeal Court judge overturned Judge Orrell's decision and condemned the way a family was nearly destroyed in a quarter of an hour.
(Source: Family torn apart in 15-minute court case: Judge condemned for decision to remove children, by Steve Doughty, The Daily Mail, 22nd February 2011)

Mr. Booker took this new family justice and child protection scandal as a signal for open season on the Minister, and on the 5th March had his Parents denied a voice in court against the child-snatchers printed in The Sunday Telegraph, which directly referred-to the scandal revealed just weeks before in The Daily Mail. This was followed-up, in an abvious effort to bait the Minister further, with Another 'horrible’ case for you, Mr Loughton on 19th March, revealing yet another new scandal. These articles were followed by John Bercow fails to back rights of voters banned from talking to their MPs on the 26th March, revealing the use of 'superinjunctions' and 'hyperinjunctions' issued from the Englaish and Welsh High Court that prevented citizens from discussing issues with their Members of Parliament, including those emanating from the secret Family Courts. Bizarrely The Sunday Telegraph and Daily Telegraph editors didn't appear to realise the nature of the 'exclusive' their columnist Christopher Booker had provided them, and so were trumped when The Times ran the story of the scandal as its front page headline on Saturday 2nd April, and The Daily Mail ran with the same in an extensive article.

The same day The Daily Mail ran with Home after a YEAR in care: The twins snatched by the state after mother's innocuous remark sparked a social services witch hunt, by Vanessa Allen.

With the Children's Minister now effectively silenced on the subject, and probably by now unwilling to further attempt to confront Mr. Booker for fear of being inadvertently ambushed by the secret Family Courts or rogue social workers in a new scandal, April 3rd saw the publication of The family justice system is callous, corrupt and staggeringly expensive, with the author now in full-flow, enjoying the opportunity to eviscerate both the Children's Minister and the current child protection and family justice system without fear of meaningful retort, this time discussing an assessment on that very system by David Norgrove;

But as I checked the report against what I have learnt about this horribly corrupted system, from the dozens of cases I have been following where children have been seized from their parents for no good reason, I had little sense that those responsible for this review have really begun to grasp just how bad the situation has become.

They rightly bemoan how the average time needed to resolve cases has risen from 12 weeks to 53, how the number of children in care has soared to 70,000, how the cost of this alone has risen to a staggering £3.4 billion a year (making foster care one of our bigger industries). But nowhere do they recognise that one reason is how often social workers make some horrendous initial mistake when they seize children, then spin out the case as they scrabble round for evidence to cover up their error.

Very occasionally, as in the instance of one mother I spoke to again at length last week, the victims come up against a judge with the independence of mind to challenge the dishonesty of the social workers who have driven the system off the rails. In this case, the social workers’ blunder was to seize the child after the mother had accidentally fallen out of a window. After alleging that this was a suicide attempt, then falsely accusing the mother of being a potential alcoholic and drug addict (all shown to be untrue), they have tried to cover up their blunder by spinning out the court case for well over a year, falsifying evidence, continuously asking for adjournments and stopping at nothing to part a devoted mother from her daughter.
(Source: The family justice system is callous, corrupt and staggeringly expensive, by Christopher Booker, The Sunday Telegraph, 3rd April 2011)

Throughout 2011, Mr. Booker was able to reveal new revelations about the 'broken' child protection and family justice system in England and Wales almost every weekend (his columns are published in the The Sunday Telegraph). A somewhat unwise intervention by a forum subscriber who claimed to be a social worker ensured that each article remained standalone, unopposed in a Comments section. On one occasions though he came unstuck, suffering the risk that all investigative journalists (and columnists) suffer such as when a mother Vicky Haigh, together with a private investigator Elizabeth Watson, were accused by President of the Family Courts Division, Lord Justice Nicolas Wall of tarnishing Mrs. Haighs former husband in a care dispute, by constantly alleging him to be a paedophile. Ms. Watson was jailed for nine months.

Even with the temporary slip-up with the Haigh case, Chris Booker was able to continue with a seemingly endless series of attacks against social workers, associated professionals and the family courts, with little fear of censure, particularly from the Children's Minister, who by now had probably realised that rogue social workers and judges made attempting to put-up any defence a wasted effort. In late October 2011, Mr. Booker lampasted the family courts for failing to enforce both domestic and international law in allowing children's views to be listened-to in court, and in doing so, implicitely accused such professionals (and Tim Loughton) of condoning physical and emoptional abuse of children-in-care;

Among all the cases I have been following closely in recent months where children have, I believe, been wrongly removed by social workers and courts from loving, responsible parents, four stand out as particularly relevant in this respect. They all centre on children between the ages of 11 and 14 who are intelligent and articulate (I have spoken to two of them by telephone). All were previously happy living with their parents and doing well at school. All are now languishing miserably in foster care, where three have complained about being physically and emotionally maltreated.

In three cases (I don’t know about the fourth, because none of her family has seen her or been allowed to know anything about her for months), the child’s school work has markedly suffered. One bright 14-year-old boy has been placed, very unhappily, in a school for children who are backward or mentally handicapped.

All of these children are ideal candidates to be brought to court to express their wishes about their future. (One girl, I gather, has actually written to the judge stating that it is her “human right” to see him.) Yet none of the adults into whose power these children have been given – social workers, lawyers, guardians, judges – seem disposed to allow them to exercise what both international law and the highest court in the land have laid down is their right.

How has our system of family justice, supposedly dedicated, under the Children Act, to putting children’s interests above everything else, become so corrupted that it cannot allow them rights which, in almost any other context, judges would so happily uphold? (The judiciary prohibited, for instance, the deportation of a man who dragged along and killed a

12-year-old girl he had run over in his car – because of his “right to enjoy family life”.)

When can that girl who cries “Help me, help me”, while her guards look on stony-faced, be released from what she sees as her prison? Why are all these unhappy children, and doubtless many more, being so blatantly denied rights that the law of the land so mockingly claims to grant them?
(Source: The courts continue to deny rights to stolen children, by Christopher Booker, published in The Sunday Telegraph, 16th October 2011 - went online the previous day)

(See also: Rt. Hon. John Hemming MP, Lyndsey Craig, Nerys Evans (AM), Rachel Pullen, Dr. Clive Baldwin, Daniel Foggo)

Virginia Bottomley (Hilda Brunette Maxwell)

Conservative MP for South West Surrey. Appointed Minister of Health 1989. Secretary of State for Health from 1992 to 1995.

Virginia Bottomley is credited with ensuring that the obsession with Ritual Satanic Abuse (SRA) false allegations that gripped English and Welsh social work departments in the late 1980's and 1990's was investigated and subsequently stamped-out. The obsession had "brewed" for a number of years in the US, driven by Christian Fundamentalist advocates. The publication of a book on Satanic ritual abuse in 1980 Michelle Remembers (see Dr. Lawrence Pazder) proved to be the spur that allowed the subject to reach the public domain. Following indoctrination and education by fundamentalist enthusiastic supporters of SRA theory, the idea that tens of thousands of children were being abused and killed by satanists in the UK was adopted by numerous psychologists, senior social workers and child protection unit police officers across the Western world, particularly in the US and United Kingdom. An important driver was a cabal of fundamentalist Christians who insisted that satanic abuse was prevalent everywhere, and managed to collude with feminists convinced that men were by default child sex abusers and murderers and mothers invariably equally capable of such evil.

Key to comprehending the seemingly intractable collision of both groups is realisation that fundamentalist social workers would believe the literal truth that the Devil would be called to walk upon the Earth during a satanic ritual, and that women as witches could fly and cast spells. Feminist social workers were convinced that the rituals took place, but without the Devil in attendance (being simply used as a vehicle for abuse and murder). On occasions though it appeared some feminists took on the fundamentalist line, including amongst them social workers, police officers and psychiatrists. For these individuals, though they wouldn't have described themselves as fundamentalist, they were otherwise convinced in the existence of witchcraft, the Devil, or some paranormal power in use.

The obsession with SRA resulted in the Nottingham, Congleton, Trafford, Rochdale, Ayr, Orkney and Bishop Auckland scandals, and is believed to have contributed to the earlier Cleveland RAD scandal (see Dr. Marietta Higgs) the very moment that is suspected to be the point whereby child protection in England and Wales took a distinct alternate path from the nature of the profession is the rest of Europe and most of the Western world.

By 1991 the number of false and spurious allegations of SRA was matched only by the hopeless lack of evidence apparent in any of the allegations, and the growing suspicion amongst many in the media, senior police officers and some Directors of Social Services, that they had been 'duped' into supporting an entirely fanciful notion that served only to support the fantasies of religious fanatics and hate-driven gender dogmatists. In response, but opposed by the then-not-yet-"New" Labour Opposition, Mrs. Bottomley ordered a study into ritual abuse, after the Rochdale and Orkney scandals.

Prof. Jean La Fontaine headed a team at Manchester University to look into all known cases of ritual abuse allegations in Britain, reported back in 1994. Upon receipt of the report Mrs. Bottomley concluded that Christians in opposition to new religious movements had been

"a powerful influence encouraging the identification of Satanic abuse"


In all the report identified 967 cases alleging organised abuse and 86 cases of alleged ritual abuse from 1988 to 1991 inclusive in England alone. Of the 86 cases reported, 21 were in Nottinghamshire, 12 in London, 14 in the South East and 12 in the North West. The remainder of England was left free of such allegations. Human sacrifice was alleged in 35 cases, though not a single instance could be proved.

A key feature of the reports findings was that the interview regime inflicted on children was poorly enacted, with frequent, direct and aggressive questioning being employed, including deliberate traps to ensure that any child who denied abuse had occurred would be automatically disbelieved. No evidence was found to show Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) existed in England. All but two of the hundreds of children taken into care were returned home within a few years except for a further two children aged 4 and 7 from the Orkney scandal who weren't returned for 4 years, and were denied access to their mother and put up for forced adoption in 1996 against the wishes of the mother. Two boys involved in the Rochdale scandal allegations were also denied access to their parents, but were finally returned after several years. See Lost years of 'satanic panic' children, BBC News online, 11th January 2006

In England and Wales the Family Courts imposed "gagging orders" on all of the children taken into care to prevent them talking in public about what had been inflicted on them by social workers and police officers. Those gagging orders have now expired, resulting in numerous accounts by the children involved, now grown up, about the fear and damage caused to them by being forcibly removed from their parents or subjected to intense questioning. As with the Cleveland RAD Scandal no child now grown into an adult involved as a "victim" has subsequently stepped forward to say they were actually being abused and the authorities were correct in their efforts to remove them from their parents.

A 'feature' of the SRA Myth, as seen in both the US and UK and throughout other 'Protestant' countries, including Australia, Canada and the Netherlands, was that those accused of satanism almost always come from poor or disadvantaged families or housing areas. A number of academics, including Dr. Le Fontaine have suggested this reflects middle-class prejudices against disadvantaged members of society, in an effort to demonise them as being beyond-the-pale.

Using the report as a primary source for change, Mrs. Bottomley ensured that every social worker in Britain received training in a partly successful effort to stamp out the SRA obsession. She also instigated initiatives to improve the standard of interviewing by child protection police officers and social workers. A disturbing feature of the scandals is that many of the social services departments involved took on new "obsessions" in future years with gusto, notably Rochdale (MSBP) and Nottingham (MSBP and emotional abuse).

Mrs. Bottomley is routinely regarded as the most effective politician in dealing with child protection and social worker reform in recent British political history. Nonetheless it is believed and suspected by many campaigners that elements of the 1990's SRA "craze" still persist in the secretive Family Court system.

Unfortunately, no effort was made to identify and assess and/or remove those experts (psychologists, psychiatrists etc.) police officers and social workers, who had been trained by Christian Fundamentalist organisations to look for opportunities for alleging SRA. Indeed training of social workers and child protection police officers by fundamentalists continues today (see Norma Howes).

Prof. Jean La Fontaine's report was criticised by feminists and religious fundamentalists alike, taken aback at the thoroughness of it. The report enraged many, who felt that the obvious lack of evidence should be discounted and that the 'children should be believed', a concept that is laudable, but has too many echoes with the same term during the 17th century witchcraft trials in England and North America, when the exact same term was applied by advocates for the witchcraft trials that saw tens of thousands of women and men killed by hanging and burning. The perceived 'failure' of the family courts to accept 'spectral' evidence - that is evidence based on alleged dreams and visions as the only evidence to prove an accusation of witchcraft or satanism, was regarded by many as a major flaw in the judicial system, though some courts in the United States were willing during the period to allow spectral evidence.

In 1997 the Conservative government was defeated by New Labour. Some Christian Fundamentalists and feminists, continuing to collude in their enthusiastic support for the failed concept of SRA, felt that New Labour would be more approachable to their entreaties, and indeed this proved correct; the Shieldfield Scandal proved to be the opportunity to spur the Protection of Children Act (POCA) in 1999, seen as the then ultimate expression of the 'moral panic' writ in legislation. The Island of Lewis SRA scandal (see M.V.M.O ritual abuse hoax on the Island of Lewis in Scotland) of October 2003 was addressed by the Scottish Labour Party with a desperate and hopeless effort to cover the scandal up, rather than address the obvious failings by SRA-believing social workers and child protection police officers. But the scandal indicated that belief in SRA amongst religious fanatics and feminists was still present. The history of RAINS - the Ritual Abuse Information Network & Support organisation, detailed in the entry for Dr. Sandra Buck provides an insight into one of the major influences on child protection policy in England and Wales since the early 1990s.

In October 1996 the influence of the 'satan hunter/child saver' lobby was such that the UK Department of Health was willing to commission a study by Dr. John Hale, the Director of the Portman Clinic, and psychotherapist Valerie Sinason. The idea was that an official government acceptance of the concept of SRA would be enough; and the New Labour government was seen as being more inclined to such a view. A police detective from the Metropolitan Police was attached to the subsequent investigation. Unfortunately the resultant report, which had been 'leaked' in the Christian Herald as being confirmation of the existence of SRA-before the 'research' was supposed to have even begun, once again lacked the vital element of any evidence for SRA at all, and was rejected by then Health Secretary John Hutton in 2000 (see News items concerning Satanic Ritual Abuse, etc.)

Although the satan-hunter/child saver lobby have failed to prove even one verifiable instance of SRA, their influence, certainly in the modern Labour Party in Great Britain, and to a more limited degree the Democratic Party in the US, is huge. The combination of religious fanaticism and gender hatred has proven to be particularly pernicious, and indeed the editors of this web site are aware of the identities of two Labour Under Secretary's who would be reasonably labelled as religious fanatics and have an influence on national child protection policy.

In 2009 the culmination of decades' of 'moral panic' over child protection in the UK, that had started with the Cleveland Scandal and the SRA Myth saw the creation of the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA-see Sir Roger Singleton) perhaps the most powerful organisation established in England and Wales that can cite its creation to religious fanaticism. Although the battle over SRA was won by the Conservative Government, the War against the 'satan-hunters' was apparently lost by New Labour.

As the SRA Myth was destroyed in England and Wales, thanks mainly to pioneering journalism and Mrs. Bottomley's intervention, thus the focus for social work "obsession" switched predominantly to MSBP, which in turn has a heritage going back to 17th Century Witchcraft allegations. Concerns that understood childhood illnesses and known medical conditions are being routinely ascribed as being caused by women by secret court experts, using mechanisms not known by medicine or science (most notably in the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders) indicates that an element of belief in witchcraft and magic still persists in some of the operations of the secret courts. The influence of the 'War Against Science', whereby the Left has colluded with religious fundamentalism to challenge modern science and concepts of the necessity for evidence collecting (evidence being seen as 'patriarchal') has seen the seemingly remorseless rise in the use of pseudo/crank science, particularly in the secret court system, where the requirement for peer review and Evidence-Based Research is non-existent.

(See also Bea Campbell (OBE), Judith (Dawson) Jones, Ray Wyre, Rosie Waterhouse, Dr. Sara Scott)

John Bowlby

John Bowlby

John Bowlby (1907-1990) is perhaps Great Britain's greatest ever neuro-related scientist, having been a psychologist, psychiatrist and psychoanalyst. His Theory of Attachment (or attachment theory) was presented in three great works-a trilogy. Before the volumes though, his theory was developed in important papers; The Nature of the Child’s Tie to His Mother (1958), Separation Anxiety (1959), and Grief and Mourning in Infancy and Early Childhood (1960).

Even before the defining of his attachment theory, Bowlby had contributed Maternal Care and Mental Health for the fledgling World Health Organisation in 1951, reporting on the mental health of Europe's post-war and often homeless children.

Attachment (1969) was the first volume in what became known as the Attachment and Loss trilogy. Separation: Anxiety and Anger was published in 1972 and Loss: Sadness and Depression followed in 1980. The first volume Attachment was revised in 1982 to account for new research and findings.

Bowlby's work forms the basis for a huge amount of modern research, not least because of the now-perceived damage that the breaking of attachment, through fostering or adoption, or the constant moving from one foster carer to another has on young children in care.

Since his death though, John Bowlby's name and The Bowlby Centre in Commercial Road, London, is now openly allied to the SRA Myth (satanic ritual abuse) lobby who infest British psychotherapy. The Bowlby Centre and the legacy of John has been to all intents and purposes hijacked and corrupted by a small contingent of conspiracy theorists who now follow much of the beliefs espoused by David Icke

A lengthy discussion about the scandal of the rubbishing of John's name and legacy due to it's association with the SRA Myth conspiracy theorists, seemingly endorsed by those who would be expected to protect and enhance his reputation, can be found at The SRA Myth and the destruction of John Bowlby's legacy under the pages about the history of the SRA Myth in the United Kingdom (Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS Part Five).

Zachary Bravos

American attorney based in Illinois, whose paper Child Abuse and Witchcraft? Perspective on the 15th and 20th Centuries published in IPT Magazine (volume 3 - 1991) discussed the nature of false allegations made against women at a time when allegations of satanic ritual abuse (SRA) were rife in the US and UK;

The dark days of the witchcraft prosecutions show disturbing parallels with what is happening today. In many cases substitution of the words "child abuse" for "witchcraft" leaves the reader unable to distinguish between the 15th and 20th centuries. The willingness to make any leap of logic no matter how contorted or absurd in order to maintain a position is the hallmark of the fanatic. Perhaps the most disturbing recent development is that we have now come full circle. Some who believe in modern satanic, ritualistic abuse assert that the witchcraft prosecutions were founded in fact and claim historical antecedents for present alleged practitioners of the black arts. They believe that groups of related persons have practiced witchcraft and handed the belief from parent to child for generations.
(Source: Child Abuse and Witchcraft? Perspective on the 15th and 20th Centuriesby Zachary Bravos, published in IPT Magazine - volume 3 - 1991)

Kevin Brennan

Labour MP for Cardiff West and former Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Children, Young People and Families (June 2007 - October 2008). Mr. Brennan's most significant intervention in the English and Welsh family law controversy was in curiously redefining the term "secret" in a letter to The Times dated February 26th 2008, in response to a Camilla Cavendish article of the 21st February (British Justice: A Family Ruined);

Most family court cases are heard in private. Private does not mean secret.


Mr. Brennan was moved from his role to the Cabinet Office in October 2008, and remained there until New Labour was removed from office after the 2010 Election.

(See also Rt. Hon. Sir Mark Potter)


Neil Brick

US-based conspiracy theorist.

Mr. Brick is primarily concerned with conspiracy theories that centre on the SRA (satanic ritual abuse) Myth, Recovered Memory Therapy (RMT), DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) previously known as Multiple Personality Disorder, and 'Mind Control'. Mr. Brick believes that he is a survivor of covert US-government-inflicted mind control that turned him into an assasin and saboteur before he was released from service with amnesia. Through a series of flashbacks later in life he asserts he can recollect his training and some detail of his 'missions'. Despite this his former nefarious 'mind controllers' appear to be disinterested in exacting revenge upon him, perhaps because Mr. Brick is unable to provide a single scrap of verifiable proof.

Mr. Bricks website is S.M.A.R.T ritual abuse pages. In addition to the web pages, he publishes his assertions, invariably in the form of lengthy and numerous web forum postings which list sources he believes absolutely confirm the existence of a huge organised ritual abuse conspiracy in the US and elsewhere, allied to a protracted Mind Control conspiracy being run by various elements of the US government (such as the CIA) or/and and often interchangeably The Illuminati, New World Order and Masons. His web forum postings are invariably under the name 'stopchildabuse'. A example of his posting style can be found in the Comments section of an article about False Memory Syndrome in an article published online by the British Guardian newspaper Families are still living the nightmare of false memories of sexual abuse, by Chris French, 8th April 2009.

Mr. Brick is also associated with the Survivorship ritual abuse group - which describes itself as Survivorship is one of the oldest and most respected organizations supporting survivors of extreme child abuse, including sadistic sexual abuse, ritualistic abuse, mind control, and torture. Annual membership of Survivorship costs between $25-$50 depending on ability to pay. As the demographic group that makes up 'survivors' of alleged ritual abuse and mind control, almost exclusively comprising white English-speaking middle-class and middle-aged women, is perhaps the richest and most affluent of any victim group in history, it may be safe to assume that the higher end of the scale is the most employed. A discussion about the affluent nature of SRA Myth and DID 'survivors' can be found in the sections The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy and Recovered memories, body memories and the pseudoscience of the future.

Mr. Bricks political or religious affiliations are unknown. He publishes material in favour of the conspiracy theories from any source, including feminist, religious fundamentalist, alien abduction or plain atheists. All pro-SRA Myth publications are treated equally and to date, no source of information, however widely discredited, is critisised or rejected. This policy though comes at a price, distinquished by having vast quantities of material quoted on the site which is already widely derided and has been for over a decade. Examples include fundamentalist psychiatrist Dr. Catherine Goulds list of satanic indicators (see Satanic Abuse Indicators) and Dr. Lawrence Pazder and Michelle Smith's Michelle Remembers, together with Lauren Stratford's Satan's Underground (after being revealed as a fraud, Lauren Stratford reappeared as a Nazi Holocaust 'survivor'). In addition the conspiracy theory that the McMartin preschool site was riddled with underground tunnels that enabled children to be spirited away by limosine or hot-air balloon or jet aircraft to be sexually abused off-site is maintained, although such obvious snags such as what would happen if a parent returned suddenly to McMartin's to take their child, having forgotten to mention a dentist appointment when he or she was dropped-off in the morning are avoided. As with other sites pushing the 'McMartin tunnels' visitors will be disappointed to find that there is a somewhat glaring lack of photographs to offer any evidence (satan having apparently ensured everyone forgot to bring their Instamatic cameras with them to the 'dig'). Fortunately the IPT Journal provde extensive detals of the photographs that Mr. Brick's S.M.A.R.T site hasn't secured (see The Dark Truth About the 'Dark Tunnels of McMartin'.

Mr. Brick doesn't exist in his oown bubble. Other followers and SRA Myth/DID True Believers accompany S.M.A.R.T both in person, by speaking at events, or by simple linking to the web pages. One example is retired American Indiana University criminologist Dr. Hal Pepinsky who is long-associated with Neil Brick's cause - although in such cases it is not always clear if such elderly white men are attracted by the propect of attending conferences stuffed with white, middle-class, middle aged female 'survivors' only too willing to recount their ritual torture in sado-masochistic pornographic detail, or if they have a genuine belief in the SRA Myth. The entry for Doris Sanford discusses the tendency for SRA Myth advocates to 'go porno'.

Hal Pepinsky's engagement with the SRA Myth has though reduced a little in recent years it appears, not unlikely because advancing age makes travelling long distances less attractive and perhaps because his long-term professional legacy is somewhat tarnished by his involvment with the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' element. He is though to be commended for his willingness to print negative comments about him on his blog;

You state that peace is a function of feeling socially safe, yet your writings consistently promote belief in nefarious social conspiracies that don't actually exist. You encourage others to risk believing in such conspiracies and the "survivors" who promote them, but in your own life that course of action caused you to believe that such a thing as "active ritual torture sites" really existed and were located near your home, which in turn caused you to become so FEARFUL that you lapsed into episodes of COMPLETE INSANITY.

That, is what peacemaking is about?
(Source: Peacemaking - comment left by anonymous blog visitor 15th August, 2010)

Dr. Prepinsky though isn't the only retired criminologist so inclined to the True Believer. In the UK Prof. Colin Sumner has also demonstrated firm conviction in the 'Myth.

In amongst to a smattering of somewhat older retired and often disgraced academics and practitioners that can call themselves Neil Brick fans, is one oddity; US-based singer/student psychologist Brianna Pruett who doesn't simply link to the S.M.A.R.T website (not unusual as the site is fascinating) but extends her belief to an actual 'Webinar';

Brianna Pruett, a survivor of ritual abuse and government-sponsored mind control projects, is a 28-year-old psychology student and musician. She has worked with Randy Noblitt in educating students at Alliant University and maintains a commitment to speaking the truth and empowering other survivors as well as herself. Her website is http://www.briannaleapruett.com

The webinar focus will be on basic self-care information — such as nutrition, hygiene, and body care — with special tips and thoughts for survivors of ritual abuse, as well as on regaining/reclaiming self-care skills we may have discarded along with the abusive situations. Questions are welcome, so if you think of any beforehand, please email jeannie@survivorship.org to have Brianna address them during the webinar!
(Source: Survivorship Ritual Abuse Webinars – July 30 2011 Presenter: Brianna Pruett, Topic: From Self-Preservation to Self-Celebration – Self Care for Ritual Abuse Survivors)

Ms. Pruett's uniqueness is her age. Having a relatively youthful (well, in her twenties) acolyte who is so enthusiastic is unusual; most True Believers are middle-aged and beyond. Regrettably Ms. Pruett has neglected to mention that she was a survivor of ritual abuse and government-sponsored mind control projects in the Biography section of her Web site, perhaps determining that the issue was of minor importance.

Mr. Brick doesn't just maintain a web presence. Since the 1990s he has organised and been chairman of an annual Ritual Abuse, Secretive Organizations and Mind Control Conference, currently held in August/September in an airport hotel in Connectticut. As with similar events held in the UK, such as by The Bowlby Centre in London, the events are attended predominantly by white middle-class and middle-aged English-speaking women - the demographic group that comprises the vast majority of 'survivors'

Mr. Brick's willingness to engage in somewhat hopless efforts to silence his critics is almost legendary - his enthusiasm for issuing threats of legal action matched only by his routine failures to actually turn-up at a court house. Despite this he is a man of seeming integrity; in respone to the often-asked question as to why he appears so diminutive, seeing as he claims to be a fully-trained assassin with deadly proven and employed skills, he has a ready and prepared response;

Last summer, after the conference, we went to a restaurant. After dinner, all of a sudden I had a very strong abreaction. All at once I kind of felt like I’d had the wind knocked out of me, but it was much stronger. I felt like I knew I was Illuminati (or whatever) at the moment or at least gov’t and deep cult. I was very disorientated and after finding my car I was very scared and unable to find my way to the highway for quite a while. I realized that this was programming. I thought that the police or whoever were going to get me because I had remembered and even after finding the highway and getting home I was terrified and scared that I would be killed, that someone would break in or come and get me.

I felt better the next day. I realized that this was part of the programming to get very disoriented, probably from spin programming and then the fear programming not to remember, because they would find me, get me or kill me.

All of the pieces of memories I had been having the last few years came together more for me. I have been having a fair amount of lab and ECT memories and men in white coats. I realized I was programmed to go on missions. I was very small and I was kept small and thin by programming until the age of 9, when a primary perpetrator went into the hospital for a while and I was no longer afraid to eat. This programming started around the age of 3. This is why I am so small today and I am smaller than my siblings. I was kept small to fit into vents and ducts to work on missions to go into places to open doors, to let others in, steal materials or records, spy on meetings or kill people. I have memories of internally going on missions (at least one as an adult in my 20′s), but am unsure if it was internally or externally, I was triggered by people having sex in the next room.

I have one memory of killing someone in Eastern Europe, it felt like that part of the world. He was sort of asleep and he knew this would happen, it must have been in the late 60′s by the way he looked. He was some sort of up and coming political person the CIA/Illuminati didn’t want in power. He knew it was his time though. He said (in his own language) go ahead and do it, or at least I perceived this. So I did it.

I have memories of being on lab tables with men in white suits and their assistants, some times perps, sometimes sort of decent (though cautious).I also have memories of going on missions by looking at maps and learning the plans. I was taught the triggers necessary to open the necessary alters to do the perps work. They used ECT afterwards to make sure I’d forget and to punish me if I told or made a mistake. Drugs were sometimes used to control me if I became stubborn of if I needed to be put into a meditative state to be programmed. I believe that I would be brought to a Masonic meeting late at night and/or driven to a lab in Boston late at night. My primary perps received money for this since they were having financial difficulties at the time.

Other people have discussed going back and forth between the gov’t MC and the Masons, including Claudia Mullen, but she believes she went from gov’t mc to the Masons to be “confused” by the trauma more. I believe I was farmed out of the Masons to be used for gov’t purposes. After being on the table studying maps and seeing “movies” to learn programming codes, which I’m not quite sure how good I was at, I would sometimes practice in simulated models, being rewarded if I succeeded and severely punished if I failed, or just shamed and picked on if it needed work. (like a lab rat)

I remember a face of a doctor that I haven’t seen yet. I do remember Nazi’s or at least people with thick German accents, but have no ID’s yet. I think what happened to me was different than what happened to others I have talked to, I believe I wasn’t a sex slave, at least in the gov’t mc. I was repeatedly raped in masonic/illuminati RA and thought the lab doctors, at least some did abuse me, I think sometimes outside of the experiments, touching me and stimulating me, though I have been anally raped to punish me or split me further.

I also have memories of being around tanks, I was at a county fair and had a flashback of their taking me out of a truck and by tanks to a barracks/experimental place building.

On missions, it was very dark and I was usually blindfolded and taken to a plane and then we flew somewhere. I don’t think I have a lot of details, things were on a need to know basis. Then the military people would take me to where I needed to go to do what I needed to do. The soldiers, especially when their superiors weren’t around, were usually decent to me, sometimes very nice, for I was a small child, a fact the other bastards seemed to (conveniently) forget.

I remember one mission where (maybe) something went wrong and I was put over a soldier’s shoulder and carried out. They were to protect me at any cost, unless I needed to be destroyed, if I flipped out or whatever. After the mission, I might nod off on the plane, but would try to look alert (stay awake) as much as possible. I think the soldiers would do this also.
(Source: My Most Recent Memories and My Personal Growth, by Neil Brick, published on the S.M.A.R.T web site, administered and edited by Neil Brick

YouTube has become a useful tool for both advocates for the SRA Myth and DID/MPD, but also for those studying the fantastical and paranoid conspiracy theories that accompany them. Neil Brick has decided to dip his toe in the water. The sight though of this self-professed trained killer and saboteur might not meet expectations. Nonetheless the viewers of the video below are apparently supposed to believe that Neil has been trained in more ways to kill people than they've had hot dinners.



Perhaps not surprisingly, Mr. Bricks's work attracts attention from other conspiracy theorists, including the TrutherGirls (9/11 theorists who think 'the CIA did it') who challenge the stereotype that conspiracy theories believers are young white men who need to get out more by suggesting that they can include young white women who need to get out more.



Claiming to have been satanically abused, forced to be DID and an assassin isn't at all unusual amongst Neil Brick's 'survivor' community. The Extreme Abuse Surveys: preliminary findings regarding dissociative identity disorder by Thorsten Becker, Wanda Karriker, Bettina Overkamp and Carol Rutz, and published in Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder, edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, (Karnac Books 2008) provides that the subject can be mildly amusing for those skeptics looking into the crazed world of the SRA Myth/DID/Mind Control paranoids. With a world-wide survey of people claiming that they had been satanically abused, forced to become DID and often employed by secret government agencies, perhaps not surprisingly the survey results were that most of the respondants claimed to have been satanically abused, forced to become DID and employed by secret government agencies.

By way of example, in the published 'cod science' results of 'Ideologically motivated crimes. Mind control (EAS only)', 175 (one hundred and seventy five respondants agreed that;

I have experienced mind-control programming through which I was trained to become an assassin
(Source: The Extreme Abuse Surveys: preliminary findings regarding dissociative identity disorder by Thorsten Becker, Wanda Karriker, Bettina Overkamp and Carol Rutz, published in Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder, edited by Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, Karnac Books, 2008)

Of that 175 now-successfully-and-safely-retired assassins, 128 came from the US, 16 from Canada, thirteen from the European Union and 18 from 'other'.

Thus, the SRA Myth/DID 'survivor' can boast two features; it comprises perhaps the richest demographic of any 'survivor' lobby to be found worldwide; being comprised predominantly of white, English-speaking, middle-class and middle-aged women, often born into privilage, and...this lobby are the most dangerous and lethal to be found worldwide, able to despatch trained assassins to any point in the world, if only the assassins can drag themselves away from watching The X-Factor whilst knitting yet another 'blankey'.

It would not be correct to identify the S.M.A.R.T website as being the only SRA Myth-advocacy site originating from the US. The diagnosis of DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) amongst white middle-class and middle-aged women remains a multi-million doller industry in the US, and there are numerous religious fundamentalist and/or conspiracy theorist sites dedicated to the promotion of the 'Myth. In the US, a continuing obsession with the SRA Myth/DID and RMT (Recovered Memory Therapy - see Recovered memories, body memories and the pseudoscience of the future is an indicator of a trend whereby many US Evangelical Christians pay little or no attention to the contents or intepretation of The Bible, but are rather more engaged in engaging in pursuits of conspiracy theories often featuring the CIA, US military 'The Illuminati' and aliens.

A discussion about the take-up of far-right conspiracy theories promoted by the likes of Neil Brick by US feminist and lesbians, and how they betrayed the American gay community can be found in the entry for Myra Riddell.

Rodney Brooke (Sir)

Chairman of the General Social Care Council GSCC since March 2002. Previous roles included Secretary Association of Metropolitan Authorities (1990 - 97); Chair, Bradford District Health Authority (1989 - 90); Chief Executive, City of Westminster Council (1984 - 89); Chief Executive, West Yorkshire County Council (1981 - 84).

Mr. Brooke ended his tenure as Chairman of the GSCC at the end of October 2008.

The journalist Camilla Cavendish in her article A moving response to our family justice campaign (The Times - 17th July 2008) delivered a particularly damaging indictment of the GSCC during the time Sir Rodney was chair;

I have seen no evidence that the GSCC has disciplined a single social worker denounced by appeal court judges in the past few years. But I hope to be corrected. Nor did any one of the eminent bodies who wrote to us deny that miscarriages of justice occur.
(Source: A moving response to our family justice campaign (The Times - 17th July 2008))

In July 2009 Michael Wardle, Chief Executive of the GSCC was suspended when it was revealed that over 200 cases of complaints against and professional referrals of social workers hadn't been pursued, including 21 cases where the public may be at risk and in which no risk assessment had been performed. It wasn't clear how long a period of time had been involved for this situation to transpire, but it seems unlikely that the state of decay at the GSCC commenced only when Sir Rodney left the organisation.

Martin Brookes

See Vanessa Brookes

Vanessa Brookes

Housewife and mother. Mrs. Brookes came to international attention in August 2007 when, in conjunction with her husband, she recorded a conversation with social workers at her home address with social workers from Calderdale Council, West Yorkshire. The recording was placed on YouTube in an effort to prevent the forced removal of her baby upon it's birth. The recording includes the chilling words from a social worker saying there was "no immediate risk to your child from yourselves" but that the council would seek a court order to place the child in foster care almost immediately after birth.

Mrs. Brookes, who is poorly sighted, has suffered from depression in the past, and has had other children forcibly removed, protested the concept in England and Wales of forced adoption with her husband at an adoption and fostering event at the Royal Armouries in Leeds, West Yorkshire.

Calderdale Council sought a writ to have YouTube remove the audio recording, though it continues to reside on the Internet in non-UK locations.

Despite the extensive publicity given to the threat in the Press - including an article by Ben Leapman in the Daily Telegraph (YouTube row over social services baby threat) and Camilla Cavendish (Guilty of child abuse! (Well, our Version) The Times, 23rd August 2007) the threat to remove the baby after birth was enacted.

The Vanessa Brookes YouTube Scandal came at a key moment in public discussions over the forced removal of new-born babies in England and Wales, providing some definitive proof that the facility was being abused by Local Authorities. The case also highlighted the vulnerability of women accused of being likely poor parents who have no recourse to publicise their objections for fear that a gagging order will be enacted by a secretive Family Court, resulting in arbitrary imprisonment. The Brookes, whose income was lower than the National Mean, also pointed to the vulnerabilities of families more likely to have their children forcibly removed rather than receiving assistance.

(See also Fran Lyon, Rt Hon. Gordon Brown MP, Vanessa Shanks, Christopher Booker)

Gordon Brown

Prime Minister of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland until the General Election of 2010.

As Chancellor, Mr. Brown had made reducing child poverty in the UK a priority. In the last years of the Labour government the desire to half the number of children in poor households lost impetus amongst government departments. A report entitled Micro-simulating child poverty in 2010 and 2020 by the Institute for Fiscal Studies for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, issued in February 2009 indicated that the targets would not just be missed, but that the number of children living in poverty would increase.

In 1998, when Mr Brown was Chancellor, he set targets to halve the number of children living in poverty from 3.4 million to 1.7 million by 2010 and to eradicate child poverty by 2020. But the report predicts that the number of children in poverty by 2010 will be 2.3 million and by 2010 may reach 3.1 million.

About 2.9 million children are now living below the poverty line. The downward trend reversed two years ago, and the report forecasts that after a small fall next year the figures will grow again steadily.
(Source : Brown 'will miss targets on reducing child poverty' by Jill Sherman & Parminder Bahra, The Times, Page 19, Wednesday February 18th 2009)

The failure to deal with child poverty in the UK has a particular impact on child protection and family justice provision in England and Wales. There are numerous instances when it has been revealed that poverty is a primary reason social workers will determine that a child or baby should be adopted by force and removed from a woman or family. In 2007 evidence of this behaviour was found in a report entitled Can I risk using public services? Perceived consequences of seeking help and health care among households living in poverty: qualitative study by authors from the Division of Public Health, University of Liverpool, Department of Sociology and Social Policy, University of Liverpool and Department of Public Health Sciences, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm Sweden (see also Krysia Canvin.)

During its time in office between 1997-2010, the Labour Party gave every indication that its social care policy was based largely on targeting poor and vulnerable families. An increase in poverty amongst families resulted in more children being forcibly removed from parents, notably single women. It should be noted that many judges in secretive Family Courts in England and Wales determine that poverty, and particularly homelessness is a primary justification for the forcible removal of children from families and women and no evidence of abuse or neglect is required. Mark Ivory, managing editor of CommunityCare in his review of Evicted (2007) a BBC documentary that revisited the subjects addressed in Ken Loach's ground-breaking Cathy Come Home (1966) wrote of the findings from Shelter, the homeless charity, and the spectre of forced adoption as a tool of social injustice;

Shelter has heard from many families judged to be intentionally homeless who have been told by council officers that the local authority would take their children into care rather than accommodate them. Many parents will not risk this and so stop their pursuit of social housing. Instead, they return to unacceptable living conditions, distancing themselves from vital support services for their children and themselves.
(Source: Poverty and homelessness. The verdict 40 years after Cathy Come Home)

Following its removal from office in 2010, there is now an opportunity to review the Labour Party's social care policies, particularly with regard to child protection and family justice. Disturbingly there is ample evidence that the world portrayed in Cathy Come Home has returned to the streets of England and Wales with a vengeance, as a consequence of Labour Party policy. The lack of interest in reducing child poverty - indeed the seeming enthusiasm for allowing it to increase is perhaps the most damning evidence that the former pioneering liberal and left-wing elite in the UK have changed markedly inside the last decade, into an elite with a firm eye on pre- Victorian society as their marker. A principal reason for this may be the influence of gender feminism, with it's focus on hatred for the traditional family, the concept of a woman as mother (married or single) and hatred for children, through which they perceive the patriarchal tradition continuing. One easy indicator of how society has changed - with its emphasis now on discriminating against women who are mothers, can be seen in the decay of many maternity wards, and the reduced provision and investment in midwifery services throughout England and Wales over the last decade.

Nonetheless former Prime Minister Brown showed consistency in his approach to child poverty. There is no doubting the desire was there; from his time as an effective Opposition spokesman to his role of head of the government he maintained a firm commitment to eradicating the scourge of childhood poverty from the UK. Unfortunately he could not do the job himself and there were a number of Ministers and MP's within the ranks of his own Party who don't share his enthusiasm, and some who viewed the concept of a woman with a child, whether in the "traditional" family form or as single-parent form, as an obscenity. It was these who had absolutely no desire to see poor families assisted or in particular, women with children, granted aid.

(See also Baby P, Dawn Primarolo MP, Vanessa Shanks, Vanessa Brookes, Ken Loach)

Helen Hayward-Brown (Dr.)

Research Fellow, Social Justice and Social Change Research Centre of Western Sydney. Her thesis was Misdiagnosed Children, Misdiagnosed Parents: Chronic Illness and the Spectre of Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy (2003)

In July 2005 Dr. Hayward-Brown instigated a research project titled "International survey on false accusations of MSBP".

Dr Hayward-Brown was also the joint-author of Taking The Stick Away a report submitted to the UK Government in December 2004, detailing concerns about the provision of family justice and child protection in England and Wales, through the governments now controversial "Every Child Matters" official guidance. The report proved to be a warning to the Government about how dogmas and agenda-driven child protection polices that saw women pursued for petty failings were distracting officials from "proper" child protection. The warnings were ignored wholesale, contributing it seems to the environment that allowed for Baby P; when obvious cases of neglect would be ignored for cases when stable and loving families would be broken-up, seemingly on a whim;

Public criticism of Child Protection has, at times, been belittled (Woolf: 2001), because Social Workers are seen as both 'neglectful' and 'over-zealous'. It would be too easy to conclude from this that the public cannot be satisfied. It would be preferable, to recognise that neglect of serious cases of abuse is the inevitable price paid for over zealousness in the pursuit of other agendas. The public is all too aware of cases where numerous public reports of abuse did not stir Child Protection to appropriate action. On the other hand, there is unrest about the role of Child Protection in cases where abuse does not appear to have occurred (Woolf: 2001, Staff & Agencies: 2001). These two problems, we would submit, are two sides of the same coin. The Child Protection workers were not where they should have been, because, they were where they should not have been. The public is rightly disquieted, when Child Protection sets off looking for dust in houses and untidy gardens (Department of Health: 2000b; 24-25), whilst the extreme suffering of children is routinely ignored (Laming Report: 2003, 5). Allocating resources to trivial pursuits, means that they are not allocated to really important matters.


Dr. Haywood-Browns paper on MSBP related how the very fear of MSBP allegations impacts upon the provision of services to women and children;

When a mother is suspected of MSBP she is immediately isolated, and support is withdrawn. As soon as she is suspected she will be treated as guilty and treatment of her child usually ceases. Even if a child is only suspected of being "at risk" it may be removed from its parents. Additionally, a mother may become too terrified to take her child to the doctor, for fear of being seen as over-protective or over-utilising hospital services. Doctors use a "snowball" effect to inform each other of the mother's "problem". Even if the mother is proved innocent, it is too late to restore damage to her reputation. I refer to this as the "closed circuit of doctors". If a doctor speaks out in favour of a mother, he/she risks conflict with his/ her medical colleagues.
(Source: 'False and highly questionable allegations of Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy' presented by Dr Helen Hayward-Brown to the 7th Australasian Child Abuse and Neglect Conference in Perth.)

(See also Dr. Lynne Wrennall, Dr. Clive Baldwin, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, Sir Roy Meadow, Krysia Canvin, William R. Long, Jan Loxley, Dr. Sandra Buck)

Lisa Blakemore-Brown (Dr.)

Independent applied psychologist, Bachelor of Science in Psychology and Master of Science in Educational Psychology with Clinical Studies.

Ms. Blakemore-Brown is an acknowledged expert in Autism, Aspergers Syndrome and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD.) She is a frequent critic of the use of "crank" science in the English & Welsh Family Courts, and is believed to have contributed to the Consensus documents handed to the Labour Party government in 2002 concerning the misuse of the MSBP theory. She is author of the leading "publicly accessible" book on autism and Aspergers syndrome Reweaving the autistic tapestry (2001.)

In recent years the pursuit of Dr Blakemore-Brown by the British Psychological Society, saw a hopeless attempt to diagnose her as paranoid. The failed effort to have her struck off appears to have been driven by Scientologist elements and sympathisers in and outside the BPS and the Labour Government. Because of the nature of the allegations made against her, greater attention has been drawn to her work from a wider audience. It is widely accepted that the pursuit was politically instigated in the hope of silencing her well-informed criticisms of government social policy, such was the hopeless and amateur nature of the case against her. The discipline hearing for the BPS descended into farce when it was revealed that a forged document had been presented as evidence against Ms. Brown and the case was abandoned by the BPS when the chief witness declined to appear to be cross-examined.

Social services have no real understanding of autism and Aspergers Syndrome. During a period in our history when there is an increase of bona-fide neuro-developmental impairments, children with these disorders are instead put on the At Risk Register or taken into "care". Once in care, these same children continue to suffer from the original problems previously considered factitious and blamed on their parents. Guidelines increasingly encourage social workers to see autism - and think attachment disorder.
(Source: Lisa Blakemore-Browns Complaint -: Re: Influence of Bruce Clark)

The discredited Working Together to Safeguard Children initial release was written by civil servant, Bruce Clark, now a member of CAFCASS's Corporate Management Team.

Dr Blakemore-Brown was also the joint-author of Taking The Stick Away a report submitted to the UK Government in December 2004, detailing concerns about the provision of family justice and child protection in England and Wales, through the issuing of the governments now controversial "Every Child Matters" official guidance. The report highlighted how the underlying intention of the Children's Act had become perverted;

The current Child Protection regime takes far too many children on a journey in which they travel through the designated stations of labelling, from 'child in need' to 'child at risk' to 'pre delinquent' to 'delinquent' to 'career criminal' (Cohen:1984). This journey is tragic and life destroying for the children and their families (Communitycare: May 1, 2003, Communitycare: April 10, 2003, Communitycare: July 2, 2003.). It is also counter productive in terms of appropriate social goals (Kendall & Harker: 2002, Modernising Social Services: 1998). The itinerary which takes children on this journey, cannot reasonably be expected to arrive at a different destination. The very coercive and authoritarian practices of the discourse, deter cooperation, destroy trust, undermine confidence and preclude genuine therapeutic practice. It must finally be accepted that the role of forensic investigator and the role of Social Worker cannot be performed by the same person, or the same agency. Combining the roles has meant that neither role has been performed adequately. If we are to secure more appropriate social outcomes, then agency specialisation is essential (Kendall & Harker: 2002).


Dr Blakemore-Brown has also contributed to the debate over the misuse of the MSBP mechanism against women;

Real illnesses and disorders are missed or ignored; what is seen misinterpreted as abuse. The MSBP / FII/ SBS assumption is used as a launching point to either take parents to Court to remove their children, or to engage them in misdirected 'therapeutic exercises'. Rather than caseworkers becoming more aware of the practical problems and real needs in relation to children's early illnesses, the opposite seems to have happened.
(Source: Lisa Blakemore Browns Complaint -: Re: Influence of Bruce Clark)

In the past Ms. Brown has made every effort to draw attention to the misuse of MSBP to New Labour government Ministers;


"Between 1996 and 2002 Blakemore-Brown also raised her concerns in a series of letters to, among others, Tony Blair, health secretaries Frank Dobson, Alun Milburn and then Health Minister Jacqui Smith MP. In each case she received a reply observing only that her concern had "been noted". She also wrote to the Psychologist magazine, warning: "I cannot establish a robust scientific base and am aware of a number of cases in which mothers have had children removed on the basis of this diagnosis to discover later that their children had real illnesses or disorders which were missed when the notion of MSBP loomed large."
(Source: Ministers told child harm theory was flawed)

Her criticism of the Labour Party government has extended to her public speaking, typified by her speech at the The Convention (for) Modern Liberty Children's Session on the 28th February 2009, when she represented the Autism Rights campaign group, an organisation that is far more aggressive in its criticism of the Labour Party for its assault on women with autistic spectrum disorder children than the National Autistic Society (see the Extended Index entry for Bruno Bettelheim). Her speech, entitled Distortion, Denial And Destruction - New Labour Legacy For Children With Disabilities And Their Families pulled no punches about the impact Labour Party policy had had on women and families with poorly children, or those with AS Disorders, the nature of false MSBP allegation employed against them, and how the Labour Party's child protection policies have impacted upon the lives of children who needed genuine help and care, rather than being forcibly removed from their mothers;


Back in 1996 I was an Expert Witness in a Court case involving autistic spectrum hyperactive identical twin girls who had been born at 26 weeks gestation in 1984. 

The behaviour of the twins, one in particular, was so difficult for the mother to manage especially with two other younger children, that she threatened to sue the authorities if they had missed the nature of the twins’ problem. This triggered an allegation of Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy (MSBP) – that she was fabricating or inducing the children’s behaviours/illnesses. What became clear to me was that Social workers, the Court and other professionals were being groomed by perverted logic to see real disorders and symptoms of real illness as child abuse. Henry Porter has just written an example of exactly what I saw starting to happen all those years ago and was unable to stop. See Lyndsey Craig case in Persecuting the Innocent, February 2009.   

  Another Expert Witness in the twins’ case in 1996 was Dr. David Southall who claimed that they were “perfectly normal”.  This was patently not the case and I became increasingly troubled by this view and the distorted thinking behind MSBP which spread like wild fire through the whole system blaming the mother, resulting in the removal of four children in the UK. It’s potential to do the same to just about anyone was palpably obvious, through cognitive distortion and the influence of high powered medics.  

  The two youngest children were indeed perfectly normal, as they had been born at the expected time and did not suffer from the health problems experienced by their very premature older sisters. The Social Worker response to this was that the young ones would turn out the same as the older ones if they stayed with their mother!  This was of course impossible. These children were rapidly put up  for adoption. When I mentioned my deepening concerns about all this to someone in the new Labour Government I was told “You need to know Tony’s position on adoption”. As we were to discover, Tony Blair was very keen to increase the number of adoptions of children in care and to help achieve this goal, social work departments were paid bonuses depending on how many adoptions they could deliver. Such speedy fast tracking for desperate children in appalling homes previously stuck for many years in care is of course commendable, but what if the parents were innocent and the children wrongly taken? They would never go home again. How would this affect those children for the rest of their lives? The more I saw within the Social Services and Court system, even the educational system caught up in the hysteria, and the more shocked and sickened I became.
...
For those who have been wrongly taken into care with real illness or disorders morphed into child abuse, we can only guess at how their lives progress without the understanding and support they need, but I was able to see both sides in the first case as I met the most damaged child when she turned 17. As she had been regarded as abused and perfectly normal, her bizarre behaviours, learning difficulties and poor co-ordination were seen as a result of the “abuse”. No-one could change that by putting her in a “good home” because that wasn’t the reason for her problems. So extraordinary methods were put in place to rid her of her “demons”. These included real abuse such as swinging her from trees, throwing her downstairs and smashing her fingers in a door. Other forms of abuse were suspected and eventually the child was placed with another foster parent – but only after she ran away many times. The Police were never informed by Social Workers about this abuse in care. When l informed them they did nothing.
(Source: extract from - Distortion, Denial And Destruction New Labour Legacy For Children With Disabilities And Their Families)

(See also Dr. Clive Baldwin, Dr. Lynne Wrennall, Dr. Judith Gould, Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP, Paul Shattock, Krysia Canvin, William R. Long, Jan Loxley, Nick Land, J.K Rowling OBE, TIm Loughton (MP), Iain Weir (Kirkland, Dr.))

Sandra Buck (Dr)

The lengthy entry for Dr. Sandra Buck, detailing the establishment and history of the RAINS (Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support) organisation can be found at Dr. Sandra Buck - RAINS.

Pamela Burke

Social Worker, Northumberland County Council. Ms Burke was implicated in the Fran Lyon Scandal after Dr Rex Haigh, a consultant psychiatrist who had written a character reference for Ms Lyon reported that he was placed under pressure to remove his support for Ms. Lyon by a colleague of Ms. Burke, fellow social worker Ms. Paula Wright (see also Secrecy Culture of Social Services).

Andy Burnham (Andrew, The Right Honourable, MP)

Labour MP for Leigh since 2001. Health Secretary since June 2009 until the General Election of 2010, having previously been Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. In July 2009 at the request of Mr Burnham, the GSCC (General Social Care Council) suspended its chief executive. (See the entry for Michael Wardle)


Bo Burstrom


Baroness Butler-Sloss (Anne Elizabeth Oldfield, GBE, PC)

Former President of the Family Division of the Royal Courts of Justice (1999 - 2005 )

Now retired as a judge, but was previously the time the highest-ranking judge in England and Wales. Baroness Butler-Sloss chaired the Cleveland child abuse (the "Cleveland RAD Scandal") hearings in 1987. This judicial review determined that the paediatricians involved (see also Dr. Marietta Higgs) had been overenthusiastic in their pursuit of finding abuse when no such abuse existed, but ultimately failed to condemn the use of the RAD test (reflex anal dilation).

In 2008 it was revealed that RAD is still in use by English and Welsh paediatricians, through the public issuing of the judgement in Leeds City Council vs Mrs YX (2008) (see also Justice Edward Holman) and continues to be attributed to spurious allegations of sexual abuse.

As President of the Family Court Division, Baroness Butler-Sloss is probably most notably remembered for assisting in the establishment of specialist "Adoption Centers" equipped with dedicated staff and judges across 20+ sites in England and Wales. This followed the 2000 Government White Paper "Adoption a new approach" which discussed the desire by The Labour Party to see a huge increase in adoption in England and Wales. The policy though has been frequently criticised for encouraging the forced adoption of new-born babies using a secretive family court system

Dame Butler-Sloss has stated her belief that the secret Family Courts be opened-up in most cases, but not adoption cases, including forced adoption cases where the level of scrutiny in English and Welsh cases appears to be much reduced. Inexplicably she is also firmly against the reporting of witness evidence. The reliance that the secret court system has on pseudo (crank) science is implicitly the result of allowing expert witnesses to present ideas and theories, sometimes "on-the-fly", and often in the face of accepted medical or scientific knowledge in the outside world. Such experts often work exclusively in the insular world of the secret courts. Because such "experts" have no fear of peer-review or even mild criticism from colleagues, they are effectively able to present often-flawed evidence to an oft-willing judiciary who themselves are cut off from the modern world due, once again, to the insular secrecy of the Courts themselves. Accordingly some theories accepted by the secretive Family Courts are so at odds with accepted peer-reviewed theories, that many Family Court "experts" are unable to work in the "real" world for fear of universal ridicule. It is this environment that Dame Butler-Sloss appears to wish see maintained.

My own view is that the Press should have the right to report the judgment in the case; possibly to report the final submissions; but not however, to report the evidence given by the witnesses
(Source: Supplementary evidence submitted by Rt Hon Dame Elizabeth Butler-Sloss DBE,President, High Court, Family Division (November 2004))

(See also Rt. Hon. Tony Blair)

Dorothy Byrne

Head of News & Current Affairs for British television concern Channel 4.

Channel 4 is particularly notable in the field of UK media broadcasting for it's distinct lack of coverage of family law/child protection concerns that feature in it's flagship news offering - Channel 4 News (edited by Jim Gray.) This policy appears to mirror that of the BBC, although no "D" Notice is apparently in place to curtail reporting on such subjects. News reporting by the likes of CNN and Sky and ITN (on ITV) isn't apparently self-censored on such subjects.

(See also Fran Lyon)
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


- Surnames B



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

B



Mahesh Babu (Dr. RN)

Paediatrician for Mid Essex Hospital Services NHS Trust, Women and Children's Services.
Dr Babu was implicated in a false allegation of MSBP that was dismissed by a secretive Family Court against the wife of author Jack Frost and which contributed to Mr. Frosts decision to write a devastating book about the Family Court system in England and Wales (The Gulag of the Family Courts).

(See also Dr. Aloke Agrawa, Dr. Sabah Al-Zayyat, Dr. Camille de San Lazaro, Dr. Marietta Higgs, Jacqui Smith MP, Beverley Hughes MP)

Peter Connelly

Baby P (Peter Connelly)




17-month-old Baby P - "Peter" — his surname name initially concealed by a court order — was killed in Haringey, North London, in August 2007.

The case, with it's distinct echoes of the Victoria Climbié scandal of just 7 years before (also, incredibly, in the very same London Borough of Haringey) again drew attention to the failings of social workers acting in the field of child protection. Baby P was seen by social workers and other child protection officials on over 60 occasions, but nonetheless suffered over 50 injuries, including a broken back, broken ribs, a missing fingertip, broken fingernails and a deep gouge over his skull. The child's mother and boyfriend were convicted of causing or allowing the baby's death at the Old Bailey on the 11th November 2008, together with the couple's lodger - Jason Owen. In May 2009 they were given indefinite sentences.

The scandal of Baby P was also reminiscent of that of Maria Colwell inasmuch as the toddler was on the At-Risk-Register and had been handed into the safe care of a family friend, by arrangement of social workers and the mother. In the case of Baby P the mother subsequently asked for the baby back, and social workers, although aware of two police investigations into child abuse concerning Baby P agreed. Baby P was killed shortly thereafter. Shortly before Baby P's death, police informed the mother that an investigation into child abuse had been dropped.

In addition to concerns about the practices of social workers at Haringey, who were again apparently fooled into believing any story given to them by a mother (notably one social worker, Maria Ward) the activities, or rather lack of activity by a paediatrician in the case, Dr. Sabah Al-Zayyat drew attention to failings in basic medical competence in child paediatrics — when, just a matter of days before Baby P died, she failed to spot the baby had a broken back and several broken ribs, during an examination at St. Ann's Hospital in North London.

A particularly disturbing element in the case was the immediate response to the news of Baby P's death. Haringey Children's Services Director Sharon Shoesmith immediately declared there would be no resignations or sackings over the affair, tending to blame the paediatrician in the case. In addition she determined that an internal review would be sufficient to examine the failings of the Local Authority.

The scandal took a new turn when during Prime Ministers Question Time in Parliament on the Wednesday following the convictions at the Old Bailey. David Cameron MP, the Conservative Party Leader and Leader of the Opposition attempted to raise the subject of Baby P's murder and a demand that Haringey Social Services be sorted out. The Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown MP, responded in an unusual way, accusing Mr. Cameron of playing "party politics".

Later the same week it transpired that the Government had had a reason for not wanting the matter discussed; 6 months before Baby P's death several New Labour Ministers, including former Health Secretary Rt. Hon. Patricia Hewitt MP had received correspondence from a solicitor representing a former social worker who had worked in Haringey. The letters revealed severe concerns about child protection procedures not being adhered-to in the London Borough. A "gagging" order was in place on the social worker preventing her from revealing more detail. The former social worker was engaged in an unlawful dismissal case against Haringey Borough.

In the meantime, Ed Balls MP initiated a series of inspections into Haringey social services. The time period to complete the investigations — just two weeks, was remarkably rapid;

Nevres Kemal solicitor wrote to the Health Secretary of the time and to MPs, calling for a public inquiry. The solicitor, Lawrence Davies, said yesterday that his pleas had been ignored.

Mr. Davies added: 'I did not get a reply from anyone, I copied several MPs into the letter. If someone had acted then maybe Baby P would not have died'.
(Source: Ministers were given abuse warning months before Baby P death - The Times 14th November - by Adam Fresco)

The scandal of Baby P - as mentioned before, occurring in the same London borough as the death of Victoria Climbié just 7 years focused on the perceived failings in child protection provision that had previously supposedly been addressed in the Laming Report of 2001. Of particular concern was recognition that even serious cases of neglect or abuse didn't apparently garner the degree of child protection intervention that the public perhaps expect — whilst other cases — notably when no neglect or abuse has occurred, seem to get "both barrels" with the full resources of the secretive Family Court and social services apparently engaged, for instance, to 'deal with' a mother who has unwisely sought assistance with a difficult child, or one who has a medical condition like autism.

This conflict, amongst the many controversies that the English and Welsh child protection and family justice system has provoked, is difficult to fathom and resolve. From the perspective of a non-child protection professional, the case for taking Baby P into care (and protection) seemed simple enough, particularly in light of the vast resources employed pursuing investigations and actually visiting the family. That children whose mothers seek assistance for their autism spectrum disorders are taken into care without little foresight or consideration using "quack" or "crank" science allowed by the secretive family justice system, creates the impression that "proper" child protection isn't being enthusiastically pursued. It appears ostensibly that easy, sometimes concocted cases are seeing thousands of children removed into care when the most serious cases of abuse are being allowed to go "under the radar." The Baby P case, through the tragedy of a 17-month-old boy viciously abused, drew even greater attention to these discrepancies.

William Bache

William Bache





Founder and senior partner of William Bache & Co (Salisbury.)

A leading solicitor in the field of family law, Mr. Bache has represented clients as notable as Angela Canning, Marianne Williams and Fran Lyon. With John Hemming MP he appeared on GMTV to publicise the Fran Lyon Scandal. Mr Bache is also a co-founder of the campaign group Justice For Families, with John Hemming MP. His solicitors practice is also acknowledged as a leading firm in the field of military court martial hearings.

(See also John Batt)

Clive Baldwin (Dr.)

Senior Lecturer in Social Work (Mental Health), Programme Director MA in Mental Health/AMHP training at University of Bradford. In the past he was Senior Lecturer, Bradford Dementia (studies) Group, also at the University of Bradford.

Dr. Baldwin is the joint author of several volumes on the treatment of dementia, but is perhaps best known for his 2005 paper Who needs fact when you've got narrative? The Case of P,C & S vs United Kingdom which discussed the European Court of Human Rights finding in the infamous P, C & S case. The final judgement by the ECHR is routinely referred-to as the clearest example of an examination into the abuse of a woman by a secretive English and Welsh Family Court.


The case of P, C & S vs United Kingdom is one in which some of the professionals involved demonstrated a significant disregard for facts in their investigation and presentation of their case. For example three social workers primarily involved in the case made factual claims without properly investigating matters. In one report to the court the social workers claimed that P had lied about a house fire in the US that allegedly destroyed P's property. This claim was based on fourth-hand information (from the midwife who had heard it from another midwife who had allegedly heard it from the mother) but was admissible into court because the Family Courts do not exclude hearsay evidence. Because the social worker did not verify the nature or location of the fire with the mother, the social worker contacted a fire department in a different US state, some 600 miles away from the actual fire, about the wrong address. The fire department, unsurprisingly, had no record of such a fire but informed the social worker that there had been a fire near to the address given by the social worker. The social worker then reported this incident as evidence of the mother's lying and dramatic propensities.
(Source: from Section 5.1, pages 226-226 — Who needs fact when you've got narrative? The Case of P,C & S VS United Kingdom by Clive Baldwin)

The scandal of the P,C & S trial demonstrated the failings of the secretive Family Courts in "all their glory." In the absence of fact a narrative trajectory was established, assisted hugely by the denial of legal representation to the mother - P. Up against the Local Authority legal team, a judge unsympathetic to protecting her (though Justice Wall has stated he gave her more latitude than he would have allowed had she been legally represented) and unable and disallowed from cross-questioning witnesses, P made a valiant effort in trying to prevent her child from being forcibly removed. Ultimately though the arsenal of discrimination arrayed against her was too much;

In order to construct a persuasive narrative some sort of response is required to evidence that threatens to undermine that narrative. In P, C & S we see various attempts to ignore, gloss over or explain away such evidence, particularly driven by the desire by Justice Wall to ensure that evidence didn't get in the way of the ultimate end result.

Apart from his remarks over the hiding of a key document (itself glossed over by minimising the seriousness of the event and turning it against the parents) Justice Wall is notably silent on the failings of the social services' investigations and their deliberate attempts to hinder a proper evaluation of the case through fabricating events, altering or censoring documents, their attempted interference with P's independent psychiatric expert and their deception of the parents and other family members. Similarly, although hugely criticised the Guardian ad Litem for pre-judging the case he ignored the impact this prejudice potentially had on the conduct of her investigation and her subsequent recommendations.
(Source - from Section 6.5, page 239)

Dr. Baldwin is also the joint author of the 1996 paper Munchausens syndrome by proxy: Problems of definition, diagnosis and treatment.

After determining that P should have her baby forcibly adopted, P attempted to appeal the decision, but the Court of Appeal determined that the case, with P denied legal advocacy, had been run perfectly fine. In March 2002 the ECHR (European Court of Human Rights) heard the case. Rochdale Borough Council, previously notably known for its pursuit of spurious SRA allegations against families, was now replaced by Her Majesty's Government, who argued that the treatment of P in the secret court was perfectly okay and nothing amiss had occurred. It should be noted that at the time of the hearing the government included the following Ministers, who made no protest that HRMC was being used for such a purpose, either before, during, or at any time after the ECHR hearing (they have each had 7 years to date to respond);

Rt. Hon. Patricia Hewitt MP former General Secretary of the civil liberties organisation, The National Council for Civil Liberties (later Liberty). As Trade Industry Secretary responsible for anti-discrimination legislation.

Margaret Hodge MP First appointed Children's Minister, her husband Sir Henry Hodge (now deceased) was a former General Secretary for The National Council for Civil Liberties (later Liberty).

Rt. Hon. Harriet Harman MP Minister for Women and former Legal Secretary for The National Council for Civil Liberties (later Liberty).

At the conclusion of the case and after deliberation, the ECHR published it's findings. Rochdale Council, knowing of the ECHR hearing, chose not to wait for the decision and had the child of P forcibly adopted.


(the Court) 1. Holds unanimously that there has been a violation of Article 6 : 1 of the Convention in respect of the applicants P. and C.;

2. Holds unanimously that there has been a violation of Article 8 of the Convention in respect of the applicants P. and C. as regards the removal of S. at birth;

3. Holds by six votes to one that there has been a violation of Article 8 of the Convention in respect of all the applicants as regards the subsequent procedures concerning the applications for care and freeing for adoption orders.

There were therefore two findings against Article 8 (right to a family life) and one finding against HMG under Article 6 (right to a fair hearing).
(Source: European Court of Human Rights - Final Judgement CASE OF P., C. AND S. v. THE UNITED KINGDOM - Application no. 56547/00) 6 July 2002)

The UK government was ordered to pay damages and costs but because the adoption had been peremptorily completed without waiting for the European hearing the child remains permanently removed from her birth family.

It could perhaps be thought that the government (New Labour) would undertake a thorough review of the secret court system and the nature of evidence collecting and presentation by social services and other professions in light of the P, C & S scandal. As it transpired the government, and Liberty (the former National Council for Civil Liberties) chose to fundamentally ignore the case, and although the P, C & S case is routinely referred-to by opponents of the secretive court system in articles, papers and at public-speaking events as being a perfect example of judicial abuse of a woman by a secret court in England and Wales, no effort was made to correct the obvious failings. The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights which reviews cases that go to the ECHR and are found against HM Government looked into the P, C & S case in it's Nineteenth Report and was promised an adequate review from the then Lord Chancellor, Lord Irvine of Lairg QC because;


"it raises issues of judicial practice in ensuring that measures are taken to provide legal representation in child care cases"
Lord Irvine wrote to the Committee;

With regard to the case of P, C & S vs UK, my officials are carefully considering the implications of the judgment in partnership with the senior judiciary. The judgement will be taken into consideration with the wider work being done to implement the Adoption and Children Act 2002. I understand that the Department of Health is also taking the judgment into account as part of the wider work on the new act"
It is uncertain how "taken into consideration" quite worked. However it appears that the circumstances of the P, C & S case simply led to more opportunities to deny appeals in perceived injustices in the secret courts. In recent years the same HM Government has striven to limit the availability of legal aid for families appearing in the Secret Court, (see Family Courts in Crisis Says Sir Mark Potter - The Times July 3rd 2009, by Frances Gibb) in effect entrenching the abuse of women in the secret courts that was so viciously portrayed in the P,C & S scandal.

The case particularly highlighted the perception that in cases of forced adoption less care over evidence, factuality and due judicial process and scrutiny is taken than even in normal secretive court proceedings, even though most lay members of the public could be forgiven for expecting that in cases when the judiciary forcibly remove children from parents, only the highest standards of jurisprudence would be demanded.

Justice Wall was promoted to the Appeal Division of the Royal Courts of Justice as Lord Justice Nicolas Wall and presided over appeals made over secretive family court decisions — most notably in the Webster's Scandal which also concerned a forced adoption, using "duff" evidence. In April 2010 he was appointed President of the Family Court Division of the Royal Courts of Justice, the most powerful judicial position in England and Wales that has direct influence on the nature of how the secret court system treats women, families and children. The appointment can be regarded as confirmation that the judicial attitudes displayed in the P, C & S case is now embedded in judicial and government policy.

Andrew McFarlane QC who represented Her Majesty's Government at the ECHR was inducted later as a secretive Family Court judge for England and Wales. It should be emphasised that the Government, after studying the case determined that no issues had arisen and it was fine for women to be denied legal representation in a secret court when faced with the forced removal of a child. There has never been any comment from a Minister to indicate anything different.

Professor Baldwin returned to the subject of P, C & S in the book Narrative & Memory (2007) edited by D. Robinson, N. Kelly and K. Milnes published by the University of Huddersfield, and contributing the second chapter, Professional Insincerity, Identity and the Limits of Narrative Repair. The chapter provided a further insight into the manner in which the secretive family court system dealt with a woman, determined to be "dangerous" and where there was no evidence to support the view of the social workers and others engaged in the case. The manner in which women are "dealt with" by the secretive courts far outweighs any concerns that civil liberty groups like Liberty or Amnesty have for the contentious "Terrorist Control Orders" imposed upon terrorist suspects.

Dr. Baldwin's chapter also named the social workers and others involved in the case.

...our identities are also tied up with the relationships we have with those around us. Family and friends form part of our self-identity and are important supports in maintaining that identity. In the case of P,C & S the domestic courts extracted undertakings from the parents (under threat of contempt of court) not to speak of the case to the press and, more importantly, to certain of their friends. While restrictions on contact with the former may be understandable, restrictions on the latter "and it is important to note here that the LA also wanted the undertakings to include restrictions on the mother talking to her family" effectively removed the mother from people who supported her and who might support her self-identity as someone facing adversity, hostility and the potential loss of her daughter.
(Source: Narrative & Memory D. Robinson, N. Kelly and K. Milnes (eds) (2007), pub. University of Huddersfield.)

Dr. Baldwin was also the joint-author of Taking The Stick Away a report submitted to the UK Government in December 2004, detailing concerns from a number of academics about the provision of family justice and child protection in England and Wales, prior to the issuing of the governments now controversial "Every Child Matters" official guidance;

Care orders and child removal are issues of particular seriousness. Extremely grave adverse consequences follow for the children concerned and for extended kinship networks. These effects last for entire lifetimes and even follow through the generations (Human Rights & Equal Opportunity Commission: 1996). It is believed that Care orders and child removal are being undertaken to an unnecessary extent with a degree of flippancy and arbitrariness that is disturbing. Entire communities feel terrorised, both by the investigative process and by what is regarded as the cavalier removal of children. Promises to improve the care system cannot compensate for the problem that the wrong children, and too many children, are being removed.
(Source: From Taking The Stick Away)

Leigh Day & Co. (St John's Lane, London) solicitors took the P, C & S case to the ECHR. Partner Bozena Michalowska Howells has provided a summary of the case and its implications.

The ECHR found that there had been a breach by the UK of the parent’s rights under article 8; the right to respect for private and family life home and correspondence:

“it is for the respondent State to establish that a careful assessment of the impact of the proposed care measure on the parent and the child as well as the possible alternatives to taking the child into public care were carried out prior to implementation of a care measure. The taking into care of a child should normally be regarded as a temporary measure to be discontinued as soon as the circumstances permit. The measure of implementation of temporary care should be consistent with the ultimate aim of reuniting the natural parent with the child. In this regard a fair balance has to be struck between the interests of the child remaining in care and those of the parent in being reunited with the child.”

The ECHR awarded damages of 12000 euros to each parent in respect of loss of opportunity.

Where it can be shown that an NHS trust or local authority has ridden rough shod over the interests and rights of the parents, as many parents argue, those parents can find some redress in the Human Rights Act 1998 and the Strasbourg courts.

Therefore if the government does not fully address the injustices suffered at the hands of the family justice system, the government should prepare itself for a barrage of claims that British families’ human rights have been violated.
(Source: extract from A call for justice for families wrongly accused in baby adoption scandal? By Bozena Michalowska Howells, Leigh Day & Co, 3rd March 2004

(See also: Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, Dr. Helen Hayward-Brown, Shami Chakrabarti, Christopher Booker)

Ed Balls

Ed Balls (Edward, MP)




Labour MP Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (June 2007 - May 2010)

Before the Baby P Scandal Mr Balls most "notable" political moment was in attempting to explain the SATS marking scandal of summer 2008. The CAFCASS organisation reported to Mr. Balls.

Although handed a role in Government that few would envy, Mr. Balls took on the investigation of the Baby P scandal with huge professionalism-indicating to many that he had the ability to be a future Labour Prime Minister. In April 2009 though he was engulfed in the "smeargate" scandal (Ed Balls 'ran' Labour's smear unit) that may prove to limit his future viability as a Labour Leader.

Following the publication of a number of reports into the conduct of Haringey Borough Council Social Services, he immediately had the Director of Children's Services, Sharon Shoesmith, dismissed. In December 2008 he committed the government to a "root and branch" re-evaluation of social worker training and vocational instruction and experience, although childcare services had only recently been overhauled in the wake of the Lord Laming Inquiry findings. It remains to be seen if an effort can be made to rid English and Welsh child protection social work with the malaise and obsession with fads of recent decades that have prevented "proper" child protection work to be pursued. Unfortunately it appears in the wake of the Baby P scandal, the current obsessions with breaking-apart families using spurious grounds, rather than pursuing "proper" cases of neglect and abuse will increase.

From mid-2009 his Department has been increasingly engulfed in controversy, most notably because of the introduction of the ISA (Independent Safeguarding Authority - see Roger Singleton (Sir)). The Department of Children, Schools and Families is riddled with 'child savers' - colluding feminists and religious fundamentalists - creating a difficult situation for Mr. Balls to get to grips with, as the child saver lobby increasingly feared a change of government in 2010 that would see an administration less prone to their obsessions. In May 2010 the Labour Party was indeed defeated in the UK General Election, leaving it for a new Minister to address the fundamentalist lobby in the Department for Children, Schools and Families. His replacement in the Coalition Government was Michael Gove MP, who promptly changed the name of the department to the Department for Education.

Before leaving office, Mr. Balls showed every evidence of being aware of the problems that social work was encountering, through the establishment of the Social Work Task Force. Professor Eileen Munro's review of child protection, announced by the new Coalition Government Minister for Children TIm Loughton (MP) appeared designed to produce a more rapid assessment and plan for change.

A handicap for Mr. Balls was that the final Labour Children's Minister - Dawn Primarolo MP was hopelessly unsuited for the role, leaving the responsibility for solving many of the problems in child protection to be addressed by the incoming government.

(See also Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP, Eric Pickles MP, John Hemming MP, Rt Hon. Gordon Brown MP, Krysia Canvin)

Dr. Mary Jo Bane

Mary Jo Bane (Dr.)

Leading US-based feminist and currently Thornton Bradshaw Professor of Public Policy and Management at Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University (1998-). Former Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Values in Public Life, Harvard Divinity School (1999-2000) and was also Assistant Secretary for Children and Families at the US Department of Health and Human Services between 1993 and 1996 (President Clinton's administration).

Dr. Bane has indicated her desire to see children removed from parents. It is unclear if her call has been used to justify a policy of forced adoption by government officials in the US (and perhaps thus copied to the UK) but she did exert an influence on the Clinton Administration that saw an emphasis on encouraging the forcible removal of children from families.

In order to raise children with equality, we must take them away from families and communally raise them. (1977)

(See also: Linda Gordon, Adolf Hitler, Baron Anthony Giddens)

H.J. Bandman (Dr.)



Carole Baptiste

Carole Baptiste

Social worker and Lisa Arthurworrey supervisor during the time of the Victoria Climbié Scandal. During the Lord Laming enquiry into Victoria's death and the failure of various authorities to intervene, Ms. Baptiste repeatedly refused to give evidence. She was summonsed and became the first person in history to be prosecuted for allegedly breaching an enquiry summons.

Ms. Baptiste had become engaged with fundamentalist Christianity during the time Victoria should have been under the protection of Haringey Social Services;


Throughout 1999 she had also become involved with a "charismatic church" called the Rhema Ministry.

It believes in aggressive prayer and spiritual warfare to help provide a base for bible teaching, reinforcing practical Christian living.

This coincided with her declaring she had been baptised and discussed her religious beliefs and experiences with colleagues at work.
(Source: Social worker 'showed signs of mental illness' Daily Mail)

Ms. Baptiste was also alleged to be a believer in witchcraft;

Lisa Arthurworrey in particular gave vivid insights into the workings of Haringey social services, comparing it to a girl's school where the senior managers were the prefects and the social workers were expected to be seen and not heard. She also claimed that her manager, Carole Baptiste, was obsessed with her status as a black woman, her religion, and with witchcraft.
(Source: Structure of Government: 2005/06 Case Study: The Death of Victoria Climbié City University (London))

Fiona Barton

Fiona Barton

Columnist and journalist for The Daily Mail newspaper. Author of numerous articles detailing failings in the English and Welsh secretive Family Law system, including Scandal of the Stolen Children Daily Mail 14th May 2005. Together with Rosie Waterhouse Ms. Barton contributed to exposing the SRA Myth in the early 1980s and early 1990s.


Jane Barlow

Jane Barlow

Professor of Public Health in the Early Years at Warwick University. See the entry for Shahnaz Malik.
(See also Phillip K. Dick)

Judith Barnard

Director - Policy & Public Affairs - National Autistic Society
(See also Dr. Judith Gould, Jacqui Smith MP, Bruno Bettelheim.)

Stephen Baskerville (PhD)

American author of the book Taken Into Custody: The War Against Fathers, Marriage, and the Family (2007) detailing the alleged conspiracy of deliberate bias against fathers and efforts to destroy family life conducted by both elements in the US government and the US Family Court system. Mr. Baskerville is also the author of several articles, including From Welfare State to Police State (2008) and The Failure of Family Policy (2008). Mr. Baskerville is also a particularly vitriolic critic of US civil liberties organisations such as the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) whom he accuses of promoting secret courts and being accessories to abuse performed by the government.

A calm and assured (though sometimes dry) public speaker, Dr. Baskerville manages to convey the enormity of the changes to US justice provision through the ruthless and relentless desire to destroy the concept of the family unit, and how the leftist and liberal elite have allowed such changes to persist. The nature of the US justice system's treatment of both fathers and women parents has come under increasing scrutiny in recent years, and is likely to result in future attention from regimes abroad, including those whose justice systems are subjected to criticism from the State Department;


Colin Batley

Colin Batley

British-born paedophile who operated in East London and the Welsh seaside town of Kidwelly until his arrest and conviction in March 2011.

Batley and his 'cult', which consisted of his wife and a number of women, engaged in group sex, bisexual sex and paedophilia. Batley employed a hold over his cult through the use of satanic imagery and props. Altough obsessed with the life-and-times of Aleister Crowley, Batley's gathering was seemingly constructed as a sex cult; there is no evidence that any of the elements of an organised genuine satanic ritual cult were in place - such as sacrifices or even mock sacrifices, and certainly none of the 'modern' aspects of satanic ritual abuse/ritual abuse defined by British and American SRA Myth advocates (see Dr. Sandra Buck - RAINS - Part One) such as involvement of the CIA or MI5, or local police or social services, or perhaps most importantly, torture performed, with or without the desire to create 'dissociaton' - multiple personalities so that the victims could act as programmed robot slaves for the cult.

Batley's cult may well have remained secret, but his paedophile activities led to one of his victims coming forward to the police, leading to a lengthy investigation. Up untl then there was no hint to the resident of the sleepy seaside town of Kidwelly of what he was upto.

Batley had sent a photo of his wife to the Readers’ Wives section of a pornographic magazine and this had led to them meeting ‘others for group activities’, the jury was told.

They included former dental nurse Jacqueline Marling and prostitute Shelly Millar, who both joined Batley’s occult ‘circle’.

They were given matching tattoos of the Eye of Horus, the Egyptian falcon god depicted pecking out the eyes of Christ in Crowley’s works, and addressed Batley as ‘My lord’ (police found him listed under this name on Millar’s mobile phone).

Such was Batley’s control over his wretched ‘coven’ that they had to pay him 25 per cent of their income.

Every time Millar entertained a client, she would send Batley a text message to tell him how much she had been paid. She had sex with more than 3,000 clients over a two-year period, making about £2,000 a month, a quarter of which went to him. It explained how Batley, officially unemployed, could afford a £45,000 caravan and frequent holidays abroad.
(Source: The Satanists of Ash Tree Close: 'Evil' paedophile found guilty of running sex cult from cul-de-sac in seaside village by Rebecca Evans and Paul Bracchi, The Daily Mail 10th March 2011)

Batley brought some sense of the East End with him to his cult;

Batley, in a hooded robe, would read out extracts from the Book of the Law, which had been typed out and laminated by his wife. Hanging above him on the wall was a gold ceremonial dagger and sitting menacingly nearby were his two rottweilers, Tutankhamun and Sekhet.
(Source: The Satanists of Ash Tree Close: 'Evil' paedophile found guilty of running sex cult from cul-de-sac in seaside village by Rebecca Evans and Paul Bracchi, The Daily Mail 10th March 2011)

In the course of his activities, several underage girls were repeatedly raped, and one fell pregnant, to be threatened by Batley if she sought an abortion. Under-age boys were also victims of Batley's carnal obsessions.

The witness recalled how Batley promised to set him up with a girl and directed him to a dark bedroom. Once inside, he got into bed and then realised that the other person lying beside him was Elaine Batley.

One of the charges against Shelly Millar was that she seduced a boy of 15. Millar claimed he was 16, and that she was teaching him how to have sex as he had a new girlfriend ‘he wanted to impress’. She had sex with him twice in Batley’s caravan in Tenby. Batley, it emerged during the trial, had been reported to Carmarthenshire Social Services in 2002 by a concerned relative. She said Batley had been abused by his own father and that ‘history was about to repeat itself’.

The warning was unheeded, allowing Batley and his cult to prey on youngsters week after week, month after month for another eight years.
(Source: The Satanists of Ash Tree Close: 'Evil' paedophile found guilty of running sex cult from cul-de-sac in seaside village by Rebecca Evans and Paul Bracchi, The Daily Mail 10th March 2011)

Before being arrested, Batley had had time to dispose of most of the evidence, but some video film was found. Even after extensive interviews, he continued to deny the accusations against him.

He and five other alleged members insisted throughout the five-week trial that no cult had ever existed. But the jury dismissed that, finding him guilty of more than two dozen acts of sexual perversion linked to his activities in the cult.

They included 11 separate rapes, three indecent assaults, causing prostitution for personal gain, causing a child to have sex and inciting a child to have sex.

The jury also found him guilty of six counts of buggery and four counts of possessing indecent images of a child.
(Source: Paedophile cult leader convicted for 'satanic' rape campaign, Press Association Article, 9th March 2011)

Batley was given a public protection sentence with an 11-year minimum recommendation. His unwillingness to admit his guilt means that he will never be considered for parole.

The Batley case drew attention to the danger of cults in the United Kingdom. The Cult Information Centre in London has nothing to do with SRA Myth 'industry' - it doesn't reference their books or meetings, and certainly has no interest in being identified with the "shit-house-rat-crazy" branch of psychotherapy discussed in Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS, Parts Three, Four and Five most notably the "dissociation" theories. Indeed many anti-cult experts regard the therapy industry that is associated with RMT (Recovered Memory Therapy) and SRA Myth obsessions as a cult themselves.

Membership of religious or therapy cults, including those unfortunately that profess to save 'victims' from satanic ritual abuse is a growing phenomenae in the western world. Colin Batley, although at the somewhat lower end of society, was able to keep his activities secret for decades. With many police forces, such as the Metropolitan Police (who themselves have a vulnerability to cults themselves - see London police give Scientology access to data on security alerts and Police officers accepted gifts from Church of Scientology) obsessed with the SRA Myth and its fantasies of CIA/MI5 and/or alien involvment, it is likely they are missing the genuine cases where there are genuine victims.

John Batt

John Batt

Solicitor and author of the book Stolen Innocence (2005) about the malcious conviction of Sally Clark and the efforts by the British medical profession to address the issues raised.

Stolen Innocence


Mr. Batt was a member of the team who represented Sally Clark at appeal. A frequent contributor to television and newspapers, Mr. Batt is a fierce critic of the use of false MSBP allegations against women;

Any of the following may put a mother in the MSBP "frame"; if the doctor can find nothing wrong with the child; if tests are negative; if mum demands other opinions; if she has an "unhealthy" interest in things medical; if she exaggerates the child's condition; and, of course, if she denies making it all up. For the health service, MSBP is a cheap solution to difficult cases. Some doctors call it a "sexy" diagnosis.
(Source: Catchphrase that convicts overanxious mothers - The Times - 7th November 2006, Author: John Batt )

(See also William Bache, Angela Canning, Dr. Lynne Wrennall, Sister Prudence Allen)

Nigel Beail

Nigel Beail (Prof.)

Conspiracy theorist and Professor of Psychology at the Clinical Psychology Unit (CPU) Group, University of Sheffield, northern England.

Professor Beail is a Trustee of the IPD - Institute for Psychotherapy and Disability. He is most notable though for being a long-time advocate/proponent for the satanic ritual abuse - SRA Myth, having first published on the subject in 1994 in Dr. Valerie Sinasons Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse. Since 1994 he has retained his enthusiasm for the belief, including attending and speaking at SRA Myth events as recently as September 2009. Professor Beail also acts as an mental health advisor to the British government. Further detail about Professor Beail is listed under The Evil, Satanic Poor and The Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability.


Simone de Beauvoir

Simone de Beauvoir

Leading French-born feminist philosopher and author, most notably of her 1949 treatise The Second Sex, regarded as a foundation work for the birth of modern radical feminism. Madam de Beauvoir is also credited with the modern perceived threads centred against maternity and the family structure dominating modern radical feminism. It has been postulated that English and Welsh Family Courts together with a sizeable minority of social workers, paediatricians, police officers and politicians are following her mantras to persecute mothers and discourage family life, having been influenced by such stanzas as;

"[A]s long as the family and the myth of the family and the myth of maternity and the maternal instinct is not destroyed, women will still be oppressed....No woman should be authorised to stay at home and raise her children.
...
Society should be totally different. Women should not have that choice, precisely because if there is such a choice, too many women will make that one. It is a way of forcing women in a certain direction."
(Source - Simone de Beauvoir, "Sex, Society, and the Female Dilemma," Saturday Review, June 14, 1975.)

Madame de Beauvoir died April 1986.

(See also Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Linda Gordon, Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP, Rt. Hon. Patricia Hewitt MP, Margaret Sanger)

Jasmine Beckford

Jasmine Beckford

(See Maria Colwell)




Dana Becker

American-born author of Through The Looking Glass: Women and Borderline Personality Disorder (New Directions in Theory & Psychology) (1997) and clinical supervisor of family therapy at the Centre for Research on Adolescent Drug Abuse at Temple University.

In the last decade the use of BPD as a means by the State to forcefully remove children from women has expanded hugely in the UK and US. Together with the widespread and unregulated use of MSBP allegations against women, BPD has itself become an "industry."

The theory of MPD (Multiple Personality Disorder, also called DID) and BPD are deeply linked to SRA (Satanic Ritual Abuse) inasmuch as many psychologists are convinced that they are caused by childhood physical or sexual abuse. BPD is also employed with MSBP false allegations and PAS in a battery of labels designed to ensure that something "sticks" against a woman when no evidence of abuse or neglect of a child is otherwise forthcoming. As with SRA, BPD theory is heavily supported by feminism, painting a picture of women as "victims" (who nonetheless should have their children removed from them).

Ms. Beckers volume explores the diagnosis of BPD, and its origins — most notably that its history can be traced back to the use of the hysteria diagnosis against women, and the use of witchcraft allegations. In the UK a routine diagnosis of BPD by a secretive Family Court-appointed expert will result in an order for a woman to seek therapy. Upon approaching the NHS (National Health Service) the woman subsequently finds that the qualified therapist can find no disorder. Upon returning to the secretive court, the woman is determined to have failed in her compliance to the Court's instructions and her child/children are promptly removed.

(See also Dr. Richard Gardner, William R. Long, Stafford Betty, Nick Land, Dr. Richard Rogers)

ML Bergeron

French academic and feminist whose paper Hegemony, lay and psychiatry: A perspective on the systematic oppression of 'rogue mothers' (2006) in the journal Feminist Legal Studies IV discussed the use of false MSBP allegations as a means of reinforcing the patriarchal tradition (the hegemony) to maintain control over unconventional mothers, including lesbians. Madame Bergeron's paper is the only known recognised academic work to indicate concern about the use of false MSBP allegations against women in feminist writing worldwide. There are a number of possible explanations for this;
  1. That because campaigning feminists invariably occupy positions in social care and law it is difficult for many of them to be able to contemplate challenging systems they both work in and/or assisted in establishing.
  2. Because of the widespread perception that feminists are anti-children, anti-family and child-rearing by birth mothers, women with children are regarded as being "traitors to the cause" invariably having engaged in heterosexual relationships, often in marriage (regarded as being patriarchal). Such women as thus regarded as "fair game" — and may be abused in any form legally or illegally available. This explanation may explain a preponderance for financially independent, educated women (married or single) to be unjustly and disproportionately subjected to abusive secretive Family Court processes which invariably incorporate elements of false allegations — including the use of MSBP and PAS. This view has also been used to explain the frequent occasions when Fundamentalist Christians and feminists have combined to pursue "fads" against women and mothers — such as the SRA Myth or false memory fiascos.

(See also: Sir Roy Meadow, Linda Gordon, Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Dr. Helen Hayward-Brown, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown , Dr. Clive Baldwin, Wilkie Collins, William R. Long, Jan Loxley, Fran Lyon)

Bruno Bettelheim (autism and MSBP)

The entry for Bruno Bettelheim now has it's own Index entry page. Please click on Bruno Bettelheim

Norman Bettison (Sir)

Chief Constable West Yorkshire Police Constabulary (December 2006 - )
(See also Colin Cramphorn QPM, Terence Grange QPM, Sir Ian Blair)

Stafford Betty

(See Nick Land)

Michael Bishop

Director of Social Services, Cleveland County Council during the Cleveland RAD Scandal of February to July 1987.

(See also Dr. Marietta Higgs, Andrew Croall)

Pamela Bjorklund (MS, RN, CS, PMHNP)

Doctoral Student at the University of Misesota, Minneapolis. Author of the paper No Man's Land: Gender bias and social constructivism in the diagnosis of borderline personality disorder published in volume 27 , issue 1, January 2006 of Issues in Mental Health Nursing,.

The use of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) diagnosis' is hugely weighted in it's use against females. As with MPD (Multiple Personality Disorder) histrionic disorder and Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy, BPD is routinely diagnosed by secretive Family Court-appointed experts as being present in a woman. Invariably the woman, subsequently ordered to seek therapy for the disorder, seeks the assistance of an NHS-appointed expert. The expert, unable to find any disorder, is subsequently unable to offer any course of treatment (it being impossible to treat a condition that isn't present). Upon return to the secretive court the woman's child or children are forcibly removed; the woman having failed to comply with the very letter of the Court's instructions (not having a mental illness is not a sufficient excuse for not being treated for one).

(From the abstract) This paper reviews selected literature on (a) the epidemiology of BPD, (b) gender bias in the diagnosis of BPD, and (c) the social construction of diagnosis, particularly the diagnostic entity labeled "Borderline Personality Disorder". It attempts a synthesis of diverse, multidisciplinary literature to address the question of why women outnumber men by a ratio of 3:1 in the diagnosis of BPD.
An earlier paper by Dana Becker, Through The Looking Glass: Women and Borderline Personality Disorder (1997) examined the subject of gender bias and the use of BPD, tracing its origins back to the use of witchcraft and the use of the hysteria theory against women. The theory of BPD is hugely subjective. As with MPD, feminists are often split on the subject; some enthusiastically pointing to BPD as being further evidence of women habitually abused, thus causing long-term mental problems, whilst others are concerned that the diagnosis provides ample scope for the abuse of women, although feminists have not extended this concern to it's use in the secretive family courts. BPD is hugely popular in the secretive English and Welsh Family Court system, it's use having intensified enormously in recent years.

The Handbook of the Psychology of Women and Gender points to concerns over the sometimes seemingly arbitrary nature of the diagnosis;

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is another diagnostic category of special concern to feminists (Becker, 1997). At least three times as many women as men receive diagnoses of BPD. Individuals with BPD are notorious as unsavoury therapy clients - difficult to work with, troublesome, and unlikely to make progress. Yet the symptoms criteria for BPD are vague and over- inclusive, overlapping with those of other personality disorders. The criteria lack specificity, leaving it to a therapist to decide whether a client's behaviour reaches the threshold of pathology required for a diagnosis. Examples include "inappropriate" intense anger, "marked" reactivity of mood and "markedly" unstable self-image.
(Source: Handbook of the Psychology of Women and Gender page 305, edited by Rhoda K Unger (2004))

It should be noted that in England and Wales, social workers invariably determine initially that a woman is subject to BPD. It is conceivable that the stress of being threatened with having children forcibly removed by a secretive court ensures that many women are rendered sufficiently stressed and concerned (and angry) that they are then rendered prey to being accused of the disorder as a consequence of their deliberately perceived opposition to authority.

(See also Richard Rogers (PhD, ABPP))

Anthony (Tony) Blair (Charles Lynton)

Former Prime Minister of Great Britain (1997 - 2007) won a record number of elections for the Labour Party. He introduced a policy to encourage Local Authorities to increase the numbers of children in local authority care offered for adoption following the 2000 White Paper "Adoption a new approach".) However the policy was perverted by some Authorities who used the policy to promote the forced removal of babies from women at birth. The policy was scrapped by the Department for Communities and Local Government through the unpublicised document National Indicators - Annex C2: Children and Young People

Even before the White paper, forced adoption usage increased under the New Labour government, with a vast increase in the removal of new-born babies being taken from women at or shortly after birth;

In 1995, 1996 and 1997 the number of babies taken into care under the age of 8 days old who were subsequently adopted remained consistent at;

370, 340, 350

respectively per year.

Then after 1997 the number leapt up to;
430 in 1998
790 in 2002


and all the way to 920 in 2005 and 2006

An increase from 1995 of 149%.

The total number of babies taken for adoption by social services, under the age of 30 days leapt from a total of ;
540 in 1995

to

1,400 in 2005
1,300 in 2006



An increase of 159% between 1995 and 2005 and 140% between 1995 and 2006.

Following the death of John Smith MP in 1994, the Labour Party elected the then relatively inexperienced Anthony Blair as it's new leader. As an Opposition politician he had displayed remarkable ability and pose and the parties' investment in him was rewarded when in May 1997 he defeated the Conservative Party, which had been in office since 1979, in a landslide General Election victory.

The decision to go with Tony Blair could easily have seen an alternate history of politics written; in the Granita restaurant in Islington, Gordon Brown and Blair had reportedly struck a compromise, whereby Blair was to take on the mantle of Labour leader (and presumably future Prime Minister) and Brown would take charge of economic policy as Chancellor.

In the years that followed Brown and Blair, assisted by the "Islington set" of so-called "champagne socialists" redefined the Labour Party and moulded it into a form that could challenge the Conservative Party in government. This "New Labour" became a substantially different beast to the one envisaged by even John Smith, before his death.

In trying to find a formula that would beat the Conservatives, who were descending into the disarray of John major's term in office, New Labour took on some new concepts and abandoned older theories and traditions that some thought had taken it into the wilderness of political power from 1979 onwards. The influence of the unions was to diminish, and so too the traditional core of democratic socialist thought. To counter the market capitalism of the Tories, the "Third Way" was developed - in a form to ensure that private money could be leveraged to assist the public purse and thus rebuild the public services that had been decimated by the Tories long period in office.

In power though the concepts of New Labour became inevitably corrupted. Media manipulation, initially a hugely powerful means of ensuring a stable means of communicating ideas to the populace, led to a seemingly endless series of scandals in which the Government, sometimes unjustly, was branded as attempting to suppress the freedom of the Press. The "cleaner-than-clean" image that Blair had attempted to enforce, seeing the damage that corruption had inflicted on the last years of the Major government, disappeared almost in a flash. From transport policy to the "moral" foreign arms sales policy, New Labour began to be seen in the same light as the Tories last disastrous administration.

Nonetheless the British public were justifiably unwilling to let the Tories return to power quite so quickly. Blair won a second victory in 2001, and a historic 3rd in 2005, making him the most successful Labour leader in history. However he was also to be remembered as the most war-like Prime Minister in post-WWII history, leading the UK into conflicts in Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2007, mainly because of the controversy following the war in Iraq, Blair resigned, leaving the route to the Prime Minister seat to Gordon Brown, who ascended, uncontested.

Under Gordon Brown the Labour Party has changed once again. During the Blair years there was little sign of democratic socialism in play in the parties policies or practices; the unions were frozen-out of the decision-making policies of the National Executive. Even before 9/11 Brown and Blair had become leading evangelists for the globalisation cause and to a substantial degree were entranced by the neo-Conservatives in the US Republican Party, rather than the Democrat Party which modern labour had tended to align itself with.

With Gordon Brown as Prime Minister the focus of recent years for the government has been the restraint and erosion of civil liberties, under the guise of protecting the public against the perceived terrorist threat from Muslim extremism. Much of this stems from an obsession with altering society so that it is more controlled and compliant. At the same time Labour Party doctrine had changed, mostly in response to the influence of 1980's Marxist Theory (so-called "political correctness") and also in response to the changed values of liberal and leftist causes, which identified increasingly with Fascist dogma. The sometimes frantic move to the Right in politics is probably no better represented in the recent history of the Labour Party, as it moved increasingly towards the positions of the neo-Conservative faction of the US Republican Party, leaving behind much of it's democratic socialist heritage. The drive towards more control of the populace has seen vast resources expended in 'elf 'n safety - in an attempt to curtail for instance, the playing of childhood games in a public park that might conceivably have an element of danger.

In addition to imposing greater control on the populace, many current policies are concerned with the sinister theory that the greatest threat to the nation comes not from external influences (such as Muslim extremism) but rather from citizens themselves, and that many of the concerns expressed by those citizens should be ignored or regarded as irrelevant. As a result common forms of concern by the populace are seen as being of little interest to the State - so for instance the offence of rape, seen by many as a crime that should be addressed and pursued by the Police and Courts with all possible vigour, is now routinely seen as a "middle-class concern" that should no longer attract the attention it did in the past. The same applies to burglary, particularly aggravated burglary (when an assault or even rape is involved) and a huge number of offences that no longer attract substantial police attention.

In their place, huge emphasis is placed by the Government, Local Authorities and prosecuting concerns in pursuing a new range of offences that wouldn't in the past have attracted resource. In support of these changed initiatives the Labour Party, through legislation has introduced over 3,200 new criminal offences since 1997. Many of the new offences concern 'elf 'n safety, or business regulation. In this new changed climate citizens are more likely to be prosecuted for putting their rubbish bags out too soon in the street before a criminal who pursues a course of sexually assaulting women in the street is likely to be arrested. In 2009 widespread concern was expressed that the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act was being used by Local Authorities to spy on citizens who posed no likely terrorist or serious crime threat to the nation (such as checking if a family was indeed resident in a school catchment area.

Labour had been in both government and opposition during the IRA bombing campaigns on mainland Britain during the 1970's and had never demanded a curbing of civil liberties to address the issues then. A particular "feature" of modern New Labour under Gordon Brown is an obsession with databases, ranging from the ID database to the ContactPoint database that records details of all children in the UK.

In 2009 there seems little likelihood that New Labour will rediscover it's democratic socialist core and it is reasonable that history may record the first years of the 21st century as being the first instance of a fascist government in power in England and Wales.

(See also Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Linda Gordon, Baron Anthony Giddens, Dr. Marietta Higgs)



The Index for Surnames beginning with "B" continues at B2

index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


- Surnames D



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

D





Paul Dacre (Michael)

Editor of The Daily Mail and editor-in-chief of the Evening Standard and The Mail on Sunday.

Mr. Dacre is Fiona Barton's editor, who together with Rosie Waterhouse wrote a number of articles in the early 1990s in British newspapers that successfully challenged the SRA Myth 'moral panic' that engulfed Great Britain from 1988.
.

Mary Daly

US radical feminist and theologian.

The connection between radical feminism and religion is already extensively documented through the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth of the late 1980s and 1990s (see Beatrix Campbell (OBE)). However Ms. Daly defined the very suspicion writ large in reality. With a doctorate in religion and two doctorates in sacred theology and philosophy, as a feminist Ms. Daley was able to lecture on the subjects of theology, feminist ethics and patriarchy. Controversy though dogged Ms. Daly, in particular over her sometimes rampant sexism and avid discrimination. In 1998 two male students, backed by the Center for Individual Rights took Boston College to court for discrimination after Ms. Daly determined that she would not teach male students. After this and other discipline actions were taken, Ms. Daly absented herself from teaching at the college rather than submit to a policy of equal non-discriminatory teaching. Eventually an out-of-court settlement was made that saw her leave the faculty.

Ms. Daly's enthusiasm for limiting the education of one sex (in this case males) echoes the practice of denying education for girls in some (though not all) Sharia Law Muslim countries. Rather than the expected outcry against her actions by fellow feminists, her endorsement of the concept that access to education is not a universal right is perhaps the reason by many feminists find themselves unable to protest the denial of education to girls in many countries worldwide. Ms. Daly's dislike of males extended to the view that males represented the 'human species' alone;

I hate the "human species"—look at it! I hate what it is doing to this earth: the invasion of everything. The last two frontiers are the genetic wilderness and the space wilderness; they've colonised everything else. It's a totally invasive mentality—rapist. That is alien, and insofar as I've internalized any of that, I'm sorry. I'm contaminated by it. We all are. But I try not to be, and with every step I at least try to be biophilic, which is what would be required to break out of the human species.
(Source: No Man's Land - an interview with Mary Daly, by Susan Bridle)

Although some radical feminists will repeatedly refer to males as 'sub-human' Ms. Daley has gone one step beyond this view, defining herself as beyond humanity, whom she implicitly identifies with all of the woes of history and the world. Yet to reach that view, a radical feminist must first cross the ruby-con; to initially view the male as a sub-human, and women as divine;

Most feminists use some version of this "critique of masculinity." But they view it as a matter of social systems that have socialised males to an extreme that favours power and control, while assigning women the more "humane" qualities but placing them in a powerless and dependent position. Separatist feminists move from identifying this split with socialisation to seeing it as constituting inherent male and female "natures." This, of course, is what patriarchal ideologies have traditionally done to women. Mary Daly, in her most recent work, Gyn/Ecology (Beacon, 1979), comes close to such identification of goodness with women and evil with men.

One can well ask whether such stereotypes are not unfair and wounding to males. But more important here (since few males are going to expose themselves to being wounded by feminist separatists!) is the question of whether those stereotypes are conducive to valid female self-knowledge and development. If evil is male, then women don’t have to take any responsibility for it. They can be the great innocents or victims of history. Their only ethical task is to purge themselves of all traces of male influence; then their naturally good selves will be revealed and will re-create the world. There is no need for women ever to examine themselves to see whether they are capable of oppressiveness and injustice. In such an outlook, evil is always alien to true femaleness.
(Source: Goddesses and Witches: Liberation and Countercultural Feminism by Rosemary Ruether, originally published in Christian Century, September 10-17, 1980

How though, is all this relevant to family justice and child protection? Well, in her next stanza Professor of Theology Rosemary Ruether provides an unintended insight into why so many married and single women with children are 'reprimanded' by female social workers, paediatricians and secret court-appointed 'experts' for having children and families. The world of what the gender (or 'countercultural') feminist defines as being acceptable reduces in scope as time goes by. It should be noted that Goddesses and Witches: Liberation and Countercultural Feminism was published just a few years before feminists obsession with evil led them willingly into the clutches of the right-wing Christian Fundamentalist movement, as the SRA Myth took hold;

Oddly enough, such a position does not lead to female bonding or sisterhood, as is claimed, but to increasing paranoia and sectarianism on the part of women in their dealings with each other. Having relegated all males to the subhuman, women eye each other suspiciously. Few are believed to have true "feminist consciousness"; most are dupes of males. One shares sisterhood with fewer and fewer women. One cannot have sisterhood with any women who are married, who have male children, who engage in heterosexual relations, who remain within patriarchal religions. These limitations exclude most women. The circle of the elite becomes smaller and smaller, and less and less relevant to the day-to-day needs of most women.


Mary Daly passed away in January 2010. An icon of modern feminism, her legacy was probably her contribution to the adoption of religious rhetoric in the vocabulary of feminists. The mantra of men ("evil") family ("evil") mothers with children ("evil") stems from her generation, that in the late 1980s and '90s had willingly colluded with right-wing Christian Fundamentalist's in both thought and action, during the SRA Myth.

She left a feminist movement spinning from one moral panic to another, obsessed with pseudo science and mistrustful of modern science. The movement has at its heart a belief in inherent evil. The scepticism about modern science, centred around its opposition to the concepts that results should be based upon observation and peer review - and instead adopts theories such as "standpoint" that stipulates results and conclusions should be based on pre-determination, is one that ensures modern feminism is so often compared with religious fundamentalism. The over-riding requirement that the 'feminist science' results contribute to the 'proof' that men, families, women with children (select all applicable) are evil, has distorted feminism in ways undreamed-of before the 1980s. Feminists and militant religion found common cause in the 1980's, and in Great Britain in particular (where the debate over abortion that causes friction between the two groups is absent) and the two groups remain wedded (excuse the pun) together in a household whence they no longer speak with one another, but always arrive in the same car for the big events.


Ian Davey

Director of Social Services for Rochdale Borough Council at the time of the infamous P, C & S case (see Dr. Clive Baldwin). Took early retirement in January 2005.

Liz Davies (Elizabeth)

Former senior social worker at Islington Borough Council in the 1980's and now lecturer in social worker practice.

Ms. Davies is popularly known for exposing, together with her manager, the Islington child sex abuse scandal (see the entry for Margaret Hodge MP). In recent times Ms. Davies has expressed concern about matters concerned with the shipping of children in care from English and Welsh local authorities to Jersey without the keeping of any records about their safety and security.

(See also Eileen Fairweather.)

Marion Davies (Prof.)

President of the Association of Directors of Children's Directors, and also appointed to the safeguarding review panel established by Professor Eileen Munro at the request of new Coalition Government Secretary for Education The Rt. Hon. Michael Gove (MP). She was previously Director of Children, Young People and Families Services for Warwickshire County Council. She has a degree in Sociology and Psychology, and a Master's degree in Social Policy.

In July 2010, Dr. Davies, in an interview with CommunityCare made it clear that she felt there was no need for Independent Social Workers (ISW's) in court cases;

"We think they are an expensive part of the landscape," Davis told Community Care. "Independent social workers are just some of the enormous number of people checking on what social workers do, which can undermine social workers' professional judgement."

Davis said that over time, roles such as that of ISWs had a "detrimental effect" on the social work profession and morale. She said Eileen Munro's review - on which Davis is a reference group member - would be "extremely helpful" in boosting social work confidence.
(Source: ADCS chief says independent social worker role should end, by Molly Garboden, Communitycare, Friday 9th July 2010

It isn't immediately clear what evidence Dr. Davies employed to reach this judgement, and if indeed any research on the subject has been performed. It may be that the judgement against ISW's is simply based on anecdotal hearsay, which would be vulnerable to prejudice. The role of Independent Social Worker is perceived by some to be a vital one, notably in cases which are driven by religious or political/gender prejudice against a family or single woman. On occasions a case being presented to a secret Court in England and Wales, having been reviewed by an ISW, results in proceedings being halted when it is pointed-out that the driver for the pursuit of the family is not in the interests of the child. An example of this (ultimately unsuccessful) can be seen under the entry for Christopher Booker. Dr. Davies has not demanded or called-for research into the subject of the role and usefulness of ISW's.

On occasions, ISW's will intervene when a child protection case relies too heavily on 'crank' or 'pseudo' science, particularly from the psychology 'industry' - a problem that plagues modern social work in England and Wales, and the US. It isn't certain how removing an oversight capability of local authority social workers would be of benefit to the profession, bearing in mind the almost constant stream of allegations of unprofessionalism and corruption laid at the door of child protection social workers (see the entry for Rachel Williams). Indeed there might be an argument to suggest that independent oversight, particularly in cases of forced adoption, should be expanded and intensified, rather than diminish - both in an effort to ensure resources are not wasted pursuing unnecessary and often petty cases, but also to provide a measure of public assurance.

An example of the role and capabilities of ISW's can be found at Martin Murphy SW - Services.

An unusual element relating to Dr. Davie's comments about ISW's is that Professor Eileen Munro's review team incorporates an Independent Social Worker in the form of self-employed senior social worker Melanie Adegbite, who works in Newham's (London) safeguarding and intervention team. In most other professions, commenting on the role of a fellow committee member would be regarded as particularly uncouth.


Marybeth Davies

American housewife and mother accused and convicted in 1997 of murdering one child and injuring another through the application of caffeine poisoning and insulin poisoning whilst allegedly suffering from MSBP. The prosecution was pursued in 1995 when MSBP allegations became "fashionable."

Ms. Davies served 10 years in prison but a comprehensive campaign by supporters including doctors, saw a re-evaluation of the case. However the State of West Virginia was reluctant to offer a retrial and instead offered a plea-bargain to Ms Davies that saw her released from life-without-parole on the basis that she admit the poisonings and never talk of the case again under the threat of being re-imprisoned for the rest of her natural life. The original criminal investigation in 1982 concluded no crime had taken place. One child was diagnosed with Reyes Syndrome and the other with the genetic disorder Human Growth Hormone Deficiency, which resulted in the symptoms the child was alleged to suffer when being poisoned being observed even whilst the mother was incarcerated in prison. This huge disparity is now regarded by 'modern' advocates of the MSBP false allegation regime as being a reason why removal of the child from a woman accused of MSBP should not be used as a prime indicator of the existence of MSBP, an element that was regarded as key proof in the past that a woman or carer was indeed inflicting abuse on a child. Although there is no documented reason why this key aspect of MSBP Theory should now be ignored, it is likely, bearing in mind the nature of many, somewhat bizarre allegations of MSBP made against women, that there is belief that women are able to inflict injuries on their charges using either supernatural means from a distance, or some method as yet undetermined by science. In some instances, where poisonings of children have been alleged, and the child or baby is still in hospital, and allowed access for visits by a woman, the amount of substances that would have to be sneaked past the hospital staff easily exceeds the capacity of the woman to actually carry it without the assistance of either substantial baggage or a pallet truck.

The case of Ms. Davies paralleled that of Sally Clark and Angela Canning in England inasmuch as MSBP allegations in criminal prosecutions were invariably seen to employ flawed evidence or poor standards of investigation. The Marybeth Davies Scandal also drew attention to the US radical feminist and civil liberties movements that declined to intervene or campaign about the case.
(See also http://www.mywire.com/a/LegalAffairs/Medeas-Shadow/462275?page=2)

Maureen Davies

British Christian fundamentalist and former nurse who assisted in "selling" the concept of satanic ritual abuse to British social workers and other professionals in the 1980's through the Reachout Trust based in Lancashire. Ms Davies is a Director of the Trust, a fundamentalist Christian organisation dedicated to combating the Devil and all his works;

The Reachout Trust sends out literature it receives from America on how to spot ritual abuse. Maureen Davies is consulted by police officers and social workers and has lectured at police training colleges and to church groups. Last year after setting-up a helpline for survivors, she was invited to lecture in America with Larry Jones, a policeman who runs a newsletter on Satanic crime for Christian police officers in the US.

Ms. Davies once said "Sometimes no proof is proof (of a conspiracy)" She is considered an "expert" in England.
(Source: The Making of a Satanic Myth - Rosie Waterhouse - The Independent on Sunday 12th August 1990, page 8)

At the three day conference Not One More Child held at the centre of religious fundamentalist academia in England - Reading University, in September 1989, Mrs. Davies revealed how the SRA Myth was being seen as an opportunity to address what had been suspended at the end of the 17th century;

“There’s a grave problem,” Maureen tells us, about the time of the Reading shindig; “the way we are going to deal with it is not by bringing back the Witchcraft Act, but by talking confidentially with police and social services, so they know what to look for.”
(Source: Where the Babble Thrives We Needs Must Follow, by Les H. Posted on Open Salon)

(See also Rosie Waterhouse, Norma Howes, Roger Cook, Dr. Sara Scott, Judith (Dawson) Jones, Dianne Core, Beatrix Campbell (OBE), Dr. Sandra Buck.)

Deborah Davis

Playwright. Her play Guilty Until Proven Innocent broadcast on Radio 4 on Wednesday 16th December 2009 concerned a fictional case of two middle class unmarried parents whose baby daughter Sky is taken to hospital suffering from a brain injury. The parents narration, mixed with casted dialogue, detailed a nightmare descent into the sometimes weird, obscene and bizarre world of child protection legislation - with social workers obsessed with vindictiveness, hopelessly inept police officers, and experts unwilling to consider any other diagnosis.

A scene in the play portrays the court-appointed Guardian and Social Worker hugging near the end of the case, emphasising the regular observations from parents and other commentators that the two professions often work together in such cases.

In one of the final scenes, Gina, the mother, played by Melissa Advani receives a recorded delivery letter, and her husband, played by David Hargreaves finds her dead, having committed suicide. Although a secret court judge determined that the baby should remain in the parents care, the social services department had sent the letter to her, stating their desire to persist with the case through an appeal.


Judith Dawson (Jones)

Judith Dawson


Matthew Dean (LCpl), British Army)

Lance Corporal Dean serves in the Princess of Wales Regiment and has performed tours of duty in Iraq, Kosovo and Northern Ireland. He is married to Katie Dean, and whilst serving in Germany his son, Louie was born, though 5 weeks prematurely and with an enlarged head and floppy limbs.

Following a check-up by skilled German doctors, blood was found between his brain and skull and two operations were required. Baby Louie also developed meningitis. The doctors could find no evidence of any other injury and no child abuse was suspected by them.

Returning home to the UK for Xmas, they found that a consultant radiologist at Southampton General Hospital - Jo Fairhurst, had been sent the X-rays and had determined that there was a 'healing fracture' of a rib, suggesting a 'non-accidental injury.' This "healing fracture" was later found to be a misinterpretation of the x-ray, and a skilled German doctor identified the mistake as a misreading of a line on the X-ray created because Louie's lungs and spine had moved.

However for the Dean's, things moved at apace. They were informed that when they returned to British Army Germany they would be arrested. Social welfare care for British Army personnel is provided by the British Forces Social Work Service, who told the parents that Mrs. Deans mother would have to care for the son, and she moved to Germany do so.

To regain the right to look after their son, LCpl Dean gained a transfer back to the UK in January 2008. The British Forces Social Work Service abandoned them to Hampshire Social Services, forcing them to have baby Louie looked after by his grandmother on the other side of town.

In December 2008 the High Court in Portsmouth hearing, almost a year after the families return to Britain, saw Hampshire Social Services offer no evidence for the case and the family was reunited. It is unclear at what point the social workers in the case became aware that there was no evidence to support the allegation of child abuse, but presumably it was before the court hearing.

Cuddling Louie, now 18 months, Mrs Dean, 32, said last night: 'Social services treated us like something they'd stepped in and were desperate to build a case.

(Source: - Daily Mail 21st March 2009, by Neil Sears)

The case highlighted the lack of care and attention that is applied in child protection cases, particularly on those relying only on the evidence of an "expert." In this case no attempt was made by the hospital in the UK to ensure an independent 2nd opinion was sought, even when the error made was relatively simple to comprehend. In this case skilled German doctors came to the family's rescue, ensuring that in the secret court the family weren't even cross-examined.

Additionally, the case highlighted the vulnerability of British Army families in the face of the lack of care afforded to them by the The British Forces Social Work Service. In this case a serving soldiers career was jeopardised by a simple lack of medical professionalism. As the British Army is notorious for maintaining poor standards of housing for its serving troops and their families, the risks of being rendered vulnerable to vindictive social workers who prey on families due to poverty or for dogmatic reasons in enhanced, particularly when the welfare provision for the serving troops 'runs away.'

The case also drew attention to the range of responses by social workers, particularly in light of the Baby P Scandal, to issues of child protection, ranging from this case to those when an obviously-vulnerable baby was left to be murdered. In this case a simple double-check would have preserved the soldiers family, conserved vital resources and not exposed the family justice and child protection system to more ridicule.

At the end of the case a particularly disturbing element was revealed, with apparent prejudice from social workers against Matthew Dean coming to light, and an accusation that being a soldier had a bearing on his ability to be a safe father;

Matthew - who was brought up by his electrician grandfather until he joined the Army at 16 because his parents found raising a child too difficult - was also subject to their prejudices.

He says: 'They told me that because I had an unconventional upbringing I was more likely to abuse my children. I was equally as shocked when they said my job would make me more prone to violence'
(Source: Social workers said because I was a soldier, I was more likely to be violent to my own children - by Antonia Hoyle, Daily Mail 4th April 2009)

There is no indication that the social workers concerned were quoting any scientific study or reference, and the incident may simply be a case of social workers making-up theory "on-the-fly" to satisfy prejudices against a father and/or soldier. Nonetheless the accusation may be a pointer to a possible new "fad" amongst a minority of social workers, who may conceivably determine that with the UK engaged in two wars, - Iraq and Afghanistan, there is amble scope for the forced removal of children from Army families' on the grounds that soldiers are too violent to be allowed to have children.

In response to the prejudice exhibited against Corporal Dean, neither the Ministry of Defence or the British Army welfare branch or the Government chose to ask Hampshire Social Services to validate their claim, suggesting that the "crank" theory is either widely accepted in some quarters, or those authorities can't be bothered challenging it. In the United States both individual Army welfare departments and the DOD (Department of Defence) keep a firm supervisory hand and eye on the activities of social workers dealing with the families of serving individuals - a system that isn't replicated in the UK. At this point it is uncertain if tens of thousands of British Army, RAF, Royal Navy and Marine professionals well be rendered vulnerable to dogmatic prejudice from a minority of social services departments after their tours-of-duty in live-fire zones are complete.

David Derbyshire


Rachel Dewer

Child protection police constable working for the Metropolitan Police during 1999, involved in the case of Victoria Climbié (who see).



Mary deYoung (Prof.)

Mary de Young (Prof.)




American Professor of Sociology at Grand Valley State University, Michigan.

Professor deYoung is the author of The Day Care Ritual Abuse Moral Panic (2004), The Ritual Abuse Controversy: An Annotated Bibliography (2002), Child Molestation: An Annotated Bibliography (1987), Incest: An Annotated Bibliography (1985) and The Sexual Victimisation of Children (1982). A forthcoming book is titled Madness.

Professor deYoung has mixed her academic career with real-world practical experience. From 1982 to 1998 she was Clinical Consultant to the YWCA Child Sexual Abuse Treatment Program in Grand Rapids, Michigan. From 1990 to 2000 she was Clinical Consultant to the Sexual Assault Program of the YWCA of Grand Rapids.

Professor deYoung is widely regarded as the pre-eminant analyst and historian on the subject of the satanic ritual abuse moral panic that gripped the US from the early 1980s to the early 1990s. Her The Ritual Abuse Controversy: An Annotated Bibliography is an essential resource for any researcher addressing this period in US history, and the moral-panic which engulfed it, providing pointers to academic papers assessing the nature, cause and effect of the SRA Myth on US society and its justice system.

Unlike many US academics, Prof. deYoung is equally at home addressing both US and non-US issues, to place them in context. The Day Care Ritual Abuse Moral Panic (2004) covered both the US and UK version of the 'Myth, whilst her paper The Devil Goes Abroad': The Export of the Ritual Abuse Moral Panic she traced the origins of the SRA Myth in the US and its export to the UK and other Western white nations. In particular she addressed a particular element of the 'Myth; that it was primarily directed at men. In reality, as with the European and New England witchhunts of the 13-17th centuries, women were the primary victims of the orgy of false allegations.

On a more accessible surface level, the explanation elaborates a new criminal type: the female sex fiend in the guise of the friendly, matronly woman next door. In conjuring up the image of the abuser as female, panic discourse distracts international child-savers' attention from the on-going and unsettling critique of the ideology of patriarchy and the structure of male privilege that the discovery of sexual abuse introduced. The panic discourse created a straw woman, engendered by the sexual revolution and the rise of feminism, that can be flailed at, pathologised, vilified and demonised, but whose subduing does not first require sweeping ideological and social change.

Now it is true that not all of the folk devils in this moral panic are women. In the American cases about two-thirds of those accused are, and in the European cases about half are (deYoung 1998b). But the putative role of women is noteworthy. In every satanic ritual abuse case in the world in which a man is accused, a woman is implicated-for instigation, collusion, suppression or deceit.
(Source: The Devil Goes Abroad': The Export of the Ritual Abuse Moral Panic by Mary deYoung, The British Criminology Conference: Selected Proceedings. Volume 3. Papers from the British Society of Criminology Conference, Liverpool, July 1999.)

Prof. deYoung would return to the nature of how women were subjected to the false allegation regime during the 'Myth years, and how the law was changed in the US to breed a perfect environment for such allegations to prosper and thrive. In her 2008 paper The Devil’s Walking Parody: A Follow-Up of 12 Convicted Women Day Care Providers she examined the nature of the convictions made against the twelve female day-care staff and owners during the 'Myth years in the US (ten of which were overturned on appeal, leaving two which continue to tax the consciences of US liberal thought). Here she compares the 'profiles' of women alleged to be engaged in satanic crimes, invented by David Finkelhor and Linda M. Williams in their long-derided, but US government-funded Nursery Crimes: Sexual Abuse in Day Care (1989).

If the 12 women providers in the sample are not of a type in a sociological sense, they are also not of the type described in either of the Nursery Crimes profiles. Although each admitted to her share of the humiliations and insults that all women experience in a gendered society, none reported the kind of early and prolonged history of sexual abuse that in the profile of the woman scorned is imagined to spawn the drive to mortify children’s sexuality through ritual abuse. None of the women providers fits the profile of the evil woman either. None was socially isolated, and although most underwent court-ordered psychiatric exams, none was diagnosed as mentally ill. Thorough background investigations revealed that none was a devotee or practitioner of a satanic or occult belief system. Further, none had a previous criminal record or, for that matter, a social reputation consistent with the kind of identification with evil described as the motivation for ritual abuse in the profile of the evil woman.
(Source: The Devil’s Walking Parody: A Follow-Up of 12 Convicted Women Day Care Providers by Prof. Mary deYoung, published in Contemporary Issues in Criminology and the Social Sciences, Volume 2 Number 1 January 2008, page 40)

Prof. deYoung's work has been published in publications for disciplines as diverse as her native sociology, behavioural science, psychology, social work and criminology. Criminology in particular has benefitted from her insights, both in the US and UK, and Prof. deYoung is a Doctor of Arts in Criminology, gained in 1975 from Western Colorado University.

Strangely though, not all criminologists are SRA Myth skeptics. In 2010, Professor Colin Sumner, former Professor of Criminology and Head/Dean of the School of Law, University of East London (1995-2000) and before that Lecturer in Sociology at the Institute of Criminology, and Fellow of Wolfson College, in Cambridge University (1977 to 1995) started his own web site - CrimeTalk aimed at attracting visitors interested in criminology-related subjects and news items. He also includes 'guest' articles and postings found on the web.

One of the first 'add-on' postings was from famous and oft-parodied SRA Myth advocate, 'trained assassin' Neil Brick (see references to Mr. Brick in the entry for Dr. Ruth Skeldon and another lengthy reference in End piece). Neil Bricks web site 'S.M.A.R.T' remains a focus for conspiracy theory True Believers in the SRA Myth, and he is responsible for the huge postings often seen on disparate web forums and mailing lists 'Proof ritual abuse exists' which includes numerous references to 'Mind Control' and convictions that the McMartin day-care centre staff were smuggling children away through underground tunnels to be taken off-site by jet aircraft or balloons, to be sexually abused in other towns and cities across the US. Evidence of child abuse in cults and social groups, posted on CrimeTalk, 11 May 2011, by Neil Brick was yet another cut-and-paste of the usual, often circular references to belief in the 'Myth, many quoted on this site. Some came from fundamentalist believers in the 'Myth, and virtually all referenced the 1990s, after which the 'Myth pretty much ran-out-of-steam amongst all but the most ardent fundamentalists, conspiracy theorists, feminists, and apparently, at least one British criminologist. To seemingly ensure CrimeTalk was destined to become a laughing-stock amongst his fellow professionals, Neil Brick contributed some further messages.

To back-up his enthusiasm for advocates of the 'Myth, Professor Sumner included a link to Neil Brick's S.M.A.R.T site on the CrimeTalk web page;

CrimeTalk S.M.A.R.T link


Colin Sumner though isn't the only criminologist to have adopted 'shit-house-rat-crazy' conspiracy theories. The Australia and New Zealand Criminology Society has a particular affinity for the SRA Myth, though in the nature of the 'Myth in Australia is such that it resembles a sort of very lengthy guitarists delay pedal; with everything previously played out in other countries being replayed in Australia all over again several years later. In February 2005 the Society had notable SRA Myth True Believer, British feminist Dr. Liz Kelly present the keynote speech at its conference. In 2010 the same Society accepted Michael Salter's somewhat embarrassing paper - Organised Abuse and Testimonial Legitimacy once again for its conference (see the extended entry about Australia's flirtation with the 'Myth under the entry for Liz Mullinar). In July 2011, Dr. Kelly was a keynote speaker at the British Society of Criminology Conference 2011 at Northumbria University’s City Campus East, though it isn't quite certain what feminism can contribute to criminology, other than perhaps a desire to encourage the ignoring of evidence through the use of such paradigms as Feminist Standpoint Theory. See also a discussion about the efforts to reintroduce Spectral Evidence as a 'modern' evidence standard during the SRA Myth years in the UK and US in the index entry The return of Spectral Evidence.

The study of the SRA Myth 'moral panic' and its impact on Western white societies remains an important and ever-burgeoning subject for research. Sociologists like Dr. deYoung, criminologists (though not perhaps Professor Sumner), psychologists and contemporary historians continue to find it a fascinating field of study whose impact, only in recent years, is beginning to be fully realised.

A number of quotes from Professor deYoungs work can be found in the entry for Beatrix Campbell (OBE).

(See also Jeffrey S. Victor (Ph.D), Phillip Jenkins, Margaret Jervis, Debbie Nathan, Michael Snedeker, Dr. Darren Oldridge) )

Anne Diamond

TV broadcaster, writer and presenter.

Ms. Diamonds son, Sebastian, died from SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) in 1991. As a presenter on ITV's Good Morning Television (GMTV) Ms Diamond took up the cause of campaigning on the subject at a time when the influence of Sir Roy Meadow and the writers Richard Firstman and Jamie Talen (authors of The Death of Innocents: A True Story of Murder, Medicine and High-Stake Science) were in the ascendancy - with their theory that mothers who murdered their babies were the primary cause of SIDS.

With the assistance of committed health professionals and campaigners Ms. Diamond fronted a campaign imploring parents to ensure that babies slept on their backs, that saw the incidence of cot deaths in the UK drop from more than 2000 per year to less that 200. Further advances in medical research, notably in identifying a genetic inherited disposition to SIDS have seen another substantial drop in cases. The devaluing of Sir Meadow's expert testimonies that saw a huge number of women jailed for murder in criminal cases pursued after SIDS deaths (see also Sally Clark and Angela Canning) has seen a thorough reappraisal of the nature of SIDS.

The "back to sleep" campaign remains the UK's most successful health campaign in British history.

Phillip K. Dick

US author. Born 1928, died March 2nd 1982.
As a notable science fiction author, Phillip Dick stretched the genre throughout his career - exploring psychology, sociology and metaphysical themes. His most popular novels are Flow My Tears The Policeman Said, Ubik and The Man In The High Castle. His work has proved remarkably resilient to the passing years and many of his novels and short stories have been adapted as movies, most notably Blade Runner (1982) adapted from the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Total Recall adapted from We Can Remember It For You Wholesale and A Scanner Darkly from the novel of the same name. Despite being written and initially published in the 1960's and 70's, almost all of his work remains in print.

His relevance to family justice and child protection (and consequently this Index) comes about through his short story The Minority Report filmed with the same title (minus "The") in 2002 by Steven Spielberg and starring Tom Cruise.

The Minority Report examines a near future when through the use of psychics, a police department is able to apprehend criminals based on foreknowledge of the crimes they are going to commit. The concept extended the "thought crime" concept of novelist George Orwell, who envisaged a future in his novel 1984 when thinking beyond a tightly regulated behaviour regime was a crime in itself.

In the English and Welsh secret family court system, the concept of "foreknowledge" and "thought crime" has been taken beyond even the world envisioned by Dick, through the widespread use of preventative measures against women to ensure that new-born children aren't subjected to possible abuse, neglect or emotional harm. The need for such preventative measures is obvious; a baby born into an environment that is obviously dangerous requires the protection of the State. Often a woman or family will be grossly oblivious to the needs of a baby and the baby will be in severe danger if it isn't taken into care for its own protection. Although "obvious" this concept, though agreed by most people, doesn't always get enacted - the Baby P Scandal being a recent example. Other reasons why a child might be taken forcibly into care is a history of abuse against previous children by the parents or carers, or the existence of a partner with a violent disposition or past, a serious drug or alcohol habit, or a serious mental illness, such as schizophrenia.

Whatever the reason, it could be assumed that the State's reason's for taking a new-born baby into forced care would be valid, and would attract a thorough investigations with the greatest amount of oversight.

In the last decade though, the reasons for early intervention in a young baby's life, and the excuses proffered for having a woman's right to stay with her new-born baby have expanded into a totally different regime.

The Fran Lyon Scandal probably provides the best indication as to the nature of this new regime. Without seeing the mother-to-be, but based on notes handed over by a social services department, and in the face of two written reports from two experts who had seen (and worked with) the mother, it was determined that Fran Lyon would inflict a fabricated or Induced Illness (MSBP/FII) or would "emotionally harm" her new-born baby. To the experts credit (Dr. Martin Ward-Platt) he did detail that further investigation into Ms Lyon should take place. Being a paediatrician and not a psychiatrist ensured that he was not qualified for the role of commenting on the likely future state of Ms. Lyon - and it could be rightly anticipated that such a serious diagnosis could be reached only after extensive psychiatric testing and evaluation (Ms. Lyon had in the past been raped as a teenager and had suffered a brief mental illness episode afterwards).

In response to Dr. Ward Platt's report, the local authority chose to ignore the recommendation for further investigation, and determined that although there was no evidence in the past to suggest that Ms. Platt would become a "Munchausens Mother" or would "emotionally harm" her new-born baby - it would be best if the baby was removed forcibly from her at birth. Ms. Lyon was informed of this seemingly arbitrary decision. Ms. Lyon engaged in a public debate, seeing her interviewed repeatedly on television and even writing her own articles (though the BBC notably ignored her - see Ceri Thomas). To most it became obvious that Ms. Lyon was highly unlikely to develop any desire to harm her child, and she had the written confirmation of such from two experts whose opinion had been ignored.

Eventually Ms. Lyon fled abroad, to Sweden, a nation whose social services employ Evidence-Based Practise, backed by Evidence-Based Research. The use of EBP/EBR is discouraged in the UK and US, which relies on individual opinion, sometimes superstition, or locally-applied policies and practises in child protection decisions.

After being assessed by Swedish social workers, who provided a report that the previous assessment performed in the UK was essentially garbage, Ms. Lyon remained in Sweden and her child Molly was born there, safe from forcible removal from Swedish social services. Shortly before the birth her former local authority announced that a second expert had been employed, and after reviewing the notes provided by the social services department once again without seeing Ms. Lyon in person, determined that she was in the clear and wouldn't pose a threat to her baby. Ms. Lyon, perhaps sensibly, has decided to stay away from England, and again, not too surprisingly, hasn't harmed her child.

The use of a predictive diagnosis for MSBP/FII was never contemplated by the theories creator, Sir Roy Meadow. A test to root out possible "Munchausens Women" has been discussed by MSBP advocate Herbert Schreier, but once again these early efforts to screen women for the MSBP/FII condition require that the suspect be actually present to be tested.

Although the secret courts in England and Wales (and their equivalents in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Canada, the US and Australia/New Zealand) operate under the civil code of justice, this to some degree is a sham; abuse or neglect of a child should primarily be a criminal issue first, with the civil courts concerned only with the safety of the child. However in the last few decades the criminal justice system is invariably ignored, principally because it's requirements for evidence are too difficult for many child protection agencies to come to grips with. The widespread use and acceptance of hearsay evidence in the secret court system allows much more leeway, particularly for expert witnesses, who are able to develop and engender "pseudo" or "crank" science concepts to willing judges, without fear of ridicule from their professional peers.

In addition to the encouragement of crank science concepts, the secret court system has seen the corruption of other accepted child protection ideals. The term "emotional abuse" although not having a definition in law, is generally accepted to mean abuse directed at a child that cannot immediately come under the categories of physical or sexual abuse or neglect. Ignoring a child, shouting at a child, using a child as a pawn in a dispute between partners, constantly berating a child, constantly denying a child the basic joys of childhood - all strike a resonance in most people that ensures that the concept of "emotional abuse" - although a little wooly, is at least accepted as a valid element of child protection and family justice.

However in the last decade in England and Wales, the term "emotional abuse" has been expanded to incorporate elements of behaviour that most people would regard as being good examples of parenting, and is often teamed with 'significant harm';

What counts as "significant harm"? Astonishingly, in the hundreds of pages of advice the Government has issued on this question, there is nothing which gives a meaningful and precise definition of that phrase. The result is that "significant harm" has as many different definitions as there are social workers. The Government advice states, for example, that "significant harm" includes "emotional abuse", which is defined as "the persistent emotional ill-treatment of a child such as to cause severe and persistent effects on the child's emotional development." What kinds of treatment will have such "severe and persistent effects" is left unclear.

Result? The gaping definitional hole is filled by social workers' own judgments and decisions on the matter, often accepted at face value by the secret court judiciary. Those have ranged so widely that "emotional abuse" has been taken to include both being too indulgent with your children and not being indulgent enough. Moving your body in the "wrong" way in front of your children has been called "emotional abuse", as has feeding them too many grapes - which may sound too ludicrous to be true, but each of those examples is taken from a report by a social worker alleging "emotional abuse". And last year, more children were place on the "at risk" register for suspected "emotional abuse" than for any other harm except "neglect".
(Source: Children will remain at risk - until we're told what risk is by Alasdair Palmer The Daily Telegraph - 7th December 2008)

'Possible future emotional abuse' is perhaps the term nearest to Dicks envisioning of a future justice system gone wrong. Yet fantasy has now become reality in the secret court system, with the now-widespread use of the terms - presenting women with an accusation that is manifestly impossible to challenge. The risks of a misuse of the term are obvious, not least because it presents the possibility of rendering a child into a dangerous environment when they previously resided in a safe and loved one;

Future emotional harm


By the same token a chld born into a family that already has a proven track record of abuse and neglect is likely to benefit from the use of the term, with a child removed from an environment that is likely to harm them if he or she's carers act in the same manner as they did to previous children. The difficulty is that the secret court system and the professionals that employ it, rather than ensuring the term is sensibly-used, are routinely identified as having abused it.

The thought that children have been removed from women and families using seemingly pathetic excuses has been highlighted by the Conservative MP Eric Pickles MP. Emotional abuse is often related to poor parenting skills - so a parent who is deemed as being a bit "duff" at parenting is also involuntarily emotionally abusing the child. However the definition of poor parenting now appears to include examples of good parenting;

An allegation was also made of poor parenting and I asked for various examples. I was given two. First, the female child had been given sandwiches and a packet of crisps for her lunch, and because she chose to eat the crisps first, she was too full to eat her sandwiches. That was deemed sufficiently important to be regarded as an example of poor parenting.

The second example - we should bear in mind that at this point, I was pressing for another such example - involved allowing one of the children to stay up late at night to watch television. I asked whether "late" meant 10 o'clock at night, or perhaps 9 o'clock. I was told that she was allowed to stay up until 8 o'clock to watch the end of "EastEnders" or "Coronation Street"
(Source: House of Commons Debates-2nd March 2006)

Examples of the misuse of "emotional abuse" abound;

The persistent failure of social workers to protect children who are in very serious danger is made even more outrageous by the profession's propensity to remove children from parents who are manifestly no danger at all to them. Of the 35,000 children who are taken into care every year on the recommendation of social workers, a large proportion are removed on grounds of "emotional abuse" – a category so broad and ill-defined that it can include both praising your children too much and not praising them enough, or feeding them too many vegetables or too little fresh fruit. It appears that social workers, aware of their inability to intervene in cases where children really are at risk, compensate for that failure by intervening in families where they are obviously safe.
(Source: Child abuse won't be overcome until we define what it is - The Daily Telegraph (editorial) View )

Other examples of the misuse of the term "emotional abuse" employed to have children forcibly removed from a woman or family also include; feeding a child a healthy diet of "five-a-day", denying a child a Playstation, Xbox and a PSP (that is all three brands) feeding a child cherries, instigating a reward system for good behaviour, preventing a child from seeing 15 or X-rated DVD's or from playing computer games with a violent or sexual content, insisting a child wears a school uniform, insisting on homework being delivered on time, insisting on a set going-to-bed time each evening.

Key to the use of the term "emotional abuse" is that, as with most criminal acts having a potential for a "conspiracy" charge, so do such terms. Without going into much detail the simple mention that a woman may possibly in the future (without the indulgence of much testing, let alone a face-to-face interview) become "Munchausen's" or will inflict "emotional abuse" on a child is sufficient to ensure that a baby is forcibly removed at birth. There is no need to be specific - the terms have a particular resonance. In the case of "emotional abuse" that perceived abuse might be perfectly sound parenting, but in the sometimes warped world of the secret courts, it appears on occasions "good parenting" can be easily determined to be "evil parenting" if so desired.

In addition to the possibility of a woman becoming "Munchausen's" or to emotionally abuse her new child, the secret courts have enthusiasm for removing new-born babies from women defined as being likely to suffer from Post Natal Depression PND);

The secrecy of the system prevents people knowing what sorts of reasons are used for removing children from their families. I have seen a large number of family court cases and there are obviously those where the state should have intervened; there are others where it seemed completely wrong. There are cases where mothers have had newborn babies removed merely because of a risk of post-natal depression. Of course, taking a baby from a mother is quite likely to cause post-natal depression… a self-justifying prophecy.
(Source: Bullying, secrecy and the legal baby-snatchers By Rt. Hon. John Hemming MP)

Many advocates for the secret courts attempt to dissuade lay people from the idea that babies are forcibly removed on the mere possibility of PND - yet with the injustices of the secret courts coming to light on an almost daily basis, the revelations from women whose children were forcibly removed on just the possibility of PND continue to arrive.

Additionally some advocates for the current regime deny the now well-founded belief that child protecton social workers remove children forcibly from victims of domestic violence, by means of policy. The Angela Wileman Scandal provided huge evidence that these suspicions were in fact correct.

In such a child protection environment, when "right" suddenly becomes "wrong" (and the woman or parent is gagged by the secret court from protesting about the ridiculousness of what is being stated) then it appears the judicial system steps away from the normal, to the perverse, and all the way to the bizarre. An array of psychological and psychiatric tests await those women at least fortunate to sit them. The extraordinary range of potential conditions that a woman can be diagnosed with has been discussed by Richard Rogers (PhD, ABPP) but in summary are such that virtually any member of the public could fail one or more tests, and be deemed incapable of looking after a child.

Phillip K. Dick pointed the way to a flawed future in The Minority Report when foresight could be employed to predict crime and thus incarcerate those guilty of crimes they had yet to commit. The secret courts of England and Wales go beyond such concepts, imposing upon women the most vicious punishment that a non-capital punishment society can inflict on them; the forced removal of a child or baby, often through the broken and lazy use of the "possibility" of harm. The obvious concern is a future government may determine that a precedent has been set and that it is able to extend the use of "possibility" into the criminal system of justice. It wouldn't be hard to imagine how that could be employed to root out "possible" terrorists.


Trevor Doughty

Executive Director Children's Services, Northumberland Safeguarding Children Board (NSCB) at the time of the 2007 Fran Lyon Scandal.

On May 12th Mr. Doughty assumed the role as permanent Director of Children's Services for Cornwall Council. In April 2010 the department had received a poor OFSTEAD assessment, resulting in the vacancy. A reorganisation of Northumberland Council in 2010 saw Mr. Doughty's role, together with eleven other council officers to be deemed redundant.

The Fran Lyon Scandal remains an oft-quoted example of the abuse of a young woman at the hands of English social workers.

Marc Dutroux

Belgium-born pedophile, kidnapper and child murderer. Dutroux kidnapped, tortured and sexually abused six girls aged between 8 and 19 between 1995 and 1996, two of which he murdered. The "Marc Dutroux Scandal" was notable in that it revealed apparent support for organised pedophile in Belgium's government, law enforcement and criminal justice system. It is feared that similar sentiments may exist amongst a minority of UK and US law enforcement officers. Mr Dutroux is now serving a life sentence in Belgium.

Liam Donaldson (Sir, Prof)

Former Chief Medical Officer for England and former Regional Director for the Northern and Yorkshire region. Prior to that he was Regional Medical Officer and Regional Director of Public Health for the Northern Regional Health Authority at the time of the Cleveland RAD scandal.

Mr. Donaldson left office following the defeat of the Labour Party in the 2010 General Election.

(See Dr. Marietta Higgs, Beatrix Campbell (OBE).)

Anthony Douglas (CBE)

Chief Executive of CAFCAS - the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service. A former director of social services and a former director of housing leisure and libraries and neighbourhood services for the London Borough of Havering.

The CAFCAS organisation is split into regional administrative groupings but the body corporate is routinely complained-about for inefficiency, gender bias and unprofessionalism.

In the wake of the Baby P scandal, Mr. Douglas wrote of the desire to see parents accused subjected to an investigatory regime not yet imposed upon terrorists;

Whilst conventional assessment models work well for 95 per cent of the children and families, the children of parents who lie and deceive their way through an assessment would be better served by an assessment model using the same lie detection and surveillance techniques used to detect benefit fraud and other crimes faced by benefits staff, the police and and the security services.


This call for investigatory powers to be used against citizens beyond the scope of what is even applied against Al Queada terrorist suspects was published in The Guardian newspaper (Baby P's legacy must be better status for children's social workers Sunday November 23rd 2008.) It should be noted that "trials" in English and Welsh Family Courts are conducted in secret (the government prefers the word "private" - see Kevin Brennan.) In his article Mr. Douglas did not detail any objection to the use of such evidence collecting as he has been proposing in a secret court, or any forms of protection to ensure such powers were not abused, leaving the spectre of parents, and particularly women, being subjected to a repressive judicial regime that even terrorists or drug dealers were free from. That the article appeared in The Guardian - calling for the use of enhanced powers of investigation to be applied to people subjected to a secret court system was perhaps indicative of the manner that the newspaper - previously thought of as being Left-Wing and liberal-minded, is increasingly drifting to fascist dogma (see also Alan Rusbridger.)

In December 2008 the Welsh medium schools Scandal drew attention to the activities of CAFCASS and in particular it's use of a CAFCASS-approved English secretive court expert who had expressed an opinion about the Welsh education system (see Nerys Evans (AM).)

Jamie Doward

Investigative journalist for The Observer newspaper. Together with Emily Dent wrote Ministers told child harm theory was flawed published in the Sunday 25th January 2004 edition that revealed that New Labour government Ministers were informed of concerns that the use of MSBP allegations against women were being misused.

The failure by both Tony Blair and Jack Straw to investigate the claims of a leading child psychologist and former government adviser who wrote to them warning that she was aware of several cases in which parents had been wrongly separated from their children because of MSBP.

* The failure of a government inquiry into fabricated child illnesses to interview skeptics of Meadow's theory. The inquiry published a guide to MSBP for local health authorities that has subsequently been described as 'deeply flawed'.

* The publication of a report into fabricated child illnesses by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) which failed to address scientific concerns over MSBP.
(Source: Ministers told child harm theory was flawed The Observer, Sunday 25th January 2004)

(See also Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, Sir Roy Meadow, Rt. Hon. Jack Straw MP)

M.M. Drymon

US historian and author of Disguised as the Devil (2008) which examines the theory and evidence that Lyme Disease contributed hugely to the genesis of the European concept of the woman as a witch.

Lyme disease, a tick- vector-delivered bacterium associated with numerous attributes, notably a "Bull's Eye" rash, sometimes intense fatigue, mental impairment difficulties, and quite often symptoms not easily explained by other diseases or afflictions remains even today notoriously difficult to identify by all but highly-trained physicians. Ms. Drymon examined the evidence that, for instance, the Bull's Eye mark was interpreted as the Devils or Witches Mark.

The connection between Lyme Disease and witchcraft is pertinent even now. The researcher Dr. Virginia T. Sherr, in her paper Munchausen's syndrome by proxy and Lyme disease: medical misogyny or diagnostic mystery? (2005) discussed the disturbing use of false MSBP allegations made against women whose children are afflicted by Lyme Disease. The connotation is unfortunately too clear; in Salem, women were blamed for (it is posited) symptoms that strangely equated to our definition of Lyme Disease - and were subsequently branded witches. In modern times women are regularly accused as being the cause of their children's conditions that are strangely identical to Lyme Disease, and are subsequently branded as "MSBP mothers".

An enduring theme of anti-MSBP campaigners is that MSBP allegations have become the modern equivalent of witchcraft allegations. However this parallel is most often made due to the use of "profiles" - used to identify women believed to be "Munchausen's". The "ducking-stool" analogy in the use of MSBP profiles is perhaps the theories most controversial element, with women subjected to a false allegation finding it virtually impossible to escape it as any condition - such as showing concern for a sick child or not showing concern, can be construed as being evidence of a "Munchausen's woman." A routine element in investigations employing a false allegation of MSBP is for the authorities to switch to using different profiles when it is found that one profile doesn't work in the circumstances. Thus a woman can be subjected to examination using numerous elements of different profiles, in a desperate effort to manufacture an assertion that can be declared 'evidence' that might fit.

The theory that Lyme Disease was a primary contributor to the rise of witchcraft allegations throughout Europe and America is obviously highly emotionally charged. Ms. Drymon has been willing to discuss her work;

When asked:Why do you think that the Salem witches had Lyme disease? The author noted that she actually thinks that "the witches in New England were convenient scapegoats accused of creating the symptoms of Lyme disease and its co-infections that appeared in the afflicted." Some of the people who testified at the witch trials talked about having rashes on their skin. For example, the book notes that Jarvis Ring had 'the print of the bite (of a woman) on the finger of his right hand. Mary Hortado was bitten on both arms...the impression of the teeth being like a man's teeth... were plainly seen by many.' The afflicted Godwin children developed red streaks on their bodies. Sam Wilkins had red marks like stabs of awl on his body. Dorcas Good had a deep red spot the size of a flea bite on her finger. Mary Walcut had the marks of teeth on her wrist. Abigail Williams had a mark like the print of an orange on her skin. One child in Connecticut had a deep red spot on her cheek when she died. Finding that "a bulls eye rash can look a lot like a bite mark", Drymon found that most of these afflicted people also developed neurological symptoms, like seizures, hallucinations, brain fog, and lethargy, as well as joint swellings. The Shattuck child, a little boy, seems to have developed bells palsy with one side of his face 'drawn so aside as if they would never come to right again.' "When coupled with the relapsing quality of the symptoms and a list of sick cows, horses, cats, and dogs," Drymon noted, " it looks like there was an epidemic of Lyme disease."

But didn't they eat ergot on their bread? Drymon answered that "this is a popular theory that is often repeated and needs to be researched more thoroughly. Ergot infects wheat under damp wet conditions. When you look at data from tree ring growth, the lead up period to the witch trials was dry, a time of severe drought in New England. All these people, however, lived at the edge of an acorn-filled forest. There were also lots of deer, so many in fact, that towns in Massachusetts were appointing deer reeves to chase them out of their cornfields. Sounds like an environmental recipe for Lyme disease, similar to modern times."

Didn't Lyme disease come over recently from Europe? Drymon explained that "this is a misreading of a recent study. After corresponding with one of the authors-the study does not say which way the exchange happened or exactly when, it was a statistical estimate. It can be proposed that the Lyme bacteria went from North America to Europe and suggest the date of 1492 as the beginning of the transfer.
(Source: Discussion about Lyme Disease)

(See also Dr. Darren Oldridge)
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


- Surnames E-F



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

E



Maria Eagle

Labour MP for Garston, Liverpool and former Under-Secretary in the Ministry of Justice.
(See also Charles Roy Taylor)

Yvonne Eldridge

American child-carer convicted of murder through the MSBP false allegation mechanism in 1996. Subsequently successfully appealed 2003 after the prosecution team in California found no expert witnesses willing to support the theory.

Nerys Evans (AM)

Plaid Cymru. Welsh Assembly Member for Mid-and-West Wales.

Wales is not entirely devolved from England to the same degree as Scotland. As a result the Welsh secretive Family Court system is identical to that of England.

A key feature of the secret court system is that it allows for "experts" to state opinions both in writing and from the witness box, both anonymously and without fear of peer review from fellow colleagues. This frequently leads to alternate medical diagnosis' for otherwise known conditions to be allowed that wouldn't survive analysis in normal judicial systems, and, in this case, for particularly anti-Welsh sentiments to be expressed without fear of rebuttal or challenge.

In late 2008 a constituent of Ms. Evans who had been the mother in a private secretive Family Court case that saw a threat to remove her child from her, drew attention to a report submitted and accepted by the secret court, from an English expert — a member of the British Psychological Society (whose name is protected via the secret court). Ms. Evans took up the case in the Welsh Assembly, on the basis that the experts report was an affront to Welsh education standards;

She told Mr Morgan: 'I have a lot of casework in my region of Mid and West Wales that relates to the family courts system. I wish to draw your attention to a comment made by an expert witness in one case. When asked to explain a change in a child's behaviour, the educational expert said that Welsh medium education causes retardation and could not stimulate the child to the same level as English medium education.

I have approached the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) and the Welsh Language Board (WLB) about this issue. The WLB does not have powers over this, and CAFCASS is conducting an internal investigation.

These views have profound impacts on the child and the family. Do you agree that such comments and theories are unacceptable in Wales, and should not be tolerated? Do you also agree that mechanisms should be put in place to make people who give evidence in family courts accountable for their theories and evidence, because the current situation is detrimental to vulnerable children across Wales?"

The First Minister responded: 'If the allegation that you make is correct, I would not dignify that person with the title of 'expert'.


...


The expert at the centre of the row, when asked by us for details of the research on which he based his report, said: 'I write confidential reports to the court. Even if someone else has seen them, I can't discuss them. That's my own view and I'm keeping it that way.'
(Source: Storm over attack on Welsh medium schools December 29 2008 by Martin Shipton, Western Mail)

The scandal emphasised the relative ease by which unregulated experts working in the secretive Family Court system have virtual free rein in stating opinions, even in this instance when an English expert is able to criticise the Welsh education system, without having to qualify their remarks appropriately. The Welsh education system is increasingly bilingual - an element that annoys many non-Welsh.

F



Eileen Fairweather

British investigative journalist for The Daily Mail/Mail on Sunday. Ms. Fairweather was the journalist who, with the assistance of Liz Davies exposed the Islington Borough Child Abuse Scandal (see Margaret Hodge MP) in 1992.

In the recent past Ms. Fairweather investigated with others and wrote The Daily Mail article Birmingham council illegally sent children into care in Jersey, MP report reveals (4th August 2008) The article investigated concerns that English and Welsh Social Services departments had sent in-care children to Jersey in the past, with no legal care order allowing such activity. It also investigated specific concerns with children sent by Birmingham City Council Social Services and the refusal of Islington Borough Council to check if they had shipped children (on the grounds of the cost of checking records). In addition the reluctance of English and Welsh police to write to local authorities about the matter (a concern also expressed by Liz Davies) was also discussed.

Kenneth Feldman (MD)

Paediatrician, Department of Paediatrics, Children's Hospital and Medical Center University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle.

US-based consultant and author of numerous academic papers. Dr. Feldman is perhaps most notable for the extraordinary number of MSBP allegations he has been involved in. Although undisclosed the figure is certainly above 100 and likely above 200. The city of Seattle and its metropolitan regions has a population of around 4.6 million people - the state of Washington (including Seattle) has just over 6.3 million people. Using the British government's estimate of the incidence of MSBP - 1 instance per year in every 1 million adults, Dr. Feldman and his team will have had to have seen between 100 and 200 million paediatric referrals, and possibly more to have accounted for 100-200 MSBP cases. Other estimates suggest up to 4 cases of MSBP per million of the general population, which would lead to his team needing to see a minimum of 25 million referrals to reach 100 cases of MSBP. If Dr. Feldman was exposed exclusively to women suspected of MSBP only, then the incidence of MSBP in the catchments area for his hospital would have to be expanded to incorporate a substantial portion of the United States.

Although in the UK tens of thousands of allegations of MSBP have been made (and thousands of children forcibly removed from their mothers as a result) no individual paediatrician has yet come close to the number of allegations Dr Feldman and his staff have become involved in, other than it is believed, Dr. David Southall and Sir Roy Meadow. However simply being involved in investigating a huge number of MSBP allegations is not in itself an indicator that Dr. Feldman is a particular enthusiast for MSBP, but rather it is an indicator of the extraordinary number of MSBP allegations that are made, even in a relatively small area the size of Seattle.

Although the figures of alleged cases in the Seattle area are extraordinary, no paper or call for funding for research into why the Washington city and area is perceived to be such a hot-bed of MSBP activity has ever been requested or submitted for peer review by the University of Washington School of Medicine or Dr Feldman, any member of his team, or Dr Richard Molteni, the medical director at Seattle Children's Hospital.

A number of lawsuits against Dr. Feldman have been launched in the past, though these have been unsuccessful on the basis that Dr. Feldman has a duty of care to raise concerns when he observes them or they are reported to him. A notable judgment in 2001 saw a dissenting voice in the form of Judge Kenneth H Kato;

So viewed, Dr. Feldman apparently has a penchant for diagnosing (or misdiagnosing) MSBP, notwithstanding its rarity and his questioned qualifications to make that diagnosis.
(Source: http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=wa&vol=2002_app/203433dis&invol=3 )

(See also Persecuted parents or protected children? by Carol Smith - Seattle Post-Intelligencer - 7th August 2002)

Richard Firstman

Co-author with wife Jamie Talen of The Death of Innocents: A True Story of Murder, Medicine and High-Stake Science (1997) that promoted the concept that SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) was invariably caused by mothers murdering their babies. Subsequent research and health campaigns in the early 21st century eventually challenged this theory, although it still has advocates within the family court systems of the US and UK.
(See also Sir Roy Meadow and Anne Diamond.)


Dr. Fleur Fisher

Dr. Fleur Fisher (MB BS, FRIPH, DObstRCOG, DSc(Hon) also known as Linda Fleur Fisher)

Former Head of Ethics Science and Information for the British Medical Association (1991-1996). Co-Chairman of the Education and Training Working Group on the Prince of Wales Initiative on Integrated Healthcare; Chairman BMA Foundation for AIDS; Vice-Chairman of the International HIV/AIDS Alliance; Co-Chairman of POPAN (Prevention of Professional Abuse Network). Retired from health practice in 2008.

A former long-term patient of Dr. Fishers was Carole Myers (formerly Carol Felstead). Ms. Myers died in her London flat in 2005, in unknown circumstances, but her family was not informed until some time later. It subsequently transpired that she had been a patient of Dr. Fisher since 1986, and as well as being sectioned under the Mental Health Act, had received therapy from leading SRA Myth advocate Dr. Valerie Sinason and her professional partner Dr. Robert Hale, both of whom would go to form the Clinic for Dissociative Studies in Harley Street, London.

Dr. Hale’s prognosis is that Carole was a victim of Satanist abuse and this abuse had begun in ‘very early childhood.’ In Carole’s psychiatric notes, it states that her parents were the High Priest and High Priestess of a Satanic Cult. Our family are supposed to have dug up graves and performed ritual sacrifices, which include murder.
(Source: Justice for Carol website)

Ms. Myers car was scrapped without her next-of-kin (her father) permission, her apartment funiture and belongings have yet to be found and just a small box was sent to her brother (apparently by Dr. Fisher). Dr. Fisher was audio-recorded taking-out temporary insurance for Carol's car after her death. Substantial sections of her medical records have also gone missing. Dr. Fisher was interviewed under caution by the Metropolitan Police, who in investigating the case found no credence whatsoever to the fantasy that her parents were satanists, and indeed wrote to the family to confirm this. Unfortunately the original idea that Carol Felstead/Carole Myers family ewere chock-full of child-eating satanists originally was given to the Metropolitan Police by Dr. Fisher herself. No charges have been pursued.

Carol's family have investigated the case themselves and secured digital recordings and a number of official documents. The case is now a growing scandal concerned with the abuse of vulnerable adults, thanks to the persistence of her relatives who have written about it on the web site Justice for Carol. The case also raises the misuse of confidential (and inaccurate) medical records and their subsequent forwarding to other authorities, and the lack of provision for vulnerable adults who may be preyed-upon by errant medical professionals.

Carol Felsteads family made an official written complaint about Dr. Fleur Fisher to the English and Welsh GMC (General Medical Council) in a letter dated 11 March 2011. A principal difficulty with making such a complaint to the GMC is that the organisation has a history of significant sympathy and support for the Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) Myth, and professionals who have fallen under its thrall (see Dr. Camille de San Lazaro OBE). Nonetheless it appears the Scandal is unlikely to go away anytime soon, and as more people become aware of it's existence it is likely to a burden of embarrassment on the British medical profession.

In June 2011 the Scandal provoked an investigation by journalist Daniel Foggo which was published as ‘Satanic Abuse Claims Doomed Our Girl’ on 12th June in The Sunday Times. In a remarkable act of both honesty and gross ineptitude, when interviewed over the phone by Mr. Fogoo, Dr. Fisher made it clear that the idea of satanic abuse by Carols family had been introduced to her;

Fisher said that Carole had “no knowledge” of any ritual abuse when she first saw her.
(Source: ‘Satanic Abuse Claims Doomed Our Girl’ by Daniel Foggo, The Sunday Times, 12th June 2011 - note the original article is behind the The Times/Sunday Times paywall)

With confirmation through Daniel Foggo's investigations, the cause and the events immediately prior to Carole Myers/Carol Felstead's death remain a mystery yet to be solved.

They had no inkling of the gathering crisis that had swallowed up Carole over 20 years. “Carole had been a lively, happy child,” said her father. “She qualified as a nurse and then left home and eventually moved south to pursue her career.
“Her contact with the rest of the family became less, perhaps twice a year, but we thought it was because she was so busy.”

Her medical files show that by 1986 Carole was seeing Fisher for “psychosexual counselling”. A succession of psychiatric professionals, many of whom believed in the existence of ritual abuse, went on to deal with her.

By 1998, Carole Myers, who had changed her name by deed poll from her birth name of Carol Felstead, had succumbed to even more extreme delusions.

She talked of her parents as being high priest and high priestess of a satanic cult, stating that they had stabbed her sister to death at the age of 10. She claimed a friend she had confided in as a teenager was murdered by the cult in front of her, and that she had been regularly fed urine and faeces. In 1999 she told one consultant psychologist that two Conservative former cabinet ministers had satanically abused her at party headquarters.

Over the years Fisher remained heavily involved with Carole as a friend, often accompanying her to medical appointments.

The week before she died, Carole suddenly contacted her younger brother, Richard, saying she wanted to come back to her family in Stockport. She never made it.
Richard wrote a letter to his sister on June 29, the day she was found dead. This was found by Fisher and given to the coroner’s office, who called Richard on July 14.
(Source: ‘Satanic Abuse Claims Doomed Our Girl’ by Daniel Foggo, The Sunday Times, 12th June 2011 - note the original article is behind the The Times/Sunday Times paywall)

The Carole Myers/Carol Felstead Scandal emphasises the need for only the highest levels of professional integrity and ethics to be practised by any medical staff or physicians coming into contact with vulnerable persons. The scandal also draws attention to the risk that said medical staff may, having been influenced perhaps by religious and/or political dogmas, be no longer able to make sensible judgements that benefit a patient. The Scandal has focused a bright spotlight on the nature of medical ethics being taught and practised in the UK, and has suggested they are deficient, most notably those relating to confidentiality, privacy and the disclosure of data to third parties, and its impact, particularly when the data is grossly inaccurate. That Dr. Fisher was previously a recognised authority on these subjects is perhaps the more disturbing and the more damaging for the British medical establishment - and it seems that only a thorough independent investigation will provide either an informed retort to the allegations made, or confirmation followed by recommendations for remedial action to ensure such instances do not take place again. At the time-of-writing Dr. Fisher had declined to challenge the allegations made in writing on public web sites.

Equally embarrassing is that she remains Co-Chair of POPAN (Prevention of Professional Abuse Network) although the organisations web site is 'dead', and links to The Clinic for Boundaries Studies which doesn't have Fleur Fisher on its listed staff. POPAN's self-appointed task, to follow its title - was to prevent the abuse of patients by healthcare professionals. It appears to have had a 'bye' in respect to this scandal, though it would normally have come under its aegis. Bizarrely in 1997, when regulation of the psychotherapy industry in the UK was being mooted, Dr. Fisher was being quoted as an authority on the subject of patient abuse, and its possible impact on such victims. It appears though it is very much a case of 'do as I say' rather than 'do as I do';

Patients who claim they have been abused by a doctor are waiting up to 10 years to get their complaint heard, claims a charity.

The Prevention of Professional Abuse Network (POPAN) says the complaints procedure can take years and is often distressing for patients.

Dr Fleur Fisher, co-chair of POPAN and a former head of ethics at the British Medical Association, said many patients felt they had been abused all over again by the process.

POPAN runs a helpline for patients who have been abused. It says one of its clients is still waiting for a hearing 10 years after they filed a complaint.
...
Seventy per cent of all callers said they had been abused by someone in the mental health services.

A third had been abused by counsellors or psychotherapists who are not subject to compulsory registration.

Dr Fisher called for statutory regulation of the profession.

"No minimum standards of competence or training are required before somebody can practise as a counsellor or psychotherapist and there is no compulsory registration.

"The damage caused through such a relationship is no less serious than when the abuser is a doctor or nurse," she said.
...
US research suggests up to 10% of patients may be abused by someone in the medical profession. In the UK, the figure is estimated at 4%.

Mental health charity Mind says studies have shown at least half of all women in psychiatric settings have been abused as children.

In secure hospitals, the numbers may be higher.

POPAN says the after-effects can be profound and can include depression, low self-esteem and attempted suicide.
(Source: Health Abused by the complaints system, BBC News Health report, October 23rd 1998 - author unknown)

An unusual series of co-incidences can be discerned with the relationship between a Dr. Gwen Adshead, Dr. Fleur Fisher, Valere Sinason and other SRA Myth advocates in the UK. Gwen Adshead was also a POPAN member. She also contributed a chapter to Valerie Sinasons Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (Routledge/Informa PLC, 1994) entitled Looking for Clues which determined that most allegations of child sexual abuse, including satanic ritual abuse, must be true, even if they sound completely and utterly imposible and bizarre. Another contributor to Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - psychiatrist Kingley Norton, actually treated Carol Felstead/Carole Myers at The Henderson Hospital. His chapter was titled Chapter 12 - In-patient psychotherapy at the Henderson Hospital - Kingsley Norton. Dr. Kingley Norton, now 'Clinical Personality Disorder Lead' at the Personality Disorder Service - Ealing, in the John Conolly Wing of St Bernard's Hospital, London, also contributed two essays to Gwen Adshead's co-authored book Personality Disorder: The Definitive Reader (2008), namely Severe Personality Disorder Patients: Treatment Issues and Selection for In-patient psychotherapy with R.D. Hinshelwood, and In the Prison of Severe Personality Disorder

Unfortunately there was a little more to Gwen Adshead than just some co-incidental connections through contributed essays. She was also Honorary member of the Institute of Medical Ethics (2009-2011) and as Dr. Fleur Fisher was Head of Ethics at the British Medical Association it seems unlikely that with the POPAN membership too, they wouldn't meet. But there is more, in 2011 Dr. Gwen Adshead was 'outed' as a member of the Special Interest Group in Spirituality at the Royal College of Psychiatrists (see Dr. Gwen Adshead GMC FTP panelist comes out as a preacher, Doctors4Justice web site and despite her interest in medical ethics, Dr. Adshead appears to be one individual who attracted an extraordinary number of complaints that the GMC inexplicably determined to not be in the public interest to reveal (see Dr. Helen Bright's Freedom of Information request to the General Medical Council (refused by the GMC) 6th April 2011, from the What Do They Know website.)

And, regrettably there is more. Dr. Adshead, who works at a Consultant Psychotherapist at the high-security Broadmoor Hospital in England, was also a panellist on the British General Medical Councils (GMC) Fitness To Practice panel, which determines the guilt and sanctions to be applied to doctors and proactitioners who step-out-of-line. Strangely, the complaint submitted by Carol Felstead's family to the GMC (see the Felstead's official complaint letter to the GMC was almost instantly dismissed by the GMC's investigating officer, Ian Howell.

Dr. Gwen Adshead was also Consultant to the Clinic for Professional boundaries studies which POPAN has evolved into.

Dr. Fisher herself is a consultant for the Primary Health Care Specialist Group, a specialist group of the British Computer Society, a Board Member and Trustee of Privacy International an internatinal human rights campaign group (though its interest in human rights doesn't appear to incorporate those of the likes of Carol Felstead); She was a fomer President of the Medical Women's Federation representing female medical staff. She is also a consultant for the International Council on Medical & Care Compunetics.

In June 2011, as a 'Consultant in Healthcare Ethics' she Chaired a conference titled ADRs: Is the patient voice loud enough? at the Friends House, London.

A substantial concern is recognition that the BMA - the British Medical Association, which employed Dr. Fisher as Head of Ethics Science and Information (1991-1996) is to date unwilling to launch an independent enquiry into the nature of the scandal, and the lessons that can be learned from it for current and future practitioners.

In November and December 2011 the Carol Felstead/Carol Myers scandal erupted into a major news media event. On the 25th November the Britsh investigative journalist/satirical magazine Private Eye published a single-page article dedicated to the scandal. Worse for Dr. Fleur Fisher and Valerie Sinason was to come on Sunday 11th December, when The Observer magazine (the Sunday version of The Guardian) ran with a six-page spread for the story, written by investigative journalist Will Storr.

The mystery of Carole Myers ensured that there was now no hope that the scandal could be kept under wraps and would only escalate. for the British psychotherapy industry, an interview with Valerie Sinason re-printed in its entrety in the article saw her fall off-a-cliff into paranoid-deluson world, confrming many of the suspicions of her saner peers and shocking the general public (see her words in the analysis of her chapter in her book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Chapter 32 - Internal and external reality, Establishing parameters - Rob Hale and Valerie Sinason.

For the organisations involved and implicated in the scandal; The Metropolitan Police, the General Medical Council and the British Medical Association, the problem is no longer, can the scandal be ignored, but rather now, what will be the consequences and sanctions imposed by the government and public now it has been (still not entirely) exposed?

For Dr. Fisher though the article effectively destroyed any shred of reputation she had retained;

Over the coming weeks there came more questions. They were told the nameless "next of kin" had emptied Carole's flat and driven off in her car. Officials kept mentioning a "psychiatrist friend" who accompanied Carole to medical appointments. Joseph was speaking to a police inspector when something occurred to him. "This psychiatrist and this next of kin," he said. "Are they the same person?"

"That's right," said the inspector. "Dr Fleur Fisher."

...

When I tell them I'd like to write about Carole, they pass me the telephone number, discovered in Carole's phone records, of the woman whose role in the tale is, they're convinced, both sinister and central: that of the "next of kin", Dr Fleur Fisher. "I'm not sure I want to talk about this," Fisher tells me. "You'll have to let me think about it. That family – they're bloody terrifying." "You're frightened of them?" "They're frightening people. And the things they've been saying," she says, adding confusingly: "I'm not a therapist!" She rings off, warning me darkly: "Tread carefully."

...

If the Felsteads are right, Carole is likely to have had some form of recovered-memory therapy in the mid-80s – roughly the time her behaviour began to sour. But the only person I know who might be able to answer this question of whether she did is Dr Fisher. Since our last chat, she's vanished. She's changed her mobile number and has ignored several emails.

...

I ask why she phoned Richard on the day the Felsteads were informed of the death. She did so, she says, because the coroner mentioned how crushed he'd sounded. "Concern for somebody else's distress sometimes overcomes you," she says. "I was foolish. Unwise."

Ironically, it was her discovery of Richard's letter that led to the funeral's cancellation. Was she upset when she heard it had been halted? "You can't even imagine," she says. "I just screamed and screamed."

Finally, we get to the question of whether Carole's memories of satanic abuse were recovered. Initially Fisher refuses to speak about Carole. "I have a duty of confidentiality, even after a patient has died. I was never her psychiatrist or psychotherapist or anything like that." She raises her voice. "I'm not a psychotherapist, for God's sake!"

"According to her medical notes, she saw you for counselling," I say.

"No."

"I have the letter here, dated 27 November 1986, that says: 'She required to see Dr Fisher for psychosexual counselling.'"

There's a silence. "Psychosexual is the wrong term," she says.

"What's the correct term?"

"Uh, I really don't know. People come and tell you things that have happened to them."

"Things like abuse?"

"Things that have happened to them," she repeats, crossly. "I'm not saying anything else. It's not right that this woman's privacy should be breached in this way." She's shouting now. "She's dead! She's goddamned dead!"

Was she ever worried that Carole had lapsed into fantasy? "Never," she says.

By 1997, I tell her, Carole was claiming a government minister had raped her with a claw hammer in Conservative Central Office. "That's not something I knew about," she says. "It may have been fantasy. I couldn't say. In general she was a common-sense woman."

"Are you aware of any evidence that any of Carole's claims actually happened?"

"I never looked for any evidence."

"Then what made you believe her?"

"She's not the only patient I've had who told the same kinds of stories."

"About ritual abuse?"

"It turned out to be that, yes. The people didn't remember at first. They weren't aware. They were memories they'd had a long time and they just came out."

And that, I decide, is as close as I'm going to get. Before I ring off, I ask Fisher what Carole was like. "She was a feisty, brave, intelligent woman. She was funny. A good laugh." And then, softly at first, she starts crying.
(Source: Extracts from The mystery of Carole Myers, by Will Storr, published in The Observer Magazine, 11th December 2011)

With the scandal now all-enveloping, there is a moral and ethical duty on Dr. Fleur Fisher to reveal her knowledge of other vulnerable men and women like Carol Felstead, who are presently being abused by mental health practitioners, determined to pursue their belief in the SRA Myth and multiple personality disorder, who would otherwise benefit from the care and support of real and genuine professionals.

There is every indication that POPAN - the Prevention of Professional Abuse Network, which stated its aims to be to provide support for people who have experienced abuse by a therapist was actually nothing more than an organisation determined to deflect concern and investigation into that very abuse. Dr. Fisher's close involvement in a scandal that involved sustained abuse of a patient by therapists over several years appears to suggest that rather than try to combat such abuse, she was rather encouraging or sanctioning it.

The issues raised in this entry are discussed in more detail in the pages for the history of the RAINS SRA Myth organisation, under The Carol Felstead scandal

Jim Fisher (James)

American-based author of Forensics Under Fire: Are Bad Science and Duelling Experts Corrupting Criminal Justice? (2008)

(See also Richard Rogers (PhD, ABPP))

Maribeth Fischer

American author of The Language of Goodbye (2002). Hear latest novel The Life You Longed For (2008) incorporates a plot concerning an MSBP allegation. In interview with Alyssa Coltrain, Ms. Fischer explained the genesis of the plot's background;

Maribeth Fischer: It's about a mother who has a terminally ill child, and she does everything to advocate for that child. She has a medical background; she looks into absolutely everything she can do to keep this child alive. In the midst of this, she's accused of Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy.

Alyssa Coltrain (thesquare): What inspired you to write about such a controversial topic as Munchausen Syndrome?

MF: It started with the Salem Witch Trials. I have actually wanted to write a story dealing with all the accusations and the burning. I started seeing parallels between the Salem Witch Trials and Munchausen, in that the Salem Witch Trials began with unexplained illness of children - same with Munchausen. A lot of the accusations were made in the trials against nurses and midwives, and, with Munchausen, accusations are often against women with medical backgrounds. In the witch trials, the accused were often outspoken women, who maybe had a little bit of power, education, same with Munchausen. So all these parallels started to interest me.
(Source: A conversation with Maribeth Fisher)

(See also Darin Strauss, J.K Rowling OBE)

Howard Fishman

Former education director at the Harvard Medical School's psychiatry department.
Mr. Fishman is a noted critic of the child abuse "industry" in the USA;

"The child abuse industry has devoted itself to the removal of children from their homes based on spectral evidence, phantom disorders and fanciful modes of purported abuse that should be assigned to the trash bin of junk science".
(Source: The Munchausen Syndrome Witch Hunt)

Daniel Foggo

Investigative journalist for The Times newspaper. His article "Question a doctor and lose your child" provided examples of instances when medical staff, insulted or in an effort to prevent criticism, or to save resources, accuse parents or carers of causing abuse, invariably using the mechanism of the MSBP false allegation facility;

In the third of these cases, Melvilina Gavin-Langley’s 16-year-old son Omar is terminally ill with Duchenne muscular dystrophy and restricted to a wheelchair.

His mother is embroiled in a legal dispute with Birmingham city council over a partly completed extension intended to provide Omar with easy access to a bathroom.

Gavin-Langley, 49, who wants the extension rebuilt because she says it was designed in a way that was dangerous and obstructed access to sewers, said: “I have had to carry Omar upstairs to bathe him but it was risking dislocating his shoulders and also I got a hernia from all the lifting.

“I told the council I could no longer lift Omar across my back.

“They then turned that around and said I had said I could no longer care for my son. They say they have to put him into care because his hair has not been washed and he’s not getting a bath. They have just threatened me with this because they don’t like me taking legal action against them.”
(Source: Question a doctor and lose your child)

The subject of using unfounded or false allegations against carers, notably women, dominates debate about modern child protection and family justice in England and Wales, the US and elsewhere. Probably the most famous and well-documented case is Jan Loxley but the number of such instances runs it appears into the hundreds of thousands across the Western world.

On the same day Mr. Foggo's article was published, The Daily Telegraph journalist John Bingham saw his short article "'Uppity' parents who challenge the authorities 'risk having children taken away'";

Local authorities are using proceedings in the family courts as "retaliation" against parents who question doctors' diagnoses of their children or challenge other decisions, according to an MP.

John Hemming, the Liberal Democrat MP for Birmingham Yardley, who coordinates a campaign called Justice for Families, which calls for reform of the family court system, said that the practice was becoming common.

"Very often care proceedings are used as retaliation by local authorities against 'uppity' people who question the system," he told a Sunday newspaper.

One family reportedly had all six of their children taken into care after they questioned the need for an invasive medical test on their daughter who was suspected of having a blood disease.

Although the girl later tested negative for the condition, an emergency protection order remained in place.
(Source: 'Uppity' parents who challenge the authorities 'risk having children taken away')

Daniel Foggo also penned ‘Satanic Abuse Claims Doomed Our Girl’ The Sunday Times, 12th June 2011 - (note the original article is behind the The Times/Sunday Times paywall) which broke The Carol Myers scandal to the world.
(See also Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown , Christopher Booker, Bruno Bettelheim


Jean La Fontaine (Professor, Sybil)

Leader of a team from Manchester University that was commissioned by Health Secretary Rt. Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP to investigate and report upon the obsession with the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth that took hold amongst British social workers and child protection police officers in the late 1980's and early 1990's. The report was presented in 1994. and resulted in a government policy to retrain professionals in correct procedure when interviewing children (for further details see the entry forRt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP and Stephen J. Ceci (Prof.).)

Professor La Fontaine is also the author of Speak of the Devil: Tales of Satanic Abuse in Contemporary England (1998) which reviewed the SRA Myth scandals in both the US and UK and compared them to the witch-hunts of centuries past. This book used much of the research conducted for the 1994 report, together with then up-to-date analysis of the SRA Myth and its genesis;

Those actually accused in cases of alleged satanic abuse were mostly the parents and neighbours of the children, and in nearly half the cases it was clear that the children had been maltreated, sometimes grossly. Moreover, in a large proportion of the cases those accused could be described as society's rejects. Not only were they deprived economically, their behaviour and their treatment of their children deviated from all acceptable practice so greatly that it could be characterised as inhuman. The allegations thus follow the pattern of witchcraft accusations in many other societies past and present: the accused are those who violate basic premises about human nature or who are socially marginal in other ways. In particular, and most damning to believers, their children had been seriously damaged by their parenting. Charity or sympathy may be withdrawn, without guilt or fear of reprisal, from those who are designated as evil.
(Source: Speak of the Devil: Tales of Satanic Abuse in Contemporary England by Jean Sybil La Fontaine - Page 188, published by the Cambridge University Press.)

A primary 'feature' of the SRA Myth, as identified by Professor La Fontaine, was that accusations were, in the vast majority of cases, made against parents and carers who were socially marginalised, through poverty, poor housing, disability or sexual orientation (homosexuals attracted a disproportionate number of false allegations, particularly in the US). Whilst constraining herself to the UK version of the SRA Myth, the US featured this distinct aspect in the allegations made, and when the SRA Myth evolved to take in a 'Mind Control' element, in the UK, middle-class accusers invariably determined that the socially excluded had access to vast arrays of equipment, drugs and expertise that could be employed to control their 'victims'. In the US the 'Mind Control' element was invariably laid at the door of the CIA. A summary of the three major versions of the SRA Myth can be found at Bea Campbell (OBE). The SRA Myth has now evolved to incorporate a conspiracy theory involving aliens. A history of the RAINS organisation, that advocated for the SRA Myth in England and Wales can be found under the entry for Dr. Sandra Buck.

(See also: Carol Baptiste, Bea Campbell (OBE), Roger Cook, Dianne Core, M.M. Drymon, Judith (Dawson) Jones, Christopher Lillie, Diana Napolis, August Piper (M.D), Margaret Whitehead, Rev. David Woodhouse, Ray Wyre

Father Jose Antonio Fortea

Priest of the Diocese of Alcalai de Henares (Madrid.) Author of Interview with an Exorcist that examines the subject of demonic possession.

Although the number of SRA (satanic ritual abuse) Myth scandals has vastly reduced - the last one in the UK being in 2003 with the island of Lewis scandal (see Satanic ritual abuse hoax on the Island of Lewis in Scotland) there is anecdotal evidence that belief in witchcraft, satanic abuse and demonic possession is heavily embedded in the personal beliefs of many child protection social workers and police officers. Key to comprehension of this is that the former Conservative Government attempted to ensure that social workers and police officers were re-trained in their questioning techniques as a result of the scandals of the late 1980's and '90's. After the Orkney and Lewis scandals no effort was made by the Labour government to address the dangers of indoctrinated child protection professionals - either those who were secular and believed that SRA was simply a "vehicle" for abuse or those who were influenced by fundamentalist concerns and genuinely believe that the Devil can walk the Earth.

Father Forteas's book is presented in question-and-answer format;


What do demons do with their time?

In the world of demons, like that of people, some do one thing and others do different things. Demons, of course, cannot build houses, grow food, construct machines, nor do any of the things human beings spend so much time on. Most of the time, demons occupy themselves with going deeper into the world of knowledge, in having relationships among themselves , and in tempting people.

The intellectual world is such a vast world that the demons occupy themselves in it completely like us. In a university, for example, there can be hundred of professors with each one specialising in some branch of knowledge.

(Source: Page 12 Interview with an Exorcist Father Jose Antonio Fortea)

The concept that evil resides in "The intellectual world" strangely parallels the view of modern feminism and social scientists, currently engaged in a deliberate anti-science campaign - having determined that evil, raping, child-molesting males dominate science and therefore science must therefore be evil. A discussion about the War on Science and the rejection of modern science concepts and their replacement with alternate methodologies, including crank/pseudo science and superstition, can be found under the entry for Patricia Gowaty.

The routinely-held view by many in the English and Welsh secret Family Courts that autism can be explained as being caused by the mother, parallels the post-1940's view that autism was caused by a lack of emotional input from the mother, the so-called Refrigerator Mom theory, promoted by Bruno Bettelheim). The previous view, going back centuries, was that autism was caused by demonic possession. Demonic possession is also associated with MPD - Multiple Personality Disorder - a popular diagnosis labelled against women by secretive Family Courts and strongly associated with religious fundamentalism and feminism (like SRA, the two seemingly opposed groups are able to combine perspectives when it suits them). There is anecdotal evidence that there is one secretive court-appointed expert in Cornwall who is a firm believer in demonic possession, and a secret court judge in the North West of England who is a firm believer in SRA and possibly the demonic possession theory to autism.

It isn't by any means understood how many professionals working in child protection or related subjects are believers in demonic possessions but an essay by Nick Land provided some insight into it's possible use as a diagnosis within the NHS.

(See also August Piper (M.D), Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP, Dana Becker, Dr. Paul Shattock OBE, Jan Loxley, Patricia Gowaty)

Jill France

Registered child protection social worker, believed currently registered in Preston, North West England. With a colleague Susan Hammersley, Ms. France was indoctrinated by the Reachout fundamentalist Christian group in June 1990, and subsequently went on to become involved in the Rochdale SRA Scandal of 1990;

In this context it is worth reviewing the subsequent career of the influential Reverend Woodhouse. In 1988 he went to work at Ellel Grange, a Christian healing centre near Lancaster and by 1990 he was speaking at conferences as an expert on the subject of SRA. He was a key speaker at a conference in Cardiff that June; in his audience were social workers from Rochdale who, the following week, took 12 children into care on suspicion that their families were Satanists.
(Source: Satan in Suburbia by Gareth Medway - Fortean Times November 2001>/em> )

The appalling damage done to 20 children separated from their families - for up to ten years in Rochdale in 1990 by social workers with an "obsessional" belief in satanic abuse was revealed in a powerful BBC1 Real Story documentary last Wednesday.

The social workers Jill France and Susan Hammersley and their bosses were caught up in a professional panic that children were being sexually abused by devil worshippers in bizarre black magic rituals, including drinking blood and sacrificing animals and children.

The notion spread in the US and the UK in the late 1980's and early 1990's through satanic abuse survivor stories in the born-again Evangelical Christian movement and into mainstream child protection circles through literature and the conference circuit. The scare led to around 85 satanic abuse investigations in the UK none of which resulted in any criminal court cases, charges, or convictions.
(Source - Private Eye - mid January 2006 edition - Eye 1150:11)


Further detail about the Rochdale SRA Myth Scandal can be found in this Index entry)

(See also: Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP, Bea Campbell (OBE), Judith (Dawson) Jones)

Adam Fresco

Crime correspondent with The Times. Wrote Girls accept gun running and rape as price of joining gangs that examined the continuing rise of gang culture within England, often with pedophile elements involved.

The girls, some as young as 13, want to join gangs to raise their own profile or to seek protection. Often they are swayed by the status given to the senior members of the gang.

When they first join they are told they must have sex with one member of the gang-and then find several of the gang waiting for them
(Source: Girls accept gun running and rape as price of joining gangs - by Adam Fresco, page 11 The Times, Monday 26th October 2009)

The rise of pedophile behaviour in gang culture reflects on the continued predominance of pedophile gangs in West Yorkshire, encouraged by a lack of aggressive policing by West Yorkshire Police - see the entry for Colin Cramphorn. It should perhaps be noted that in light of the new "child-saver" lobby obsession that spawned the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA - see Sir Roger Singleton) there has been little or no activity to protect young girls from predation by pedophile gang members, and their increased prevalence appears to be relatively unchallenged by both police and government Ministers.

Jack Frost

Writer, researcher, former soldier and campaigner.

Author of The Gulag of the Family Courts (2007) a critique of the English and Welsh Family Courts.

In Mr. Frosts article "The UK's secret Family Courts. Abduction of children, to meet government targets" Mr Frost detailed how he was introduced to the working of the English and Welsh Family Courts, and in particular how an allegation of MSBP could be easily levelled against a woman who dared question health professionals;

Social workers informed the Family Courts, that two consultant paediatrician, Dr. Aloke Agrawal and Dr. RN Mahesh Babu had alleged that my wife was "inducing the illness" in Heidi and Heidi was imagining the illness. This is the Holy Grail of accusations; Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy. To deny it or defend oneself against accusations of MSBP is apparently a confirmation of this Walter Mitty condition. This, despite the fact that other specialists had confirmed that Heidi was genuinely seriously ill
(Source “ Irish Family Press“ Issue 702)

As well as the family justice system The Gulag of the Family Courts discussed the role of the BBC, particularly in light of its perceived lack of reporting of family justice and child protection issues in recent years. The book, though somewhat lengthy and privately published, is probably the most significant account of social care and family justice in England and Wales for the last three decades. It's first print run sold out and there are rumours of a second, updated and revised edition to be published in the future.

(See also Kevin Marsh, Ceri Thomas, Dr. Aloke Agrawa, Dr. Mahesh Babu..)
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


- Surnames G



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

G



William D. Gairdner

Canadian author of The War Against the Family: A Parent Speaks Out on the Political, Economic, and Social Policies That Threaten Us All described in the synopsis as a "complete critique of the war against the family presently taking place in Western democracies".

Richard Gardner (Dr. )

Former Columbia University professor of clinical psychiatry in the Division of Child Psychiatry, and author of over 40 books, Dr. Gardner created the theory of PAS (Parental Alienation Syndrome) in 1985. PAS theory determined that a parent (most likely a woman) would deliberately alienate the other parent from children in the event of a breakdown of a marriage. A typical instance would see the father accused of sexually abusing one or more of the children. Dr. Gardner's precise definition of the condition was;

"a disturbance in which children are obsessively preoccupied with depreciation and/or criticism of a parent. In other words, denigration that is unjustified and or exaggerated."


Although the diagnosis has never received official recognition, PAS is widely accepted in many US Family Courts as a means for one parent (critics often refer to it invariably being used by a well-funded husband) to gain custody of children. On a number of occasions children have been forced by a Family Court to live with a genuine abuser, and thus subjected to physical and/or sexual abuse with the effective sanction of the Family Court (see Jennifer Collins).

The obvious difficulty with PAS is that an allegation could be genuine-with one parent denigrating another parent (not an unheard-of condition) or it could be false, running the risk that a Family Court could award custody to an abusive parent, placing children in a situation whereby a genuine pedophile is given children by the judicial system. The controversy over the term is whether the act of being upset and vindictive towards a spouse constitutes a 'syndrome' or simply is an easy-to-comprehend part of the human condition.

Dr. Gardner's opinions about pedophile are relevant because PAS has seen children given into the hands of pedophiles;

Asked once by an interviewer what a mother was supposed to do if her child complained of sexual abuse by the father, Gardner replied: "What would she say? Don't you say that about your father. If you do, I'll beat you."
(Source: Obituary: Dr Richard A Gardner, by Andrew Gumbel. The Independent (London) May 31st 2003)

And he suggested there was nothing much wrong with pedophile, incestuous or not.

"One of the steps that society must take to deal with the present hysteria is to `come off it' and take a more realistic attitude toward pedophiliac behaviour," he wrote in Sex Abuse Hysteria - Salem Witch Trials Revisited (1991). Pedophile, he added, "is a widespread and accepted practice among literally billions of people".
(Source: Obituary: Dr Richard A Gardner, by Andrew Gumbel. The Independent (London) May 31st 2003)

Dr. Gardner also possessed unusual views about pedophile fathers;

The child should be told that there is no such thing as a perfect parent. "The sexual exploitation has to be put on the negative list, but positives as well must be appreciated"
(Source Gardner, R.A. (1992). True and False Accusations of Child Sex Abuse . Cresskill, NJ: Creative Therapeutics - p. 572)

In reality, Dr. Gardner was a Freudian convert; one who believed that children were sexual creatures. The rise of Freudian psychoanalysis, and the use of Freud-based 'psychobabble' theories have been widely adopted by the secret family court system. Hugely popular in the US, PAS has been challenged by feminist elements, and its use is severely curtailed, although other Freudian concepts have been embraced with enthusiasm by feminists in the recent past. PAS has though found its way into use in English and Welsh Family Courts, where it is often employed in conjunction with a false allegation of MSBP (see Sir Roy Meadow) against a woman. A disturbing facet of the English and Welsh use of PAS is that it is often employed against a woman by a social worker rather than by a husband or former partner; apparently in a desire to inflict judicious "punishment" on a mother who may not have shown sufficient deference to a social worker - the punishment being to have her children placed with an alleged pedophile whilst she tries to deal with the false MSBP allegation.

(See also Amy Neustein)

Thomas S. Garlinghouse (Dr.)

Columnist and journalist. Author of numerous articles, including The Left's War on the Family (2004) which discussed the perceived institutionalised attack on the traditional American family through anti-family advocates.

(See also Stephen Baskerville)


Bob Geldof (Robert, KBE)

Irish-born songwriter, actor and campaigner. Founder member of the Irish band The Boomtown Rats.

Most famous for his organisation of the 1984 Live Aid concerts and associated media campaigns in the US, UK and other nations, together with fellow musician Midge Ure, Mr. Geldof is perhaps the most respected, and the most vocal campaigner on the issues of poverty, climate change and the opportunities afforded by technological progress recognised worldwide. Much of this recognition comes from a mixture of huge confidence in his own public speaking, a bombastic style, and the easy recollection of key facts and figures to back his delivery.

Whilst pursuing his international campaigning agenda, as a victim of the English and Welsh secret family courts perceived bias against fathers in contact arrangements, Mr. Geldof has joined the debate about the nature of the damage inflicted on children by the secret court system, and in particular the reliance on pseudo/crank science;

“In the near future the family law under which we endure will be seen as barbaric, criminally damaging, abusive, neglectful, harmful to society, the family, the parents and the children in whose name it purports to act,” wrote Mr Geldof.

“It is beyond scrutiny or criticism and like a secret society its members – the judges, lawyers, social and child ‘care’ agencies behave like any closed vested interest and protect each others’ backs.”

He described the system as: "A farrago of cod professionalism and faux concern largely predicated on nonsensical social guff, mumbo-jumbo and psychobabble.

“Dangling at the other end of this are the lives of thousands of British children and their families.”
(Source: ‘Barbaric’ family courts behind ‘state sponsored kidnap’ – Bob Geldof - by John Bingham, The Daily Telegraph, December 7th 2009

(See also Stephen Baskerville, Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP, David Chick, Mark Harris)

Frances Gibb

Journalist and law editor for The Times British national newspaper. Her article "Children taken from parents and adopted to 'meet ministry targets'" (24th August 2007) reported on BBC Radio 4's August 20th 2007 broadcast Face The Facts (see also John Waite) which investigated the alleged policies of forced adoption practiced by some social service departments allied to a requirement to increase adoptions introduced as Labour Party policy in 2000 (see Rt. Hon. Tony Blair);

A social work manager with 25 years experience in child protection added that parents had little chance of getting a hearing and overturning a decision made by the authorities.

The manager told the BBC: 'People will find that their children have been removed and freed for adoption without them having had a proper chance to defend themselves and their families and their children.'
(Source: Children taken from parents and adopted to 'meet ministry targets'" (The Times, 24th August 2007) - Francis Gibb)

Ms. Gibb has also written Abuse errors a 'life sentence for parents' (The Times 4th March 2004) and Hope for thousands who had children taken away (The Times 21st January 2004).

(See also Camilla Cavendish, Sir Ken Macdonald, Mark Ivory, Mark Smith)

Anthony Giddens (Baron Giddens)

British sociologist and Emeritus Professor at the London School of Economics (LSE).
Author of Consequence of Modernity (1990), Modernity and Self-Identity (1991), The Transformation of Intimacy (1992), Beyond Left and Right (1994) and perhaps his most notable work The Third Way: The Renewal of Social Democracy (1998)

Some of the ideas formulated in The Third Way are universally recognised to have provided the core philosophy of New Labour childcare dogma, shortly after entering office in 1997; bringing with it the concept that children were a joint possession of The State and their parents and thus heralding a vast increase in State intervention in normal childhood. Possible consequences of this may have been the enthusiasm for the introduction of the ContactPoint national database in 2008 that records the details of all children and young adults in England and Wales (recommended in the Lord Laming-led inquiry report into the death of Victoria Climbie) together with a perceived tendency for New Labour politicians to encourage the forced removal of children by social workers from parents, and a lack of desire to reform the secretive Family Court system in England and Wales.

The Marxist doctrine was brought up to date by Anthony Giddens, one of the architects of New Labour, in 1998. In The Third Way, Giddens explained how the 'democratisation' of the family demands that responsibility for childcare be shared not only between men and women but also between parents and non-parents.

Giddens also proposed that in the democratic family, parents would have to 'negotiate' for authority over their children.
(Source: The Nationalisation of Childhood - page 2 Author: Jill Kirby. Publisher: Centre for Policy Studies, ISBN 190538923X)

(See also Rt. Hon. Tony Blair, Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Dr. Marietta Higgs, Mark Ivory)

Jonah Goldberg

American author of Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left (2008) that discusses the the increasingly prevalent trend for US liberals and left-leaning elitists to adopt fascist dogma, and the history of fascism and its part in providing the core origin of modern socialism.

The idea that "family values" are philosophically linked to fascism actually has a long pedigree, going back, again, to the Frankfurt School. Max Horkheimer argued that the root of Nazi totalitarianism was the family. But the truth is as close to the opposite as one can get. While Nazi rhetoric often paid homage to the family, the actual practice of Nazism was consonant with the progressive effort to invade the family, to breach its walls and shatter its autonomy. The traditional family is the enemy of all political totalitarianism's because it is the bastion of loyalties separate from and prior to the state, which is why progressives are constantly trying to crack its outer shell.
(Source: Page 377 - UK Penguin edition of Liberal Fascism - by Jonah Goldberg (2007))

(See also Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Linda Gordon, Baron Anthony Giddens, Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP, Rt. Hon. Patricia Hewitt MP, Bea Campbell (OBE), Patricia Gowaty, Eric Pickles MP, Jan Loxley, Nick Cohen, Stephen Baskerville, Kay Hymowitz)


Llin Golding (Llinos, Baroness Golding)

Labour Party peer sitting in the House of Lords and former MP for the constituency of Newcastle-under-Lyme.

In 1994, following the release of the report studying the epidemic of SRA Myth allegations in the UK by Prof. Jean La Fontaine (commissioned by Conservative Health Secretary Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP) the almost universal conclusion then and since was that Christian Fundamentalists had been responsible for the scare, assisted by irresponsible "experts" and feminists who had all found reason to believe in the Myth. Ms. Golding though remained convinced that the SRA Myth was true;

However the Labour MP, Llin Golding, vice-chairwoman of the parliamentary children's group called for another investigation involving psychiatrists and therapists who say they have dealt with satanic abuse. Ms. Golding, MP for Newcastle Under Lyme said: 'Just because one person found no evidence, that doesn't mean satanic abuse does not exist.'
(Source: Satanic abuse dismissed as 'myth' by government enquiry....by Rosie Waterhouse, The Independent, Friday 3rd June 1994)

The idea that no evidence of satanic abuse was in itself evidence had been promoted by one of the SRA Myths primary promoters, Christian Fundamentalist and former nurse Maureen Davies

Ms. Davies once said;

"Sometimes no proof is proof [of a conspiracy]" She is considered an "expert" in England.
(Source: The Making of a Satanic Myth - Rosie Waterhouse - The Independent on Sunday 12th August 1990, page 8)

A primary difficulty for the advocates of the SRA Myth was that English and Welsh Courts, even Family Courts, were reluctant to accept spectral evidence in the form of visions, dreams and even recovered memories under hypnosis. Spectral evidence - although not disallowed by statute saw no further use after the 17th century, and didn't even feature in the conviction of "Britain's last convicted witch" - Helen Duncan, in wartime 1944. Spectral evidence though was allowed in the US criminal and civil courts in the late 1980's and 1990's, resulting in the convictions of numerous women (65% as a proportion) and men on the basis of accusation alone, devoid of physical or forensic evidence, a confession, or corroboration. Some of those individuals, exclusively those who were poor and are unable to fund legal representation, continue to languish in prison today.

In the UK there are irregular calls for the strictures of evidence in cases of child sex abuse allegations to be relaxed, though these normally take the form of "similar case" evidence when an individual has been convicted previously of a similar offence and the Court is unable to hear of such evidence. Calls from experts, such as psychologists are invariably though requests for spectral evidence to be allowed in such cases. It isn't clear if these calls are driven by religious fundamentalists within the profession.

(See also: Bea Campbell (OBE), Judith (Dawson) Jones, Dianne Core, Dr. Sara Scott, Rev. David Woodhouse)

Sophie Goodchild

Health and Social Affairs Correspondent for the London Evening Standard. Until May 2007 she was a chief reporter and Home Affairs Correspondent for The Independent newspaper.

Her April 2000 article for the Independent on Sunday Satanic abuse no myth, say experts was one of the last known instances of a British newspaper advocating for the SRA Myth, which was 'driven' in the UK by feminists colluding with religious fundamentalists. The 'report' referred-to in the title was one produced by SRA Myth advocate, Dr. Valerie Sinason and her colleague Dr Rob Hale, director of the Portman Clinic in London. Following the release of Prof. Jean La Fontaine's report to the Government about the nature of the SRA Myth allegations that had been made during the 'crazy' years, the SRA Myth movement had remained convinced that the requirement for evidence was seriously restricting the uptake of the 'Myth. The Department of Health, in response to lobbying by SRA Myth advocates, commissioned a report from Dr's Hale and Sinason, and provided a fund of £20,000 and the part-time services of a Metropolitan Police detective - the Metropolitan Police being the only police force in the UK to consistently maintain support for the SRA Myth, all the way to the present day.

So convinced were SRA Myth advocates that the commissioning of the report would provide the 'proof' that SRA actually exists, the 'results' of the exercise were released in the Christian Herald newspaper before it had begun.

In 2000, the finished report was delivered to the Department of Health, and its Minister, John Hutton, MP. After the report was commissioned, the government had changed to a New Labour one, and the Labour Party's previous enthusiasm for religious fundamentalist concerns in the 1990s provided the belief that the report would be successful.

The opposite though occurred. The Department of Health, faced with a report that contained no evidence, rejected it (though it didn't demand the £20,000 back). The key need for SRA Myth advocates, to get the agreement of the government in their belief in its existence, failed miserably;

The award for the Hale-Sinason Study was made by the policy section of the DoH -- without the proposal being formally reviewed. The person who approved it has now left the Department. The commission was originally applauded by the diehard protagonists of so-called "satanic abuse" (the flat-earth faction of the child abuse industry) who, in 1996, forecast that it would result in a government U-turn on the issue.

In reality, the whole thing has backfired – not only have Sinason and Hale spectacularly failed to report any plausible evidence for satanic abuse, but investigations by a specially-seconded Metropolitan police officer, Inspector Clive Driscoll, based in Fulham, do not appear to have uncovered any proof either. Sinason has talked of fifty cases - based presumably on the unsubstantiated claims of her adult "survivor" clients going back years.

The waste of £22,000 of public funds on this doomed project is a serious embarrassment for the DoH. What makes the situation worse for the Department is that they were warned four years ago that the Portman Pair would never be able to deliver. More significantly, Professor Jean La Fontaine (author of the DoH’s 1994 report which thoroughly dismissed satanic abuse claims) criticised the Department for commissioning the second report. "We received complaints about your findings," declared the DoH. "Complaints are not evidence," the professor riposted in a letter to Bruce Clark, Head of the Department of Health Policy Section.

BBC Radio 4 gave Sinason a day’s worth of free publicity back in February - though again, no sign of the fabled report or any evidence to back up the authors’ findings. A sure sign that the study had gone pear-shaped came on 30 April 2000 when the Independent on Sunday ran an article headlined: "Satanic Abuse No Myth, Say Experts". Apart from falling into the trap of saying that the report would be published "this week", the article was based on an interview with Valery Sinason and was almost a word-for-word retread of the one she gave to Andrew Boyd of the New Christian Herald in 1996.

Four years of work, £22,000 of public money and nothing new to say?
(Source: Hale-Sinason Report).

Following delivery of the report, Dr. Sinason founded the Clinic for Dissociative Studies with the aid of the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust. The clinic is an independent provider to the NHS, confirming continuing belief in the SRA Myth amongst health care professionals, which partners belief in demonic possession (see also Nick Land).

Ms. Goodchild's article came as a shock for those Independent readers who could recollect Rosie Waterhouse - former Independent staff writer and probably the most highly-respected investigative journalist in the country (then and now) who, together with Fiona Barton ripping apart the SRA Myth apart in the 1990's, in a series of articles in both The Independent and The Daily Mail.

Satanic abuse no myth, say experts stood alone. No other major newspaper was taken-in by the reports release, including even The Guardian, which only reported on Dr. Sinason's report in passing, though it had enthusiastically backed the obsession with the SRA Myth in the past. This left The Independent as the only national publication to be seen to support the 'Myth, even when it was long-recognised as no more than the crazed fantasies of colluding feminists and fanatical religious fundamentalists.

As it is, this wasn't the end of the instances when The Independent would be taken-in by an obsession with the SRA Myth, and would publish something it later regretted. In March 2001, less than a year after Ms. Goodchild's article, Jeremy Laurence, the Health Editor made a grovelling apology to The Independent's readers, recognising that once again the newspaper 'had been had', this time with a claim that a photograph of human cannibalism provided by Valerie Sinason, had been found, proving beyond doubt, SRA Myth advocates proclaimed, that Satanic Ritual Abuse exists. As it is, perhaps not entirely a shock to many, the claims were garbage, but not before The Independent had published, again an article that claimed the SRA Myth was real. The original article can be found at British police discover more child abuse horror on internet, By Jeremy Laurance, Health Editor Wednesday, 21 February 2001. The apology is reprinted below, archived thanks to The sub-culture alternative freedom foundation (SAFF) - The Independent Newspaper Apologises to it's readers for Satanic Cannibal Hoax;


March 1, 2001, Thursday
I was wrong about cannibalism
By Jeremy Laurance

'LET'S NOT beat about the bush. I've been had. A reporter in search of a story has, not for the first time, fallen foul of an excess of enthusiasm, credulousness, and someone's idea of a good joke.

Last week, a story by me appeared in The Independent, saying that police were trying to close down an internet site that carried pictures of a man eating a dismembered baby. There was a suggestion, which I reported, that this gave credence to claims of ritual or Satanic abuse, including human sacrifice, which have been the subject of fierce controversy for more than a decade.

It turns out, as several readers have brought to our attention with notable glee, that the pictures on the Californian website show, not human sacrifice, but a Chinese performance artist who has been shocking audiences in the Far East with his images of cannibalism. Distasteful as his pictures will seem to most people, they are not evidence of Satanic abuse. So here I am eating humble pie. I apologies for misleading readers about the proper context of the pictures (which was unknown to me).

I was contacted a fortnight ago by Valerie Sinason, a child psychotherapist who has, almost single-handedly, kept alive the notion that some children in Britain have been the victims of ritual or Satanic abuse for more than a decade. She has, she says, 51 adult patients who are survivors of child abuse and who, during therapy, have disclosed details suggesting that the abuse had ritual elements.

I was well aware of Ms Sinason's controversial background and have myself been a skeptic about Satanic abuse since the first allegations were made in the late 1980s. I visited Rochdale in 1990, one of the alleged centres of the practice along with Nottingham and Orkney, and concluded in a piece I wrote for the Sunday Correspondent that the most likely explanation for the strange goings-on could be found on the horror shelves of the local video store.

However, I decided to take Ms Sinason's evidence at face value and check it. I accessed the website and there, sure enough, was a man apparently eating a dead baby. I spoke to the police officer she put me in touch with - Detective Inspector Clive Driscoll - and he gave me some bloodcurdling quotes about murder and human sacrifice and said a senior forensic pathologist who had examined the pictures considered the dismembered baby to be real.

There were, admittedly, no candles or crucifixes, and the man was obviously posing, but, on the face of it, cannibalism had been caught on camera.

Once again, however, allegations of ritual abuse have turned out to rest on very little. A year ago, Valerie Sinason appeared on Radio 4's Today programme claiming she had "clinical evidence" of babies who had not been registered at birth being involved in ritual abuse. The implication was that the babies had been conceived and raised secretly for use in rituals that sometimes ended in their sacrifice.

Most experts poured scorn on these claims and pointed out they could do serious harm by their very outlandishness - by making the whole of child abuse seem less likely and easier to dismiss. But they gained a measure of credence because Ms Sinason had been commissioned by the Department of Health, together with a colleague Dr Robert Hale, to write a report detailing her findings, which was submitted to the department last July.

I contacted the health department to ask what had happened to Ms Sinason's report and ask for a comment. What I received, by e-mail, was one of the longest and most carefully worded statements I can remember receiving.

The health department said, in summary, that they had received the report by Dr Hale and Ms Sinason, submitted it to peer review and returned it to the authors with reviewers' comments. They had no plans to publish it. They also cited separate research that they had commissioned from Professor Joan La Fontaine of the London School of Economics, who found "no independent material evidence" to support allegations of "Satanic child abuse and devil worship".

The coup de grace came in the final paragraph:

"In the Government's view, the conclusion of the study they commissioned by Professor La Fontaine ... has not been rendered invalid by Dr Hale and Valerie Sinason's study."

In other words, the claims about Satanic abuse are a load of tosh. To my knowledge, this is the first official declaration by a government department to this effect.

Professor La Fontaine said:

"It is not surprising to me that patients who are having treatment by Valerie Sinason would produce stories that echo such topical issues as the recent trial for receiving internet pornography and the publicity for the film Hannibal. There is good research that shows the "memories" of abuse are produced in and by the therapy."

It would be helpful now to everyone, especially those charged with the protection of children, if the debate about whether or not ritual abuse exists were drawn to a close. Allegations of Satanism should be directed where they belong - at the horror films and videos that almost certainly triggered the scare a decade ago, and have fostered it ever since.'


For a lengthy discussion about the collusion of feminists and religious fundamentalists over the SRA Myth, and greater detail about Dr. Sinason, see the entry for Bea Campbell (OBE). An extended Index entry on the subject of the RAINS organisation that advocates for the SRA Myth in England and Wales can be found at Dr. Sandra Buck

Although The Independent were suckered-into the Myth, late on, when it was effectively only the preserve of the most fanatical and dedicated ultra-right-wing religious fundamentalists and feminists, the now-online social workers magazine Community Care managed to maintain its obsession with the fantasy until 2005, and still maintains links to at least one organisation that promotes the Disassociation theory (previously known as MPD - Multiple Personality Disorder) - a key plank in the obsessions of SRA Myth advocates. See the extended entry under Mark Ivory.

(See also Simon Kelner)

Linda Gordon

Radical feminist writer. Most famously known for her rallying call to have families forcibly broken-up. It is uncertain if her call has been pursued as a policy by government officials in the US and UK, or by social care providers.

The nuclear family must be destroyed, and people must find better ways of living together...Whatever its ultimate meaning, the break up of families now is an objectively revolutionary process. Families have supported oppression by separating people into small, isolated units, unable to join together to fight for common interests.

(See also Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Adolf Hitler, Baron Anthony Giddens)

Jonathan Gornall

British journalist, contributor to The Guardian and The Times, as well as the British Medical Journal.
Mr. Gornalls web site http://jonathangornall.squarespace.com/ describes itself on the front page as

"This site serves as a repository for those articles and as a source of information relating to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, infanticide and the campaign against UK professionals working in child-protection services."


Mr. Gornall is perhaps best known for his articles in support for expert anonymity in English and Welsh Family Courts.

In September 2007 Mr Gornall wrote an article about the Fran Lyon Scandal entitled Fran Lyon Case: The Hidden Agenda. Perhaps Mr Gornell's most contentious article was entitled No names, no proof, no consensus published in The Guardian on Wednesday 24th 2006.

Three Consensus documents, written by a part anonymous group of authors, hosted together under the banner of the campaign group Family Law Reform (from Milton Keynes) were submitted to the UK Government from April to July 2005. The reports concerned the alleged misdirection of social care policy with respect to the establishing of a regime that allowed for the easy use of false allegations of MSBP to be inflicted on (notably) women. The report concentrated on how policy was allegedly corrupted through the auspices of a civil servant for the Department of Health, Education and Skills, a Bruce Clark. The report was submitted to the Ministers Ruth Kelly, Margaret Hodge MP plus Lord Filkin, the then-Lord Falconer, Baroness Ashton, Tom Jeffrey and Althea Efunshile. (link to the The Consensus Report).

The reports, presented in a difficult-to-fathom semi-official style should have been devastating upon it's submission. However much of it's impact was lost through its dense and sometimes obscure terminology. Despite this the Consensus reports raised a number of important issues, not least the alleged misuse of MSBP allegations, notably when employed against the parents of genuinely sick children.

Upon it's submission, the Government consistently ignored all of the Consensus reports. Despite this they are now historical documents, forever associated with The Labour Party, and its social care policies of the early twenty-first century.

Mr. Gornells article (No names, no proof, no consensus - The Guardian May 24th 2006) concentrated on the anonymous nature of the authors and a misrepresentation of the number of children taken into care. Notably though it failed to address the reports core concerns; that MSBP allegations were being incorrectly made and that the children's child protection system had been weighted in favour of allowing such allegations to be made on a whim. With its publication in the former left-leaning Guardian newspaper, the article is often referred-to as an example of how the MSBP false-allegation regime has been allowed to thrive, and even encouraged by a newspaper that would have otherwise have been expected to be at the forefront of opposition to it's alleged unregulated usage.

Judith Gould (Dr.)

Director - The Centre for Social and Communication Disorders

With Judith Barnard, the Director of Policy and Public Affairs, National Autistic Society (NAS) wrote the document Safeguarding children in whom illness is induced or fabricated (October 2001). The document was response to the UK Governments Safeguarding Children consultation. The report directed stinging criticism at the Labour Party government for promoting a policy that allowed for the mothers and parents of autistic spectrum disorders (such as autism and Aspergers Syndrome) to be falsely accused of MSBP almost as a matter of course, notably because the governments guidelines to professionals incorporated a number of factors that were recognised as being part of a diagnosis for ASD's. The paper was presented to The Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP, then Health Secretary and a civil servant long-associated with the institutionalised abuse of women through the guise of child protection, Jenny Gray OBE;

The whole issue of factitious or induced illness - or Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy, as it is more familiarly known as in the autism community - is one of rising concern. Significant numbers of families are finding themselves accused of this form of abuse. There are serious concerns that this guidance will lead to a huge increase in the identification of this rare condition at the expense of identifying the real needs of the child. A Cleveland-style epidemic is feared.
(Source: Safeguarding children in whom illness is induced or fabricated)

It appears that although their concerns were formerly submitted to the then-Labour government, the NAS report's concerns about an epidemic of false MSBP allegations against the parents of autistic children did come to fruition in England and Wales. Some criticism has been directed against the NAS over the subject of the false use of MSBP against the parents of autistic children as the organisation does not publicly campaign on the issue. In its place a number of other organisations have come into being - most notably the Autism Research Institute, which pursues a far more aggressive stance towards the Labour Party (see Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown).

A lengthy entry concerning the use of false allegations of MSBP applied to the mothers of children with AS Disorders, and the 'modern' theory in the UK that autism is caused by women, can be found under the entry for Bruno Bettelheim).

With the May 2010 General Election the British Labour party's stance against women, particularly mothers of autistic children, has now moved to historical record. A number of published books and journal articles have reappraised Labour's social care policies whilst it was in office, but none have quite addressed the MSBP-Austism Scandal sufficiently. Nonetheless the scandal of the use of false MSBP allegations against women with ASD children is an enormous, and as yet unresolved one. Quite likely many of the children suffering from autism and subsequently taken into forcible adoption, will settle the issues both through the civil courts and with members of the British Labour Party in person after they reach the age of eighteen and above.

(See also William R. Long, Jan Loxley, Paul Shattock OBE).

Rt. Hon. Michael Gove (MP)

Conservative Party MP for the constituency of Surrey Heath since 2005. Appointed Secretary of State for Education in May 2010 as part of the Coalition Government, following the 2010 General Election in the UK. He replaced former incumbent The Rt. Hon. Ed Balls MP. He was previously Shadow Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families - mirroring the former name of the Department for Education, which he had renamed almost as soon as reaching office.

Adopted successfully as a child, and a former leading national TV and newspaper journalist and editor, Mr. Gove helped launch the magazine Standpoint (see Alasdair Palmer). He is regarded as both extraordinarily loyal to the Conservative Party, whilst being one of it's most intellectual free thinkers; able to convert complex concepts into easy-to-digest formats.

Despite taking-on a challenging role, Mr. Gove's greatest challenge as Education Secretary will probably stem from the civil servants in his department, inherited from the time New Labour was in office. During the period 1997-2010 many of these exhibited distinct anti-family, anti-women tendencies, and they may not take kindly to a Minister who may challenge their 'child-saver' agenda. In such circumstances it isn't unlikely that some might make every effort to embarrass the Minister at every opportunity, or even simply work against his and his senior management at every turn.

An extended entry discussing Mr. Gove's early period of time in office can be found incorporated into the extended Entry for Tim Loughton (MP).

Patricia Adair Gowaty

(Please note this is a lengthy Entry)

American scientist and author of Feminism and Evolutionary Biology: Boundaries, Intersections and Frontiers (1997) that attempted to heal the rift between feminist biological theory and scientific understanding of the concept of evolutionary biology;

Several years ago it dawned on me that a profitable way to look at all this variety (and potential controversy) among feminism's was neither to emphasise the differences among out political theories or the similarities of our social actions, but to look at the relationships among the theories of human nature than undergird each of the theories.

This ideas occurred to me after a seminar I gave to a Woman's Studies Program in Kentucky. I had spoken about what Darwinian natural selection analyses of sexist behaviour might tell us about liberating ourselves from certain social-sexist oppressions. My Darwinian natural selection argument used social stratification and variation in the severity of the sexist behaviour to predict which subgroups of women and men differentially bore the burdens in terms of decreased survival and reproductive success of the behaviour. I modelled the variables to test how perturbations to the system would facilitate the elimination (the extinction) of a sexist cultural practice. When I was done, one of the women in the front row, obviously angry, spoke up and said that my analysis was beside the point and wrong. She said that everything I had said could be explained by the fact that men feared women's sexuality.
(Source. Page 3 Feminism and Evolutionary Biology: Boundaries, Intersections and Frontiers (1997) by Patricia Gowaty)

Recognition that gender (otherwise known as "political", or "radical") feminism was struggling to accept the concepts of evolutionary biology and by implication the creed of natural selection and "Darwinian evolution" might come as a shock to many. For anyone educated in the UK or many other Western countries, the teaching of evolutionary biology, just like that of "continental drift" (later to become plate tectonics) was pretty much standardised in school curriculums from the 1970's onwards, and in many non-Church schools, established in the 1960's or before.

The take-up of the concept of Darwinian evolution was remarkably rapid in the UK and many Commonwealth countries, thanks in part to the ground-breaking work of numerous amateur scientists, who developed new disciplines such as palaeontology long before the Victorian Age, and the extraordinary debating ability of Thomas Huxley. The most important element though was the Anglican Church of England, whose progressive values reached a peak in the late 19th century, ensuring that the debates about Darwin's theory never risked a major schism. In the US, Darwin's theory did (and still does) encounter some conflicts in its teaching, simply because of the greater influence of religious concerns in the United States.

Ms. Gowaty's concerns were amplified in the same year as Feminism and Evolutionary Biology: Boundaries, Intersections and Frontiers was published. Author Barbara Ehrenreich and then-student in ethnology Janet McIntosh had their essay The New Creationism: Biology Under Attack published in The Nation which identified the trend amongst feminist doubters in Darwinism and evolutionary biology towards what they referred to as a kind of (then) secular creationism theory they (the authors) called New Creationism. They also recounted the experience of one social scientist who found that her feminist sisters were "away with the fairies";

When social psychologist Phoebe Ellsworth took the podium at a recent interdisciplinary seminar on emotions, she was already feeling rattled. Colleagues who'd presented earlier had warned her that the crowd was tough and had little patience for the reduction of human experience to numbers or bold generalisations about emotions across cultures.

Ellsworth had a plan: She would pre-empt criticism by playing the critic, offering a social history of psychological approaches to the topic. But no sooner had the word "experiment" passed her lips than the hands shot up. Audience members pointed out that the experimental method is the brainchild of white Victorian males. Ellsworth agreed that white Victorian males had done their share of damage in the world but noted that, nonetheless, their efforts had led to the discovery of DNA. This short-lived dialogue between paradigms ground to a halt with the retort: "You believe in DNA?"

More grist for the academic right? No doubt, but this exchange reflects a tension in academia that goes far deeper than spats over "political correctness." Ellsworth's experience illustrates the trend -- in anthropology, sociology, cultural studies and other departments across the nation -- to dismiss the possibility that there are any biologically based commonalities that cut across cultural differences.

This aversion to biological or, as they are often branded, "reductionist" explanations commonly operates as an informal ethos limiting what can be said in seminars, asked at lectures or incorporated into social theory. Extreme anti-innatism has had formal institutional consequences as well: At some universities, like the University of California, Berkeley, the biological subdivision of the anthropology department has been relocated to another building -- a spatial metaphor for an epistemological gap.
(Source: The New Creationism: Biology Under Attack - Barbara Ehrenreich and Janet McIntosh)

The manner in which women are now being denied a liberal education - abandoning the means by which they can take part in the modern world, rather than being rendered incapable of being able to understand modern concepts that engage with technology and modern social constructs, is of particular concern to some feminists. In the US the curriculum's of Women's Studies courses have been investigated, leading to a recognition by some that entire generations of young women are being denied a place in society; placing them to the same state that uneducated women suffered prior to the 20th century, rendering them vulnerable to 'crank' or 'pseudo' science concepts;

...(but) we worried about the students in Women's Studies classes. Women's Studies claimed to empowering these (mostly) young women by preparing them for life in patriarchal world. Yet the very skills and attitudes that make a liberal arts education so worthwhile were systematically disparaged.

Logic, the analysis of arguments, quantitative reasoning, object evaluation of evidence, fair-minded consideration of opposing views-modes of thinking central to intellectual life-were dismissed as masculinist contrivances that served only to demean and oppress women. And the great classical and civilising works that anchor studies in the humanities were mocked as either irrelevant or dangerous production of Dead White Males. A whole generation of idealistic young women were not only being cut off from a liberal education but actually inoculated against it.

No doubt there were students who gained confidence and a sense of belonging from the sharing, caring, and calls to empowerment that pervaded pedagogy. But we found that others felt excluded by the strict enforcement of whatever the prevailing feminist norms happened to be. And those who did fit in were akin a worldview that militated against anything but a life as a feminist activist-and this by design. It is right women to be alerted to the possibility of rape and violent assault and appraised of methods of prevention and legal recourse. But if such topics are to be discussed in a classroom setting, they must be dealt with carefully and analysed as a complex social issue using the tools of social science. All too often the definitions and doctrines espoused within Women's Studies seemed calculated to make women feel besieged. Their sensitivities were being sharpened to such an edge that some were turned into relentless grievance collectors or rendered too suspicious to function in the workaday world outside of Women's Studies and were left with few possible roles in life beyond that of angry feminists.
(Source: Professing feminism: education and indoctrination in women's studies (2003) By Daphne Patai, Noretta Koertge)

In this world of Women's Studies, science is rendered utterly beyond the comprehension of young women, crippling them with no opportunity of being able to 'pick-up' things a bit later on, and perhaps explaining how the likes of social workers, a profession often associated with radical feminism, are so vulnerable to the siren calls of pseudo/crank science, and the entreaties of religious fundamentalism. Without the facility for independent thought and research, they are unable to question or make their own judgements, and are unable to express themselves in normal company, both verbally or in writing.

One consequence is that with science rejected, once again feminism allies itself with religious fundamentalism, rejecting science, trying desperately to ignore the pace with which the world around us changes - unintentionally driving women to a pre-Reformation, or 'Postmodern' world whereby males invariably dominate technology and learning, leaving women and girls bamboozled by modern and past developments;

(but) a stronger, more radical social constructionist position holds that all knowledge is so deeply imbued with the cultural norms and personal identities of its producers that it can never be true or-without far-reaching modification-even useful for individuals not belonging to the producers' own group. This more extreme position is invoked in some feminists' wholesale dismissal of science, which would have it that it is neither necessary nor productive to attempt detailed and precise critiques of specific scientific doctrines because all of them are equally tainted by their patriarchal origins. Taking this view, one can reject science and all other forms of specialised knowledge simply by pointing out that they have been constructed by males (and a few women who made their accommodation to the patriarchy) and there are a priori of dubious worth to feminists.



feminists have, though an NWSA report, made both epistemological realism and the denial of biology integral parts of the official corpus of feminist theory.
(Source: Professing feminism: education and indoctrination in women's studies (2003) By Daphne Patai, Noretta Koertge)

Instead of being perhaps a short-lived "spat" between radical feminism and biological science, the conflict over evolutionary biology has refused to go away, and if anything is more pronounced with each passing year of the 21st century. The social sciences - such as social work, history, psychology, anthropology, criminology, sociology and teaching (not a comprehensive list) have been the most impacted, and are thus burdened with the reluctance to accept the concept of evolutionary biology. Adapting the words of Ehrenreich and McIntosh, this has led to an "aversion to (the ) biological."

Where has this mistrust come from?

Christian Creationism advocate and scientist, Dr. Jerry Bergman provided a summary of the reason why some feminists have reason to mistrust Darwinism in his paper on a Christian Creationism web site The history of the teaching of human female inferiority in Darwinism (2000);

Less widely known is that many evolutionists, including Darwin, taught that women were biologically and intellectually inferior to men. The intelligence gap that Darwinists believed existed between males and females was not minor, but of a level that caused some evolutionists to classify the sexes as two distinct psychological species, males as homo frontalis and females as homo parietalis. Darwin himself concluded that the differences between male and female humans were so enormous that he was amazed that such 'different beings belong to the same species' and he was surprised that 'even greater differences still had not been evolved.'


Griet Vandermassen's Who's Afraid of Charles Darwin?: Debating Feminism and Evolutionary Theory (2005) confirmed the inability for feminists and evolutionary biologists to find a compromise viewpoint, although the author pointed out numerous areas where agreement could be reached.

Unfortunately the indifference and hatred sometimes expressed against modern scientists and scientific theory by feminists easily outweighs the opposition that Thomas Huxley encountered when he debated evolutionary theory with Charles Darwin's critics at the Oxford University Museum in 1860.

Also published in 2005 was Jerome H. Barkow's (as editor) Missing the Revolution: Darwinism for Social Scientists (2005) a perhaps cruely-titled attempt to re-engage with social scientists who have been led into the scientific " wilderness" by radical feminist opposition to the principles of evolutionary biology.

As well as Ms. Gowarty there are other feminists persevering to ensure that crank science and mysticism don't dominate feminist thought. One example is Helena Cronin, a Co-Director of LSE's Centre for Philosophy of Natural and Social Science. She is also the author of The Ant and the Peacock: Altruism and sexual selection from Darwin to today (Cambridge University Press.)

The fear of biological evolution expressed by social scientists is perhaps the most inexplicable conflict in academia being conducted in history. The stakes are high - as the human genome project expands its findings into the lives of ordinary people, with the likes of stem-cell research promising the opportunity to deal with conditions and diseases that were otherwise beyond the wildest imaginings medical science, the risk is that feminism will descend into a miasma of denial and fundamentalism. Already generations of women are being denied a comprehension of modern science, and social scientists of all professions are increasingly held in ridicule due to the sometimes extreme unwillingness to comprehend evolutionary biology. Feminism, having already demonstrated it's facility to accept concepts lifted from religious fundamentalism (see the essay at Bea Campbell (OBE)) seems equally capable of denying the science whose findings and discoveries are being made on a daily basis.

In a perhaps bizarre twist, some 'modern' feminists have embraced Islamic culture, to the degree that they profess to hate christian fundamentalism whilst declining to be critical of any excesses committed through extreme Islamic theology (such as beheading women, or having them stoned to death). In such a world, avoiding the 'isms' that white Westerners, both male and female are deemed to be prone at committing - racism, sexism, ableism etc. becomes a crucial requirement in any discussion, whilst adroitly avoiding any criticism of those who determine women to be abused, raped and killed through State or religious court policy.

A lack of ability to discern what is true and what is false afflicts modern feminism, ensuring they are an easy target for spoofs and extensive 'wind-ups'. Julian Real, a male, presents himself as a 'Radical Pro-feminist'. His lengthy and subtle spoof web site uses blog entries to highlight the absurdity of 'radical' feminism. Strangely though radical feminists don't appear to have cottoned-on too well that this particular male has so well adopted and adapted to the language of radical feminism, and in particular the desire to close-down dialog and discussion with anyone who appears even remotely subject to professing an ism. Some of Mr. Real's 'blogging rules' have been adopted by feminist bloggers, ensuring that their sites are unable to conduct meaningful discussions with alternate views being professed, whilst Mr. Reals site attracts contributions from visitors professing to be feminists, hugely enthusiast in seriously endorsing his (somewhat tongue-in-cheek) point-of-view. Real's genius is word-mangling, in the style of George W. Bush junior - such as using the non-word invisibilisation incessantly, and making fun of feminist terms and phrases, whilst ensuring that anyone who suggests he is 'taking-the-rip' is simply denied the opportunity of commenting publicly when they come afoul of one of his ism rules. Only when the visitor gets to the sites Glossary does the subtlety slip and (some) visitors realise they've been 'had'. To maintain the pretence, Mr. Real often deliberately conducts over-the-top tirades against MRA (Male Rights Activists) cheered-on by his 'supporters' who for the most part are convinced he is genuine. On occasions, Julian's writing matches anything as good produced in television comedy, and indeed Julian Real will occasionally attended US TV show audiences (though absolutely not feminist events).

I work on the blog to promote anti-patriarchal, anti-racist, anti-colonialist, pro-Indigenist perspectives, analysis, activism, and liberation. Any comments sent to this blog for posting publicly or reading by me privately that meet any of the following criteria will go directly to a spam box and will not find their way to this blog. They will also, in many cases, not even be read by me beyond discerning whether they fit into one of these "categories of rejection". NOTE: No anti-womanist or anti-feminist comments will be posted here.

To all men: sexism and misogyny is not welcome here.
To all whites: racism and unrecognised and unowned white supremacist perspective is not welcome here.
To all heterosexuals: heterosexism, lesbophobia, and homophobia is not welcome here.
To all queer people and non-queer people: transphobia is not welcome here.
To all class-privileged people: classist and pro-capitalism comments are not welcome here.
To all non-disabled people: ableism is not welcome here.


ADDED ON 9 MAY 2010ECD:
And NO terms which put down, degrade, or insult the dignity of disabled people are allowed in comments. That includes "the R word" folks.
To all people who are not elderly and who are not (as determined by age) children: ageist remarks are not welcome here.
To all Christians: the promotion of Jesus as a Saviour, a Lord, or THE son of G-d, as well as any other expression of anti-Semitism and christocentrism, is not welcome here.
To all non-Muslims: anti-Muslim bigotry and biases are not welcome here.
To all Westerners: unconscious and unexamined white-, anglo-, and euro-centric worldviews are not welcome here.
To all non-Aboriginal, non-Native, and non-Indigenist people: anti-Indigenism and invisibilisation of Aboriginal people and denial of the on-going genocides perpetrated by white societies is not welcome here.
To all dominant U.S conservative and liberal people: expressed forms of U.S. neo-conservatism and U.S. neo-liberalism, conscious or not to you as such, are not welcome here.
(Source: NEW Comments Policy @ A.R.P.: please read before sending any comments, from the Julian Real A Radical Profeminist blog)

As an Internet spoof site, Real's contribution is perhaps the best to be found on the Web, having tricked so many 'radical' feminists, matched only by the Landover Baptist Church spoof site, which continues to attract those convinced it is genuine. It is a concern though that Real is able to suck so many feminists into his extensive trap, though his unwillingness to physically appear at any feminist conferences or seminars suggests that he wouldn't be welcomed by all. Whilst routinely and intentionally funny, Real's blog is also a good introduction to the somewhat myopic world of radical feminism on the 'Web, dominated by white Western middle-class female concerns, stricken with a limited vocabulary and an inability to think 'outside the box' due to the fear by any author that they will be accused of an ism. Sexism, through misandry (hatred of males) and intense racism (hatred of white people) though are allowed, and indeed encouraged, providing an insight into a section of society that routinely categorises individuals, first by their sex, then the color of their skin in a fashion matched only by vicious political regimes of the 20th century.

By way of a contrast, another 'profeminist man's' site
Until we make it illegal for all men to be outside... plant electronic devices that will blow them up if they attempt rate, put a ring around their neck to choke them to death if they do anything bad to women... electronic controls would end all violence against women, and it would be interesting to see how many men would die agonising deaths before the rest learned to cease and desist.... tired of legal solutions, we need a police state for men to live in!
(It isn't made clear how old a male should be before their devices are fitted, but it can be assumed that puberty would do the trick; perhaps 12 or 13 years old).
(Source: Posting by 'Anonymous' on Bill's profeminist blog

Modern feminism, and its 'War Against Science' has seen distinct changes in the manner in which girls and boys are able to cope with the modern world. In 2009 it was revealed that half of England's comprehensive schools don't offer individual science GCSE subjects to their pupils ( Row over separate GCSE sciences. In the USA the combination of feminists, Christian fundamentalists and the Bush administration managed to ensure that American science was dented for a decade - leading to widespread skepticism in evolutionary biology, the space program and even comprehension of global warming. The election of Barack Obama in November 2008 saw the facility for feminists to hide under the veil of no-conservatism's attitude to science removed. One of President Obama's first actions was to remove the restrictions on stem-cell research, an industry of the future that absolutely requires a comprehension of evolutionary biology. Even so, the cancellation of the manned space program by President Obama led to suspicions that his administration had been become entranced by the anti-science lobbies of both the feminists and religious fundamentalist doctrines. Stem-cell research is under particular attack by US feminists who have allied themselves with religious fundamentalists, not least because of an entrenched idea that because many scientists are male, science (and stem-cell research) must therefore be 'patriarchal'.

In the UK it isn't clear how the anti-science elements in British society will be challenged. For the moment the The pernicious pinkification of little girls is unchallenged - leading to a society where academic achievement is devalued and discouraged and young women and girls are expected to seek fame through celebrity or by marrying a soccer player. Encouraging the resurgence of academic achievement, particularly for females, will require a huge effort - directed against both the conservative and 'Fascist Left' domination of modern society, as well as the traditional conservative right.

A fascinating, humorous and strident explanation of the theory of evolution, challenging the religious and feminist view can be found below;



In the future the threats to science will probably increase, as more children, particularly girls, grow up in relative ignorance, unable to cope with technology and unable to cope with difficult-to-comprehend concepts, unable to argue their case, or contribute to the needs of their employers - such as being able to write an evaluation or report, or conduct research.

Terence Grange

Chief Constable Dyfed-Powys Police (March 2000 - November 2007) Mr Grange courted controversy during his period in office, notably in 2006;


Mr Grange was spokesman for the Association of Chief Police Officers on child protection issues and caused controversy last year when he asked whether it was appropriate for young men who had sex with 15-year-old girls to be described as pedophiles.
(Source: The Times, 24th November 2007 - Child abuse cover-up allegations over top policeman who quit – by David Sanderson)

In November 2007 Mr Grange resigned, ostensibly because of a question over expenses. However it was almost immediately revealed that the resignation had been provoked when the Chief Constable lost the confidence of his Police Authority over an allegation that he had manipulated an investigation into an alleged pedophile judge;


The Times can reveal that in August the IPCC had ordered the police authority to investigate the links between Mr Grange and the judge accused of inappropriate behaviour towards children. It follows claims made by the judge ex-wife that the judge had given a child a sexually transmitted disease, viewed child pornography websites and misused transcripts from child abuse cases that he had presided over.

Documents sent to the IPCC said the force had concluded that there was insufficient evidence to interview the judge and decided not to analyse his computer. The force then refused to accept a further complaint from the ex-wife that the relationship between the judge and officer, who had worked together on criminal justice issues, had biased its approach. But the IPCC ruled in August that this complaint should have been investigated.
(Source: The Times, 24th November 2007 - Child abuse cover-up allegations over top policeman who quit - by David Sanderson)

(See also: Sir Ian Blair, Colin Cramphorn)

Graham Grant

Journalist with The Daily Mail. With Marcello Mega wrote They say we're too old to care for our grandchildren': Social workers hand brother and sister to gay men for adoption concerning the case of 46 and 59-year old grandparents of two young children - the mother of a recovering heroin addict, whose children were taken into care for two years whilst there futures were assessed by the secretive Family Court in Edinburgh. The Edinburgh Local Authority determined that the grandparents health and ages precluded them to be adoptees of the children - grandparents having no parental rights in English, Welsh and Scottish secretive courts. The children were offered for adoption and although numerous couples applied, the children were subsequently given to two gay men, apparently in an effort to deliberately antagonise the grandparents. This antagonising extended to a vindictive degree - with the children being denied contact with the grandparents. What isn't clear though is if such decisions are being made to deliberately embarrass the gay community, portraying it as being willing participants in obvious injustices inflicted on young children.

When they made their opposition clear, however, the couple were told that social workers would 'certainly look' at allowing them access to the children 'when you are able to come back with an open mind on the issues'.

The grandfather was told by a social worker: 'If you couldn't support the children [in the gay adoption], if you were having contact and couldn't support the children, and were showing negative feelings, it wouldn't be in their best interests for contact to take place.'
(Source: Above URL)

The story attracted huge interest in England and Scotland during late January 2009, and was notable in providing two consecutive headlines for the Daily Mail, and a third story on the 29th January with The last goodbye: How social workers gave mother 90 minutes with children before adoption by Jonathan Brocklebank and Michael Seamark

Several issues were raised by the scandal - most notably the subject of deliberate gay forced adoption, allegedly being promoted by local authorities in an effort to sometimes both deliberately antagonise parents and family members of children, but also to be seen as being pro-alternate family structure. The scandal also indicated that Scotland, though devolved, has chosen to follow the English route to family justice and child protection, rather than the European model, indicating that the "English way of doing things" is deeply embedded in the local government and judicial establishments in Scotland. Indeed Scotland is on occasions even more anti-European in its provision of child protection and family justice, with the criminal age of responsibility for children set at just 8 years old.

The English model, with it's inherent vindictiveness allows social workers to make arbitrary decisions based on personal prejudices, or if they feel slighted;


After the Mail revealed the heartbreaking case, a furious social worker has told the mother that neither she nor her parents will ever see the children again.

Heather Rush telephoned the 26-year-old after the family publicised their grievances with her council department. The grandparents - who did not believe that growing up without a mother figure was in the children's best interests - said they had been bullied into giving them up for adoption in the first place.

'She said, "No, just pass the message on." She said she didn't want to speak to them but there would be no recommendation for them to see the children twice a year.'

Last week Mrs Rush had told the grandparents they would be allowed to see the boy and girl if they gave the gay adoption arrangements their blessing.

But now the 39-year-old - who has two children herself by different fathers - appears adamant that even if they do accept the arrangements they will not be given access.

An Edinburgh councillor described the call to the vulnerable mother, who is currently taking methadone in an attempt to kick her drug habit, as 'unprofessional, inappropriate and unacceptable'. Jeremy Balfour, a Conservative, said: 'It is not an acceptable way to treat people. It seems to me to be a case of throwing toys out of the pram.

'I don't think such a call could be motivated by the best interests of the children.'

An Edinburgh council spokesman last night denied that a social worker told the mother her parents would never see the children again.

Gillian Tee, Director of Education, Children and Families, said: 'We have no reason to doubt that the staff who have worked on this case have handled it with anything other than professionalism and sensitivity. We have not received a complaint from the family.'
(Source: The last goodbye: How social workers gave mother 90 minutes with children before adoption by Jonathan Brocklebank and Michael Seamark)

The allegation of refusing parents or family members with contact with a forced adoption child is routinely made against social workers. A similar case, where grandparents were refused the opportunity to adopt their grandchildren was reported in October 2008 in Leave our grandchildren alone': How two troubled children are being separated from their loving grandparents by Anne Atkins

The use of forced adoption and the application of secret courts established in England and Wales remains one that no other European countries other than Scotland, Northern Ireland, and it is believed Croatia and Portugal have any desire to take on.

(See also PrisonerX)

Jenny Gray (Jennifer Bsc, DipSW, Dip Family Therapy, OBE)

Civil servant in the Department of Education and Skills, London (UK) and implicated in the corruption of child protection Government policy - see the entries for Bruce Clark and Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown

Ms. Gray was given an OBE in 2007 - not for any particular service provided, but one based upon her role. The granting of the OBE continued a tradition set by the Labour Party whilst in office to honour the most controversial individuals concerned with child protection in the UK, including those who had supported the right-wing religious fundamentalist-inspired SRA Myth (see Bea Campbell (OBE) and Dr. Camille de San Lazaro OBE).
(See Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, Dr. Paul Shattock OBE)

Jim Gray

Editor of Channel 4 News, appointed December 1997. Previously Deputy Editor of BBC2's Newsnight program for eighteen years.
(See also Dorothy Byrne, Laura Collins .)

Damian Green (MP)

Conservative MP for Ashford, Kent and Shadow Minister for Immigration and spokesman on home affairs. Mr. Green is a member of a cross-party group of MPs set up to investigate the use of MSBP allegations (the MSBP/FII Group.) Members of the cross-party group includes members from all three parliamentary parties and include Lord Howe, Jon Cruddas, the Labour MP for Dagenham, John Hemming MP, Nick Gibb, MP for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton and Tim Boswell, the Conservative MP for Daventry. Disturbingly no women were represented in the Group, and no female Labour MP has asked to join, even though the Group is ostensibly concerned with subjects that would normally be expected to appeal to those concerned with the representation of women in the English and Welsh secretive family justice system.

The MSBP/FII Group seeks the review or withdrawal of the official government guidelines issued nationwide to social workers, police and teachers. These DfES guidelines disregard reputable professional opinion. They contain no acknowledgement that MSBP/FII has been the subject of immense dispute both in the medical and social work professions. The MPs are concerned by huge geographical variations in the number of families being placed under investigation by social workers. The cross-party group will be making representations over the MSBP/FII issue at ministerial level.
(Source: msbp

In the past Mr. Green has asked a specific question about the use of MSBP/FII in England & Wales in Parliament, in light of the establishing by New Labour of a false allegation regime for use against women (see Jacqui Smith MP);

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many cases of fabricated or induced illness in children were notified to the Department in (a) 2005, (b) 2004 and (c) 2003 in each local authority area; and if he will make a statement.
(Source: Commons Written answers 6th June 2006)

The terse answer provided by Beverley Hughes MP (Minister of State (Children, Young People and Families) confirmed to many that the New Labour administration had absolutely no desire to address the regular allegation that false MSBP allegations were being employed against women, even when there own guidelines suggested only 50-60 cases were to be expected per year;

The information requested is not collected centrally.


The false allegation regime was established through the Working Together guidelines, already challenged whilst in draft format by the National Autistic Society (see Judith Barnard, Dr. Judith Gould) because of recognition that the guidelines for identifying abused children bore terrible similarity to a diagnosis for autism spectrum disorders. Mr. Green spoke about the risks inherent in the Guidelines;

"You have the possibility of huge injustices arising through the inflexibility of these guidelines which are based on questionable theories."
(Source: Innocent parents accused of abuse - by Daniel Fogoo - The Times - April 23rd 2006)

Mr Green is also a member of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on ME (Myalgic encephalomyelitis) which includes amongst its members The Countess of Mar. Amongst other related subjects, MSBP is discussed within the group, due to instances when parents of children with ME have been falsely accused of MSBP. (ME in children - ME agenda.)

On 27 November 2008 Mr. Green was arrested by anti-terrorist police at his constituency home, ostensibly for "aiding and abetting misconduct in public office" and "conspiring to commit misconduct in a public office" - apparently for repeated revealing of details of Government blunders in the Home Office, now run by Home Secretary Jacqui Smith MP that had either risked compromising national security or risked the protection of private citizens data. The Damian Green Scandal raised numerous questions - most notably why anti-terrorist police were arresting people for trying to get national security vulnerabilities plugged, rather than terrorist suspects. The Home Secretary denied any prior knowledge of the arrest. Police officers searched Mr. Greens constituency office and Commons office (whilst being video-taped by Conservative Party workers) and removed correspondence. They also disabled his official email address. Although there is no suggestion that the arrest was in any way connected with his pioneering and no doubt annoying work in the use of false MSBP allegations, it is unclear if the correspondence removed by anti-terrorist police included letters from women subjected to false MSBP allegations following the establishing of the false MSBP allegation regime established (though not necessarily intentionally) by Home Secretary Jacqui Smith MP, or if this was merely a coincidence.

In April 2009 the Metropolitan Police, in consultation with the CPS announced that no charges would be laid against Mr. Green.

(See also Dr. Judith Gould, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown , Dr. Helen Hayward-Brown, Paul Shattock)

Germaine Greer

Germaine Greer (Prof.)

Australian-born leading feminist campaigner, author and critic, based mostly in the UK. She is also a columnist for The Guardian newspaper and a frequent celebrity to be found on British television.

Her 1970 book The Female Eunuch, though an international bestseller, has been criticised by modern feminists, not least because Ms. Greer has never harboured a violent hatred of males - an emotion predominant in modern feminism.

As she has grown older, she has managed to maintain controversial stances. Her beliefs on the subject of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) indicate an acceptance of the racist emotion 'cultural relativism' That is those in favour of the status quo will suggest that the West cannot intervene in the affairs of other, often Third World nations, particularly on issues of children's and women's health and safety, because of the innate evil of Western culture. Her same cultural relativistic concerns are matched with a genuine desire to ensure that Male Genital Mutilation (MGM) is treated by campaigners as an equal problem - a problem that has revealed a vulnerable under-belly for FGM campaigners. As it is many modern feminists have little interest in campaigning against FGM, for fear of having to oppose the very societies they cherish for their opposition to what is seen as Western imperialism.

Dr. Greer had in fact written;

Notwithstanding, the opinion that male circumcision might be bad for babies, bad for sex and bad for men is steadily gaining ground. In Denmark nearly 2 per cent of non-Jewish and non-Muslim men are circumcised on strictly medical grounds; in Britain the proportion rises to between 6 per cent and 7 per cent, but in the US between 60 per cent and 70 per cent of male babies will have their foreskins surgically removed. No UN agency has uttered a single protocol condemning the widespread practice of male genital mutilation, which will not be challenged until doctors start to be sued in large numbers by men they mutilated as infants. Silence on the question of male circumcision is evidence of the political power both of the communities where a circumcised penis is considered an essential identifying mark and of the practitioners who continue to do it for no good reason. Silence about male mutilation in our own countries combines nicely with noisiness on female mutilation in other countries to reinforce our notions of cultural superiority.
(Source: from The Whole Woman (1999) by Germaine Greer)

Despite her concerns about Male Genital Mutilation, Greer was and is routinely criticised for her view - though other feminists - notably Naomi Wolf get little attention paid to them by their peers, even when supporting Shari'ah Law.

The Whole Woman though did expose Greer to further criticisms, and she and the general feminist community have perhaps 'agreed to disagree' over many issues, not least because her powerful writing and superb public-speaking poise makes her a dangerous enemy to antagonise.

Dr. Greer managed to avoid the 'crazy years' of the late 1980s and 1990s when British feminism openly colluded with religious fundamentalists in enthusiastically advocating for the Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) Myth (see the extended entries on the subject at The SRA Myth Pages). In doing so she avoided the weight of history that sits on other prominent feminists of the time, notably Beatrix Campbell (OBE). It is though inexplicable why she has chosen to be a patron of a English Women's Rape Crisis Centre that openly advocates for the SRA Myth (see CARA SRA Myth page and the Entry for its founder Lindsey Read). The other patron for CARA is leading SRA Myth advocate and psychotherapist Dr. Valerie Sinason - see the extensive entries at Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS PART Three and Four and Five. These questions though can only be answered accurately by Dr. Greer herself.
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


- Surnames H



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

H





Rex Haigh (Dr.)

Consultant Psychotherapist, Chair of the Association of Therapeutic Communities and treasurer of the UK Chapter of the Society for Psychotherapy Research. Program director for the Oxford regional higher training in psychotherapy.

Dr. Haigh was notable for his role in the Fran Lyon Scandal, when he contributed a character reference on her behalf, having worked with Ms. Lyon in the charitable sector. Dr Haigh also reported that he was placed under pressure to remove his support for Ms. Lyon by a Northumberland County Council Social Worker Paula Wright (Secrecy culture of social services - by David Harrison, Daily Telegraph 2nd September 2007) having been initially contacted by another social worker in the case. Pamela Burke.

Baroness Hale of Richmond (Brenda, Marjorie Hale)

Legal academic, barrister and judge. First woman to join the House of Lords as a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary. Appointed previously as a judge in the Family Division of the Royal Courts of Justice. Baroness Hale routinely takes part in debates on the provision of family justice in England and Wales and her views are highly-respected by her fellow Peers when cases are considered by the House of Lords. She has made notable comments on the nature of evidence required for forced adoption processes in English and Welsh courts and in particular the differences between criminal levels of evidence quality in non-secret court hearings, and the use of "balance of probability" evidence standard used in the secretive Family Courts.

(See also Dame Butler-Sloss)

Susan Hammersley

Child protection social worker, believed currently working in Bury. Previously involved in the Rochdale SRA Scandal of 1990.
(See also Jill France, Dr. Sandra Buck)

Patricia Hamilton

Former President of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.

(See also Dr. Aloke Agrawa, Dr. Sabah Al-Zayyat, Dr Ivan Blumenthal, Dr. Margaret Crawford Dr. Kenneth Feldman, Dr. Christopher Hobbs, Dr. Marietta Higgs, Dr. Camille de San Lazaro)

James Harding

Editor of The Times newspaper since December 2007. Mr. Harding is Camilla Cavendish's editor and as well as publishing her articles is particularly known for his support for the campaign for a review of family court and child protection issues, launched in July 2008.

Victoria Hardy

American columnist and musician (drummer) for the band 3 Feet Up In her article The Destruction Of The American Family (August 2008) Ms Hardy writes about the perceived assault on the American family by the US government and the oft-quoted desire to remove the family and mother from young children's early lives;

It seems parents are slowly being weeded out of the equation and our leaders are making it clear that they know what is best for our family, our children and us. Of course, we are also being shown, if we have the courage to see, that family is no longer important, perhaps, even, a threat to the state.
(Source: The destruction of the American Family).

More recently, Ms. Hardy has joined the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' conspiracy theory community, sure that satanic ritual abuse exists.

(See also Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Baron Anthony Giddens, Linda Gordon, Simone de Beauvoir, Adolf Hitler, Stephen Baskerville, Jan Loxley)

Harriett Harman

Former Deputy Leader & Party Chair of the Labour Party, former Leader of the House of Commons, Lord Privy Seal and Minister for Women and Equality until leaving office following the 2010 General Election. Former legal officer for the National Council for Civil Liberties (now named Liberty) from 1972-1982.

In 1990, with former Minister Rt. Hon. Patricia Hewitt MP co-authored a report entitled "The Family Way: A New Approach to Policy Making". It criticised the family unit and mothers who stay at home. In particular it questioned whether men were an asset to families at all;

It cannot therefore be assumed that men are bound to be an asset to family life, or that the presence of fathers in families is necessarily a means to social harmony and cohesion.
(Source - Authors Harriett Harman, Patricia Hewitt and Anne Coote - The Family Way - Social Policy Paper No 1. Institute for Public Policy Research, London 1990 (ISBN 1 872452 15 9)

Anne Coote had previously co-authored Sweet Freedom: The Struggle for Women's Liberation (1982) with Beatrix Campbell (OBE) later in time probably most famous for her promotion of the right-wing religious fundamentalist-driven Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth.

Erin Pizzey described The Family Way as a; "

staggering attack on men and their role in modern life


In June 2008 Harman proposed the introduction of legislation to provide women and ethnic minorities advantages over British white males with regard to employment opportunities. The proposed legislation would have been the first occasion a uniquely discriminatory measure would be introduced into British law, since the repression of Roman Catholicism by a Protestant Parliament. It would have required a waiver to avoid challenges through the European Court of Human Rights. It is accepted that Mrs. Harman's announcement, which coincided with the June 2008 by-election in Henley-On-Thames, contributed to the collapse in the Labour vote. During the 2010 General Election, despite being Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, Ms. Harman's public appearances and contribution to The Hustings was kept to an easily definable minimum.

Ms. Harman has criticised the administration of justice in the Family Courts - most notably in 2006, but has been inexplicably quiet about the issues since then. In June 2008 two members of Fathers4 Justice, the author Mark Harris and Jonathan "Jolly" Stanesby staged a protest on the roof of her house in Herne Hill, London, requesting Mrs. Harman read Mark Harris's book Family Court Hell. Both protestors were arrested. Ms. Harman has made no indication that she has read the volume. In November 2008 Mr. Stanesby was jailed for two months for causing alarm and distress, and also fined £250 and ordered to pay £500 costs by a magistrate at City Of London Magistrates Court. Author Mark Harris was given a conditional discharge and ordered to pay £500 costs. Convictions for protesters asking an individual to read a book are unusual, and the nature of Ms. Harman's work with the Council for Civil Liberties (now Liberty) make this oddity doubly so. Perhaps not unsurprisingly, Liberty chose not to comment on the nature of the protest, and the subsequent jailing.

It is unclear if Ms. Harman is still a member of Liberty, though she has detailed a link to the organisation through her Web site: Harriett Harman.

As Solicitor General Ms. Harman effectively banned (by preventing prosecuting authorities from using him) Sir Roy Meadow from further attendance as an expert witness in criminal prosecutions following concerns with his testimony in the trials of several women convicted of murder in Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) cases (see Angela Canning & Sally Clark.)

As Solicitor General, Mrs. Harman contributed to what appears to have been an official policy to punish women who are the victims of domestic abuse, by having their children forcibly removed from them. This policy and it's ramifications are discussed in the entry for Angela Wileman.


(See also Shami Chakrabarti, Patricia Gowaty, Adolf Hitler)

Sarah Harman

Senior partner for solicitors practice Harman and Harman (Canterbury).

Ms. Harman was fined by Justice James Munby in 2005 for contempt-of-court when she revealed that she had forwarded case papers for a case involving an alleged false allegation of MSBP against a woman, to Margaret Hodge MP, the then Minister for Children, and her own sister, Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP, the then Solicitor General. Ms. Harman has written on the subject of the Family Court system in a critical manner. She has now withdrawn from the debate, with her practice now specialising in medical negligence claims, rather than family law.

(See also John Batt, William Bache)

Mark Harris

Campaigner, co-founder of Fathers 4 Justice and author of the book Family Court Hell (2007).
Mr. Harris's fight with the Family Court system over contact with his daughters following the breakdown of his marriage is almost legendary. Jailed for breaking court orders, Family Court Hell detailed the expense, the time and the routinely bizarre activities of the English and Welsh family courts in a sometimes humorous manner. Mr. Harris has continued his campaigning, most notably in June 2008, when together with Jonathan "Jolly" Stanesby he ascended the roof of Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP home address in Herne Hill, London, dressed in appropriate F4J costume and demanding she read Family Court Helll. Mr. Harris was arrested upon returning to level ground and subsequently found guilty at a summary trial in November 2008 by a District Judge at City of Westminster Magistrates Court and given a conditional discharge and fined £500 in costs.

(See also David Chick and Matt O'Connor, Glenn Sacks.)

David Harrison

Journalist with The Daily Telegraph. Notable family justice-related articles include More use of a vague reason to remove children and Threat to take new-born over emotional abuse.

Mark Hedley (Justice)

English and Welsh Family Court judge at the Royal Courts of Justice, London, and President of the Lawyers Christian Fellowship.

Justice Hedley's views toward the consequences of the making of mistakes in the English and Welsh secretive Family Court system were revealed in a telling interview in The Times I do not remove a child unless it is the right thing to do - September 18th 2008 by Frances Gibb

If you have to make a choice between the welfare of the child the rights of the parents, the welfare of the child has to prevail. Inevitably that will result in the occasional injustice because someone will get it wrong.


Perhaps disturbingly to some, Justice Hedley made no mention of endeavouring to ensure that similar "injustices" did not take place again.

(See also Lord Justice Nicolas Wall, Justice Edward Holman, Justice Andrew McFarlane, Justice James Munby)

Astrid Heger (Heppenstall, Dr.)

(See also entry for Justice Edward Holman)

John Hemming (MP)

Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Yardley, Birmingham and Chief Executive of his IT company. Mr Hemming MP is closely identified for his pioneering campaign work calling for reforms of the Family Law system, although to ensure he is free to speak and campaign on the subject he has declined senior Parliamentary roles in his party. Together with solicitor William Bache he formed the campaign and support group Justice For Families.

A frequent contributor to Parliamentary debates on the subject of family law and children's social care, Mr. Hemming also acts as a Mackenzie friend for vulnerable and legally unrepresented parents in family law cases in the English and Welsh family court system. In 2008 Lord Justice Nicolas Wall criticised Mr Hemming's involvement in a family law case that concerned such lack of proper legal representation, when he drew attentions to alleged changes in the legal bundle.

Mr. Hemmings is a regular face on TV, most notably when in the company of Bill Bache he sat besides Fran Lyon for a GMTV discussion on the then-breaking Fran Lyon Scandal.

In addition to raising the perception of the public to concerns about the use of forced adoption in England and Wales, Mr. Hemming has pursued particular campaigns about other issues surrounding the application of family justice. These include the use of single-witness expert evidence - when a Court-appointed expert's evidence cannot be be challenged by a woman or parent in the secretive family court, however outlandish the presented evidence. In addition the woman or parents are prevented from raising the case in the public arena whilst proceedings are being contemplated, for fear of arrest for contempt of court.

The use of single-expert witness evidence is perhaps one of the most contentious elements in the use of secretive courts for family proceedings. However it cannot be said to be a subject of vigorous argument in the COurts themselves, as invariably even bringing up the subject in a secret court will lead to a period of enforced detention. Even talking about the detention itself to others, including journalists or even prison staff can lead to their subsequent detention.

Being able to challenge or at least garner a second opinion is a key element in criminal trials and a right by default afforded to the likes of terrorist suspects and pedophiles. Single women and parents are however denied the right and are therefore vulnerable to the whims of the single expert, and/or the willingness of the secretive court judge to accept the presented evidence, even if it may conflict with commonly-accepted scientific or medical fact or reasoning.

A second campaign concerns the use of the Official Solicitor. This occurs when a parent, notably and disproportionately a woman, is determined by a secretive Court to be unable or incapable of making decisions for herself. Her right to select her advocacy, whether she wishes to represent herself (a LIP - or Litigant In Person) or to instruct an independent solicitor or barrister, is removed from her and she is represented through the Official Solicitor. As there are substantial doubts about the independence of the Official Solicitor - notably because they rarely (well actually never to-date) challenge the opinion of the social services department - thus resulting in the woman invariably losing her child/children, it is to legitimate to view the use of the Official Solicitor as effectively the State advocating in the defence of a citizen, against a prosecution pursued by...the State. The equivalent in criminal law would be to see a terrorist suspect have his/her solicitor removed against his/her will and replaced by one determined by the Home Office. A perfect example of this system and its potential for the judicial abuse of women is typified by the very public case of Rachel Pullen

A number of cases pursued by Mr. Hemming have led to the suspicion that some of the women and parents determined to have their right to independent advocacy removed from them, were, it is argued, perfectly capable of either representing themselves or instructing legal counsel. Some such cases are being pursued through the ECHR (European Court of Human Rights.)

The removal of the rights to independent advocacy for a woman is however not a new facet in law. The tradition for such removal extends back into the 19th century and before (see Wilkie Collins.)

With the change of government following the May 2010 General Election in England, Mr. Hemming became Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Family Law and the Court of Protection. He has since come to prominence after bringing the subject of gagging orders and 'hyperinjunctions' to the attention of the general public, in particular those inflicted on citizens by the English and Welsh High Court, the Court of Protection and Family Division.

The lack of transparency conceals the second problem with the Court of Protection, which in the same way as much of Family Law relies upon the opinions of individual experts. The opinion of a single social worker that someone does not have the capacity to decide where they live is sufficient for someone to lose their freedom, in secret and without the right to a second opinion.
...
I have been asking Parliament to establish an inqury into the number of secret prisoners that there are in the UK. I am aware of one case where a girl has been drugged and imprisoned where she has no right to decide whether she is forcibly medicated and no right to decide where she lives, but this is argued to be justified in order to protect her from her father who is now dead.
(Source: Court of Protection must be reformed, by John Hemming MP, The Telegraph, 5th February 2011)

In his current role he is seen as a committed Parliamentarian, and is particularly noted in committee for his willingness to let others have free reign in talking and proposing, and for his ability to give credit to others, even when they are members of opposing political parties.

As perhaps the most IT-literate member of Parliament (Mr. Hemming contributed to the first version of SSL - Secure Sockets Layer, the bedrock of secure Internet commerce) it perhaps isn't a surprise to find his political web ' blog' is more comprehensive and media-rich than any other MP in Parliament. The blog details amongst other subjects the efforts made against MP's such as Mr. Hemming to have them gagged by rogue court judges in an effort to prevent them from raising subjects of concern to the public and Parliament.

(See also Bridget Prentice (MP), Charles Roy Taylor, Rt. Hon. Tony Blair, Sir Ken Macdonald, Nerys Evans (AM), Eric Pickles MP, Shami Chakrabarti)

Tyra Henry


Patricia Hewitt

Labour MP for Leicester. Former Secretary of Trade and Industry and Health Secretary.

Ms. Hewitt was a former Director of Research and later General Secretary for the National Council For Civil Liberties (now Liberty) when the NCCL became engaged with the controversy of inviting the Pedophile Information Exchange and Pedophile Action for Liberation groups to affiliate with the NCCL. Both PIE and PAL advocated sex with children.

Ms. Hewitt co-authored "The Family Way: A New Approach to Policy Making" with Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP in 1990 and Anna Coote, who had co-authored with Bea Campbell (OBE), a leading advocate for the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth of the 1980/90's when feminists colluded with religious fundamentalists. The paper criticised the family unit and mothers who stay at home. In particular it questioned whether men were an asset to families at all and whether "the presence of fathers in families is necessarily a means to social harmony and cohesion". She later wrote that one way of getting males involved, was to ensure they took a greater role in, say teaching. But the recommendation came with an intensely sexist observation, that echoed obsessions prevalent at that time in history;

Further evidence of sexism by Hewitt arose in publication she authored in 1995 titled Transforming Men, where she questioned the very notion of "whether we can trust men with children". She came to the conclusion that it may well be necessary to introduce the practice of "not leaving men on their own with groups of children" in environments such a schools in order to prevent abuse. Critics such as Geoff Dench condemned Hewitt's statements for discouraging male carers entering the profession by insinuating that they were on permanent probation.
(Source: Patricia Hewitt's Wikipedia Entry (2010)

The idea that men are principally pedophiles and that any male who enters teaching should essentially be untrusted isn't restricted to Ms. Hewitt. The concept stems from the efforts of religious fundamentalists and colluding feminists during the late 1980s and 1990s to paint an image of males as being evil, satanic pedophiles. Ms. Hewitts convictions reflect only the combined view of males, popular amongst fanatical Christian Fundamentalist elements and feminists at the time, and which have been sustained, in the continuing 'moral panic' over the subject of child protection, all the way to the establishment of the unique-in-the-world ISA (Independent Safeguarding Authority).

Ms. Hewitts most famous comment with respect to women and child care referred to women who stay at home to care for children, rather than working as "a real problem."

In 2005 a judicial review found Hewitt "guilty of unlawful sex discrimination" when she employed a female applicant for a DTI position ahead of a significantly stronger male candidate. The DTI apologised and the male, Malcolm Hanney was awarded £17,967.17 costs but the appointment was not overturned. The case was particularly notable because Hewitt was Minister for Women and Equality at the time (a role later assumed by her co-author fellow Parliamentary colleague Harriett Harman) and had therefore breached the sex discrimination laws which she was herself was responsible for policing.

During her time at the Department for Trade and Industry, the DTI gained an unfortunate reputation for encouraging the export of jobs and businesses outside the UK, notably to India. The policy was in support of 'globalisation', a concept promoted by neo-conservatives in the US. Unlike traditional capitalism though, 'globalisation' incorporates a number of anti-capitalist elements - notably in that it encourages the winding-down of established economies by introducing job insecurity and reduced wages/disposable income that impact on consumers confidence and means to pay for non-essential goods and services - through the movement of jobs to an other economic co-prosperity spheres (such as Asia). Although ostensibly to see international corporations able to exploit low wages in other nations as a source for manufacturing and customer services, globalisation invariably reduces the facility for Western consumers to actually buy the said goods or use the services.

Whilst in charge of the DTI, New Zealand-born Ms. Hewitt made a number of visits to India. The department became laughingly known as the 'Department for Trade to India' having mangled its brief to promote and protect British commerce and industry. Shortly after being moved on, the DTI was wound-up, being universally perceived as being a hopeless institution.

As Health Secretary (Secretary of State for Health) she was judged "one of the worst Health Secretaries to ever hold the title in Britain" by future Prime Minister David Cameron.

As Health Secretary, Ms. Hewitt was in receipt of a letter sent by a former social worker detailing significant breakdowns in child protection policy at Haringey Council, despite the findings of Lord Laming. The letter subsequently became a key facet in the scandal surrounding the death of Baby P.

With the appointment of Rt Hon. Gordon Brown MP as Prime Minister in 2007, Ms Hewitt resigned as Heath Secretary, and thus effectively left front-line politics, and then before the 2010 General Election, declined to stand. A summation of Ms. Hewitts political career is that it was probably grossly unsuccessful, her skills could never be sufficiently directed with the right Cabinet position, and her intense sexism coloured much of her appeal and impartiality.

(See also Shami Chakrabarti, Margaret Hodge MP, Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP)

Marietta Higgs (Dr.)

Paediatrician. Whilst at Middlesborough General Hospital, in 1987 Dr Higgs and colleague Dr Geoffrey Wyatt engaged in a program employing RAD (Reflex Anal Dilation) a theory originated through Dr. Christopher Hobbs that focused on examining a child's anus to determine whether the subject had been subjected to sexual abuse. Using the technique exclusively around 120 children were removed from their parents with the assistance of Cleveland Social Services and Cleveland Police. Most of the children were eventually returned. Cleveland Police declined to arrest either Dr Higgs or Dr Wyatt, who continue to work in the NHS.

The Cleveland RAD Scandal was investigated by Dame Butler-Sloss. The use of RAD is routinely frowned-upon, but in 2008 it transpired that it's use had returned (or had never disappeared) being employed routinely on an 11-year-old girl at a Leeds hospital who was taken into care but returned nearly a year later when the allegation of sexual abuse was determined by Justice Edward Holman to be of no foundation. In addition to RAD examinations the child was photographed naked, apparently as a key requirement for evidence-collecting.

Despite the stinging rebuke in the public judgement, the government declined to take any action to restrain the continued use of RAD.

The Cleveland RAD Scandal of 1987 proved to be a significant moment in the history of child protection in England and Wales, being the first instance when a "fad" for a new technique or diagnosis took hold amongst professionals. The scandal was followed by Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) which incorporated elements of RAD diagnosis use, followed by the widespread use of MSBP allegations against women.

The Scandal was also significant in that even after over 20 years since it came to international attention, its shadow still casts a shadow on the profession of paediatrics in England and Wales, and is still regularly referenced as a "classic" example of when children were snatched by child protection professionals with no just cause.

In 2000 Dr. Higgs and Dr. Wyatt contributed their joint essay The medical diagnosis of child sexual abuse in Cleveland in 1987 The paediatrician's dilemma to the book Home Truths about Child Sexual Abuse: A reader contributed-to and edited by Catherine Itzin. The book included the essay/paper Confronting sexual abuse Challenges for the future from feminist Sarah Nelson, that advocated for the SRA Myth, in its Mind Control form - see A summary of three versions of the SRA Myth that is derived directly from right-wing US Christian Fundamentalists. The books principle theme was to advocate for the feminist and extreme religious fundamentalist view that all men are essentially, by default pedophiles.

A key element underpinning the Cleveland RAD Scandal saw paediatricians repeatedly inserting objects into the rectums of hundreds of young children, or brushing the edge of the rectum with a medical instrument. The basis for the RAD Scandal was the theory that most female children in the UK were being repeatedly sodomised by their fathers', without any of the children making a single disclosure, without suffering serious injuries to their rectums, without any of the children subsequently running away, and without any mothers or female carers finding out and subsequently seriously injuring or killing the alleged abusive fathers. The RAD Theory mirrored the following SRA Myth, in that a huge, silent conspiracy of abuse was being envisaged, although most lay people found it difficult to abandon their scepticism and endorse the fantastical claims being made. A key element in the use of RAD Theory depended on the feminist assertion that father-daughter incest was rife in families, and indeed that the institution of the family only exists in history to promote the sexual abuse of daughters.

The Cleveland RAD Scandal took place in 1987 - by then the ground was prepared for the 'child-saver' lobby in the UK, comprised of the vocal support of feminists and a minority of obsessive paediatricians and psychologists, to throw their hand in with the religious fundamentalist lobby. The fundamentalists had been obsessed with the myth of satanic ritual abuse since the 1960's, but the influence of media (such as Ira Levin's Rosemary's Baby and Dr. Lawrence Pazder's 1980 novel Michelle Remembers that many took to be a non-fiction book) saw the obsessions slip into overdrive in the early 1980s. The two groups found common cause and subsequently conjoined, beginning a relationship that continues even in modern times (see Dr. Sandra Buck).

On occasions the examinations conducted by the paediatricians were the worst form of abuse the children had experienced. This, relating to Dr. Wyatt;

There are cases, too, of children experiencing this kind of treatment when they had not already been abused. One girl, aged nine, was seen by Wyatt after her seven-year-old brother had told him that the children used to sleep in their "uncle's" bed. They had not been hurt and there was no evidence of wrongdoing, but they were made to suffer nevertheless.

"According to the girl, Dr Wyatt had turned her over and wanted to 'go into her front'," the lawyers recorded after interviewing the child. "She said Dr Wyatt was 'talking not very nice'. He was shouting, she was afraid. Dr Higgs, she said, had a 'nasty face', but she did not say anything nasty. It was Dr Wyatt who was speaking nastily."

The children were examined by Wyatt several times and said that his approach was different from that of police surgeons who were later brought in. "Those doctors did not shout or force them, and their examination did not hurt," the girl was recorded as saying. "Looking back, the girl thought it all disgusting."
(Source: Why we must start listening to the children, by Brian Deer. The Sunday Times, July 10th 1988)

Other former child victims of the Cleveland RAD Scandal have come forward, including 'Kerry' who was 6 when she was taken from her school with the assistance of police, to a hospital, to have her genitalia and anus examined;

My first memory is this.

I was in school, painting a vase of red flowers. Mum came in with a social worker and a policeman. I was told I had to leave my picture and go with them to hospital. No-one told me why, I wasn’t sick, why did I need to go, why was Mum upset?

When we got to the hospital Dr Higgs took me in to a room. Mum had to wait outside. I was told to take my clothes off, she looked at my bottom and my front, I got dressed and went into the playroom while the doctor talked to my mum.

Some social workers gave me 2 dolls to play with; the dolls had no clothes on. They asked me if I knew what private places where and could I show them the dolls private places, they asked me if I knew what a secret was and did I have any secrets.

I said yes to both questions, they wanted to know my secret, I looked at Mum, I told them how my Dad was in prison, and had been since I was a baby, that was my secret.

I was taken away along with my little brother who was 10 months old.
(Source: Kerry's story, BBC Teeside)

Another key feature of the 1987 Cleveland RAD Scandal would be mirrored by the 1988-2003 SRA Myth scandals, in that families from deprived areas or those in relative poverty were most at risk of being abuded by the authorities. Only when Dr. Higgs and Dr. Wyatt extended their trawl of children to encompass middle-class children, was there any significant opposition encountered, as many such families were able to engage independent lawyers, rather than depending on less dedicated public defenders/Legal Aid lawyers. The nature of those families unjustly accused of harbouring satanists is discussed at The Evil, Satanic Poor.

Incredibly, despite having effectively started the downward spiral in professional standards that English and Welsh child protection suffered from 1987 (the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth would start-up in England the next year) and having saddled paediatrics in the UK with a poor reputation that even after more than two decades it cannot escape from, Dr. Higgs managed to become engulfed in yet another false allegation of child sexual abuse in 2001. Her evidence in a criminal trial fell apart in real time, in a case promoted by her whilst working for Dumfries and Galloway Hospitals in Scotland. This case, and the most accurate biography of one of the most important characters in contemporary British history - bearing comparison with Beatrix Campbell (OBE) and Sir Roy Meadow is comprehensively discussed by Les H at < a href="http://www.open.salon.com/blog/les_h/2010/12/13/higgs_in_trouble_at_dumfries" rel="external">Higgs in trouble at Dumfries/the incidence of paedophilia.

Dr. Higgs and Dr. Wyatts institutionalised and condoned abuse of children in Middleborough has to perhaps be seen in perspective. By 1987 the desire openly expressed by several feminists to label all males, particularly fathers, as all being natural pedophiles, had been transmitted from the US to UK shores. As the Cleveland RAD Scandal progressed, such views were being promoted by events such as Child Sexual Abuse: Towards A Feminist Professional Practice conference, on the 6th, 7th & 8th April 1987 at The Polytechnic of North London. The impact of such views and how they helped ensure that British child protection professionals and in particularly British feminists, fell into the abyss with their adoption of the SRA Myth is discussed at the end of the entry for Catherine Itzin (Prof.).

Because the 1987 Cleveland RAD Scandal is such a significant event in contemporary British history, it will be receiving a more extensive Index entry in the future.

(See also Dr. Margaret Crawford, Beatrix Campbell (OBE), Dr. Camille de San Lazaro)

Adolf Hitler

(April 1889 - April 1945) Austrian-born leader of the National Socialist German Workers (Nazi) Party who led the German nation into War from 1939 to 1945. Gained power over the Party between 30th June and 2nd July 1934 during the "Night Of The Long Knives." Published his political dogma Mein Kampf in 1924 and 1926, having dictated it to Rudolf Hess whilst in Landsberg prison;

The state must declare the child to be the most precious treasure of the people. As long as the government is perceived as working for the benefit of the children, the people will happily endure almost any curtailment of liberty and almost any deprivation.
(Source - Page 403 - Ralph Manheim translation (1943) Mein Kampf)

It has been regularly suggested that the above stanza has been adopted by individuals enthusiastic to see the normal rules of jurisprudence overwhelmed in US, UK and other Western Family Courts, and which forms the basis of the reasoning behind the English and Welsh Children's Act 1989, which places the needs of the child (as interpreted by the State) as being paramount. However this interpretation may be unjust as the protection of children is a desire of liberal democracies as well as Marxist and Fascist dogmas.

Nonetheless the adoption of the concept of 'collective punishment' in its most severe form as practised by Nazi Occupying forces in Western Europe between 1939 and 1940, appears to have found a modern home in liberal and left-wing thought. Feminism, having taken on the rhetoric of religious discourse - notably in the oft-used phrases of "evil" and "satanic" when referring to males, women with children or families, gained from the collusion feminism engaged in with religious fanatics during the SRA Myth years (see the discussion at Bea Campbell (OBE)) has managed to merge the religious dogma with the Nazi concept of collective punishment.

In justice terms the essence of the concept of collective punishment and the development of 'identity' politics has determined that it isn't necessary to punish a specific offender for an offence - instead it suffices to select, even at random, a member of a targeted identify group (defined by sex, or race, or religious disposition or not) and prosecute them, even in the full knowledge that the individual or group was utterly innocent. Concerns about a wrongful prosecution can be set aside in the knowledge that either the innocent party must have done something in the past that needs atoning, or he or she might have done something in the future that needs punishment now (see Phillip K. Dick) or that the 'group' he or she belongs-to, is one deserving of punishment.

Examples, notably from the US, Canada, UK and Australia abound about the acceptance of the concept of collective punishment. Writing about Feminist Legal Theory (or 'Feminist Jurisprudence') Babette Francis related, at third hand, a conversation a 'mature-age' feminist had had with another feminist, concerning a case of a Melbourne man whose life had been ruined with a malicious allegation of sexual assault;

Helen Garner relates a conversation she had with another feminist about the case: '"It's terrible to me,' I said, disconcerted, 'to see the effects of this on his life, on his family". 'Oh', (the feminist replied) 'I don't think he deserved what happened to him. He may be innocent - but he's paying for many, many other men who have not been caught. It's the irony of things, that sometimes the innocent or nearly-innocent pay for what the guilty have done'".

This kind of feminist justice reminds one of the story of the mother who took her child to her first day at school and told the teacher: "My child is very sensitive. If she is naughty, just smack the child next to her. That will teach her a lesson". Feminists are extremely sensitive.
(Source: Feminist Legal Theory by Babette Francis)

In Nazi-occupied Western Europe, the concept of collective punishment was of course taken to its most extreme - with entire villages selected for artillery bombardment and/or communities killed in massacres or deported to concentration camps. Yet the essence of collective punishment has become deeply embedded in more liberal/leftist thought, driven by the need to exact revenge upon particular groups that are deemed worthy of such treatment. For the most part this is recognised as being invariably males, seen by the feminist community as evil, prone to being rapists, child molesters, satanists. However other selected groups can also be targeted. Mothers, particularly those in families, appear to be a popular victim of 'collective punishment' and false allegations of PAS and MSBP abound within the entries on this Web site. Families as a 'collective' body also appear to be a regular target for collective punishment, notably by the secretive court systems established in the US, Canada, Australia and the UK.

The desire to enact revenge on a group, rather than an individual, even if it requires the fabricating of evidence, or encouraging the use of false allegations against members of that group is often seen as perfectly proportionate to some (though not all) feminists. Some feminists have determined that the process of being falsely accused of rape should be seen as a 'learning' experience by males;

Catherine Comins, assistant dean of student life at Vassar, also sees some value in this loose use of "rape." She says angry victims of various forms of sexual intimidation cry rape to regain their sense of power. "To use the word carefully would be to be careful for the sake of the violator, and the survivors don't care a hoot about him." Comins argues that men who are unjustly accused can sometimes gain from the experience. "They have a lot of pain, but it is not a pain that I would necessarily have spared them. I think it ideally initiates a process of self-exploration. 'How do I see women?' 'If I didn't violate her, could I have?' 'Do I have the potential to do to her what they say I did?' Those are good questions."
(Source: When is is Rape? By Nancy Gibbs, Sylvester Monroe, Priscilla Painton and Anastasia Toufexis- Time magazine, June 3rd 1991)

This argument, that being falsely accused should be seen as a positive benefit, obviously has applications elsewhere. In some countries, notably in West Africa, women are routinely accused of witchcraft, and often subsequently killed. Perhaps, using the same mindset as Catherine Comins, these women could be determined by the authorities to have 'sometimes gain(ed) from the experience'?

In the US, the extension of this 'learning' experience paradigm, can extend to toddlers, who can just as easily be accused of sexual assault by adults, this, about a school - Lincolnshire Elementary School in Washington County, Maryland, 'Ms Mowen' being the County Public Schools spokeswoman;

School administrators at a Texas school in November suspended a 4-year-old student for inappropriately touching a teacher's aide after the prekindergarten student hugged the woman.

"It's important to understand a child may not realise that what he or she is doing may be considered sexual harassment, but if it fits under the definition, then it is, under the state's guidelines," Mowen said. "If someone has been told this person does not want this type of touching, it doesn't matter if it's at work or at school, that's sexual harassment."

The incident will be included in the boy's file while he remains at Lincolnshire, but Mowen said those files do not follow students when they move on to middle school.

She described the incident as a "learning opportunity."
(Source: School accuses 5-year-old of sex harassment, by Eric Cunningham, The Herald-Mail, 20th December 2006)

The use of collective punishment is partly driven by a target culture in both the US and UK, and the quasi-religious nature of the modern liberal and former Left-Wing. This trend has been emphasised in recent years, in part due to the increasingly obsession of those who would identify themselves as 'Left' with Fascist thought. In the US this has resulted in a perception that miscarriages of justice are rife;

Conservatives are right that the guilty often go free, but the reason is that the innocent are convicted in their place. Justice is no longer a concern of the justice system. Careers depend on conviction rates. It is easier for police and prosecutors to get convictions by piling charges on a convenient suspect until they coerce a plea than to solve a case and find the truth.

Mary Sue Terry, former attorney general of the Commonwealth of Virginia, has this to say: "Our concern has turned from seeking truth to seeking convictions, and our post-conviction efforts are focused on denying any further review."

Judges have written to me about the breakdown of our justice system. They confirm that injustice is rife.
(Source: Forgive Us Our Injustices, by Dr. Paul Craig Roberts)

In some quarters, even discussing the possibility of false accusations (particularly of rape) is regarded as an offence. This entails on occasions the requirement for advocates of such views to try to persuade others that some groups (such as women) are divine, spiritually blessed by a Higher Power. Once again the quasi-religious nature of modern feminism is emphasised;

For instance, one feminist, Wendy Kaminer, stated that "it is a primary article of faith among many feminists that women don't lie about rape, ever; they lack the dishonesty gene." Anyone believing women lack a dishonesty gene never dated women. If they do lack that gene, then someone out there is performing miraculous surgery to implant that gene. What's so amazing about such statements is: they are not based on any scientific evidence -- it is a sexist premise.

John O'Sullivan, a left-wing social scientist, discovered a widespread defence of the belief that "no woman would fabricate a rape charge. Feminists themselves admit as much."

Law Professor and left-wing political activist Susan Estrich stated that "the whole effort at reforming rape laws has been an attack on the premise that women who bring complaints are suspect."

Zepezauer wrote that, "Some feminists believe that even defending that premise [of false rape complaints] is in itself a sex crime."

Well-known Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz once said that he was accused of sexual harassment by female students for discussing in class the mere possibility of false rape allegations.
(Source: Duke Rape Case All Too Common by Jim Kouri - Huntington News Network, December 18 2006)

(See also Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Simone de Beauvoir, Linda Gordon, Baron Anthony Giddens)




The Index for Surnames beginning with "H" continues at H2

"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


- Surnames M



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

M



Ken Macdonald (Kenneth Donald John, QC, Sir)

Former Director of Public Prosecutions Became a Queen's Counsel in 1997. As a junior barrister he had defended terrorist suspects from both the Northern Ireland Troubles and the Middle East. Co-founder of Matrix Chambers with Cherie Blair. Succeeded Sir David Calvert-Smith as DPP in 2003 in a move criticised by the Conservative Opposition as "rampant cronyism." Mr. Macdonald retired as DPP in October 2008.

Sir MacDonald's essay Security & Rights (2007) confirmed for many that the Labour Government saw a clear distinction between the rights afforded to terrorists and those afforded to parents entwined in the secretive family justice system in England and Wales;

So what are the fundamental principles? What is the essence of fairness? I think we need to start with a clear understanding that certain principles are absolutely not negotiable, whatever the pressure.

It seems quite appropriate that as head of the prosecuting authority I should state these plainly and clearly, even though they are mainly obvious. First, trials should be routinely open and reported before independent and impartial tribunals.

So we can't have secret courts, we can't have vetted judges, and we can't have secret justice.
(Source: CPS News: Security & Rights)

(See also Kevin Brennan, Rt. Hon. Jack Straw MP, Shami Chakrabarti)

Shahnaz Malik

The scandal of Shahnaz Malik and her family's treatment at the hands of both seemingly over-enthusiastic social workers and police officers drew unwelcome attention to the persistent allegations that the term 'emotional abuse' is grossly misused against women. In addition the scandal appeared to reinforce the view that the tendency to over-react and waste valuable resources is a growing problem amongst child protection police departments. The Shahnaz Malik Scandal also highlighted the perceived regularity with which health and child protection officials can accuse a woman of being mentally unfit in the event she dares to questions an action

SOCIAL WORKERS have placed the five-year-old daughter of a professional couple on the child protection register for “emotional abuse” after the mother told the girl she was delivered by caesarean.

Other allegations against the mother include cuddling her daughter for too long when dropping her off at nursery.

The intervention by Birmingham social services prompted the mother, Shahnaz Malik, to go into hiding with her daughter, Amaani, for two months, fearing the girl would be taken away.

An alert was put out to all British ports, and police conducted raids on a string of properties in the West Midlands. Two weeks ago police battered down the door of the family’s home in an apartment block in an attempt to find Amaani. She had been moved elsewhere by her mother, but her father, Vijay Bansal, 42, an IT consultant, was later arrested and held in a cell overnight for “obstructing” the search.

Officers also seized Malik’s car, took toothbrushes from the bathroom to analyse for DNA and raided the homes of relatives in the middle of the night, looking for the mother and girl.
Things went awry following a dispute with a nursery;
...

When Malik withdrew Amaani from the nursery, she was told by a health visitor that their case was being referred to social services.

“I went to a solicitor, who said the grabbing of Amaani’s arm was an assault, so I decided to make a complaint to the police,” Malik said.

However, she felt the police were uninterested in her complaint and wanted to speak to Amaani alone — which Malik refused to allow.

A few days later her husband was called in by officers. “The police asked me if my wife has mental health problems. I said, ‘Absolutely not’,” Bansal said.

“They said, ‘There are allegations coming from the nursery’. They said, ‘Someone overheard your wife saying to your daughter she had her stomach cut open to deliver Amaani’.”

Bansal said the police also told him that his wife cuddled Amaani for 10-15 minutes when dropping her off at the nursery. “I said, ‘No mother wants to leave her child screaming’.
(Source: Mother branded as abuser for telling daughter of caesarean by, The Sunday Times, March 7th 2010 by Daniel Foggo)

Getting bad 'vibes' about the nature of the social workers they were dealing with, the Malik's fled, fearing that their daughter was to be removed by social workers, using spurious arguments. Although no secret court hearing had taken place to test the 'evidence' the police then embarked on their pursuit of the Malik's, seeking the family - though it isn't quite certain what terms of reference they were using for either criminal activity or concerns about child protection.

The Maliks presented themselves to the authorities, whereupon a secret court hearing (to its credit) returned the family home, with no order made.

The term 'Emotional Abuse' has been in use since even before the SRA Myth of the late 1980's. There is no agreed definition of the term, which has a wide-ranging scope, ranging from what most people would recognise as being 'emotional abuse' - deliberately not praising a child, showing no love or affection, creating a household whereby the child feels unwanted or unloved, has extended into areas where it appears that, in the sometimes bizarre world of child protection, perfectly decent behaviour towards children is reclassified as being 'abusive'. This has included feeding a child a healthy diet, hugging a child, praising a child, insisting on a regular bedtime at night, denying a child from owning an Xbox 360, a PSP, and an Nintendo PS3 console, or even refusing the child the demand that he or she see adult-rated DVD's. The entry for Eric Pickles MP details some instances when this sort of 'mirror world' judging of families and women is employed as evidence that a child should be forcibly removed by the State/secret court from its parents or a woman.

The term 'emotional abuse' has extended into the context of adults - notably women. The trend for modern feminism to define women as being 'Perpetual Victims' - constantly out-foxed and cowed by wily males who spend their lives running rings around women or deliberately abusing them, is hugely popular today - typified by The Emotionally Abused Woman : Overcoming Destructive Patterns and Reclaiming Yourself (1992) by Beverly Engel.

In the context of child protection, a number of books, both academic or otherwise, have been written on the subject, such as Emotional Abuse of the Child by Dory Renn (1988). In recent years the reign of what has been termed 'emotional abuse' has been employed to promote other agendas. For instance daughters encouraged to complete their education and go to university by their fathers' are said to have been 'emotionally abused'.

More disturbingly is the use of the term 'emotional abuse' when it is employed with the worlds 'possibility of'. In England and Wales, together with the other popular 'possibility' determinate's - MSBP/FII (see Sir Roy Meadow) and Post Natal Depression (see Rt. Hon. John Hemming MP), 'emotional abuse' has become a primary 'soft' means for children to be forcibly removed in the secret court by the State from families and women.

As emotional abuse encompasses such a wide and recognised variance, it appears difficult to comprehend how a woman can escape the allegation 'might cause emotional abuse in the future' in a secret court. This determination, sometimes referred-to as 'futuristic emotional abuse' is a recent phenomena. It has absolutely no definition, in any book or journal paper - perhaps because no peer committee would be able to easily accept such a concept. Yet it's use in the secret courts of England and Wales is rife - perhaps the ultimate 'fad'.

In its most disreputable form, the forced removal of a child from a woman using the 'possibility of emotional harm' is employed increasingly in cases of domestic violence. For varying reasons the forced removal of children from women who have suffered domestic violence appears to be increasing, confirmed by Eoin Rush, Assistant Director of Children’s Services for the City of York, in 2010;

“We have seen a significant increase in applications to the court for concerns of domestic violence. This is a national trend and is due to rising awareness that the psychological impact on a child of watching one parent assault another parent is almost as damaging as being assaulted.”
(Source: Number of York children in care increases by 42%, by Nicola Fifield, The Press, 2nd March 2010

What are the reasons for this action? Two explanations seem to suffice; both based on dogma. The first explanation is that those influenced by gender politics 'shop' women who seek assistance or flee the family home to seek shelter. In an effort to punish the woman, for engaging in an abusive patriarchal relationship with a male, the child is forcibly removed by social workers.

The second explanation looks to religious fundamentalist discrimination against women, who challenge the concept of the dutiful wife, by challenging her abuse with a police attendance at the family home, or worse (in their eyes) fleeing the family home for a refuge. Once again the woman is punished, through the forced removal of her child.

As detailed in the lengthy entry for Bea Campbell (OBE) it is perfectly conceivable that both disparate groups can collude to achieve their aims - with women with children the victims.

To reflect the popularity of 'emotional abuse' allegations, and although at rather a late stage in its widespread use, to try to get a definition for its use, the Government in England and Wales have commissioned a number of studies into the subject including. Systematic review of the effectiveness of interventions in reducing emotional abuse being conducted by Jane Barlow and Anita Schrader McMillan, Health Sciences Research Institute, Warwick Medical School, Warwick University

Unfortunately the study will deliberately avoid the contentious element of the use of the emotional abuse allegation, when it is used in its 'futuristic' form, though this is the most popular use of the term.

Interventions with parents who do not actually maltreat children, but who are considered to be ‘at risk’ are excluded


This perhaps is to be excused, as it is probably impossible to define such a vague term, even despite its enormous popularity. It's equivalent in the criminal context would to arrest any woman at any moment in any place on the grounds that she will commit an unspecified offence, at some undetermined point in the future (see the entry on 'future crime' and emotional abuse under the entry for Phillip K. Dick).

Nor will the study, judging by its published terms of reference, investigate the use of the 'emotional abuse' allegation as a means of punishing women who are victims of domestic abuse.

The use of the 'possibility of emotional abuse' as a means to punish victims of domestic abuse is to be studied in more detail in a planned Index entry for 2010.

The Scandal of the Maliks, perhaps the least advisable family for ill-advised pursuit by both police and social workers - Mrs. Malik has a masters degree in social policy and her husband is an IT consultant, also drew attention to the willingness of those abused by the child protection 'industry' to willingly tell their stories to the world. In interview, both to newspapers and on television, the Maliks have proven hugely lucid and professional.

Conceivably the 'dodgy' social workers of Birmingham City Council, and West Yorkshire Police, who wasted resources perhaps better dedicated to terrorist suspects, have become the unintended inspiration for a couple to engage in the debate over errant child protection workers. For certain their compelling story provides evidence of a misuse of power that is difficult for even the most ardent of social services apologists to deny.


The Countess of Mar (Alison, 31st Countess of Mar, Lady Garioch)

The Countess of Mar is a crossbench member of the House of Lords, entering the House in 1975. The Countess has taken an avid interest in the nature of MSBP allegations made against women and in 2004 during a House of Lords debate, she drew attention to the parallels of MSBP usage with witchcraft allegations of centuries past;

'There are many thousands of women who have been accused of, or labelled as having Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy, without clinical or legal assessment. They have no recourse to the courts and, each time they protest, they are told that they are in denial and that it is a sign of having Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy.'

This is an equivalent of the stigma of witchcraft in the Middle Ages; there is no trial, and one is guilty until one can prove that one is not guilty, and one has no way in which to prove that one is not guilty.

(See also Fran Lyon, Dame Butler-Sloss, Lord Howe, Sir Roy Meadow)

Kevin Marsh

Former editor of the BBC flagship Radio 4 news program Today Moved to the newly-created post of editor-in-chief of the BBC's new College of Journalism February 2006.

(See also Ceri Thomas, Fran Lyon.)

Eric G. Mart (Ph.D)

American-born forensic psychologist. Author of Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy Reconsidered (2002) that examined the use of MSBP and the pitfalls that it's enthusiastic use has for both professionals and parents alike. Prof. Mart concentrated particularly on the tendency of those professionals who employ MSBP allegations against women to neglect proper scientific and forensic analysis in their investigations and conclusions.


(blurb)
While a number of books and scholarly articles have proposed protocols for the careful evaluation of these complex cases, a review of the collected case materials reveals that serious methodological errors, as well as problems with the conceptualisation of the disorder and the steps needed to diagnose it, are more the rule than the exception. Further, the doctors and mental health experts who pursue these cases are often haphazard and sloppy in their methods, despite the appalling harm inflicted on families when these professionals are mistaken in their conclusions.


Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy Reconsidered was one of the first published works that examined the use or misuse of MSBP allegations against women, at the very height of its popularity. It garnered considerable interest from other peers;



"In days past, any woman who complained too much to her doctor was at risk of being labeled a hysteric. Now, any mother who complains too much to her child's paediatrician is a candidate for Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy. In this book, Eric Mart takes this diagnosis apart with skilful precision."
(Loren Pankratz, Ph.D., Consultation Psychologist & Clinical Professor Department of Psychiatry, Oregon Health Sciences University)

"One of the finest, most erudite pieces of scholarship and clear thinking I have yet to read, Dr. Mart's treatise explodes the myths of faulty reasoning and pseudoscience underlying the MSBP construct. His masterful and elevating exposé fully embraces the scientific heart of advanced differential diagnosis and shines a lasered beacon for directing competent investigations of purported abuse phenomena. 'Unenlightened expertise' will topple in the wake of this masterful work."
(Kirk Witherspoon, Ph.D., Forensic & Clinical Psychologist
Moline, Illinois)

(See also William R. Long, Sir Roy Meadow, ML Bergeron, Dr. Clive Baldwin, Dr. Helen Hayward-Brown, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, Maribeth Fischer, Dr. Louisa Lasher)

Anneli Marttila



Robert Massey

Former Managing Director of leading UK-based psychotherapist and psychanalytical textbook publisher Karnac Books Ltd. Now replaced by Oliver Rathbone who has tranformed the Company into a leading conspiracy-theory publishing house, employing many theories derived from extreme far-right US christian fundamentalists.

(See also the CEO of the other leading UK publisher advocating for the SRA Myth - Informa PLC - Peter Rigby)


Carol McCrystal

Child protection social worker for Rochdale Social Services department and engaged in the infamous P, C & S case (see Dr. Clive Baldwin.)

Deborah McCallum

Guardian ad Litem (GaL) for Rochdale Social Services department and engaged in the infamous P, C&S case (see Dr. Clive Baldwin.)

Emily McCulloch

Scottish schoolgirl who was abused, together with her family, mother Liz and father George, by child protection staff from Argyll and Bute Council, after they had sought to secure her a place at a school that met her special emotional needs (Emily is visually impaired). The right to move to such a school is guranteed under the 2004 Scottish Education Act.

Emily, then 12, was being bullied at her local school, which was making her misearable. Her parents wanted to move her to the Royal Blind School in Edinburgh, which would be better suited to her needs. The place though would cost over £34, 705

It was then that things turned sour. Through a data protection request to the local authority, the couple discovered minutes to a series of secret child-protection meetings at which they had been accused of emotionally abusing Emily by persisting with the placing request.

"I was almost sick when I read what they had said about us," says Liz. "We felt like a half-cocked pea shooter against a canon because they were all colluding against us."

With the accusation in the open, social services called George and Liz to a meeting in February 2007 at which, they say, they were told that they would be taken to the Children's Reporter, who decides whether to start care proceedings against abusive parents, unless they abandoned the request.

'Liz was unable to speak she was so upset," says George. "But I told them this was fascist behaviour and they wouldn't get away with it. I said my father fought in the war so we could have freedom and you're threatening us to try to stop us exercising Emily's statutory right. You're abusing a good family for the sake of money."

After the local MSP, Jackie Baillie, took up the family's cause, proceedings were eventually put on hold, allowing George and Liz to pursue their court case, which they won in May last year. Sheriff Valerie Johnston ordered Argyll and Bute Council to send Emily to the Royal Blind School and pay the McCullochs' legal costs, noting that "a great deal of distress" had been caused to the family. The council refused to comment on the case.

Emily started her new education in September 2008, three years after the placing request was first made. "My new school is really nice," she says. "At my old school, I thought I was a bit worthless, but now I know I'm not because I can actually do things."
(Source: 'They wanted to take away our child', by Heidi Blake, The Telegraph, 21st October 2009)

Heidi Blakes article included a perceptive comment from a child protection professional, providing an insight into why social workers in particular can resort to such malicious vindictiveness.

Social work managers admit that overworked staff, who encounter aggression and abuse every day, can become vindictive without careful supervision and support. Even Kim Bromley-Derry, the chairman of the Association of Directors of Children's Services, confesses that the phenomenon is "obviously not uncommon".

"Ultimately, if there is a difference of opinion between a family and a social worker, who are all the other professionals going to believe? Inevitably, the family are in a much weaker position, and we have to prevent all abuses of that power imbalance," he says.
(Source: 'They wanted to take away our child', by Heidi Blake, The Telegraph, 21st October 2009)

Vindictive attacks on families by 'rogue' child protection social workers and related professionals aren't uncommon in the UK, US and other English-speaking nations, though almost unheard-of in countries like France, Spain, Japan, Russia, and all of South America. In Wales, the < href="http://www.dramatis.hostcell.net/Index_w_z/index_w_z.html#WilliamsT" rel="external">Williams family scandal revealed a degree of vindictiveness against a family that few could believe.

(See also Dr. Paul Shattock OBE, Dr. Eileen Munro, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, Laura Collins)


Andrew McFarlane (Ewart, Justice, QC)

High Court Judge, Royal Courts of Justice, Family Division. Appointed in April 2005 by the-then Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer Prior to his appointment to the Family Division Mr McFarlane QC's most notable activity concerned his appearance at the European Court of Human Rights, representing Her Majesty's Government in the infamous case of P, C&S vs HM Government in 2001 (see Dr. Clive Baldwin.) The case is universally regarded as the "classic" example of judicial abuse against a woman in an English and Welsh secretive Family Court.
(See also Lord Justice Nicolas Wall.)

In April 2001 Mr. McFarlane had presented his report which detailed relevant cases with respect to the Human Rights Act and family proceedings. Children and the Human Rights Act 1998 The First Six Months in England and Wales A brief mention of the then-known P, C&S case is made in the report, which Mr McFarlane QC subsequently took an active part in.

By way of contrast, in March 2006 Justice McFarlane ruled in the case of 9-year-old girl removed from her family when her mother was subjected to a false allegation of MSBP from the same social workers, and subsequently kept in care for 14 months. It subsequently transpired that the original emergency care order had been applied for using manufactured or false evidence, and with no reference to a doctor or attempt to seek a medical opinion beforehand. Although declining to name the Local Authority or social workers involved in the case - who are apparently continuing to work (see Justice Edward Holman). Justice McFarlane did issue instructions for magistrates to apply when considering applications for Emergency Protection Order (EPO) including taping the spoken evidence of the applying social worker. The instructions were similar in tone to those previously issued (and largely ignored) by Justice James Munby in the past for District Family Courts. (Council must pay £50,000 for wrongly taking girl into care)

Justice McFarlane returned to the subject of MSBP allegations against women in his judgement against Mr and Mrs. H, who had applied for a review of Sir Roy Meadow's evidence as a witness in a case when a woman was accused in the secret court of having tried to have killed her child four times, by blocking its airway, and had been successful on the fourth attempt.

In a 70-page judgment following an exhaustive and highly unusual review of the issues surrounding P's death in January 1999, Mr Justice McFarlane said: "I am driven to the firm conclusion that no criticism of Professor Meadow's role in this case can be sustained."

He had carried out the review of medical issues after the dead boy's parents, Mr and Mrs H, won the right to one after Professor Meadow's statistical evidence in the Sally Clark case was discredited when her convictions for murdering her two baby sons were overturned.

The couple have lost one child to adoption and risk losing another because of the finding by a high court judge in 2000 that Mrs H four times obstructed the airways of her first child, P, the fourth time fatally.

They criticised Professor Meadow's evidence at the original hearing and said P could have died from natural causes. The judge rejected their criticism: "Indeed, the passage of time and the exhaustive additional investigations have proved that, on the medical issues that were before the court in 2000, he was correct."

Mrs Justice Bracewell's finding in 2000 that Baby P was intentionally smothered by his mother on four separate occasions must be upheld, said the judge.
(Source: Paediatrician in baby case vindicated - Clare Dyer, The Guardian, 2nd December 2006)

The case emphasised the nature of both the secret court system and the nature of evidence employed. In the secret court system, judgements can be made on the basis of probability, rather than fact - enabling a woman, as in the case of Mrs. H, to be accused and effectively found guilty of child murder and three previous attempts of murder - none of the evidence for which though would survive in a criminal court (no conviction was made or attempted in this case). Women dealt-with in the secret court system live a sort of semi judicial half-life; convicted by the secret court and therefore subject to the greatest sentence a British court can impose - the forced removal of a child, but without the normal opportunities afforded to say a terrorist suspect, who enjoys a trial subject to a criminal standard of prosecution, in front of a jury.

(See also Alasdair Palmer)

Indications that Justice McFarlane was concerned with the manner in which the Family Court system was being run came to light in March 2009 when he expressed concerns that proposals to reduce secrecy in the system would be negated (see Rt. Hon. Jack Straw MP)

While accredited journalists can expect to be permitted to sit in on a private court hearing relating to children, they will face tough sanctions if they report any detail of the particular case they are observing.

Reporting will be limited to the process and gist of proceedings, rather than the detail of any particular case. In other words, the reporting will be about system, rather than substance.

The judge, who was addressing a conference at the weekend held by Resolution, the association of family lawyers in England and Wales, added that the changes would 'do little, I fear, to address the very real difficulty that journalists face when confronted, for the first time, after the end of the court case with a parent who is complaining about a miscarriage of justice'.
(Source: Senior judge warns that changes will not open up family courts by Frances Gibb - The Times, 24th March 2009)


Anne McIntosh (MP, Caroline Ballingall)

Conservative MP for the Vale of York since 1997. Trained as a barrister and originally an MEP. She is presently a front-bench shadow spokesperson for the subjects of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

MS. McIntosh is a Parliamentary contact for the National Autism Society (NAS) and and in 2007 she wrote a Parliamentary Question requesting details of representations to the Government made in cases when allegations of Munchausens By Proxy/Fabricated and/or Induced Illness were made when a child was in fact on the autistic spectrum. The ongoing scandal of parents (notably women) being accused of causing autism through some as-yet unknown means known to science or forensic medicine, or of causing an illness once again that unknown means that they then claim is autism is discussed through the entries for Bruno Bettelheim, Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown and Dr. Paul Shattock OBE.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what representations he has received on cases where schoolchildren have been categorised as having fabricated and induced illness but where it has transpired that the symptoms giving rise to this concern were the result of the child being on the autistic spectrum.
(Source: Pupils: Autism: 15 Oct 2007: Written answers and statements

The official answer from the government was contained in a reply by Jim Knight (MP) then (Minister of State (Schools and Learners), Department for Children, Schools and Families; South Dorset, Labour) and now a cabinet Minister as Minister of State for Employment and Welfare Reform at the Department for Work and Pensions;

The Secretary of State has recently received a letter from Autism Consultancy Services which, among much else, mentions the issue of the parents of autistic children "being scrutinised unnecessarily for conditions such as Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy".

In 2002 the Government published their guidance 'Safeguarding children in whom illness is fabricated or induced: Supplementary guidance to Working Together to Safeguard Children'. In view of the controversy concerning the term Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy the guidance refers only to cases of 'fabricated or induced illness', specifically where such behaviour constitutes an abusive act against a child. The National Autistic Society made representations to officials and Ministers at the Department of Health on the text of the draft guidance and said that the Society was content with the final text. It included advice on the importance of clarifying the contributing factors and identifying any underlying conditions which may play a part in the developmental delay of children who have been identified as having illness fabricated or induced.
(Source: Pupils: Autism: 15 Oct 2007: Written answers and statements

The reality unfortunately was that the re-drafted Working Together to Safeguard Children guidelines didn't do the trick and thousands of children were taken into care, and continue to be forcibly removed from women, on the basis that their autistic spectrum disorder (or disorder that looks ostensibly like autism) has been identified as being caused by a woman. It is worthwhile noting that whilst it would normally be expected by most lay persons that professionals would have taken into account the 'importance of clarifying the contributing factors and identifying any underlying conditions which may play a part in the developmental delay of children who have been identified as having illness fabricated or induced' i.e. the development delay might have been caused by autism, the Government nonetheless found it necessary to include such advice in the re-draft, suggesting that it wasn't occurring before then.

Mr. Knight's official reply for the Government did carry a further twist. His reply detailed (t)he Secretary of State has recently received a letter from Autism Consultancy Services which, among much else, mentions the issue of the parents of autistic children "being scrutinised unnecessarily for conditions such as Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy". It could perhaps be reasonable to expect that having quoted the letter in a Parliamentary Reply, then the Government had given Autism Consultancy Services some credence.

In reality though, the New Labour Government and its Ministers, had done the opposite, ignoring Autism Consultancy Services at every opportunity, notably when it had tried to submit research regarding the discrimination applied to autistic citizens. This was detailed by through a Memorandum submitted by founder Richard Exley to the Select Committee on Education and Skills ;

When I contacted the Chief Executive of the Disability Rights Commission (Bob Niven), the Minister for the Disabled (Anne McGuire) and the All Party Parliamentary Group on Autism with an offer to present them my findings/outcomes I was told "my research is unnecessary, irrelevant and bias" I have written to Tony Blair and David Blunkett as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and to date I have not had a reply or an acknowledgement, as for David Blunkett I even arranged for my letter to be typed in Braille and offered to send a cassette/CD with the letter dictated.
(Source: House of Commons - Education and Skills - Written Evidence)

With this in mind, the question remains, when 'The Secretary of State (has) recently received a letter from Autism Consultancy Services which, among much else, mentions the issue of the parents of autistic children "being scrutinised unnecessarily for conditions such as Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy"' was there ever any possibility that the Government was ever going to pay any attention to it's contents?


Karen McVeigh

British journalist currently senior news reporter for The Guardian since December 2006. As a freelance reporter for The Times newspaper she wrote the article Couple beat family court secrecy (An unprecedented ruling has exposed a forced adoption case to public scrutiny - The Times 3rd November 2006 that detailed a ruling by Justice James Munby on the 2nd November 2006 in a Family Division court at the Royal Courts of Justice that allowed Mark & Nicky Webster to have their fight to keep their fourth child heard in an open court.

Whilst at The Guardian Ms. McVeigh has developed a well-respected reputation for reporting on the subject of honour killings.


Roy Meadow (Royston, Sir Samuel, Professor)

The entry for Sir Roy Meadow can be found in it's own Index page. Please click on Please click on Roy Meadow (OBE)

Matthew Meinck

Unregulated Australian psychotherapists, whose activities, particularly those employing Recovered Memory Therapy, allied to his routinly abusive manner were investigated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation documentary Over The Edge in April 2010.

See the entry under Liz Mullinar for a lengthy discussion of the subjects raised, together with links to the broadcast.


Penny Mellor

Founder of the Angela Cannings Foundation in honour of Angela Canning Ms. Mellor is a tireless, though sometimes somewhat over-enthusiastic campaigner against false allegations of MSBP. She has engaged in a long pursuit of Dr. David Southall. She was jailed for one year by Justice Whitburn QC at Newcastle-Upon-Tyne Crown Court in March 2002 for the abduction of a child that was taken to Ireland in January 1999 in a case involving an allegation of a false diagnosis of MSBP. The child was taken into care and the appeals of the co-conspirators in the case were rejected.

In the past (including on this site) it has been believed that Ms. Mellor was a Scientologist - notably because she had accepted an award from the Church of Scientology. In October 2010 Ms. Mellor wrote to the Site editors and stated categorically that she is not a Scientologist. Unfortunately she employs an AOL email account, and AOL is blacklisted by many ISP's, thus preventing a reply.

(See Dr. Kenneth Feldman)
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


- Surnames N-Q



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

N



Diana Napolis (also known by her forum name Karen Curio Jones or 'Curio')

Former American child protection social worker (until 1996.) Ms. Napolis was a firmly committed advocate of belief in SRA (Satanic Ritual Abuse) even though the SRA Myth had fallen out-of-favour by the late 1990's.

Napolis continued to believe the phenomenon was true, that those who had discredited the phenomenon were themselves child abusers, and were involved in a conspiracy to conceal their activities from the public.

Posting under the screen name "Curio", Napolis began a pattern of on-line harassment against those she believed were involved in the conspiracy, posting information about the individuals. Among those she targeted were Carol Hopkins, a school administrator who was part of a grand jury in San Diego, California that criticised social workers for removing children from their home without reason; Michael Aquino, an open member of the Temple of Set and a lieutenant colonel in the United States Army Reserve against whom accusations of SRA were made but dropped as the accusations proved to be impossible; and Elizabeth Loftus, a professor who studied memory who believed coercive questioning techniques by poorly-trained investigators led to young children making false allegations of child sexual abuse.

Loftus was confronted at a New Zealand academic conference by a group of people who accused her of conspiring to help child molesters, with information comprised largely of the postings made by Napolis. Using public computers in internet cafes and libraries, Napolis concealed her identity for five years while continuing to post information on-line about those she believed involved in the conspiracy. In 2000, private researcher Michelle Devereaux and the San Diego State University police tracked Napolis and caught her in the act of posting information as Curio on-line from a campus lab. No charges were filed, but by revealing her identity, those Napolis had harassed ceased to consider her a serious threat.
(Source: from the Wikipedia entry for Diana Napolis)

In 2001 Ms. Napolis was charged with stalking the film director Steven Spielberg. In 2002 she was charged for making death threats against Jennifer Love Hewitt and was subsequently committed to a state mental hospital until fit to stand trial. After a further year Napolis pleaded guilty to stalking and received probation. Napolis accused the actress and Spielberg of being part of a satanic conspiracy and using mind controlling "cybertronic" technology to manipulate her body. (Source: from the Wikipedia entry for Diana Napolis)

Although at the extreme end of advocates for SRA, the Napolis case revealed just how much support for SRA continues to exist. Through her anonymous and vitriolic postings, Ms. Napoli found a community only too willing to support her theories, including the disturbing "reverse logic" concept that opposers of the SRA Myth were themselves child abusers. In the UK it is believed that belief in SRA is still pronounced and indeed in at least one case in the North West of England in only recent times, SRA was used by a secretive Family Court "expert" to explain an autism spectrum disorder. The nature of the secretive Family Courts appear to have allowed such concepts as the SRA Myth, which lives at the border of extreme radical feminism and Christian Fundamentalist teaching, to persist, when the public would be rightly convinced that such ideas had passed into history.

Ms. Napolis's web site Diana Napolis, M.A. provides a useful resource on where believe in satanic ritual abuse stands at present. Ms. Napolis continues to garner support from fundamentalist and feminists convinced that a worldwide conspiracy (with the addition of mind-control and extraterrestrials) is deliberately hiding the truth of SRA from the public.

A television news report about Ms. Napolis' stalking of Ms. Love-Hewitt is detailed below, including her satanic ritual abuse allegations;



Finding present supporters for Ms. Napolis's conspiracy theories isn't a tough assignment. One supporter is Left-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Constantine, who has managed to promote ultra-right-wing Christian Fundamentalist obsessions into his overarching Mind Control fixations, together with the fantasies of Ms. Napolis.

(See also: Diablo Cody , Bea Campbell (OBE), Christopher Lillie, Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP, Dianne CoreRay Wyre, Judith (Dawson) Jones, Lindsey Read, Dr. Darren Oldridge, Dr. Sandra Buck)

Debbie Nathan

Journalist and feminist. Co-author with attorney Michael Snedeker of Satan's Silence (1995) regarded by many as the definitive history and analysis of the moral panic that gripped the US throughout the 1980's and 1990's, when right-wing Christian Fundamentalists fantasies about Satanic Ritual Abuse infested US society. In recent years the consequences of the 'panic are only now being understood, thanks in the main to the extraordinary detail and research incorporated into Satan's Silence. A planned extended Index entry From Rocket Ships in the Backyard to Camp Delta will discuss the impact of the moral panic, and how the US liberal and leftist elite were forever changed by the influence of extremist religious thought.

Satan's Silence


In late 1994, as the last chapters of this book were being written, a research team under contract with the federal government announced, after studying the matter for almost five years, that they had made a determination about this claim, which has terrified many people in America. The study, which cost taxpayers $750,000, determined that the rumour of satanic conspiracies was unfounded and that there no evidence of any organised incursions into public care. Even so, during the same year the research findings were publicised, it was possible to go to the juvenile section of the public library in many U.S. cities and find colourfully illustrated copies of 'Don't Make Me Go Back, Mommy: A Child's Book About Satanic Ritual Abuse'. It was also possible to turn on the radio and hear Joan Baez performing "Play Me Backwards," her song about a youngster who witnesses a diabolic ceremony in which adults dressed as Mexicans slaughter a baby, remove its organs, and make other children play with them. One could stand in a supermarket checkout line and read the women's magazine 'Redbook', with its survey indicating that 70 percent of Americans believed in the existence of sexually abusive satanic cults, and almost a third thought the groups were being deliberately ignored by the FBI and police.
(Source: Pages 1 and 2 of Satan's Silence - 1996)

Together with professional colleague Michael Snedeker, Ms. Nathan is a Director of The National Center for Reason and Justice that fights for those jailed on the basis of false allegations in the US.


(See also Gerard Armirault, Martha Coakley, Lindsey Read, Stephen J. Ceci (Prof.), Bea Campbell (OBE), Dr. Sandra Buck)

Paul Nathanson

American writer. Co-author with Katherine Young of two academic books on the subject of misandry (the promotion and practice of hatred of males. Spreading Misandry: The Teaching of Contempt for Men in Popular Culture (2006) investigates the nature of misandry being taught and promoted, notably on US college campuses. Legalising Misandry: From Public Shame to Systemic Discrimination Against Men (2006) is concerned with the introduction and use of misandry, notably in the US legal system. One further volume is planned. Even though distinctly academic works, opposition to the books' has led some US libraries to deny their existence, even removing their registered ISBN numbers from indexes to prevent their transfer from central repositories.


Amy Neustein

American sociologist. With attorney Michael Lesher wrote From Madness to Mutiny: why mothers are running from the family courts-and what can be done about it (2005) that examined the nature of the US family court system and its systematic abuse of women. The book also focused on the current obsession with PAS ('parental alienation syndrome', see Dr. Richard Gardner) as a means to punish women who believe their children have been sexually abused by their fathers. In addition to concerns about PAS, the authors referred to the use of false MSBP allegations made against women. In the example detailed below from the book a court-appointed 'expert" used the unusual concept that even making an allegation that their child has been abused was sufficient a basis for determining MSBP-in the absence of any medical evidence or comprehensive examination of the medical history beforehand. The example emphasised the easy willingness and ability that court-appointed experts in the US (and UK) have in making unwarranted accusations against women beyond both their competence and in the absence of any evidence.

[T]he mother...was always compliant and gave appropriate medical care. [The child] has multiple problems including hydrocephalus, seizure, spinal cord problems, and bladder problems. [The mother] always had objective findings and...was appropriate in bringing [the child] into the office or hospital as the situation warranted.

Only after the mother had accused the child's father of sexually abusing the girl did court-appointed experts produce a diagnosis of Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy.

A court-appointed evaluator, a Ph.D in psychoanalysis, reported to the family court judge that the mother was making "false" allegations of sex abuse and that this might justify a diagnosis of mental illness, including MSBP:

'The false allegation of sex abuse can be seen as part of the divorce syndrome and ultimate goal of alienating the children from the father. Additionally, it could be a part of a Munchausens by Proxy Syndrome. There is reason to speculate that [the mother] has created or exaggerated medical symptoms with regard to [the child]. The current forensic evaluation does strongly speculate that the sex abuse allegations fit into a contemporary type of Munchausens by Proxy Syndrome.'

Note that this was the first time, in the child's seven years of intensive medical treatment, that anyone had suggested that the mother had either "created" or "exaggerated" any of the child's medical symptoms. In fact, the "expert" herself claimed only that there was "reason to speculate" along these lines, and any such speculation contradicted the direct observation of the child's paediatrician. Significantly, this court-appointed evaluator appeared to consider the creation of such symptoms in the child an important element of the MSBP diagnosis.

The same expert who labeled the mother as a case of MSBP because her sex abuse allegations curiously, however, admitted she did not have the basic knowledge or expertise to assess whether the mother had overused the health care system to treat her daughter's spina bifida condition. In her written report to the court, she explained in order to determine this a "full review of the medical records...would need to be done by two medical doctors, a paediatric specialist and a psychiatrist." In her testimony, she likewise told the court that she rested her diagnosis of MSBP on the sex abuse allegations, because she did not "feel comfortable with the medical aspects" of the daughter's case to render an MSBP diagnosis based on those.
(Source: Page 159 - From madness to mutiny: why mothers are running from the family courts--and what can be done about it by Amy Neustein & Michael Lescher (2005)

The use of PAS and MSBP allegations are now routinely encountered by women in US divorce family-court hearings. In the UK though, such allegations are invariably made, hand-in-hand, against women by social workers or court-appointed 'experts', but in child protection cases, invariably it appears to punish a women for failing to show due deference to professionals, or for other prejudicial reasons (such as punishing a single mother.)

Ms. Neustein is also a founder of HURT (Help Us Regain The Children) a legal research and advocacy center.

See also Amy Neustein's website


(See also: Sir Roy Meadow, Jan Loxley, Dr. Lynne Wrennall, William R. Long)

Stella Newith (Dr.)



Candace Newmaker (Candace Tiara Elmore)

Candace Newmaker



Because of its length the Index entry for Candace Newmaker has been moved to Candace Newmaker


Elizabeth Newson (Dr. OBE)

Emeritus Professor of Nottingham University. Prior to retiring was joint director with her husband of the Child Development Research Unit at Nottingham University. Called as an expert witness in the Rochdale SRA Myth fiasco. Her concerns about the manner in which social workers had questioned young children, in a desperate attempt to prove that there was a satanic conspiracy at large attracted the attention of Bea Campbell (OBE) and her partner Judith (Dawson) Jones;

Sight and Sound Magazine, September 1994. Beatrix Campbell and Judith Dawson/Jones commence a critique on the research of Elizabeth Newson into whether what is seen in videos and on TV can affect the minds of children. Following the collapse of the Rochdale so-called Satanic Abuse Case, believers in SRA like Dawson/Jones and Campbell are attempting to validate the accounts of children on which, it has become clear, virtually every piece of 'evidence' to suggest the existence of Satanic Ritual Abuse depends. Basically Newson holds that the repository of images in a child's mind is affected by what he/she sees and that it is not always possible for them distinguish between reality and fiction when those situations are recalled. This was the explanation the Judge in the Rochdale Case accepted. That the children had been allowed to watch horror videos and under 'disclosure' by social workers, replayed mixed images from reality and the videos which confirmed the expectancies of the Satan Hunters in the Rochdale Social Services. Jones/Campbell repudiate this, by interviewing other 'experts' who believe the contrary and by insinuating that because Newson has joined forces with the British False Memory Society who have historically contested the Satan-Hunters' views, her conclusions are somehow devalued.
(Source: Sample of Beatrix Campbell's Writings about Satanic Abuse)

In response to Ms. Camp[bell's insinuations that she was was assisting the satanists, Dr. Newson wrote to the editor of the The Independent (see the entry for Bea Campbell (OBE))

O



Matt O'Connor (Matthew)

Campaigner and author. As a founder member of the now-international campaign group Fathers 4 Justice Mr O'Connor is never far from news coverage by all but the BBC and Channel 4. He is the author Fathers 4 Justice (2007) a history of the formation of the fathers (and mothers) campaign group F4J, and the reasons Mr O'Connor became involved in the subject from his personal perspective

(See also: David Chick, Jonathan "Jolly" Stanesby and Mark Harris.)



Rebecca Odour

Director of Sexual & Domestic Violence Prevention Division of the Virginia Department of Health.

In 2007 the Department of Health instigated an advertisement campaign, lasting 18 months, ostensibly to employ the Stop It Now! materials to encourage the reporting of child sexual abuse.

However the campaign was immediately seen by a number of individuals and groups as being an undisguised attempt to paint all males as pedophiles;

Stop It Now

The response to the advertisement, and its accompanying radio campaign, ensured that it was seen not an attempt to curb CAS, but rather to simply foster the image of males as evil creatures, who could never be trusted with children. The image on the poster simply determined that if a male was seen holding a child's hand (there was no mention of waiting at traffic lights etc) then it was perfectly ok to think 'it doesn't feel right when I see them together'. The Stop It Now! organisation, active in the US, Eire and the UK, and established in 1992, appeared to recognise the damage the posters had done, but not before leaving the the posters in place for eighteen months in prominent places all over the State of Virginia;

Stop It Now

Many of the letters we’ve received about the Virginia campaign included thoughtful comments from both men and women. They told us that by portraying a man as potentially harmful to a child, we missed an opportunity to attract some men to a cause many of them would readily support. That would be a loss. Hopefully, they and we can use the lessons gleaned from this experience to engage in even more productive future conversations about protecting children. Bottom line: we’ve been reminded again of the power of stereotypes, which inevitably stir “good and evil”, “either/or” reactions. Fear leads to paralysis and fosters anger.

Stop It Now! is about hope and empowerment.

We’ll continue to be mindful about the unintended consequences of messages that seem pretty straightforward to us, but may inadvertently alienate potential allies.
(Source: Reflections on the Controversy Surrounding the Virginia Stop It Now! Ad Campaign by Peter Pollard, Director of Public Education)

The campaign echoed Domestic Violence poster campaign conducted on the Dallas D.A.R.T. public system that attempted to portray only men as being instigators of domestic violence (see Glenn Sacks).

(See also the extended entry on the establishment of the Independent Safeguarding Authority in England and Wales under the entry for Sir Roger Singleton that discusses the historical basis for the attempted demonising of males.

Thomas D. Oellerich (Prof.)

Associate Professor, Department of Social Work, at Ohio University.
Author of the paper Identifying and Dealing with "Child Savers", published in volume 10 (1998) of the Institute for Psychological Therapies (IPT) Journal that discussed the subject of "child savers" identified as a grouping of otherwise disparate professionals, who (in the modern form of usage) came to attention during the moral panic over child protection that started with the SRA Myth of the late 1980's and early 1990's, when right-wing Christian Fundamentalists and feminists colluded together to pursue false allegations against a number of adults across the US and UK and a few other Western countries.

In his paper, without directly referring to the religious and feminist elements to be found in modern "child savers", Dr. Oellerich identifies a number of key indicators to use in discerning a "child saver". In the extract below he labels these "The Proselytiser", The Validator, The Exaggerator, The Trauma Ideologist, The Therapy Marketeer,

The Proselytiser

The first indicator that a professional may be a child saver is when he or she becomes a proselytiser. This professional spreads the gospel of satanic ritual abuse, despite the absence of corroborative evidence for such allegations. Lanning (1991) reported that, despite intensive investigations over an eight-year period, law enforcement officials had found no credible evidence supporting allegations of ritual abuse. A five-year governmentally-funded study, conducted by Goodman, Qin, Bottoms, and Shaver (1994), concluded that hard evidence for satanic ritual abuse "was scant to nonexistent" (p. 6). And, more recently, Bottoms and Davis (1997) observed that there never were highly organised satanic ritual abuse cults in this country. They based this conclusion on their own surveys, the fact that the police and FBI agents have never found evidence of satanic ritual abuse, and the discrediting of and the recantations by alleged victims.
(Source: Identifying and Dealing with "Child Savers" by Dr. Thomas D. Oellerich, volume 10 1998 IPT Journal)
(See also Roger Singleton (Sir))

Dr. Darren Oldridge

Senior Lecturer in History, Media and Cultural Studies, University of Worcester.

Dr. Oldridge's paper Witchcraft, Satanic Abuse and the Myth of Pure Evil explores apparent preindustrial witchcraft and contemporary allegations of satanic abuseand finds parallels in both that stretch across centuries of time.

In the case of both sabbat-related witchcraft and satanic abuse, it appears that the success of prosecutions depends largely on the willingness of investigators to accept the reliability of witnesses allegedly present at secret gatherings. In the late seventeenth century, witch trials ended in many countries when courts began to demand external evidence that sabbats had taken place. In the twentieth-century British cases of ritual abuse, and those investigated by Kenneth Lanning in America, it was the lack of corroborating evidence that prevented prosecutions from succeeding.
(Source: Witchcraft, Satanic Abuse and the Myth of Pure Evil)

(See also: Sir Roy Meadow, M.M. Drymon, Dr. Virginia T. Sherr, Sister Prudence Allen, David B, Allison, Carol Baptiste, Prof. Jean La Fontaine, Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP, Eileen Connolly, Christopher Lillie Diana Napolis, Dr. Lawrence Pazder, Ray Wyre, Judith (Dawson) Jones, Dr. Sandra Buck)

P



John Paley (Dr.)

British Journal of Social Work, volume 27 titled Satanist abuse and alien abduction: a comparative analysis theorising temporal lobe activity as a possible connection between anomalous memories documented the striking resemblance between SRA and alien abduction memories. In some detail Mr. Paley described a theory that these memories might be 'artefacts of the retrieval process'.

Even though by 1997, the SRA Myth was supposedly no longer easy to raise as a credible obsession, there remained pockets of individuals, both Christian Fundamentalists and colluding feminists, still convinced of its existence, and utterly aghast that academics and professionals, responding to the lack of credible evidence, would say otherwise.

The issue of British Journal of Social Work, volume 27 was perhaps most notable in this observation, as it published a counter-argument in the very same issue, rather than through the letters column or a later volume. This came in the form of The abduction of credibility: a reply to John Paley written by Kate Cook, a law student at the time, and Dr. Liz Kelly, a feminist researcher into child abuse and violence against women. Unfortunately their evidence that the SRA Myth was true came in the form of the McMartin Day-care SRA scandal in the US - perhaps the most discredited SRA false allegation scandal that the US had seen during the SRA Myth 'crazy' years.

The significance of the Paley and Cook/Kelly reply cannot be overstated; in 1997 it could be reasonably thought that the SRA Myth had been consigned to the dustbin. But in 1997 New Labour won power from the then-failed Conservative Government of John Major, and New Labour was far more sympathetic to the 'child saver' body of colluding fundamentalists and feminists. In 2000 the Department of Health commissioned a report in the SRA Myth, driven by lobbying from parties desperate to get even a recognition from the government that SRA existed. The results of the 'research' were leaked to the Catholic Herald before the research had officially begun, but even with the assistance of a Metropolitan Police Detective being attached to the research effort (an indicator as to how much New Labour were enthusiastic about the SRA Myth) the hopeless lack of evidence for its existence failed to gain the required official recognition from the Government.

SRA though wouldn't go away; the 2003 Island of Lewis SRA fiasco confirmed that belief in the Myth remains deeply rooted in some sections of the social work and police child protection bodies in the United Kingdom. There is also indications that militant religious views, still shared with some feminists, persist in the judiciary, CAFCASS, the NHS, and, perhaps most disturbingly, within the ranks of the government itself and the Labour Party in Great Britain. The continuing obsession with child protection afflicted British society throughout the 1990's and into the next century, culminating in the establishment of the ISA (see Sir Roger Singleton) - perhaps the very essence of the SRA Myth now distilled into a powerful government body.

An alternate hypothesis is that feminists, committed to the protection of children, simply 'fell in with' the religious fundamentalists, simply because they shared this common cause. The collusion, and the degree of it, which unfortunately was substantial, is discussed in the lengthy entry about the SRA Myth under the entry for Bea Campbell (OBE)).

Another theory, is that feminists simply saw an opportunity, and 'went for it'. Although the religious fundamentalist community included those who quite happily stated their belief that the Salem trials of the 17th century were on the 'right lines', those concerns - that the feminists had fallen-in with the maddest mob they could meet (and share coffee with, appear on the same stage, event, videos with) may have been simply ignored. This would be on the grounds that feminists believed that men, families and women with children were inherently evil, the fundamentalists believed that Satan was abroad (and visiting sometimes obscure English towns) and it was simply a case that both beliefs collided - softly. Much feminist-driven literature, research and academic paper submission includes the seemingly unquestionable belief that males are inherently evil, and that families and women who have children are promoting and continuing the patriarchal tradition (and are thus, also evil). Whether the SRA Myth existed or not isn't perhaps a valid question for the feminist community to ask - it has to exist because it would be expected to exist, given the evil nature of...men, families and women with children.

In her essay, Here Be Dragons: Researching the Unbelievable, Hearing the Unthinkable. A Feminist Sociologist in Uncharted Territory (Sociological Research Online, vol. 3, no. 3, 1998) Dr. Sara Scott, from the Manchester Rape Crisis Centre detailed in convoluted terms the approach a feminist would take when confronted by individuals saying they were victims of ritual abuse. Rather than perhaps a simplified response - i.e. let's get the bastards followed by a trip to a commercial covert surveillance retailer and borrowing a good shotgun or two, Dr. Scott declined anything that actually involved settling the issue once-and-for-all, preferring instead a more 'highbrow' response;

At the same time my interpretative concerns were born out of my own identity as a feminist coming to this research with 15 years of feminist ideas about sexual abuse and patriarchal families behind me. This was not a background shared by my interviewees, they did not analyse their experience in feminist terms and often emphasised the equality of male and female perpetrators in ritual abuse. My awareness of this difference in perspective ensured that although I was sceptical that ritual abuse groups had equal opportunities policies, I did not set out upon my research with 'A Theory' to prove about the role of ritual abuse in the maintenance of male power. Rather I tried to tack back and forth between a self- reflexive awareness of my own history and perspectives, and the task of taking seriously the views of my interviewees with which I did not always agree.


Dr. Scott's paper Counselling Survivors of Ritual Abuse featured in the volume Good Practice in Counselling People Who Have Been Abused (Good Practice in Health, Social Care and Criminal Justice) edited by Zetta Bear, and published in 1998. By 1998 belief in the SRA Myth had been rendered down to only the most determined of religious fundamentalists, feminists and a core of psychiatrists and psychotherapists, determined to advocate for their patient 'survivors' - almost exclusively white middle-class females. Dr. Scott wrote once again about the challenge for the feminist counsellor, and the willingness of the counsellor to discourage doubt in the mind of the survivor, even if they have that suspicion, and to actually introduce the idea of the SRA Myth into the mind of a troubled client. The passage is a candid and honest addition to the debate about how councellors are able to create or encourage the idea that a woman has been satanically abused, and then present it as 'best practice' In addressing the conflict about whether satanic abuse actually happened, the feminist councellor appears to have a standard response; always encourage the client to believe it happended, utterly.

I am a 'public' believer in the reality of ritual abuse and after three years of research with adult survivors, there are still mornings when I wake up thinking: 'Oh God, what if none of it's true?' After all, who would want to believe such things?

The discourse of disbelief impacts just as powerfully on survivors as on their allies and counsellors. It encourages them to disclose and shape their accounts in particular ways - often testing the water with the most widely acknowledged experiences first, as in the gradual disclosure I referred to earlier. Survivors are aware that the dominant discourse defines them as unreliable witnesses to their own experiences. In addition, denial and avoidance of the awful things they have suffered may be well-developed coping strategies. Often, people feel torn between the need to be believed and the desire not to acknowledge what has happened. This inner conflict often seems to be played out in the counselling relationship so that either way round the two parties are cast in the roles of believer and doubter. The following scenario gives an impression of how couch issues can appear in a counselling session:

SURVIVOR: Do you think they really could have killed my baby?

COUNSELLOR: I think they could have.

SURVIVOR: I can't believe people can do such things.

COUNSELLOR: Even when you think of all the other things…

SURVIVOR: What if none those happened either? What if I made them all up?

COUNSELLOR: Why would you have done that?

SURVIVOR: Because I'm evil. They always said I was evil and that I'd screw up anyone who came near me with my lies and stuff.
(Source: Page 80-81 Counselling Survivors of Ritual Abuse by Dr. Sara Scott from Good Practice in Counselling People Who Have Been Abused edited by Zetta Bear, published in 1998)

The crucial lack of willingness to secure evidence or actually bother with any form of genuine intervention has plagued debate about feminist collusion with the religious fundamentalist community. Even in the late 1980s and early 90s, obtaining, or even renting covert surveillance equipment was relatively easy. Both groups claimed that Satanic Ritual Abuse was rife, everywhere across the nation (Satan is apparently multi-tasking). It should have been a 'doddle' to collect the evidence that would have convinced the doubting public - if not pictures and/or audio from such a satanic ritual abuse session itself, certainly photographs or those arriving or leaving such an 'event'.

Unfortunately neither group could be bothered with such activities, preferring instead to simply write and speak about the allegations, or simply make them against families whenever the opportunity came. The lack of evidence could be attributed to two factors; that the Establishment were so hugely implicated in the conspiracy - ensuring that it was never revealed (though most of those accused of SRA were disadvantaged or in poverty, and hardly close to the top echelons of society) or, Satan himself made it his responsibility to hide the evidence.

John Paley had first written on the subject of the SRA Myth in his paper Memories of satanist abuse (1995), published in Issue Health & Social Care in the Community, Volume 3, Issue 2.

A discussion about the extraordinary ease with which high-performance surveillance equipment can be purchased in retail stores can be found at Retail therapy? Trying hard not to find evidence of ritual abuse.
(See also Tim Tate, Paul Simpson, Dr. Sandra Buck)

Alasdair Palmer

British columnist and freelance writer
His article Secret Justice, Private Hell, in the first edition of Standpoint magazine delivered a devastating attack on the English and Welsh Family Court system at a time when it was already under severe scrutiny;



A mother asked social services for help in looking after her nine-year-old daughter who had been displaying some 'modest behavioural difficulties'. The mother also wanted a doctor to examine her daughter because she had been complaining of a tummy ache. The result of social services intervention was that, without consulting the girl's parents, they obtained an Emergency Protection Order. Uniformed policemen arrived and forcibly took the child away. The child was prevented from seeing her parents for 14 months as a consequence. During that time she was placed in foster care. Her foster carers changed repeatedly. There was every indication that the council would not allow the girl ever to see her parents again. It was only when her parents managed to appeal to the High Court, and Mr Justice McFarlane was able to scrutinise the evidence, or rather the lack of it, that they were able to get the care order overturned and to get their child back.
(Source: Secret Justice, Private Hell, by Alistair Palmer, Standpoint Magazine, June 2008)

(See also Camilla Cavendish)

Demetrious Panton


Julie Patrick

American-born author and mother of baby Phillip taken into Vanderbilt University Medical Centre, Memphis 1st July 1996 having been treated in the past for a number of serious birth defects.

After initial treatment, an allegation of MSBP was made (though not initially notified to the mother) and on September 6th 1996 baby Phillip was taken into the care of the Department of Children's Services. The parents of Phillip were denied unsupervised access, and a month later in October 1996 baby Phillip died away from the presence of his parents, who were forcibly prevented from attending to him by hospital and CPS staff. Mrs. Patrick's book The Tiniest Miracle (1997) co-written with husband Mark details the successful fight to save their unborn daughter Grace who was diagnosed as having a massive tumour. It is uncertain if the false allegation of MSBP against Mrs. Patrick was provoked by her personal religious beliefs. A report on the circumstances of the death was prepared by Dr. Bruce P. Levy and included an insight into how a woman will attract an MSBP allegation from paediatric staff;

''She frequently questioned the medical staff, their conclusions and treatment options,''

(See also Dr. Kenneth Feldman)

Lawrence Pazder (Dr.)

Canadian psychiatrist and former fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, now passed away.

Dr Pazder is "credited" for starting the obsession with the obsession with satanic ritual abuse that dominated the work and commitment of many social workers and child protection police officers in North America, Great Britain and Holland throughout the 1980's and early 1990's, and later, Australia and New Zealand. He is also credited with being the 'invntor' of Recovered Memory Therapy (RMT) which scythed through two generations of US women in the 1990s and early 21st century.

With his (initially patient and then later wife) Michelle Smith, Pazder co-wrote the best-seller Michelle Remembers (1980.) The book, the first written on the then unheard-of subject of satanic ritual abuse began the controversies for both SRA and repressed memory. The authors have not submitted to peer review or corroboration of the events detailed and the book is widely discredited.

The book is unusual for an "academic" work in that it details alleged events beginning in 1954 until a final ritual in 1955 when the Devil himself was summoned, together with the attendance of Jesus, the Virgin Mary and Michael the Archangel, who removed the scars received by Smith throughout the year of abuse and removed memories of the events 'until the time was right'. The book was initially serialised in People Weekly and The National Enquirer.

Michelle Remembers


The book's evangelical element appealed to a number of minority Christian fundamentalist right-wing groups, particularly those engaged in the revealing of women as witches, and the pursuit of satanic influences. The book became a key text for such groups who in turn encouraged the conviction in others, initially a subset of Christian police officers and social workers in the US, and then the UK and Holland, that SRA was rife and the Devil himself walked upon the Earth, and that it was the duty of every "anti-satanist" to save children from abuse and death, by the simple removal of the children from their families.

With the sudden emergence of satanic ritual abuse cases in the 1980s (likely due in part to the publication of Michelle Remembers Pazder's expertise was called upon. In 1984, Pazder acted as a consultant in the McMartin Preschool satanic ritual abuse case. Pazder also appeared on the first major news report on Satanism (broadcast in May 16 1985), by ABC's 20/20. Pazder was part of the CCIN (Cult Crime Impact Network) and lectured to police agencies about satanic ritual abuse during the late 1980s. By 1987 Pazder reported that he was spending a third of his time consulting on satanic ritual abuse cases. By September 1990, Pazder had been consulted "in more than 1,000 'ritual abuse' cases". With people suddenly being prosecuted for Satanic ritual abuse, prosecutors used the book as a guide when preparing cases against alleged Satanists.
(Source: Wikipedia entry for Michelle Remembers)

As well as appealing to a subset of committed right-wing Christian fundamentalist social workers, police officers and journalists (see also Timothy Tate in the entry for Roger Cook) a disturbing element in the SRA scandal was the willingness of professionals who would otherwise describe themselves as Marxist and/or radical feminists to find some value in the obsession for their own purposes (see also Bea Campbell (OBE), Dr. Sara Scott.)

In Great Britain an obsession with SRA initially provoked the Broxtowe Scandal (see Judith (Dawson) Jones) and for over five years an obsession with SRA gripped the UK public's imagination (as well as in Canada, the US, Holland and a few other countries.) Eventually the weight of the Broxtowe, Rochdale, Ayr and Orkneys false allegations scandals, plus pioneering investigative journalism by the likes of The Mail on Sunday saw the obsession lose it's credibility. The intervention of the health Secretary Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP saw a retraining of child protection police officers and social workers, though no such professionals were ever removed from their positions through disciplinary or criminal justice endeavours.

No police enquiry revealed any evidence of actual ritual abuse, child murder or injury inflicted through SRA, nor was any person prosecuted in a case involving a confirmed case of SRA. It is unclear how many child protection police officers and social workers continue to operate in the UK, still tainted by the suspicion that many women are witches and routinely engage in ritualistic abuse of children. A connection with MSBP and witchcraft allegations is apparent in the academic papers written my Dr. M. Somani and Dr. H. Bandman.

The SRA Scandals are rather more than a footnote in British social care history - for several years the British public was gripped by the conviction that Satanists abounded throughout British society, routinely murdering children and babies. Periodicals and otherwise respected publications such as The New Statesman and Marxism Today printed articles and letters in open support of the obsession. Only when it became clear that there was absolutely no evidence that such people existed or such events were or had ever occurred was the belief amongst the public relinquished. However the obsession with SRA persisted amongst social workers and child protection police officers for several years afterwards, and may not have completely disappeared now. Other obsessions, notably MSBP and "emotional abuse" have now apparently superseded SRA as the current "fads" but there are some indications that a number of UK social workers and child protection police officers are once again becoming obsessed with SRA.

Although his name is unchanged, Dr. Pazder wrote in the third person, not the first-person, as would perhaps be expected in a 'factual' volume, so it was always 'Dr. Pazder said...' rather than 'I said'.

When interviewed about the validity of the events in the book, Dr. Pazder remained somewhat vague;

Q. "Does it matter if it was true, or is the fact that Michelle believed it happened to her the most important thing?"

A. "Yes, that's right. It is a real experience. If you talk to Michelle today, she will say, 'That's what I remember.' We still leave the question open. For her it was very real. Every case I hear I have skepticism. You have to complete a long course of therapy before you can come to conclusions. We are all eager to prove or disprove what happened, but in the end it doesn't matter."
(Source: Michelle Remembers - The Debunking of the Myth, by Denna Allen & Janet Midwinter, The Mail on Sunday, September 30 1990)

The factual content in Michelle Remembers is highly contentious. In the last third of the book, Satan and his minions - i.e. the satanist lodge/coven apparently at work in the sleepy Canadian town of Victoria, engage in a three-month long festival to solidify Satan's presence on Earth. During this time Michelle Smith was supposed to be imprisoned, naked and secured in a cage. Unfortunately it seems this might have been inaccurate; she was at school and even appeared in the annual class photo. Victoria itself has proven a difficult location for Satan himself to launch his assault on the planet, with the cemetery that features heavily in the book being anything but remote from prying eyes (see a set of photographs at Michelle Remembers - fiction disguised as fact).

The books US publisher Thomas B. Congdon Jnr went to some length to try to push the book as a work of non-fiction, with a preface that included the statement 'It is is nearly unthinkable that the protracted agony they record could have been fabricated. Editors apparently assisted with the manuscript, but the decision to write in the third-person was decided in consultation with the publishers. The British publishers of the book, Michael Joseph, retained Mr. Congdon's comments.

Regardless of the somewhat substantial issues with its truthfulness, an extraordinary number of people are sure that Michelle Remembers is cast-iron truth, and regard anyone who doubts its absolute veracity as being satanists/pedophiles. The basis for the SRA Myth had been laid in the 1970's, but Michelle Remembers publication tipped US society 'over-the-edge';

The Pazder's' book, Michelle Remembers, was an immediate international best-seller. But, more importantly, many child care experts believe it was the "seed work" which began the current wave of hysteria about Satanists. Robert Hicks of the U.S. Justice Department said: "Before Michelle Remembers there were no Satanic prosecutions involving children. Now the myth is everywhere."

The book was pounced upon by fundamentalist Christian groups, interest spread like wildfire across the States, and the crusade crossed last year to England. An important conference at Reading University, attended by social workers from all over the country, heard "experts" describing Michelle's experiences.
(Source: Michelle Remembers - The Debunking of the Myth, by Denna Allen & Janet Midwinter, The Mail on Sunday, September 30 1990)

The Amazon page for Michelle Remembers incorporates numerous comments from those who believe that the book is cast-iron truth.

A key feature of the book is the appearence of the Devil. Satan appears in person on page 226. He is present until Page 284, and, incredibly, Michelle apparently remembers every single word spoken by Satan, which is always performed in bad rhyme;

The Beast was watching with glee, growling out his rhymes

Three times seven, seven times three;
Now the year belongs to me.
Four times seven, seven times four;
Turn around and you are no more.
Four times seven make twenty-eight.
That's when the world will learn to hate.
My fire will have burned for all those years.
My fire will have burned out many ears.


But I'll be back; you wait and see.
I'll be back to take the world for me.
Everything that's gone must return.
I was thrown out; but I can burn.


Look at my eyes, and you can see
The fire burning inside of me. Look at the children in them too.
That fire that burns. What is new?
Look at my eyes!
(Source: Rhyme attributed to Satan - page 238 of the UK edition of Michelle Remembers (1980) by Dr. Lawrence Pazder & Michelle Smith, published by Michael Joseph)

During Dr. Pazders sessions with Michelle, he relates that she developed a rash - apparently because Satan had wrapped his tails around her;

The burning tail uncoiled from Michelle's legs and writhed freely. It was a snake again now, a tail, a snake, a tail again. And then Michelle saw that it was not one tail but two. One of the tails began to slither into the circles, weaving along the ground among the feet of the worshipers. The figures would break rank and approach the tail, engaging it in an obscene, ritualistic dance. The Beast stood by the fire, watching his own tail perform with the celebrants. Now the fire shot up toward the ceiling; the dancing became more frenzied. Satan laughed. The tails merged to one again, and the one tail slid back across the room, withdrawn by its master. And then it lunged for Michelle.

I don't like his tail being around me! Ugh! It's wiggling. I don't want it to move. It's wrapped around my legs and starting to wiggle. I have to keep my legs really tight together. Oh dear!

No! He thinks it's funny. I want to die. If that tail does anything, I'm going to die. I don't know what to do. I don't want his tail! I don't! I don't.
(Source: Pages 257 and 258 of the UK edition of Michelle Remembers (1980) by Dr. Lawrence Pazder & Michelle Smith)

The account of marks left by Satan's tail, as recounted by Dr. Pazder, are also believed to be the core text for the Body Memory movement which began at the end of the SRA Myth years in the US and UK, and which is still hugely popular amongst white middle-class religious fundamentalist and feminist sections of society.

Although regarded by some as a work of child pornography, Michelle Remembers is a deeply religious tome. It catapulted Dr. Pazder into the then-expanding SRA Myth scandals. In 1986, Pazder and Michelle Smith met up with the parents of those children involved in the famous McMartin Preschool trial, and in doing so ensured that the case would be forever associated with the SRA Myth.

Although many of the scenes in Michelle Remembers can be related to popular media and Hollywood images of Satan, an extraordinary number of Christians purchased the book, and believed it to be true, word-for-word, in the same fashion as the Bible. Although in the second decade of the 21st Century it seems difficult to believe, the book sold equally well amongst secular readers. The feminist community for instance, instantly adored Michelle Remembers and even now it can be found on many a feminists bookshelf, nestled in with Marx and Andrea Dworkin. The book is also found offered on booksellers tables at feminist seminars and conferences in both the US and UK. For the 'gender' feminist-inclined sections of the US and UK, the book provided a 'vocabulary of evil' that ensured that the collusion between feminism and Christian Fundamentalism would be enthusiastic and still-ongoing.

Michelle Remembers appears amongst notable publications of the time, including the famous report of the Ritual Abuse Task Force - Los Angeles County Commission for Women, 1991, authored by feminist and lesbian rights icon Myra Riddell and in 'Suggested Readings' on page 146 of Radical Feminist Therapy: Working in The Context of Violence (1991) by Bonnie Burstow, together with The Courage To Heal (1990) by feminist lesbians Bass and Davis', which also promoted the SRA Myth/DID. Feminist 'icon' and novelist Prof. Bonnie Burstow would go on to be current Senior Lecturer in Adult Education and Counselling Psychology Programs at the University of Toronto, and is a Member of the Institute of Women’s Studies and Gender Studies. As with other feminists of her generation she never renounced Michelle Remembers as a work of fiction, and indeed to do so seems unlikely for herself and her peers; Michelle Remembers is the central plank upon which the entire Recovered Memory Movement, with which feminists would continue their collusion with religious fundamentalists, is built-upon.

Because of its ability to inject religious fervour into the heart of a feminist movement that was previously secular, for being the core text of both the SRA Myth 'moral panic' and Recovered Memory Therapy movement, and for being the source of the 'body memory' movement of modern times, Michelle Remembers is rightly considered one of the most significant books of the 20th century.

Dr. Pazder died in March 2004. Michelle Pazder (nee Smith) does not promote her joint work with her departed husband and declines all interview requests.

(See also Rev. David Woodhouse, Dianne Core, Dr. Darren Oldridge, Debbie Nathan, Nick Land, Dr. Liz Kelly, Margaret Jervis, Phillip Jenkins, David Icke, Alex Constantine, Bea Campbell (OBE), Norma Howes, Lindsey Read, Bea Campbell (OBE), Dr. Sandra Buck)

Eric Pickles (Jack, MP)

Conservative Member of Parliament for Brentwood and Ongar since 1992, and former Shadow Minister for Transport (2001-2002.)

Mr Pickles is the current Shadow Minister for Local Government and enjoyed a 4-year stint as Co-Chairman of the Joint Committee Against Racism. Prior to his Parliamentary career Mr Pickles was the leader of the Conservative group for Brentford council (Essex..) His knowledge of local government is extensive, and on occasions he has been in conflict with Essex County Council, most notably over controversies concerning the forced adoption of children with parents of low IQ. In October 2005 he authored an EDM (Early Day Motion) in Parliament reflecting his concerns about the workings of the English and Welsh Family Courts and in particular their impact in dealing with children with special learning difficulties;

That this House urges the Government to remove the veil of secrecy from the workings of the Children Act 2004; considers that the closed door policy of the family courts breeds suspicion and a culture of secrecy which does nothing to instil confidence in those using them, which affects not just the courts but the social services departments of local authorities; and believes that it is possible to preserve the anonymity of children involved in the proceedings without the cumbersome rules which obstruct parents from receiving advice and support, which in particular works to the disadvantage of parents with special learning difficulty.
Mr Pickles, in dealing with the parents of children under investigation by Social services (in this case Essex County Council) seeking to forcibly remove children, has provided an insight to Parliament of what is often reported anecdotally. The example below in a Parliamentary debate details the nature of evidence sometimes given to the secretive Family Courts in England and Wales as sufficient cause to forcibly remove children;



An allegation was also made of poor parenting and I asked for various examples. I was given two. First, the female child had been given sandwiches and a packet of crisps for her lunch, and because she chose to eat the crisps first, she was too full to eat her sandwiches. That was deemed sufficiently important to be regarded as an example of poor parenting.

The second example - we should bear in mind that at this point, I was pressing for another such example - involved allowing one of the children to stay up late at night to watch television. I asked whether "late" meant 10 o'clock at night, or perhaps 9 o'clock. I was told that she was allowed to stay up until 8 o'clock to watch the end of "EastEnders" or "Coronation Street"
(Source: House of Commons Debates-2nd March 2006)

(See also John Hemming MP, Paul Rowen MP)

August Piper (MD)

Practicing psychiatrist in Seattle. Author of Hoax and Reality: The Bizarre World of Multiple Personality Disorder (1997) that examined MPD, now known as DID - Dissociative Identity Disorder.

MPD has many advocates, many convinced that it is caused by individuals (notably females) who have undergone sexual abuse in the past, others who believe it is the result of government mind-control experiments, and even those who believe it is the result of alien intervention into human affairs.

MPD is hugely popular amongst fundamentalist Christians groups, and (bizarrely) radical feminists who believe that the Devil walks the Earth and invariably uses children in ritual abuse to strengthen his power and/or proves that most males are rapists/child molesters. MPD is deeply implicated in the SRA Myth of the late 1980's and 1990's. Together with BPD (Borderline Personality Disorder) MPD is a popular branch of psychiatry/pseudo science accepted by English and Welsh secretive family courts. A diagnosis of MPD is regarded as sufficient cause for a woman to have her child forcibly removed by the Court. It is virtually impossible for such a woman to receive therapy from an NHS-employed professional - notably because no disorder will be ascertained.

In his article Multiple Personality Disorder: Witchcraft Survives in the Twentieth Century - Skeptical Inquirer May/June 1998, Dr. Piper discussed the origins of MPD theory and it's relationship with witchcraft allegations against women in the past;

The story of Sarah Good exemplifies those excesses (Rosenthal 1993). In March of 1692, when thirty-eight years old and pregnant, she heard her husband denounce her to the witchcraft tribunal. He said that either she already was a witch, "or would be one very quickly" (Rosenthal 1993, 89). No one had produced evidence that she had engaged in witchcraft, no one had seen her do anything unusual, no one had come forward to say they had participated in satanic activities with her. But no matter.

On July 19, 1692, Sarah Good died on the gallows.

Three hundred years later, a woman in Chicago consulted a psychiatrist for depression (Frontline 1995). He concluded that she suffered from MPD, that she had abused her own children, and that she had gleefully participated in Satan-worshiping cult orgies where pregnant women were eviscerated and their babies eaten. Her failure to recall these events was attributed to alters that blocked her awareness. No one had produced any evidence for the truth of any of this, no one had seen her do anything unusual, no one had come forward to say they had participated in satanic activities with her. But no matter.

The doctor notified the state that the woman was a child molester. Then, after convincing her that she had killed several adults because she had been told to do so by satanists, he threatened to notify the police about these "criminal activities."

The woman's husband believed the doctor's claims. He divorced her. And, of course, because she was a "child molester," she lost custody of her children.


Dr. Piper is a frequent critic of MPD theory, drawing attention to to the fact that MPD diagnosis is almost exclusively limited to North America (with the exception of England and Wales, where MPD is regularly quoted as being present by secretive Family Court-appointed experts.) In his paper, co-written with Harold Mersky (DM) The Persistence of Folly: A Critical Examination of Dissociative Identity Disorder. Part I. The Excesses of an Improbable Concept attention is drawn to one of the primary "gotchas" for the advocates of the theory;

If childhood maltreatment were in fact a major cause of DID, and if the increase in DID cases in the 1980s were genuine, then the incidence of traumatic events endured by North American children during that time should also have risen sharply. We know of no data documenting such an increase.


In recent years, throughout the secretive family courts in England a Wales have adopted a new "fad" through the emergence of a new form of diagnosis from Court-appointed experts. These experts are apparently able to determine that (invariably) women are suffering from a kind of MPDS - "Micro" Personality Disorder(S) (authors term), taking facets of numerous other personality disorders (narcissism, borderline personality disorder, hysteria, histrionic disorder etc.) and welding them into a new sort of (currently undefined and unnamed) disorder that doesn't have any medical basis or peer-reviewed-paper buttress, but comes as a surprise to any woman who is told she has it, and runs the substantial risk of having her children forcibly removed by the secretive Court accordingly.

Even worse, approaching an NHS-appointed therapist with the diagnosis from the secretive-Court- appointed expert will result invariably in blank faces - no disorder being found in the woman and no course of therapy able to be suggested. A similar state also exists with secretive Court-appointed expert diagnosis' of other alleged personality disorders.

Martin Ward-Platt (Dr. MB ChB MD FRCP FRCPCH) .

Dr. Platt is Honorary Clinical Reader at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Dr. Ward Platt's most significant activity was his involvement in the Fran Lyon Scandal, where, although admitting he had never met Ms. Lyon, he wrote in a letter to Northumberland County Council Social Services which included;

If the professionals were concerned from the evidence available that [this woman] probably does fabricate or induce illness, there would be no option but to put the baby into foster care at birth pending a post-natal forensic psychological assessment
."

Using this part of the letter and ignoring the further recommendation by Dr Platt that Ms Lyon be correctly assessed before any decision was made, and ignoring the letters written by psychiatrist Dr Rex Haigh and psychiatrist Dr Stella Newith (who see) Northumberland County Council Social Services determined that Ms. Lyons baby would be removed immediately following birth. Subsequently, having fled to Sweden where her baby Molly was born, Ms. Lyon was informed by letter that another assessment had concluded she posed no risk to her child. Ms. Lyon has chosen to remain resident in Sweden, a nation notable for it's insistence on "evidence-based research."

Mark Potter (Howard, The Right Honourable, Sir)

Judge, President of the Family Division and Head of Family Justice since April 2005.

The Rt Hon Sir Potter took on the role of President at a difficult time for the Royal Courts of Justice, with the Family Court Division faced by a rising tide of protests from those concerned with alleged bias against fathers (provoking the group Fathers 4 Justice and others) and the serious allegations that the Family Courts remove children and babies without the consent of parents (forced adoption) using a corrupted and secret judicial system that frequently breaches human rights. In response to the concerns the President has issued new guidance on the use of expert witnesses, emphasising that they are a tool of the court, not local authorities. He has also delivered a number of speeches, promising reform. The general consensus though is that no significant reform to address the concerns has been undertaken, and there is no genuine desire in the Royal Courts of Justice to do so.

In the week commencing 7th July 2008 The Times launched a campaign seeking reform of the English and Welsh Family Courts, principally through a series of articles by the journalist Camilla Cavendish. The President responded on July 11th with an article in his own name, agreeing with many of the proposed solutions that Ms Cavendish had proposed, but disagreeing with the term repeatedly used that the English and Welsh Family Courts are secret in their nature. As with a letter written to The Times in the recent past by Children's Minister Kevin Brennan The President preferred the term "private.";

The 'secrecy' is, of course, the 'privacy' that the law accords to the conduct of proceedings and the documents filed in them. If change is necessary, the solution lies in the hands of government which, over the past 18 months, has consulted widely on this problem.
(Source: Family justice is private - not secretive.)

He also took exception to the accusation that UK Family Court judges are engaged in a crusade against families - an accusation routinely made against US Family Court judges (see also Stephen Baskerville and William Gairdner)

Disturbingly the President referred to Camilla Cavendish throughout the majority of the article as "Cavendish" without a title (Ms. for instance.)

At the end of the w/c 7th July it was announced (through The Times) that the Council of Europe was to undertake an investigation in various alleged breaches of human rights articles by the English and Welsh Family Courts and the Appeal Court. The proposed investigation (to begin in September 2008) was driven by Rochdale MP Paul Rowen, whose motion to the European Assembly included the text;

The Assembly recognises that questions have been raised as to whether the judicial proceedings in England's Family Courts are compliant with Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the Right to a Fair Trial).

The Assembly also recognises that questions have been raised as to whether the system is also systematically non-compliant with Articles 3, 8, 10, 11 and 12.


The proposal also incorporated concerns about the use of;

Section 54.4 of the 1999 Access to Justice Act by the Court of Appeal in England which is preventing cases being considered by the Supreme Court in England and the way in which this acts to undermine the rule of law allowing the Family Division of Courts to operate in isolation from the wider body of law.
(Source from http://assembly.coe.int/main.asp?Link=/documents/workingdocs/doc08/edoc11583.htm)

This allegation suggests the European Court of Human Rights is being prevented from being the ultimate arbiter of justice in Human Rights cases (as cases will not be able to proceed through a domestic route first.) The proposed investigation, if eventually critical of the Family and Appeal Courts would most likely be the most serious crisis to face the Royal Courts of Justice since The Blitz and the most serious issue of impartiality to have been raised throughout it's entire history.

In 2007 it was reported that Sir Potter had provided a character reference for barrister Bruce Hyman, after Hyman pleaded guilty of perverting the course of justice in the family court - the first barrister to be jailed for that offence in 800 years history of the English and Welsh courts. The case involved the forging of documents submitted to a Family Court.

In July 2008 Sir Potter, in his role as an active Family Court judge, listened to arguments for and against the publication of the Local Authority concerned with the jailing of a stepfather for 16 months for abducting his own step-son and escaping to France with his wife - the Prisoner X Scandal (who see.) Sir Potter determined that the judgement and the name of the Local Authority - Medway, be allowed into the public domain, following an application from The Times newspaper in response to reader anger at the jailing, seen as overly harsh.
(See also Christopher Booker, Rt. Hon. John Hemming MP)

Charles Pragnell

Former statistician/analyst for Cleveland County Council during the Cleveland RAD Scandal (see Dr Marietta Higgs.)

Mr. Pragnell was the joint-author of "Taking The Stick Away" a report submitted to the UK Government in December 2004, detailing concerns about the provision of family justice and child protection in England and Wales, prior to the issuing of the governments now controversial "Every Child Matters" official guidance.


Bridget Prentice (Theresa, MP)

Labour MP for Lewisham East since 1992.
Parliamentary undersecretary of state, Ministry of Justice since Jun 2007
Parliamentary secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs (May 2005 - Jun 2007) and previous roles beforehand.

Working in conjunction with her superior, the Justice Secretary Rt. Hon. Jack Straw MP Ms. Prentice has contributed enormously to the effort to correct the gross injustices and institutionalised misogyny of the English and Welsh secret courts (trading as "The Family Courts"). The changes Ms. Prentice has pursued are in part driven by a desire to address the criticisms that the secret courts operate outside the normal tenets of Western judicial systems.

Nonetheless the nature of being a Government Minister requires individuals to sometimes resist calls for action that outside government they might heartily pursue. A good example concerned the revelations to the public in 2009 that the Official Solicitor facility was being abused by the secret court system, seemingly in an effort to remove the right of independent counsel for women, and to promote forced adoptions without opposition. The scandal of Rachel Pullen a young woman initially determined as being of low IQ was driven into the public spotlight in May and June 2009.

Prior to her case the general assumption of those who were even vaguely aware of the Official Solicitors Office was that it was relevant in Family Law cases only when vulnerable individuals, perhaps mentally impaired or perhaps not even capable of being able to make or communicate a request to a solicitor or counsel came before the secret courts. Rachel Pullen's case, with it's echoes of Wilkie Collins recalled a previous age, when "awkward" women could be shut-up through the exercise of the simple expediency of having their legal rights denied to them.

Rachel, lucid, though not necessarily the 'brightest bunny' about, was found by the public to be anything but stupid - yet her means to instruct an independent solicitor had been denied to her through a dubious IQ test administered at the bequest of a secret court. Interviewed on the radio and television, Rachel singlehandedly destroyed the image of the Official Solicitor as a force of good and balance, when it became known that the Official Solicitor never opposed an effort to forcibly remove a baby or child from a woman as the request of a Local Authority (see Mother ‘too stupid’ to keep child - The Times 31st May 2009, by Daniel Foggo and More ‘stupid’ mothers prevented from fighting adoptions - The Times 14th June 2009, also by Daniel Foggo)

The response to the realisation that women were, on occasions being systematically and comprehensively denied their right to independent legal counsel provoked fury amongst many and strange quiet from groups that would otherwise be expected to be incandescent about the scandal. Feminists strangely stayed quiet, saying nothing about the subject and doing their best, in a similar fashion to the means by which they deal with female genital mutilation, or the burning to death for alleged witches, or the stoning to death of women abroad - by simply ignoring the issue. As feminist dogma requires women who are mothers to be deemed stupid supporters of the patriarchal system, perhaps this isn't too much of a surprise.

However the scandal of Rachel and her fellow women wouldn't easily go away, and it was the subject that provoked perhaps the strangest, mixed-up debate in recent Parliamentary history - when a female Labour Minister had to adopt a stance that resisted the insistence by male Liberal Democrat and Conservative MP's demanding an investigation into a suspect regime that judicially abused women;

John Hemming (Birmingham, Yardley, Liberal Democrat)
What recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the arrangements by which the Official Solicitor is appointed to act in the family division.

Bridget Prentice (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Ministry of Justice; Lewisham East, Labour)
There has not been a recent assessment and there are not any plans for one. However, the family procedure rule committee has invited the family justice council to consider producing good practice guidance for those cases in which parties lack capacity to give instructions. That is currently being considered by the relevant sub committee.

John Hemming (Birmingham, Yardley, Liberal Democrat)
I thank the Minister for that answer. More than 100 times a year, mothers are prevented from opposing the adoption or the taking into care of their children as a result of a single expert opinion part-paid for by the local authority. Will the Minister meet me so that I can reveal to her the details of the dossier behind that and demonstrate how many mothers have their right to oppose removed because of mental capacity when in fact they do have the capacity to instruct a solicitor? I hope that a further assessment can be made and that these miscarriages of justice can be stopped.

Bridget Prentice (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Ministry of Justice; Lewisham East, Labour)
I will be more than happy to have a meeting with the hon. Gentleman about that, but I should say that the expert witnesses called to court to decide on capacity are not in the pockets of the local authorities. They are appointed with the agreement of both parties and they are there to answer the questions that the courts ask of them. It would be scurrilous to suggest anything other than that. I remind the hon. Gentleman of what Lord Justice Wall said after the hon. Gentleman attacked such an expert recently. He referred to the hon. Gentleman's allegations as untenable and said that the way in which the hon. Gentleman described the expert psychologist was an abuse of position. I ask the hon. Gentleman to think very carefully about what the Lord Justices have said about his own behaviour in some of these cases.

Nicholas Winterton (Macclesfield, Conservative)
I fundamentally disagree with the Minister. John Hemming is doing a great service to justice and the families whose children are unnecessarily, unjustly and wrongly taken away from them. I also have such cases, and have liaised with the hon. Gentleman on the subject. Will the Minister accept his request for a meeting so that the dossier that he, I and others have produced can be discussed with her? In that way, she will see the injustice, secrecy and behind-the-door dealing involved in the current situation.

Bridget Prentice (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Ministry of Justice; Lewisham East, Labour)
I will be more than happy to meet the hon. Gentleman to discuss individual cases—as long as they are not in the middle of court proceedings, in which case such a discussion would be impossible. I shall be happy to discuss these things in general terms. The hon. Gentleman talks about the secrecy of the family courts, but my right hon. Friend the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State has only recently addressed those very points in giving the media more opportunity to scrutinise the substance of what happens in the family courts. He has done that for a number of reasons—not least to give back to the public the confidence that the family courts are acting in the best interests of the child. That is what everyone in the House and in the Court Service would want.

Henry Bellingham (Shadow Minister, Justice; North West Norfolk, Conservative)
Does the Minister agree that since the abolition of the death penalty, the most drastic action that a court can take is the permanent removal of a child against the wishes of the parents? John Hemming referred to various cases involving mothers with low IQs who have their children put up for adoption; even though they wanted to contest the cases, the Official Solicitor refused to do so. Does she accept that the Official Solicitor's inaction could be contrary to section 4(6) of the Mental Capacity Act 2005? Will she confirm that from now onwards, the Official Solicitor will contest all cases involving mothers with low IQs who wish to keep their children? Surely anything less would be heartless and wrong.

Bridget Prentice (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Ministry of Justice; Lewisham East, Labour)
These are very sensitive cases, and we should be very careful about the way we address them. The Official Solicitor's job is to act on behalf of someone who lacks capacity. Their job is not to act on behalf of the child or the local authority, but, usually, on behalf of the adult—although occasionally it could be on behalf of the child—who lacks capacity. The Official Solicitor will so act only if there is evidence before the court suggesting that the adult lacks capacity to understand the court proceedings. The Official Solicitor would be acting without their responsibility as an officer of the court in doing anything other than acting on behalf of the person who lacks capacity.
(Source: < a href="http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm090616/debtext/90616-0002.htm" rel="external">16th June Parliamentary debate 'Family Division' - Hansard )

Ms. Prentice's mode of attack against John Hemming MP was unfortunate and by any criteria, bizarre. Invoking the criticism of the MP from Lord Justice Nicolas Wall when he had acted as Mackenzie Friend in a secret court case, Ms. Prentice had perhaps forgotten that prior to being promoted to the Appeals Division of the Royal Courts of Justice, Justice Wall had served in the Family Division. There he had presided over the infamous P, C & S case, (see Dr. Clive Baldwin) - probably the best (or rather worst) example of judicial abuse of a woman in an English or Welsh secret court, which centred on the denying of legal counsel to the woman, in a forced adoption pursuit. The case resulted in her own Government contesting the follow-up case by the woman (P) and her partner in the European Court of Human Rights, only for the British Government to be found guilty of denying the woman the right of a fair trial (and family life) - the very same contentious elements of the abuse of women through the use of the Official Solicitor.

It isn't clear why Ms. Prentice, with the P, C & S case so regularly referred-to in Parliamentary discussions, would ever, as a female Labour MP, want to even dream of using the name "Lord Justice Wall" as an "aide" in a debate, particularly in a debate that saw her seemingly opposing efforts to investigate a system of abuse that even the most ardent misogynist couldn't dream of. Before the Labour Party left office in 2010, LJ Wall was appointed President of the Family Court Division of the Royal Courts of Justice, indicating that the abuse of women by the secret court system, typified by the P, C & S Scandal, was a key tenet of Labour Party policy towards women.

Nonetheless Ms. Prentice has every reason to be proud of her contribution to the efforts to reform the secret courts. Although, as she and Jack Straw left office before the courts could be changed markedly, she does have the satisfaction in knowing that even though bringing the Family Division into the modern judicial world won't immediately transpire, at least the courts might reach the level of a 19th century- equivalent form of jurisdiction in the near future.

Dawn Primarolo

Labour MP for Bristol South and former Paymaster General following the resignation of Geoffrey Robinson from 1999 through to 2007, whereupon she took up the role of Minister of State for Public Health.

Ms. Primarolo is most famous for being in overall charge of the Inland Revenue's Tax Credits system, intended to provide working families with financial support. However, the administration of this system received significant criticism, including allegations that some families have been left less well off as a result. In 2003, a Treasury select committee member accused her of "losing control of [her] department" although she insisted the Child tax credit scheme was a "success"", despite Inland Revenue staff walking out in protest against the pressure they were being placed under. It is widely believed that the failures of the Tax Credit system led many impoverished families into debt and hardship, placing strains on relationships and marriages, and thus leading to more children being taken into Local Authority care.

In June 2009 Ms. Primarolo was appointed Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families at the Department for Children, Schools and Families, replacing Beverley Hughes MP who had worked in the probation service and had a degree in social science. With her appointment, having never worked as either a social worker or in any associated profession, New Labour re-established the tradition, first started by the first Children's Minister Margaret Hodge MP of appointing an individual to the role seemingly hopelessly ill-suited to it.

In May 2010 New Labour lost a UK General Election and Ms. Primarolo departed office, having achieved nothing or managed to influence anything.

(See also Margaret Hodge MP, Rt. Hon. Patricia Hewitt MP, Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP, Beverley Hughes MP, Rt Hon. Gordon Brown MP, Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP)

Prisoner X

Prisoner X is the name given to the father jailed for 16 months by a Crown Court (believed to be in Kent, England) after pleading guilty to the abduction of his step-son from a Medway Local Authority home in 1997, whereupon the family decamped to France. Because of restrictions placed upon the case by both an English and Welsh Family Law judge and the Crown Court judge, the jailing and the case were deemed to have been conducted in secret.

In August 2008 The Times published a Camilla Cavendish (who see) interview with Prisoner X - called "Hugh Jones" entitled Of course I had to abduct Sam, it was the right thing to protect my family
This followed a successful application by The Times to Rt. Hon. Sir Mark Potter to allow the name of the local authority - Medway, to be detailed.

The scandal of Prisoner X (now released from prison) is ongoing and is routinely used as a perfect example of how secretive English and Welsh Family Courts forcibly remove children without sufficient cause, and how the civil secretive family judicial system has corrupted on occasions the English and Welsh criminal justice environment.


Rachel Pullen

(See Bridget Prentice (MP), Rt. Hon. John Hemming MP)



Q

"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind

Please note that on June 8th 2012, this site will be shutting-down. Our host service - hostcell.net will be shutting-down entirely, as its CEO Nahian Choudhury was involved in a serious car accident recently.

Dramatis Personae will resume on the Web in the near future when a new host is found (we have one in mind already).

Our thoughts are with Nahian and his family and the employees of hostcell.net.

Best regards - the editing team



- Surnames R



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

R



Oliver Rathbone

Oliver Rathbone

Publisher and Managing Director of United Kingdom publisher Karnac Books, a leading producer of psychotherapy, psychiatry and psychology volumes. 1987 Graduate of the University of Durham.

Since taking over from Robert Massey, Karnac Books is now a leading conspiracy theorist publisher, pointing the way for British psychotherapy as it becomes increasingly associated with 'shit-house-rat-crazy' practises and ethical stances. Accordingly, Karnac Books is now a leading producer of Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) Myth books, that incorporate many of a the paranoias expressed by, most notably David Icke. Indeed the recent SRA Myth books published by Karnac include substantial references to Ickes work, particularly the 'Illuminati' and an oft-written conviction that the CIA and Britain's MI5 security services include satanic child abusers who deliberately torture children with the sole intention of creating mind-controlled dissociative slaves to do their bidding with.

Karnacs competitor in the UK for its 'serious' books is Routledge, a division of Informa PLC (see Peter Rigby). Informa PLC, through it's Routledge division (itself a division of Taylor & Francis) is also a leading publisher of SRA Myth books, under the guise of psychotherapy. Both Karnac Books and Informa PLC can legitimately claim to be competing with David Icke Books in the paranoid conspiracy-theory publishing market, though both market their books under the moniker of psychotherapy.

The 'Myth has changed substantially from its early beginnings in the 1980s, and is now defined by its supporters are being trauma-based mind control performed through the satanic ritual abuse of children by (amongst others) members of the security forces in the Western world, including, as mentioned earlier, MI5 and the CIA. Belief in the SRA Myth has long-infected the psychotherapy/psychoanalysis professions. Accordingly a stiff drink and a willingness to avoid difficult subjects such as 'evidence' or objectivity is required in reading Karnac books advocating for the 'Myth. They are nonetheless published as genuine psychotherapy books, and recommended as textbooks for student psychotherapists in the UK.

Recent SRA Myth publications from Karnac include Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder, edited by SRA Myth True Believers Adah Sachs and Graeme Galton, and published in 2008. The book includes frequently-made assertions that CIA and MI5 officers are engaged is sexually abusing young children in satanic rituals to cause Dissociative Identity Disorder.

Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder


Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder is discussed at Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder - taking psychotherapy to a new academic low. The book notably incorporated the work of American conspiracy-theorist Dr. Ellen P. Lacter, whose witch-hunting exploits are examined at Dr. Ellen P. Lacter - American witch-hunter including photographs of Dr. Lacter's 'work".

In March 2011, Karnac Books published Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs by psychotherapists Orit Badouk Epstein, Joseph Schwartz and Rachel Wingfield, a follow-up volume from a conference held in September 2009 at The Bowlby Centre, London, with leading SRA Myth advocates from the UK, and Dr. Lacter from the US.

Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs


The Bowlby Centre is named in honour of John Bowlby, perhaps Great Britain's greatest ever psychotherapist (and a psychiatrist and psychologist). His Attachment Theory is a fantastic legacy left to the profession and has practical uses in modern times. Unfortunately his legacy has been corrupted through the association of his name with often extreme conspiracy theorists posing as serious psychotherapists, psychiatrist and psychologists, ensuring that John Bowlby's name is rubbished in his own profession. This subject is discussed at The SRA Myth and the destruction of John Bowlby's legacy.

The words 'The Bowlby Centre' appear on the front cover of Karnac Books Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs and so Mr. Rathbone can claim credit in his part in the dismantling of John Bowlby's reputation.

An entry specific to this volume, including some of the fantastic delusional paranoid claims made by the authors in Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs can be found here.

Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs and Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder provide firm indications as to the nature of 'modern' British psychotherapy, as perceived by its authors and leading psychotherapy publisher publisher Karnac Books. As such they are destined to be a primary source document in the debate over the regulation of the British psychotherapy industry, and in particular the viability of allowing psychotherapists to be employed as 'expert' witnesses, particularly in secret Family Court proceedings, notable for their allowing of the use of pseudo/crank science.

Many of the conspiracy theories promoted in both books (and those published by Informa PLC) aren't particularly new - some go back to base anti-semitism theories of the 1960s and even to the 'Blood Libel' anti-semitism of past centuries, whilst more recent conspiracies weere advocated by Lyndon La Rouche in the 1990s. Bizarrely many of La Rouche paranoias centered on the Tavistock Institute in the UK and 'Mind Control'. As John Bowlby was a Tavistock member-of-staff and Dr. Sinason a member of Tavistock NHS Trust, the conspiracy theories promoted by her and published by Mr. Rathbone appear to have a weird self-destructive nature to them.

British psychotherapy's vulnerability and weakness to far-right religious fundamentalist concepts and rhetoric isn't new either. In April 2007, research commissioned by the BACP and conducted by Professor Michael King, Joanna Semlyen, Helen Killaspy, Irvin Nazareth and David Osborn, titled A systematic review of research on counselling and psychotherapy for lesbian, gay, bisexual & transgender people determined that one in six therapists see fit to offer gay clients treatments that aim to make them straight. This subject is further discussed at The regulation of psychotherapy. The terrible reality is that belief in the SRA Myth by British psychotherapists and one of the professions leading publishers doesn't necessarily stand-out; the profession is riddled with extreme beliefs in any case. Whilst other vendors are willing to sell some 'controvercial' titles, Karnac Books, which in addition to its conspiracy-theory output sometimes purports to be a 'serious' publisher, is willing to offer virtually any title, particularly if it reflects poorly on the psychotherapy or psychology profession. Healing homosexuality: case stories of reparative therapy (1993) by Joseph Nicolosi (a later 1997 edition co-written with Lucy Freeman) is one such example. Described as: This is the clinical story of change in the lives of six homosexual men, all of whom wanted to extinguish their homosexuality. Reparative therapy is the framework within which these men worked, Healing homosexuality: case stories of reparative therapy is indicative of an profession gone 'off-the-rails'.

Healing homosexuality: case stories of reparative therapy


Both Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs and Forensic aspects of dissociative identity disorder are recommended by this Web site, particularly to those studying sociology and contemporary British history. In addition those concerned about the unregulated nature of psychotherapists in both the US and UK will find both volumes a rich source of quotable material.

The Acknowledgments page for Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs includes the following text from the editors: Our heartfelt thanks also go to Oliver Rathbone for his willingness to publish a book which is not only ground-breaking, but also controvercial, and for his continuing committment to giving a voice to writers in the fields of attachment and trauma

Reinforcing Oliver Rathbone's credentials to make Karnac Books a leading conspiracy theory publisher was the release of Healing the Unimaginable: Treating Ritual Abuse and Mind Control, the first SRA Myth-advocating book of 2012, edited and mostly written by leading SRA Myth proponent, Canadian psychologist Dr. Alison Miller, who has appeared in the UK promoting her Mind Control conspiracy theories. Dr. Miller, who practises in British Columbia is a firm believer in the idea that satanist deliberately create multiple personalities in their child victims through ritualistic physical and sexual abuse, to excert Mind Control on them.

In her chapter in the book Ritual Abuse in the Twenty First Century, which is being heavily promoted in the UK, she wrote about how victims of ritual abuse and mind control survivors develop numerous “alters”. In a “typical group”, she explained, “by the age of six months the child has at minimum 18 to 20 alters”. (Source: 20 YEARS OF SATANIC PANIC - Private Eye)

Dr. Miller managed to secure the services of leading US feminist icon E. Sue Blume, who wrote the paranoia-dripping Preface, together with now-thoroughly-debunked and rubbished Valerie Sinason (writing in a book published immediately after the The Carol Felstead scandal had broken in the British media in late 2011.) The volume, light on contributions from any recongnised authorities, did include an essay from amusing and entertaining middle-class, middle-aged American white SRA Myth 'survivor' Trish Fotheringham, who comes from Dr. Miller's hometown of Victoria, British Columbia. More about Ms. Fotheringham and Dr. Miller can be found discussed in the section The importance of 'Michelle Remembers'.

The cover of Karnac Books' Healing the Unimaginable - Treating Ritual Abuse and Mind Control is suitably emotive - a young girl waits in her cell, presumably for her satanic (CIA or MI5?) torturers to restart their ritual abuse of her again?

Healing the Unimaginable - Treating Ritual Abuse and Mind Control


In the same month that Healing the Unimaginable - Treating Ritual Abuse and Mind Control was published, Karnac Books issued Regulation in Action: The Health Professions Council Fitness to Practise Hearing of Dr Malcolm Cross - Analysis, History, and Comment by psychoanalyst Janet Haney (Karnac Books, January 2012), written to draw attention to the threat of regulation by the HPC, a subject that fills many psychotherapists with fear, not least because their efforts to promote 'shit-house-rat-crazy' conspiracy theories may be challenged through professional regulation.

Regulation in Action


The timing of Regulation in Action couldn't be worse; just as Karnac Books was seen to be publishing in defence of psychotherapists, it once again, seemingly deliberately, published in the very same month another one of its 'shit-house-rat-crazy' volumes tha focus attention on the need for strict regulation of the psychotherapy profession.

Further discussion about Healing The Unimaginable and other conspiracy-theory offerings from Karnac Books can be found in the section Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs (Karnac Books, March 2011)

Unfortunately finding children with Dissociative Identity Disorder/Multiple Personality Disorder is somewhat rare, and Dr. Miller hasn't bothered with the awkward task of publishng peer-reviewed research and evidence of children with a minimum of 18 to 20 alters by the age of six. There is though plenty of peer-reviewed research to indicate the claim is bunkem;

The logic of the claim that childhood trauma causes MPD demonstrates a final serious flaw. If the claim were true, the abuse of millions of children over the years should have caused many cases of MPD. A case in point: children who endured unspeakable maltreatment in the ghettoes, boxcars, and concentration camps of Nazi Germany. However, no evidence exists that any developed MPD (Bower 1994; Des Pres 1976; Eitinger 1980; Krystal 1991; Sofsky 1997) or that any dissociated or repressed their traumatic memories (Eisen 1988; Wagenaar and Groeneweg 1990). Similarly, the same results hold in studies of children who saw a parent murdered (Eth and Pynoos 1994; Malmquist 1986); studies of kidnapped children (Terr 1979; Terr 1983); studies of children known to have been abused (Gold et al. 1994); and in several other investigations (Chodoff 1963; Pynoos and Nader 1989; Strom et al. 1962). Victims neither repressed the traumatic events, forgot about them, nor developed MPD.
...

In 1988, Vincent and Pickering noted that in the published reviews of the literature, exactly one case presenting in childhood was reported in the 135 years prior to 1979. After reviewing the literature published since 1979, they were able to gather a mere twelve cases. (It seems, however, that Vincent and Pickering had to stretch a bit to find even those — four of the twelve were examples not of MPD, but rather of something the authors called “incipient MPD.”) Nine additional cases were found by Peterson (1990).

These minuscule numbers, standing in stark contrast to the thousands of adult cases discovered in recent years, reveal the third weakness: if MPD results from child abuse, then why have so few cases been discovered in children?
(Source: Multiple Personality Disorder: Witchcraft Survives in the Twentieth Century by August Piper Jnr. The Skeptical Inquirer, Volume 22.3, May / June 1998)

Mr. Rathbone's ambition of driving Karnac Books away from being a serious publisher to one known principally for being purveyors of 'shit-house-rat-crazy' conspiracy-theory books, driven by ultra far-right US-derived religious fundamentalism, does have a decent business model behind it. The small 'survivor' lobby that claims to have survived (and completely forgotten) extreme satanic abuse, only to have psychotherapists in the US/UK uncover the memories of it through Recovered Memory Therapy (RMT) whilst revealing their DID/MPD conditions, are almost exclusively white, middle-aged and middle class women born into privilaged backgrounds. This group, both in the US and UK are recognised for having substantial disposable incomes, useful for paying not just for seemingly endless sessions of psychotherapy, but also for purchasing SRA Myth books, DVD's and attending numerous SRA Myth seminars and conferences. And being a 'survivor' can be an expensive business. Indeed the 'survivor' community who claim to be DID sufferers may be the richest grouping of victims to be found in modern times. This from Private Eye again;

In the UK this year there have already been a string of conferences, seminars and training sessions; and more are planned, with delegates paying between £200 and £700 a time. Topics range around theories of trauma, dissociative disorders, attachment (which means lack of attachment to parents due to childhood abuse), ritual abuse and mind control - all related to previously forgotten extreme childhood sexual abuse.

In May about 200 people (paying up to £285 each) attended a conference in Derbyshire organised by TAG, the Trauma and Abuse Group, and RAINS, Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support (led by veteran ritual abuse campaigner and psychiatrist Joan Coleman - see Eyes passim).
(Source: 20 YEARS OF SATANIC PANIC - Private Eye)

An extension to this business model might be for Mr. Rathbone to gently persuade all of Karnac Book's psychotherapy, psychology and psychiatry authors to incorporate at least a few sections in their tomes, perhaps even a whole chapter, advocating for the SRA Myth. A few references to MPD/DID and RMT, perhaps even some words to claim that the victims hung in Salem in 1692 were really witches and got what they deserved would go down well with the SRA Myth 'fans' and might get low print-run academic books from Karnac to sell into a new market.

The nature and underlying issues concening the racial and demographic structure of the 'survivors' is addressed in The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy, part of an extensive discussion about current advocates for the Myth in the UK amongst the psychotherapy & psychoanalytical professions that can be found at Dr. Valerie Sinason and David Icke - RAINS Part Three and it's follow-on pages Dr. Valerie Sinason and David Icke - RAINS Part Four and Part Five. All the pages are part of a wider history of the SRA Myth in Great Britain hosted on this Web site.

Unfortunately Oliver Rathbone and Karnac Books abuse of Attachment Theory doesn't end with the company's daliance with SRA Myth True Believers. Karnac Books is also a firm advocate for Attachment Therapy - the unscientific, frequently lethal and fringe form of psychotherapy that sees children tortured and sometimes killed. See the lengthy Index entry under Candace Newmaker, a ten-year-girl killed in the US through the use of 'AT'.

Karnac Books promotes Attachment Therapy, an illigitimate therapy regime only vaguely based on Attachment Theory, through advertising AT events and selling AT books.

A leading proponent of AT is Dr. Daniel A. Hughes, though in recent years he has attempted (not entirely successfully) to distance himself from its more extreme and lethal tendencies.

The organisation Advocates For Children In Therapy lists Dr. Hughes as an AT Proponent;

We invite parents, educators, academics, child-welfare workers, adoption agencies, policy makers, human rights organizations and other concerned parties to review Hughes’s statements quoted below so that they may form their own opinions on his approach and interventions. It should be noted about these statements:

  • To our knowledge, there has been only one study on the techniques discussed that has been published in peer-reviewed scientific or professional literature since his books were published (he admits that there was none before publication), and the credibility of that study has been firmly challenged;
  • The book Building the Bonds of Attachment is a composite case study, with Hughes putting words in the mouths of a fictional therapist (Allison), patient (Katie), and therapeutic foster mother (Jackie);
  • The Attachment Center at Evergreen (ACE), to which Hughes gives credit for the “impetus” for his ideas, changed its name in 2002 to the Institute for Attachment and Child Development;
  • Connell Watkins, to whom Hughes says he is “indebted” for many concepts and willingness to share her “understanding and skills in working with children with attachment problems,” served seven years of a 16-year prison term (now out on parole) for killing a child whom she was treating with Attachment Therapy; and,
  • Foster Cline, another person to whom Hughes gives much credit for the concepts upon which he relies, avoided discipline (for an AT-related incident) by the Colorado State Board of Medical Examiners by surrendering his Colorado medical license and moving to another state.
(Source: Daniel Hughes: AT Proponent, Advocates For Children In Therapy

Following the text extracted above, Advocates for Children in Therapy then reprint numeous quotes from Dr. Hughes' books, all of which make disturbing reading. A small selection of the examples are detailed below;


  • The standard therapeutic position is for the child to be lying across my lap with his head and sometimes his legs supported by pillows. One of his arms is behind my back; I hold his free hand. — Facilitating Developmental Attachment (1997), p. 105
  • The therapist … gradually moves the child into the emotional spheres of terror, rage, and despair that the child wants to avoid. … She directs therapy in ways that the child would never choose to do. … the child reluctantly gives up control … — Facilitating Developmental Attachment (1997), p. 56
  • Many children have screamed and screamed at me while being held … Other children quickly move into experiencing and expressing despair or terror. Later they may move into strong expressions of anger. My affect matches the child’s. — Facilitating Developmental Attachment (1997), p. 104
  • Often when poorly attached children are held, at home or in therapy, they complain that they are being hurt. — Building the Bonds of Attachment (1998), p. 132


Karnac Books sell the full range of Dr. Daniel Hughes AT volumes, though his twenty-first century output has frantically attempted to distance itself from the AT techniques he promoted in the 1990s;

Karnac Attachment Therapy books


In addition to selling Dr. Hughes books to the psychotherapy profession and others in the UK, Karnac Books also advertises Dr. Hughes' seminars, even when they are being conducted in the US, this one for the 3rd/4th October 2011 entitled Attachment-Focused Parenting and Family Therapy;

Dr. Daniel Hughes Attachment Conference


Although other vendors such as Amazon also do so, they don't advertise Dr. Hughes' seminars.

AT is invariably aimed at foster carers and adoption parents who find that they cannot control children who are not sufficiently compliant. That compliance is therefore imposed upon them through a regime of punishment, fear and often, abuse.

In past decades 'Holding Therapy' - another name for Attachment Therapy was exported to the UK by Dr. Martha Welsh. It was employed as a means to 'cure' autistic children. The YouTube clip below (from a BBC broadcast) was made available from Advocates for Children In Therapy;



Another clip details Columbia University's Martha Welch training an adoptive mother in Attachment Therapy;



Karnac Books sells Martha Welch's infamous 1989 book Holding Time, which effectively defined the Attachment Therapy movement for the 1990s.

Martha Welch - Holding Time


A lengthier discussion about Holding Time can be found in the entry for Candace Newmaker

In perhaps the most bizarre twist, Martha Welch M.D.'s 'Holding Time Therapy' became the genesis of another branch of psychotherapy and psychology that even today attracts huge controversy, particularly in the UK (see also The regulation of psychotherapy);

Meanwhile, Welch’s Holding Time approach has been embraced by the “gay-to-straight” movement. Richard Cohen, in his 2000 book, Coming Out Straight, suggested that therapists can cure homosexuality — or parents could avoid it in the first place — with Welch’s method: “I recommend the use of Attachment/Holding Therapy as taught by Dr. Martha Welch. My family and I did some healing work with Dr. Welch. If I had experienced holding time with my parents several decades ago, I would not have needed to process through my thoughts and feelings with so many therapists and groups.”
(Source: AT Proponent - Martha Welch, Advocates for Children In Therapy)

Karnac Books doesn't sell Coming Out Straight, but Britain's leading psychotherapy/psychology/psychiatric publisher more than makes up for it by re-selling Joseph Nicolosi 1993 psychoanalysis volume Healing homosexuality: case stories of reparative therapy:

Healing homosexuality: case stories of reparative therapy:


Throughout Martha Welch's work and other advocates of Attachment Therapy there is a strong connection with religious fundamentalism. The same association persists with those who advocate for or claim to be 'survivors' of the SRA Myth, and those therapists who claim to be able to 'cure' homosexuality. Religion and psychotherapy invariably go hand-in-hand, and Karmac Books too have followed that line. Religious intolerance and homophobia persists within at least a siable minority of the British (and US) psychotherapy profession, and Karnac Books may simply be responding to these 'features' by being in-step. This might explain why witch-hunter Dr. Ellen P. Lacter managed a 'star-billing' in Karnac Books recent Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs (2011)

In December 2010, Karnac Books formalised that connection, perhaps in recognition of where a market for many of its titles exists;

Nashville, TN (Vocus) December 6, 2010
Ingram Content Group Inc. today announced agreements with Karnac Books, a leading publisher of psychoanalysis and psychotherapy titles, and Scripture Union, a leading publisher of Christian communications materials. Karnac Books and Scripture Union have selected Ingram’s digital asset management platform CoreSource® to archive and distribute content to partners worldwide.

“As digital content adoption climbs, publishers need a full suite of integrated print and digital distribution solutions to support both customers and business growth,” said Marcus Woodburn, Vice President of Digital Products, Ingram Content Group. “At Ingram, we look forward to working with both Karnac Books and Scripture Union, giving them access to the most relevant digital distribution models to help the content of both publishers reach more readers in more formats.”

Karnac Books, founded in 1958, is dedicated to the behavioral sciences with a focus on psychoanalysis, psychotherapy, organizations, and family, child, and adolescent studies. Karnac Books, one of the few remaining independent mental health publishers in the UK, publishes over 80 books per year in addition to its popular journal line and comprehensive monograph series.
(Source: Karnac Books and Scripture Union Select Ingram's CoreSource® for E-Content Management)

(See also Doris Sanford)


Lindsey Read

Manager and founder of CARA (Centre for Action on Rape and Abuse) based in Chelmsford, in the County of Essex, England. CARA was formerly known as the Colchester Rape Crisis Line, and was established as such in 1989.

As with a number of other organisations that campaign and provide services for the victims of rape and sexual abuse in England, CARA is also a firm True Believer organisation in the SRA Myth of 1988 to 2003 in the UK. Belief in the SRA Myth, derived from far right Christian Fundamentalists from the US in the late 1980's isn't unusual to find amongst such groups, and was driven by the historic collusion with feminist groups that was established in the 1980's. By way of example Manchester Rape Crisis Centre maintains a firm belief in the SRA Myth, receives Funding from the National Lottery and has a link to the British Government Home Office. Rape Crisis Scotland also maintains information on the subject. Belief in the 'Myth isn't universal amongst such organisations; a great many make no reference to it, particularly those established in the last decade, when a new generation of activists and councillors were unwilling to accept collusion with religious fundamentalists in what is oft-seen as a white female middle-class obsession. Amongst those charities and small concerns that do believe, in general the text referencing the SRA Myth is often copied between sites, and sometimes incorporates detail about Recovered Memory, a key plank of the SRA Myth in the absence of any physical or forensic evidence - particular when it's victims should, if SRA was real and present, be horribly mutilated and in need of urgent lengthy internal and external surgery.

CARA though is in a completely different league when it comes to integrating belief in the SRA Myth into the structure and philosophy of the charity. The most notable element is that one of it's patrons is Valerie Sinason perhaps the most enthusiastic of SRA Myth advocates in England today. The other element is the charities' advice on the SRA Myth;

CARA Ritual Abuse Page

CARA Satanic Ritual Abuse


The distinctive passage is and many of our service users know that police officers were amongst their abusers. The local Police Constabulary for CARA is Essex Police.

The sentence continues with This is true of social workers too. This question of involvement in the abuse would help explain – at least partly - why cases are rarely pursued.. The social services delivery team nearest to CARA is Essex County Council based in County Hall, Market Road, Chelmsford. It isn't clear what the collective members of the Essex Safeguarding Children's Board, which includes senior members of Essex Police and Essex County Council Social Services have done to address the alleged satanic presence in their collective organisations and (presumably) senior management.

To CARA's credit, their definition of Ritual Abuse appears to be heavily influenced by the 1st version of the SRA Myth - referred-to on this site as the "Classic" version, with references to altars (not difficult to find an altar in use), witches and a vocalbularly that combined witchcraft and satanism together. There is no reference to the 2nd version - "Mind Control SRA Myth" that is normally pushed by Ms. Sinason and her peers, and, once again, fortunately no hint of the most recent and third version of the 'Myth, resplendent with alien 12-foot high reptiles, courtesy of David Icke; "Lizard SRA Myth". Detail of the three versions can be found at A summary of three versions of the SRA Myth. A discussion about the parallels between the written work of David Icke and Valerie Sinason can be found at SRA Myth True Believers in the public eye - Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke.

As a Registered Charity, that requires roughly £150,000 in income running costs, Ms. Read and it's Trustees Ms. Clarissa Fordms, Clare Palmer, Mrs. Gillian Colbert, Mrs. Julie Bridges, Ms Petronella Van Helfterenms, Andrea Louise and Elsie Hudson probably would have to 'meet and greet' at public events, in an effort to raise funds, although in 2009 this need was reduced, thanks to a grant of over £89,000 from the Home Office. It isn't clear what actions the Home Secretary is taking to address the alleged satanic baby-killing police officers in Essex Police.

For the Trustees of the charity, despite the assistance of the Home Office grant, some fund-raising would still be required. Presumably it must be a concern and galling for them to do this, in the belief that amongst the senior and field police officers they meet, including Essex Police specialist rape detectives, child protection officers and ordinary patrol officers, there will be satanists who take part in events where Infanticide (the murder of babies and children) is sometimes incorporated into the ceremonies, and animals may be included in the abuse and/or “sacrificed” too. The same would apply to any dealings of CARA's staff with the social services department, where, it seems many of our service users know that some of the staff are satanists and baby killers.

It perhaps could be assumed that these satanic covens aren't entirely comprised solely of Essex Police officers and Essex County Council child protection officers. Local civic dignitaries, businessmen and women, and lay members of the public would surely be amongst these groups. In SRA Myth lore, the 'Rule of P' was a popular element in the fantasy;

This notion of the banality of evil is given an alliterative twist in the panic discourse of Braun(1988), one of the most prominent American child-savers, whose 'Rule of P's' reveals the public persona of secret satanic ritual abusers: physicians, psychiatrists, psychotherapists, principals and teachers, pallbearers, public workers, police, politicians and judges, priests and clergies of all religions, parents and providers of day care.
(Source: The Devil Goes Abroad': The Export of the Ritual Abuse Moral Panic by Mary deYoung)

The version of the SRA Myth employed by CARA also bears a resemblance to that recounted in Dr. Lawrence Pazder's then-sold-as-a-non-fiction-book Michelle Remembers (1980) that contributed hugely to the creation of the SRA Myth. In the book the tale of a young girl who is abused by a coven of satanists and witches in a sleepy Canadian town is recounted. The book finishes with Satan himself appearing for extensive periods, speaking in rhyme. Fortunately the evil satanists allow Michelle to attend school each day and appear in the school year photograph, whilst apparently being locked in a cage for most of a three-month period.

As with other advocates of the SRA Myth, CARA's staff show a remarkable lack of interest beyond writing that apparently babies are being sacrificed in their English County. Most people, it might be said, having been presented with an account that such things took place, would probably not be satisfied by listening to someone making mention of it, only to simply put a vague reference to the allegations on a Web site. Indeed pursuing the issue, beyond the initial 'knock-back' from the police and investigative journalists trying to avoid a Pulitzer Prize, would be expected to include actually trying to secure indisputable proof of the satanists/witches performing their wicked deeds. If not, a few long-range photos of the satanist gathering or leaving their premises wouldn't probably suffice. Really, only a full-scale assault on the premises being employed by the satanists, armed with shotguns (apparently Essex isn't short of the sawn-off variety) would do the trick. Somehow though Ms. Read and the other staff of CARA are able to leave their premises each night, go back home and eat their evening meals, unconcerned it seems, even though they include amongst them those that believe that baby-killing policemen patrol their streets.

How much credence should be placed on CARA's claims? That is for the reader o determine themselves. The subject of the perceived lack of enthusiasm and a summary of the incredible discrete electronic bugging aides available at low cost for ordinary members of the public can be found at Continuing collusion and future threats. Unfortunately CARA staff haven't found an evening in their busy schedules to be able to pursue this adventure.

CARA was a Winner of the 2007 The Guardian Charity Awards 2007 although there is no indication The Guardians huge enthusiasm for the SRA Myth in the 1980's had any bearing on CARA's success. The organisation was also a winner of the The Queen's Award for Voluntary Service in 2004.

The SRA Myth years didn't leave Essex alone. The under-reported Epping Forest Satanic Abuse Scandal although steeped in English farce, was nonetheless deadly serious at the time.

CARA's senior management do though have the right to invoke the (fictional) Martha Coakley Defence - which sees obsessions with witchcraft and satanism explained as being nothing more than following historical local tradition (in Ms. Coakleys case, for the town of Salem, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts). Essex's tradition of fighting the 'agents of Satan' himself is even more extensive than that of Massachusetts - typified by the 750 men and women accused of witchcraft in Essex - 1560 to 1675.

The Links Page" on the CARA web site incorporates a number of links to groups, including religious fundamentalist organisations advocating for the SRA Myth, including RANS (the Scottish version of RAINS - Ritual Abuse Information Network (and) Support) in England. Another page CARA Feminism emphasises the continuing difficulty modern feminism has in shedding its historic collusion with religious fundamentalism during the SRA Myth 'crazy years' of 1988-2003 in Great Britain.

CARA's other patron is Germaine Greer, who is one of the few prominent feminists in Great Britain who wasn't taken-in by the SRA Myth, or the attractions of the Christian Fundamentalist rhetoric during the SRA Myth 'crazy' years.

(See also Joan Acocella", Noam Chomsky, Martha Coakley, Nick Cohen, Phillip K. Dick, Iain Weir (Kirkland, Dr.)Adolf Hitler, Nick Land, Christopher Lillie, Rainer Möllers, Debbie Nathan, Dr. John Paley, Dr. Sandra Buck)

Dawn Reed



Myra Riddell

Myra Riddell



Please note the extended entry for Dr. Myra Riddell, which discusses the collusion between American feminists and lesbians with far-right religious fundamentalists during the 'moral panic' beginnng in the 1980s to the present-day, and the impact the collusion had on the American gay community, has moved to this dedicated page.

Peter Rigby

Peter Rigby

The Peter Rigby detailed under this Entry is not the Peter Rigby, founder and owner of SCC.


Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity


CEO and Chairman of publisher Informa PLC, incorporated in Jersey but tax resident in Switzerland. In 2004 Informa merged with British publisher Taylor & Francis, who had previously taken over Routledge in the past. Routledge is now a division of Taylor & Francis, but T & F was effectively 'gobbled-up' by Informa.

Routledge/Informa PLC is the leading non-religious publisher of books advocating for the SRA Myth (Satanic Ritual Abuse), most notably those edited by Valerie Sinason. A second edition of her Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder, 2nd Edition is scheduled for December 2010, and a new book, the similarly-titled Trauma, Dissociation and Multiplicity: Working on Identity and Selves was originally scheduled for July 2011, then put back to September, then October. As with other recent Informa PLC conspiracy titles and indeed the entire SRA Myth/DID body of literature Trauma, Dissociation and Multiplicity: Working on Identity and Selves is scheduled to be a little light on verifiable assertions, 'featuring' the writings of 'survivors' including five articles from 'Jo', a psychotherapist working in the South-West of England who claims to be a 'survivor' of satanic abuse and 'dissociated'. The unethical practise of having psychotherapists write in a psychotherapy textbook under an anonymous pseudonym is unique to Informa PLC/Routledge.

Trauma, Dissociation and Multiplicity: Working on Identity and Selves manages the distincton of being the second SRA Myth/DID-advocating book from Informa PLC published inside 12 months. In addition to the five contributions for the otherwise anonymous 'Jo', three other authors or co-authors contribute more than one essay. As well as Jo there are five more anonymous contributors Carole, Pumpkin, The Poet, David and Rainbow Crewe ensuring that verification of the accounts is rendered impossible, and indeed there is no way of confirming or not if the essays weren't simply written by the editor in a desperate desire to 'prove' the existence of satanic ritual abuse. Perhaps unsurprisngly Trauma, Dissociation and Multiplicity: Working on Identity and Selves struggled to find pre-publication reviews to employ, relying only on a Fiona C. Kennedy, a former Chief Examiner for the British Psychological Society and founder partner of British company Greenwood Mentors (Performance Mentors for Professionals). There is no evidence that Greenwood Mentors will assist professional clients by determining them to be victms of satanists and/or suffering from multiple personality disorder, though it isn't clear why Dr. Kennedy would be willing to be sole reviewer of the book.

As with many recent pro-SRA Myth/DID books from both Informa PLC and Karnac Books, the range of qualified authors has diminished with time. Routledge's (now a division of Informa PLC) first foray into the world of satanic ritual abuse, 1994's infamous Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (1994)

A belief that military and security organisations employ trauma-based satanic ritual abuse of children, to turn them into dissociated mind-controlled robot slaves, dominates Dr. Sinason's work. Bizarrely, Routledge, now a specialist division of Informa PLC, publishes in the military, security and strategic studies spheres, as well as to the psychiatry and psychotherapy professions, leading to the situation whereby at least a sub-set of Informa's professional military and security purchasers of it's books are being collectively and routinely accused of being child abusing, mind-control-imposing satanists, by an author publishing through the same house, a situation perhaps unique in the world of publishing. Many of the conspiracy theories written by Dr. Sinason reference those promugated by David Icke. Mr. Rigby and Informa PLC can legitimately claim to be competing with publisher David Icke Books in the conspiracy-theory publishing market, though quite likely, Mr. Rigby is quite unaware that two of his publishing empire divisions (Taylor & Francis and Routledge, its sub-division) have determined they will compete in the conspiracy-theory book market.

Informa is also the publisher of the Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, the official journal of the ISSTD (the International Society for the Study of Trauma & Dissociation) a leading US religious fundamentalist/conspiracy theorist organisation of like-minded psychotherapists, psychologists and psychiatrists who believe in the SRA Myth (see the entry discussing this subject at Psychiatry and Psychology in the US and the SRA Myth). The ISSTD (and its journal) are particularly known for their hostility towards the national security services and military of the US, with many members having determined that the CIA and US armed forces are chock-full of child-abusing satanists, who practise their nefarious plans with the intention of creating an army of dissociated mind-controlled robot child slaves. Further discussion about the ISSTD's hostility towards the US military can be found at Dr. Ellen P. Lacter - American witch-hunter. On September 7, 2008, the ISSTD Executive Council approved the proposal by 17 ISSTD members to create a Ritual Abuse/Mind Control Interest Group. They determined the interim chair to be none other than Ellen P. Lacter, Ph.D.

Perhaps to the surprise of some the editorial board of the Journal of Trauma & Dissociation listed on the Informa web site (Informaworld), details its Editorial Board to include none other than psychologist Dr. Corydon Hammond (as D. Corydon Hammond, PhD - Professor, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA), whose "Greenbaum Speech" delivered to his peers in 1992 defined the 'shit-house-rat-crazy' tendency amongst US 'head doctor' professions. It would take nearly another decade for the same conspiracy theory obsessions to reach British shores, through religious fundamentalism and the efforts of David Icke, Dr. Valerie Sinason (see Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke, RAINS Parts Three and Four and Five) and the publishers Routledge and Karnac Books. A core belief of the ISSTD is that 'dissociation', in the past called Multiple Personality Disorder, is caused by trauma, notably through satanic ritual abuse. Having taken the believer that far, it only takes a little more to persuade an initiate to the idea that the CIA and MI5 amongst others are deliberately creating dissociated adults (it isn't diagnosed in children, and normally in adults only after extensive therapy from an SRA Myth/DID-believing therapist). The reason for doing so? Well as Dr. Hammond says in his famous speech, it's to create an army of mind-controlled robot slaves.

The Greenbaum Speech, with it's curious mix of crazed delusional meanderings mixed-in with CIA conspiracy theories defined American psychology during the 1990s. It is discussed at Dr. Corydon Hammond - rise of the mind-controlled satanically abused robot slave (and other ramblings) The speech itself can be viewed here.

The good Doctors presence on the Editorial Board, together with Colin A. Ross (Founder and President, The Colin Ross Institute for Psychological Trauma, Richardson, Texas, USA), Dr Frank W. Putnam (Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, and Director of the Mayerson Center for Safe and Healthy Children, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA) and numerous other SRA Myth advocates, provides a strong pointer to the tendency in Informa PLC (through its divisions of Taylor & Francis, Routledge and Informaworld itself) to provide support for conspiracy-theorist organisations, particularly the ISSTD with its anti-US military stance.

Taylor & Francis co-incidentally 'sponsored' the ISSTD Conference refreshment break on Saturday 16th October at the ISSTD conference in 2010, which included the under the 'Paper Session for War & Torture' Development of an Online Screening and Prevention Program for United States Army Personnel Returning from Deployment, Unmaking the Torturer: Re-Establishing Meaning and Identity after Committing Atrocities, Entering the Abyss: Countertransference in Working with Torturers and Clinical Management of Military Sexual Trauma. Anti-US-military bias dominates the current SRA Myth advocacy groupings in both the US and UK, princiaplly due to their association with far-right 'seccessionist' groups and extreme Christian fundamentalism, though some left-leaning or anarchist-tended academics have now wholeheartedly adopted such far-right conspiracy theories for their own.

Routledge/Informa PLC, though presenting the facade of being an 'serious' publisher, have no hesitation in playing fast-and-loose with factual research, and this tendency has been noted by at least one academic;

The standards of academic publishers have proved similarly flexible. As we noted earlier, the distinguished British publisher Routledge was happy to publish Molefi Kete Asante's History of Africa (2007), which does not provide references for its pseudohistorical claims about ancient Egypt. This was not Routledge's first brush with pseudoscholarship.

In 2002 it published Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity, a volume of essays edited by Valerie Sinason on the subject of 'dissociative identity disorder' (DID), the new name for multiple personality disorder. Only a quarter of American psychiatrists (and even fewer outside America) believe that DID even exists. Sinason, a psychoanalyst, dismisses their criticisms, just as she dismisses non-believers in the 'peacetime Auschwitz' - her phrase - of satanic ritual abuse. Sinason claims to have 'clinical evidence' of satanists practising infanticide and cannibalism; on closer inspection, however, the evidence consists of nothing more than her patients' 'memories'.

Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity contains an essay by Dr. Joan Coleman, coordinator of RAINS (Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support), who refers to the 'many' DID sufferers who were 'brought up in families that had practised satanism through several generations'. No evidence is offered for this claim. Coleman also believes that many abusers have 'Masonic connections'.
(Source: From Counterknowledge: How We Surrendered to Conspiracy Theories, Quack Medicine, Bogus Science and Fake History, pages 155 and 156 by Damian Thompson - 2008)

A chapter-by-chapter analysis, split across four pages, of Routledge/Informa PLC's Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (1994) edited by Valerie Sinason and still marketed and sold by Informa PLC can be found here. The Editors of this web site have identified this book to be one of the most important texts for the study of British contemporary social history. A chapter-by-chapter analysis of two further, more recent books from Informa PLC, promoting the SRA Myth, namely the already-mentioned Attachment, Trauma and Multiplicity: Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder 2nd edition, edited by Valerie Sinason (Routledge - Informa PLC, 2010) will be added to this web site in 2012, whilst a chapter-by-chapter analysis of the most recent 'Myth-promoting book from Informa PLC, the similarly-titled Trauma, Dissociation and Multiplity: Working on Identity and Selves, edited by Valerie Sinason (October 2011) is anticipated to be added late 2012, early 2013.

Althogh fully-committed to being a leading conspiracy-theory publishing house, this policy has come at some cost to Informa PLC. Its enthusiastic support for Valerie Sinason exposed the Company in late 2011 with the world-wide media revelations concerning the The Carol Felstead scandal. In a moment of crazed excess, Valerie Sinason revealed her paranoid delusional satanic abuse fantasies in an all-too-revealing and recorded interview with investigative journalist Will Storr. The subsequent article, including the interview, was published in a six-page spread in The Observer Magazine on Sunday 11th December 2011. Extracts from the interview can be found in the entry for her and then-professional partner Dr. Rob Hale's chapter in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Internal and external reality, Establishing parameters which details the nature of the contact the now-deceased Carol Felstead had with Dr. Sinason in her own words.

The promotion of conspiracy theories, many derived from far-right influences aren't restricted to just Routledge Mental Health within Informa PLC. Routledges sociology output includes the huge 820-page Encyclopedia of Domestic Violence (2007) edited by Nicky Ali Jackson. Although somewhat unusual for an encyclopedia - i.e. many sections and opinions don't have corresponding supporting references - the Encyclopedia of Domestic Violence is perhaps even more bizarre in its promotion of the satanic ritual abuse myth and 'mind control'. One section is written by 'shit-house-rat-crazy' feminist E. Sue Blume, who continues to promote the SRA Myth and extreme far-right mind control conspiracy theories typified by her 2012 contibution to Karnac Books Healing the Unimaginable: Treating Ritual Abuse and Mind Control (see this book discussed in the entry for Ritual Abuse and Mind Control: The Manipulation of Attachment Needs (Karnac Books, March 2011).)

Another section is written by Canandian feminists Jeanne Sarson (MEd, BScN, RN) and Linda MacDonald (MEd, BN, RN) who have removed the 'satanic' references to their particular brand of ritual abuse, referring to it by the catchy term 'RAT' (ritual abuse torture). Their contribution to the Encyclopedia of Domestic Violence, together with E. Sue Blume's is discussed in the extended entry for Myra Riddell, which focuses on the betrayal of the American gay lobby by feminists and lesbians. Ms. MacDonald and Sarson have a long-established tendency to describe the most fantastic satanic abuse fantasies, though neither can be bothered with providing any evidence for them, and neither can claim to have provided any evidence that secured an arrest, let alone a conviction. In the excerpt below, presented to an NGO Committee, their joint paranoid fantasies were given full reign and included a strange passion for accusing midwifery staff and doctors of incredible deeds;

Forced impregnations and infanticide...Women also report that infanticide (as well as foeticide) occurred in various familiar settings secured by the perpetrators such as in their home, business, or farm surroundings, in the out-of-doors, or by professionals such as doctors and nurses for example who used their positional power and prestige to secure and misuse the hospital facilities in which they work. Some women also informed us that they were raped during labour and/or following delivery by the RAT perpetrators.
(Source: The Emerging Issue of Ritual Abuse-Torture: Foeticide and Infanticide in the Private Sphere of Family and Guardian Relationships Presented to Working Group on the Girl Child of the NGO Committee on the Status of Women - Geneva (CONGO), by Jeanne Sarson, MEd, BScN, RN & Linda MacDonald, MEd, BN, RN)

(See also Doris Sanford)


Mark S. Roberts

Co-author with David B, Allison of the academic work Disordered Mother or Disordered Diagnosis? that examined the logical progression of 16th century witchcraft allegations against women, through the use of hysteria (Histrionic Syndrome) in the 19th century, to the use of Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy allegations from the 1980's onwards.

Disordered Mother or Disordered Diagnosis?

Analysing the literature of MSBP, amongst which includes Schreier and Libows seminal Hurting For Love Roberts and Allison drew attention to the proposed future usage of MSBP (MPBS in the US) allegations against women in countries that allow its use;

With the dangers of MBPS so remarkably overdramatized, and with the subtending social and economic realities of women so completely understated, Schreier and Libow urge the medical and legal system to wage a regulatory war against these mothers-all of whom are possessed by a disorder which, in each case, is now affirmed to be potentially lethal. Given these stakes, the authors call for the creation of local and regional "intervention teams," directed by fully informed MBPS specialists, composed of health care professionals and social service personnel, who will be empowered as "private parties" to conduct surreptitious surveillance of the MBPS "perpetrators" who will see court-mandated custodial outplacement of the MBPS children. These teams will likewise seek to mandate psychiatric therapy for the MBPS mothers; they will explain the MBPS dynamics to the civil and criminal courts, to the prosecutors and defence counsel, in the course of determination. The authors propose finally the formation of a "national electronic network" for tracking mother-perpetrators, etc.


The image of a huge infrastructure, directed against women in the hunt for MSBP perpetrators, armed with every means with which to determine who to target, who to relieve of their children, isn't too unusual. Repeated indications, sometimes in secret Court hearings in England and Wales, as well as Canada and the United States suggest that a sizeable minority of social workers and 'experts', together with the secret court judiciary, are convinced that, even in the absence of supporting research, most women are likely MSBP perpetrators. Indeed the impression is given, most notably in the treatment of women who dare challenge medical opinion (see Daniel Foggo) that some doctors amongst other professions regard all women as being either current MSBP perpetrators, or likely to be in the future. This 'group think' theory extends beyond mothers and carers, into the world of female politicians, journalists, lawyers, teachers, female police detectives, doctors — every single woman of child-bearing age and above, each secretly afflicted by what Sir Roy Meadow determined was a rare condition, but which follow-on authors and MSBP advocates have expanded-upon, creating a huge conspiracy-theory empire of MSBP that, outside the realms of scientific understanding can, through a process only best described as 'magic' explain conditions such as leukaemia, spina bifida and most notably, autism spectrum disorders.


Jean Robinson

Co-founder - Association for Improvements in Maternity Services (AIMS).

A frequent contributor to radio and newspaper articles, Ms. Robinson has regularly spoke about her concerns about family protection issues in England and Wales;

"The most shocking thing to me is to see the reports of meetings in a mother's home, at which I was present, or review meetings in a local authority at which I was present and then wonder were we in the same place at the same time? And then I realised how inaccurate and in some cases dishonest is the information that the family court is seeing and which forms the basis of these absolutely draconian decisions."
(Source: BBC Transcript – Face The Facts, broadcast 24th August 2007)

In August 2007, on behalf of AIMS, Ms. Robinson wrote to Sir Liam Donaldson, Chief Medical Officer for New Labours time in office, expressing her concern about the manner in which child protection policy and social worker attitudes to women were impacting on mothers, and the way that the mental health "industry" appeared to be exploiting the use of the 'expert' status in the secret Court system;

"We have many cases where social services intervention is intensifying and prolonging the very postnatal depression which they are seeing as the reason to take their babies. We have never yet seen a case where the mother found social worker intervention helpful or supportive. In the last fortnight I have worked with two women who I feel are suicide risks (one acute) solely as a result of social service management."

...

"In many of our cases specific psychiatrists and psychologists seem to have been called in when social workers were unable to find evidence to prove the case they wanted. Despite our strong suggestions to clients that they should obtain copies of the psychological tests carried out on them, so that conclusions may be challenged, and their validity for different cultures assessed, so far no-one has managed to do so. (Incidentally, we are also concerned at the number of cases where these same professionals then go on to recommend to the court that the family needs exclusive private treatment by themselves at a cost of many thousands of pounds.)"
(Source: - both extracts from AIMS letter to the Department of Health, 20th August 2007)

Regrettably Sir Donaldson was unable to find either the time or the interest in pursuing Ms. Robinson's concerns, even though he had nearly three years remaining in his role.

AIMS publishes a now well-established quarterly professional journal, extracts from which are available online. Volume 21, issue 2 of 2009 was dedicated to Social Services - The Secrecy of forced adoptions and reflects the concern that AIMS members have with the child protection strategy being pursued against mothers-to-be and new mothers, in England and Wales, emphasising the 'retaliation' feature that is readily apparent in many child protection cases now;

Until recently a major government target (with big financial rewards attached) was to increase adoption numbers, so many local authorities set up their own adoption departments. Now the OFSTED target is speedy adoption, and babies are prime adoption material. Having successfully parented older children may not protect you; we have seen cases where strenuous efforts were made to label them at risk, in order to try to remove their adoptable sibling. In most cases, no adoption grounds can be proved, but child protection intervention appears to be used simply to intimidate parents into future compliance. Some of the harm this does was outlined in our letter to Chief Medical Officers.

On our website you will also find our evidence to the first NICE consultation on diagnosis of child abuse. Alas the goalposts were then broadened to include 'neglect' - something which could be defined by social workers. See also our written evidence on Training of Social Workers to the House of Commons Select Committee on Children, Schools and Families (note how 'Families' comes last in the list). We gave both written and oral evidence on Looked-after Children. These papers include poignant anonymised details from our files. We quoted evidence from a gold-standard, large scale U.S.A. randomised trial - with long term follow up - comparing current style of 'witch-hunt' social work with a model which provides social support and real help to families. No prizes for guessing which does less harm and has better outcomes. Alas, from the Committee's report they do not seem to have understood it, though they are clearly concerned at the appalling outcomes of children being in care.

How ironic that the press release for the M.P.s' report on Looked-after Children begins, 'The Government must be more willing to take on the role of a "pushy parent" for children in care.' Yet if the child's real parents are labelled as pushy or stroppy, professionals may respond by trying to label them as unfit or abusive. When parents act as advocate for a child who has special educational needs, criticise a health visitor, doctor, teacher or incompetent social worker, this can have draconian consequences for the whole family. The more articulate, logical and justified the criticism, the bigger the risk, since the threat to professional reputations is greater.
(Source: AIMS Journal, 2009, Vol 21 No 2, editorial by Jean Robinson)

An indication of how corrosive the fear of social workers can be to young mothers, including those who suffer or 'might' suffer from PND, and the animosity felt towards social workers by a surprisingly large number of women was demonstrated by a thread on the British Mumsnet forum in January and Feburary 2010 titled This fear that social services will come and take your children.... During extensive discussions, numerous stories from women retelling their experiences and encounters with child protection social workers were detailed, indicating a plethora of serious problems in the social work profession;

Yes, I ended up with a SS investigation after dd2 was born (dc3) as I had had to be referred to psychiatry for specialist help (bad reaction to tablets) and HV (I think, it might also have been psych staff or my toxic mother) referred to ss.

Ended up in 3 ghastly meetings where we had no rights, no access to minutes, had to give in to everything they said and then listen to some horrible social worker 15 years younger than me with no kids say "well I'm not sure this is all true anyway". Bitch.

It is without doubt the most stressful experience of my life. And believe me, I am no slouch at stressful moments!!

The one good thing that came out of it is that dh, who is a GP, said it has totally changed his attitude to SS and he now goes to every meeting his patients have with ss as an advocate to stand up for them!

Someone who had left the department before our case did tell us that the investigating SW we had had a real thing about "getting" middle class "happily married" couples just to make a point, so a 10y married professional couple with 3 happy kids was like manna from heaven to her.

I understand why people are scared - the worst thing that could happen to me today would be ss knocking on my door!
(Source: This fear that social services will come and take your children..., Mumsnet forum posting by 'weegiemum' 29th January 2010)

...



I agree that something needs to be done. This feeling that ss are bogeymen waiting to snatch children is a prevalent one. Women are afraid of them. Surely the system is designed to help not hinder and they are falling far short. But then sometimes you read articles etc that encourage and support this view. Was it last week that that young girl ran away to ireland in fear of ss taking her child only to have this happen anyway?(there was a thread- and links to the relating articles that i can't find) and i find it terrifying that babies can be adopted when the mother still wants them-nickname i can't possibly imagine how this felt i am so sorry for you.

Ss seem to be failing in many ways. Women who want help are afraid to ask for it, people who don't want help have it forced upon them, and children who are genuinely suffering and need help are falling by the wayside. Mnhq should be proud to front a campaign to right these numerous wrongs.
(Source: This fear that social services will come and take your children..., Mumsnet forum posting by evanshayleyleanne)

(See also Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP, John Hemming MP, Eileen Munro (Prof.))

Richard Rogers (PhD, ABPP)

Author of the academic paper Forensic Use & Abuse of Psychological Tests: Multi-scale Inventories published in the Journal of Psychiatric Practice, volume 9, issue 4, July 2003. The paper discusses the inherent risks of of the Multi-scale tests employed by psychologists. Such tests are hugely popular in the secretive family court system in England and Wales (notably the Million Inventories Assessment) as they allow the court-appointed expert to "cherry pick" information from the test to suit a predetermined profile. Children are often forcibly removed from women by secretive courts on the basis of psychological testing alone (no evidence of abuse or neglect having been ascertained) and the seemingly arbitrary nature of the tests has led to the suspicion that proper peer-reviewed science is being abandoned for "crank" or "pseudo" principles to satisfy anti-family or anti-mother dogmas.

Dr. Rogers paper was a precursor to a later US-derived paper submitted to Family Court Review (volume 45, issue 2, 12th May 2007) entitled A critical examination of the suitability and limitations of psychological tests in family court by authors from Yale and Emory Universities and Mendota Mental Health Institute in Wisconsin - Steven K. Erickson, Scott Lienfeld and Michael J. Vitacco.

(See also: Dana Becker, Pamela Bjorklund, August Piper (M.D), Joan Acocella)

Diane Rosenberg (Prof)


Paul Rowen

Liberal Democrat MP for Rochdale since 2005.

Mr. Rowen won back a constituency lost to Liberal Democrats though it had long been held in the past by the late Cyril Smith. Born in Rochdale, Mr Rowen made the seat his own, thanks to a dedication to his local constituency rather than national politics.

Mr. Rowen is also a delegate to The Council Of Europe. In April 2008, in concert with other delegates he presented a motion to the Parliamentary Assembly;

(extract) The Assembly recognises that questions have been raised as to whether the judicial proceedings in England’s Family Courts are compliant with Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the Right to a Fair Trial.)

The Assembly also recognises that questions have been raised as to whether the system is also systematically non-compliant with Articles 3, 8, 10, 11 and 12.

The Assembly suggests that the relevant committee of the Assembly starts an examination of the system to which concerned parties can submit evidence of Human Rights abuses in England and Wales.
(Source: Human Rights and the Family Division in England and Wales)

The motion was accepted in June 2008 and the investigation into the Family Division of the Royal Courts of Justice was initially scheduled to commence in September 2008, though this has been delayed, apparently to allow the motion to be re-drafted to account for other European nations that allow forced adoption together with England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland – believed to be Portugal and Croatia, and recently, Norway (though this moved is believed to be connected to national socialist-derived political elements remaining in the country).

By 2011 the initiative appears to have stalled or been abandoned.

(See also John Hemming MP, Eric Pickles MP)

J.K. Rowling (Joanne Murray, OBE)

British-born author of the bestselling Harry Potter series of novels, that have been adapted into a series of hugely successful movies.

The concept for Harry Potter came into Mrs. Rowlings head during a delayed train trip from Manchester to London in 1990. The first Harry Potter book was written whilst she was residing in Edinburgh, studying for a teachers degree, and having separated from her former Portuguese husband, and with a new-born daughter.

After completing Harry Potter & The Philosopher's Stone in 1995, Christopher Little Literary Agents undertook to find the book a publisher. Thirteen publishing houses rejected the manuscript, until the fourteenth, Bloomsbury, saw merit in it and offered an advance of £1,500 and an initial 1997 print run of 1000. The first novel won a series of awards, and the second novel Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets was published in July 1998. With the fourth book, the series was breaking publishing sales records, and the sixth book Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, released in July 2005 sold nine million copies in its first 24 hours of trading. With the series now well-established, the first of the hugely successful movies was released in November 2001. Although the films routinely see huge chunks of plot and dialogue purged to ensure they fit into a reasonable viewing time, the franchise is hugely successful and is set for a lucrative conclusion in 2010 and 2011, with the final Harry Potter novel filmed in two parts.

Ms. Rowling is credited with almost single-handedly saving the children's book industry in the Western world, ensuring that entire generations of children wouldn't be lost to watching television and playing computer games. With the enormous wealth that has accompanied her success, she has dedicated valuable time to set up her own charity Volant Charitable Trust detailed at J.K. Rowling Official Site. She has also been an Ambassador for the charity Gingerbread (and is now honorary President) and is patron for Multiple Sclerosis Society Scotland, the condition that claimed her mother's life. In the past she has made no secret of her support for New Labours social policies, preferring to trust former Prime Minister Gordon Brown rather than current Coalition Government Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron over social policy. In the past she has donated £1 million to the Labour Party.

In addition to the many awards garnered by her books, and in recognition of her success and her contribution to children's literature worldwide, Ms. Rowling has been honoured with, amongst others, the Order of the British Empire and Chevalier de la Legion d’Honneur.

Despite this, and in recognition of the enormous enthusiasm her books receive from both adults and children in the US, she has been denied any substantial recognition from the US government. In the past the first Harry Potter film drew attention from the Religious Right, and this attitude appears to have prevailed;

A memoir by George W. Bush's former speechwriter claims that Bush administration officials objected to giving JK Rowling a presidential medal of freedom on the grounds that her Harry Potter books "encouraged witchcraft".

According to the liberal American blog Think Progress, Matt Latimer's Speech-Less: Tales of a White House Survivor reveals how politicised the medal, which is America's highest civilian honour, became during the Bush administration.

Latimer, whose memoir was published last week by Crown in the US, says that the "narrow thinking" of "people in the White House" led them "to actually object to giving the author JK Rowling a presidential medal because the Harry Potter books encouraged witchcraft".
(Source: JK Rowling lost out on US medal over Harry Potter 'witchcraft' by Alison Flood, The Guardian, 29th September 2009 )

Although the idea that the Harry Potter novels, and by implication the movies somehow encourage witchcraft will appear bizarre to most people (particularly when the books and movies portray at their core, a fight between good and evil) it should be noted that during the SRA Myth 'craze' of the late 1980s and 1990s, it wasn't unusual to find a belief in witches and demons amongst professionals concerned with child protection, both in the US and UK (see the extended entry about the SRA Myth for Bea Campbell - OBE). Even The Guardian newspaper, together with New Statesman and Marxism Today enthusiastically 'pushed' the right-wing fundamentalist line, albeit through the concerns of colluding feminists, seeing a soft collision of left-wing desires to demonise males, the family, and women with children, married to right-wing fundamentalist desires to hunt...well, demons, and witches, and Satan himself.

Such obsessions, with rooting-out satanism, and determining someone to be a witch can easily be found on the World Wide Web, from discussions amongst religious fundamentalists. It's a sobering thought to realise that the foundations for a new moral panic, such as the SRA Myth - when liberals and left-leaning professionals heartily endorsed the fundamentalist ethos - are simmering under the normal perceptions of society. Just how much support the most extreme of views and perceptions of reality have amongst governments in both the US and UK is open to speculation, but the fanaticism of some elements of the US Religious Right, and its attitude to J.K Rowling have been noticed enough to be PARODIED on the famous Landover Baptist spoof site;

She did not write these stories. There is no way a welfare mother could have done it. Satan invaded her spirit and gave her these story lines in order that she help him turn young minds to Satan.

Note that throughout the books, the wizard headmaster is a homosexual predator that is alone with Harry Potter all too often, and that the Ron character is always jealous when Harry spends time with Hermione because Ron wants Harry to himself. When that hot Bulgarian comes on the scene, Ron goes nuts because he is so turned on by the big one but he is attracted to a girl.

The whole Weasel family has red hair. If that is not demonic imagery, I don't know what is.

Demons. Witchcraft. Homosexual subplots. Parental disrespect. It's all Satan, Satan, Satan.
(Source: Posting by 'Alex The Russian' on the subject - More proof that JK Rowling is a witch!!! - from the (Spoof) Landover Baptist Church Forums, posted 3rd October 2008)

Fundamentalist concerns about the Harry Potter books and movies are somewhat inextricable. A constant thread running through each novel, replicated in the film adaptations is one of sacrifice - that is in the Christian manner; chasteness (for instance Harry Potter and Hermione Grainger are able to have a relationship based on pure friendship). Purity of spirit and a determination to confront and defeat evil persist throughout every volume and movie, and its perhaps no surprise that the members of Grinfindor House have parallels with early Christian martyrs, albeilt with a willingness to fight back themselves. Another aspect of the characters is that Harry, effectively abused by his foster parents, the church-mouse-poor Ron, and the chaste but determined Hermione are extraordinarily polite, sincere and loyal. Finally, at moments of great crisis, hints that the good and pure who have departed (like Harry's murdered parents) are able to assist him, portraying sizable hints that even the world of wizardry and witchcraft is itself influenced by heavenly power. The final film and indeed the final volume of the series, emphasised what can only be described as a spirit of Christian sacrifice; with the ultimate evil represented by Voldemort challenged by the uncorrupted and out-numbered pupils of Hogwarts, willing to sacrifice themselves in battle against evil. It may well be that a small cabal of sensitive individuals have betrayed Christians in adopting Harry Potter as their own.

The difficulty though with modern religious fundamentalism is that basic messages like those depicted in Harry Potter are lost to obsessive concerns that any hint of a storyline with witchcraft etc. must be undeniably satanic. This despite the timeless message of good versus evil that permeates each chapter.

Another fundamentalist site emphasises these errors;

Harry Potter Books and Movies
While we're talking about kids and the occult, we need to give some time to the extremely popular and insidious series of Harry Potter books. Witchcraft, sorcery, spells, incantations, and related activities are forbidden by the Bible. Yet Harry Potter and the books of his activities wouldn't exist without these elements. Parents: beware!

Here's a source of information other than this author's personal opinion. It's a video produced by Jeremiah Films titled Harry Potter: Witchcraft Repackaged-- Making Evil Look Innocent. This is a powerful resource that needs to be seen by parents of young children and the workers that serve them in evangelical churches around the world. DiskBooks is not selling this film but here's a number to call so you can order it: 1-800-854-9899.

And now, my review of the Harry Potter movie, by Jeff Cogan.

I attended a showing of the Harry Potter movie Tuesday, November 27, 2001, at 7:35 PM EDT. I was accompanied by two of my adult children, themselves parents.

I had never read a Harry Potter book and only knew what I had seen in television interviews. To tell the truth, my first impression was the movie was more silly then sinister. The acting on the part of the children was on the level of a TV after-school special. The special effects were overdone and more preposterous than pernicious. As a movie experience it was an overlong waste of eighteen bucks. [I bought my kids' tickets.]

This is not to say that Harry Potter books and now movies are not dangerous as a gateway that may lead to real evil and dabbling with the occult. In fact, their popularity with kids of an impressionable age give the books all the more sinister power.

If you plan to let your kids read Potter books and see the movie[s], you should exercise very close supervision. You read a Potter book before giving it to a child to read. You emphasize that Potter witchcraft is all about make believe. You discuss the real facts about witchcraft and demonic power. You emphasize that Holy power is always greater than evil power, although perhaps less spectacular. In other words, become a fully-involved parent on this one.
(Source: Signs of Demonic Possession - Mental Illness, psychology, vision, voices and healing through faith)

Whilst parodying Baptist concerns with Harry Potter is fun, genuine fundamentalists have determined that the books introduce sorcery and witchcraft to children. This from a Web forum from the Reachout Trust a British religious organisation who during the 1980's and early 1990's had engaged in running courses to indoctrinate police officers, social workers and other professions into the SRA Myth (see Rev. David Woodhouse, Maureen Davies & Bea Campbell (OBE))

This topic is something my heart has been burdened with for some time, and I've seen a lot of Christians that have taken this very lightly, and look at Harry Potter as not dangerous because it is [quote on quote] "Only entertainment". The Harry Potter phenomenon is sweeping the world, and defenders of Harry say how Children cannot get enough of these books, and start reading these books before they leave the bookstores...

"Shouldn't we be happy? Our kids are loving to read!", they say to the Harry Potter critics.

Harry is everywhere you look, and we can't go shopping anywhere without the constant reminder of the popularity of Harry Potter. As a mommy of an absolutely gorgeous 4 year old son, and a Christian, I have very strong concerns about where this all will lead. I believe God has laid His burden on my heart to stand against this, and I have to ask especially my Christian brothers and sisters, "what will be the end thereof?"

I truly believe God is very angry about this, and His wrath will come upon all, but especially His people who refuse to take correction. I love my brothers and sisters in Christ very much, and just ask you would hear me out on the topic of Sorcery. What does the Bible say about Sorcerers? I challenge you today, if you are opening up to the spirit of Harry Potter..what will be your end?

I'm going to one book, The Good Book, the Bible. It is the road map to the city whose maker and builder is God. The first Scripture I want to turn to is Revelation 21:8, "But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderous, and whore mongers, and sorcerers , and idolaters and all liars, shall have their part in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone."

If that Scripture alone does not put the fear of the Lord into you, you have much bigger problems than watching & reading Harry Potter...

I believe God is a God of love, Yes absolutely...He loved us so much to give the Son of His love to save us and cleans us from all sin and unrighteousness. But if we belong to Christ, we need to despise sorcery with all of our being.If we don't belong to Christ we are heading to a place the Bible describes as outer darkness, a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth, a place prepared for satan and his demons, and most terrible, a place once you are there...there is no way out. A good portion of scripture to read to know what this place is like is Luke 16:19-31. Apparently, when you are in this place it is so bad you don't want anyone to join you there. There really are no words to describe how horrible hell will be, but my desire is as my Heavenly Father's, that none should perish, but ALL would come to repentance.
(Source: The Evil of Harry Potter - posting by 'Laurie' The Reachout Trust-Occult web forum, 2nd December 2005)
(See also: Wilkie Collins, Krysia Canvin, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, Jan Loxley, Maribeth Fischer, August Piper (M.D), Dr. Sandra Buck)

Alan Rusbridger

Editor of British former Left-Wing The Guardian newspaper since 1995, but now heavily associated with the political descriptor 'fascist left' for the increasing perception that it is pursuing a fascist thread in many of it's editorials.

As with The Observer and The Independent, The Guardian is notable in it's lack of journalistic and editorial investigation into issues about the secretive Family Court system in England and Wales, even when such lack of concern about an alleged patriarchal justice system fly in the face of the newspapers campaigning public persona. In recent years The Guardian has taken a sharp turn to the Right, perhaps doing little more than reflecting the changing nature of the former Left-Wing and liberal elite. The Guardians 'Comment is free' online articles, particularly those published by Bea Campbell (OBE) have seen examples of serious differences between the writers and the audience - often requiring severe censoring of readers' comments, even if under the 'Liberty Central' moniker. The relationship between The Guardian and Beatrix Campbell OBE is perhaps the most unique in newspaper publishing history; her documented contribution to contemporary British history is one that few editors would easily stomach, and the newspapers dedication to her continues to reflect poorly on the title and the stated aim of the Scott Trust, that owns the newspaper;

To secure the financial and editorial independence of The Guardian in perpetuity: as a quality national newspaper without party affiliation; remaining faithful to liberal tradition; as a profit-seeking enterprise managed in an efficient and cost-effective manner.
...is increasingly being challenged through editorial policy, particularly the "liberal tradition" element.

In recent years, the stories that don't make it to the The Guardian tend to say more about the newspapers editorial policy than those that do. One example concerns the Carol Hill scandal. Mrs. Hill, a school dinner lady in an Essex school, was sacked in a secret hearing of governors and county council officials after she had told the parents of a young girl that she was sorry their daughter had been bullied at school that day (the girl had been tied-up and whipped by boys). The school had lied to the parents, saying there had been an "incident" with a skipping rope. Despite the obvious child-protection issues, which included speculation as to why Essex Police child protection officers and social services hadn't been involved in at least investigating the school and its governors, Mrs. Hill was sacked, and denied the opportunity to be represented by a solicitor.

At first glance the story, which gained huge press and media coverage, was a dead certainty for The Guardian - with it's focus on child protection, a seemingly abusive employer and justice denied. Not so it seems to the modern Guardian, whose apparent drive to the Right was typified by its hopeless unwillingness on the part of its editorial team to cover the story, that focused on abuse by public officials. Indeed the only mention of the scandal were three non-news section articles, starting with School seeks dinner lady. Humans need not apply by occasional columnist Jenni Russell, on the 24th September, under the 'Liberty Central' online 'Comment is Free' which would have confused some readers who only get their news from The Guardian, followed by two references to the scandal that appeared a month later, in October 2009 with Inspiring a culture of trust, by Ruth Spellman which appeared in the careers section, and looked at the issue from the point-of-view of the employer, and The curious case of the sacked dinner lady which appeared as Lucy Mangan 'weekend' column on Saturday 3rd October 2009.

By way of comparison it is worthwhile looking at how the story was covered elsewhere;

Dinner lady Carol Hill sacked for telling parents of attack on daughter - The Times
The bullying of common sense - The Times
ALLISON PEARSON: Sacking this school bully whistleblower was pure evil - Daily Mail
Sacked Dinner lady told parents bullying seven year old daughter - Daily Mail
Why dinner-lady Carol Hill deserves a medal, not the sack - Daily Mirror
Dinner lady Carol Hill sacked for telling parents of attack on daughter - Day Life
Full Coverage: Dinner lady sacked for bullying report - News Just In
Bully report school worker sacked - BBC News
Donor offers to help dinner lady - BBC News
Scandal of the sacked dinner lady - Daily Express
Dinner lady suspended after telling mother about playground attack on daughter - Daily Telegraph
School whistleblower sacked - Daily Gazette (Essex)
Donor offers to help dinner lady - Stock Market News
'Telltale' dinner lady fired - Daily Express
What kind of country sacks a dinner lady for telling the truth- Sunday Mail
Essex dinner lady sacked after telling parents of bullying- Caterer Search News
Dinner Lady is a True Hero - Liverpool Echo
Dinner lady sacked after telling parents of daughter's bullying
Dinner lady sacked over pupil confidentiality - Personnel today
Anonymous businessman from Notts to pay legal costs for sacked - Nottingham Evening Post
Unions back dinner lady Carol Hill over 'bullying' sacking - Daily Mirror
Dinner lady sacked for telling parents of bullying - Asian Leader
Dinner lady loses job after reporting bullying - Irish Examiner
Plea Over Bully Row Dinner Lady (7yo Tied To Fence and Whipped )
(and rather a lot more)

In early January 2011 it was revealed that an industrial tribunal had found that Mrs. Hill had been dismissed unfairly (BBC report). A future hearing will determine the nature of the remedy to be applied - either that she be reinstated and/or receive compensation.

Nonetheless The Guardian still occasionally publishes work that hark back to its former liberal and left-wing heritage, even if on those occasions the columnists have to quote from other newspapers, such as The Times, that have taken The Guardians liberal mantel from it;

Graham McArthur, the headmaster of Somersham School in Cambridgeshire and evidently one of the new breed of officious, trembling martinets that run our schools, was quoted in the Sunday Times as saying:

We rely quite a lot on parental volunteers. It is a community school and parental engagement is very important to being part of the community. For the carol service they will need clearance [from the banned list] which is basically something we can do on the day. You need to see details of who they are, where they live and make several phone calls.

It will not surprise you to learn that parents are being asked to take their passports so that their details can be checked.

In Liverpool, parents have been banned from speaking to teachers without an appointment. Sally Aspinwall, head teacher at the Beacon Church of England primary school in Everton, wrote to parents saying she was piloting new security procedures due to "recent health and safety guidance issued to schools by Ofsted". This mystifying action results, of course, in the reduction of easy, natural communication at everyone's expense but Aspinwall no doubt rejoices in her ability to issue bossy edicts with nothing less than the backing of Ofsted.

We have become so obsessed with pedophile and child abuse that we are prepared to watch children being forcibly taken from their parents because the state or local authorities believe they know what is best for the child.
(Source: Paranoia infects the way we treat kids - by Henry Porter and Afua Hirsch, The Guardian Online, 1st December 2009 (posted by Henry Porter)

(Henry Porter left The Guardian in 2010)

A controversy for the Scott Trust and Mr. Rusbridger is the view by some that the newspaper harbours a distinct anti-semitic tendency, through it's Comment is Free online site. The allegations have become so regular that a Web site CiF Watch has been established to monitor The Guardian, which is perceived to go beyond criticism of Israeli activities to genuine anti-semitism normally seen in far-Right publications.

Concerns that the Moderators for Comment Is Free ensure that comment is certainly not free, has provoked another web site CiF Moderation Watch (Revealing Censorship on Comment is Free).


In January 2012 the historic vulnerability of The Guardian to influences from the extreme far-right American religious fundamentalist lobby and crank conspiracy-theory community was horribly exposed with the printing of a letter advocating for satanic ritual abuse allegations, particularly from the white middle-class in the UK, to be taken seriously. The letter, and in particular the past affiliations of one of its key signatories, Valerie Sinason, is discussed in 'special pleading' - a Letter to The Guardian, January 23rd 2012.
In past times, notably the early 1980's, The Guardian was a symbol of liberal respectability. Unfortunately that reputation is tarnished, perhaps permanently, and being seen to be reading the newspapers no longer commands the respect it once did.

(See also Jonathan Gornall, Rachel Williams, Dr. Sandra Buck)

Heather Rush

Child Protection Social Worker for Edinburgh Social Services Department
(See Graham Grant)

"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


- Surnames S



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

Glenn Sacks

American newspaper columnist, former teacher and executive director of the non-profit organisation Fathers and Families that campaigns to protect the rights of children and parents involved in separation or divorce through reform of the US secret family court system. Mr. Sacks is also a popular television and radio show guest. In recent times Fathers and Families has been successful in combating more extreme examples of anti-father, anti-family prejudice, including a disturbing anti-father campaign conducted by a radical feminist group through the Dallas D.A.R.T public transportation system.

The US has similar problems to the UK in the administration of its family courts, with a secretive judicial system routinely accused of of acting against the interests of children in deliberately discriminating against males in separation/divorce cases, whilst managing at the same time to allow dogma-driven anti-family theories to gain ascendency in normal child protection issues. The US secretive family courts also allow the use of "pseudo" science, including MSBP, and various psychiatrist/psychologist-driven "fads" which directly impact upon women with children - thereby managing the feat of abusing women, children and men.

(See also Stephen Baskerville, Mark Harris, Matt O'Connor, David Chick)

Doris Sanford (Dr.)

Christian fundamentalist children's author. Her illustrated books include Friends of God: Advanced Theology for Very Tiney Persons (1988), David Has AIDS (In Our Neighbourhood Series) (1989) and Once I Was Obnoxious... and You'll Never Guess What Happened (1990). Her most 'famous' book is Don't Make Me Go Back, Mommy: A Child's Book About Satanic Ritual Abuse (1990) illustrated by regular collaborator Graci Evans. The book was published at the height of the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth moral panic in the US and UK, driven initially by a desire on the part of right-wing Christian Fundamentalists to deal with the then expanding day-care industry that they identified as impacting on family structures. Other groups, notably feminists, collaborated with the fundamentalists, taking up the cause and engaging in a literal witch-hunt that infected the English-speaking Western world throughout the 1980's and '90's, persisting in the UK with the last documented case of the use of the 'Myth in Scotland in 2003. The book was written without any suggestion that the ritual abuse claims were false, as they were subsequently proven to be, though numerous individuals were initially jailed, only to be released on appeal as the moral panic subsided.

...Some details of abuse are familiar from the lengthy McMartin trial, such as the "movie star room" in which naked children are photographed. The appendix lists 10 guidelines for parents on how to handle their own feelings during this family crisis. All of the people at the day care center are white and look like evil, angry young witches. This is not a book for general readers. The child's ordeal is so horrifying and the display of its aftermath so subtle that readers need familiarity with the subject to avoid misinterpretation.
(Source: School Library Journal review of Don't Make Me Go Back, Mommy: A Child's Book About Satanic Ritual Abuse by Anne Osborn, Youth Training School, Department of Youth Authority, Ontario, California)

Although regarded as a 'sick' book, Don't is still listed by Amazon and on websites of SRA Myth advocates, twenty years after publication.

Awful Library Books


Further examples of the artwork and text inside the front cover can be found at Awful Library Books

Awful Library Books


Awful Library Books


If perhaps readers thought that Doris Sanford's book was 'sick' enough, then Caryn Stardancers Turtleboy and Jet the Wonderpup : a therapeutic comic for ritual abuse survivors, apparently written by 'L.J', a 'young boy alter who lives within a multiple personality constellation that is hosted by an adult female body'. I am the spokeswoman for that system' (see WorldCat.org.) extended the concept of stomach-churning publications from SRA Myth advocates even further. Caryn Stardancer was a popular conference speaker as the SRA Myth got underway, and attended and spoke at the 1996 Better The Devil You Know conference, hosted in September 1996 at Englands Warwick University by the RAINS (Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support) organisation. The conference also saw feminists and religious fundamentalists enthusiatically preaching to an audience, even after the SRA Myth had been effectively debunked in England and Wales in 1994.

Turtleboy and Jet the Wonderpup page 1


Turtleboy and Jet the Wonderpup page 2


Turtleboy and Jet the Wonderpup page 3


Doug Mesner, a frequent critic of the SRA Myth and dissociation/MPD (multiple personality disorder) advocates, investigated the source of Turtleboy and Jet the Wonderpup;

LJ Stardancer, it turns out, is affiliated with an organization called “Survivorship”, upon which the self-declared former Masonic assassin (and all around amazing action hero) Neil Brick sits on the Board of Directors… Oh, the meetings these people must have!
(Source: Dysgenics Report: Turtleboy & Jet The Wonder Pub)

The 'Neil Brick' that Doug Mesner refers-to is Neil Brick, self-confessed CIA-trained mind-controlled assassin (despite looking like a failed accountant) and 'survivor' of near enough every conspiracy theory concocted since the 1960s. His web site S.M.A.R.T ritual abuse pages maintains a huge resource to satisfy even the most fanatical of mind-control/satanic ritual abuse/dissociation-MPD conspiracy theory believers.

'Survivorship' is a leading SRA Myth/MPD/Mind control 'survivor' group, going back to 1998. Turtleboy and Jet the Wonderpup originally appeared in the September 1990, Volume 2 Number 9 edition of the Survivorship newsletter.

Caryn Stardancers moment in the spotlight (she inexplicably lost her pornography-creating 'LJ' multiple-personality 'altar') lasted until the late 1990s in the US and UK, whereupon, having drifted beyond middle-age (the optimum time for white middle-class women in English-speaking countries to determine they are ritual abuse 'survivors' with multiple personalities) she disappeared from the ritual abuse myth/dissociation promotion circuit.

(See also Debbie Nathan, Bea Campbell (OBE), Oliver Rathbone, Peter Rigby)

Margaret Sanger (Higgins)

Born September 14, 1879. Founder of the American Birth Control League (which later became Planned Parenthood) and an advocate of "negative eugenics".

“The most merciful thing a large family can do to one of its infant members is to kill it."
  (Source - Women and the New Rage, p.67)

An icon for future radical feminism, her opinions about "negative eugenics" have not survived modern popular thought, but her eugenic principles are still espoused by the radical feminist movement. Margaret Sanger's philosophy has drawn attention to the disparity between the perception of liberal principles and some of its distasteful elements;

Margaret Sanger, whose American Birth Control League became Planned Parenthood, was the founding mother of the birth control movement. She is today considered a liberal saint, a founder of modern feminism, and one of the leading lights of the progressive pantheon. Gloria Feldt of Planned Parenthood proclaims, "I stand by Margaret Sanger's side," leading "the organisation that carries on Sanger's legacy." Planned Parenthood's first black president, Faye Wattleton-Ms. magazine's Woman of the Year in 1989--said that she was "proud" to be "walking in the footsteps of Margaret Sanger." Planned Parenthood gives out annual Maggie Awards to individuals and organisations who advance Sanger's cause. Recipients are a Who's Who of liberal icons, from the novelist John Irving to the producers of NBC's West Wing. What Sanger's liberal admirers are eager to downplay is that she was a thoroughgoing racist who subscribed completely to the views of E. A. Ross and other "raceologists." Indeed, she made many of them seem tame.
(Source: Page 270-271 Liberal Fascism, by Jonah Goldberg, Penguin edition, 2007 edition).


(See also: Linda Gordon, Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Simone de Beauvoir, Patricia Gowaty)

Ruby Schwartz (Dr.)

Consultant paediatrician and named child protection paediatrician.

(See also Victoria Climbié, Dr. Marietta Higgs, Dr. Christopher Hobbs, Dr. Margaret Crawford)

Sara Scott

British feminist associated with the collusion with right-wing religious fundamentalists during the SRA Myth 'craze' of the 1980's and 1990's.

"Dr Scott has worked for many years at Manchester Rape Crisis, supporting survivors of male violence. She has campaigned and brought to the public arena the issue of ritual abuse in a threatening climate of denial and anger."
(Source: The Emma Humphreys Memorial Prize)

Following the broadcast of the discredited Cook Report documentary The Devils Work in July 1989 (see also Roger Cook) Ms. Scott assisted in organising the help lines to address the publics concern now that the conspiracy theory had taken root in the British publics' collective mind. Using the data collected, based on false allegations and the output from Christian fundamentalist concerns, Ms. Scott produced a Satanic Abuse Training Pack and video, which was circulated and is believed to help keep the myth alive during the 1990's. Ms. Scott also contributed chapters to Valerie Sinason's book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (1994) - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse - Olave Snelling and Sara Scott detailing how she colluded with British Christian fundamentalist Andrew Boyd in producing a TV broadcast advocating for the SRA Myth, timed to be transmitted on the eve of the publication of his latest book with the same title.

Sara Scott can legitimately claim to be a True Believer in the SRA Myth whilst in the presence of Christian Fundamentalists.

A longer discussion about Sara Scotts SRA work is detailed under the entry for John Paley (Dr.))

In 1998 she contributed her essay Counselling Survivors of Ritual Abuse as Chapter Eight of Good practise in counselling people who have been abused (Good Practice in Health, Social Care and Criminal Justice) (1998) edited by 'psychosynthesis, guide and trainer' Zetta Bear. The publication also included contributions from fundamentalist astrologer and SRA Myth advocate Marjorie Orr and Liz Hall (writing about dissociation). The book received a negative review by a guest reviewer from CommunityCare, unusual in two respects in that CommunityCare has long been associated with the promotion of the SRA Myth in Great Britain, and the reviewer, Peter Dale, worked for an organisation long associated with promoting the SRA Myth 'moral panic' in the 1980s and 90s - namely the NSPCC;

In the 1980s, with the explosion of public and professional awareness into child sexual abuse, this situation changed. A huge therapeutic industry developed based on a view that abuse explains everything, and that Brand X or Brand Y abuse-therapy was needed to resolve the consequences of abuse. However, it is now becoming clear that too much focus on abuse can be as detrimental to therapy clients as ignoring it, and as a consequence the abuse-focused literature of the 1980s and early 1990s is in need of significant revision.

It is in this context that Good Practice in Counselling People Who Have Been Abused is published. Zetta Bear has accumulated a wide range of contributions from professionals and survivors of abuse with the aim of addressing what counselling services should be available to people who have been abused. There is no doubt that there is a largely unmet significant community need for such services. There is also no doubt that the contributors to this book are committed to good practice in therapeutic work with abused children and adults.

Unfortunately, there is considerable variation between the chapters in the extent to which this is achieved. Those which focus on counselling children, survivors of ritual abuse, and dissociative disorders, in particular, perpetuate models of practice which currently face severe criticism in relation to causing actual harm to clients. It is unfortunate that the experimental and unvalidated nature of these approaches is not acknowledged, nor the ethical requirement to inform clients of the potential for harmful outcomes.
(Source: Review of Good practise in counselling people who have been abused (Good Practice in Health, Social Care and Criminal Justice), CommunityCare, 25th October 2000. Review written by Peter Dale)

The blibliography attached to the end of Sarah Scott's Counselling Survivors of Ritual Abuse included Safe Passage to Healing: A Guide for Survivors of Ritual Abuse (1994 and 2001) by Chrystine Oksana. This book 'pushes' the view, held by (some) fundamentalists and feminists, that recovered memories of childhood membership of murdering and/or cannibalistic satanic cults, however improbable or impossible were and are genuine and not encouraged as false memories by therapists. In effect all recovered memories, however fantastical, are true and cannot be questioned. The subject of recovered memories and DID (dissociative identity disorder) are discussed in the sections Recovered memories, body memories and the pseudoscience of the future and The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy.

As a leading feminist advocate for the SRA Myth/RMT and DID (though not yet 'Mind Control') Ms. Scott has proven to be a long-term, though not necessarily valuable colluder with extreme far-right religious fundamentalists. These have long-adopted the view that Great Britain and America are being overrun by satanic ritual cults who inflict terrible ordeals on white middle-class children who in response, promptly forget about the abuse altogether until the memories are retrieved with the assistance of therapists in middle age.

In 2006 Sara Scott and Di McNeish, former Director of Policy and Research for the Barnado's charity in England, established DMSS Research and Consultancy. Dr. Scott had been a Principal Research Officer at Barnardo's. Pursuing her feminist aspirations, Dr. Scott had previously pursued the "Gender Training Initiative on behalf of the Department of Health (University of Liverpool, 2001)".

Although Ms. Scott mentions her 2001 book The Politics and Experience of Ritual Abuse in the brief biography section at About DMSS she doesn't appear to be pursuing any interest in the subject at present. This though seems unlikely; both feminist and religious fundamentalist advocates for the SRA Myth, including Ms. Scott described a Vast Conspiracy of such magnitude being inflicted on children and babies who were being killed and eaten by satanists, that it dwarfed the horrors of the Nazi attempts to kill all Jews in Europe, Rwanda, Bosnia and even Pol Pots Cambodia regime in the 1970s. Although there was no such evidence that any satanist worldwide conspiracy was at work, in the absence of any retraction it has to be assumed that Ms. Scott still believes in the conspiracy theory, and has simply somehow managed to stay quiet about it. DMSS state that they "are experienced qualitative researchers, with particular expertise in researching sensitive issues and 'seldom heard' populations. We have undertaken research on a wide range of issues, including the health needs of ethnic minority children and sexually exploited young people. It isn't clear if Ms. Scott still reports her belief in the SRA Myth to her clients.

(See also http://www.saff.ukhq.co.uk/quotes.htm)

(See also Myra Riddell, Dianne Core, Bea Campbell (OBE), Rev. David Woodhouse, Lindsey Read, Dr. Sandra Buck)

Vanessa Shanks

American mother from Louiseville, Kentucky whose children were removed by social workers whose enthusiasm for retaliation drew attention from the local television and radio media; seeing former social workers interviewed who revealed the activities of rogue child protection services in the State;

Vanessa Shanks had her children taken away and, when she fought back, her relatives had their children taken away. Then, after she won in court, her attorney's child was taken away.

The former CPS workers said that kind of retaliatory power is common and, in the secretive, one-sided system, they can take anyone's kids away on a moment's notice - and get away with it.

She said the concerted effort to take children away and put them up for adoption was so brazen, she actually saw someone successfully place an order for children.

"Someone could not have a child and wanted a child so within the community," the social worker said. "This person saw a family in distress, having a hard time, relayed to workers that they would like those children, and that's exactly what has happened."
(Source: Social Workers allege Child Protection Service Abuses)

The original reason for three of Ms. Shanks children to be removed appeared to be spurious;

The state accused Shanks of educational and medical neglect. The evidence? The social worker testified that Shank’s eleven year-old child had a kindergarten reading-level, and that some of the children had missed days at school, though no records or testimony from the school was produced. The evidence for “medical neglect” was equally spurious: the social worker testified that one of the three children, who had been diagnosed with spina bifida, had missed some doctor’s appointments.

But this scanty evidence was more than enough for the family court judge, who ruled after only seventeen-minutes that the children should be placed in the custody of the state.


When she appealed though, a degree of vindictiveness could be detected;

When Shanks decided to appeal the decision, the unthinkable happened: CPS came after her again, this time removing her other three children, as well as fourteen children from her extended family.

“The first thing they came to us and said was, ‘Well, you started an appeal,’” Shanks said. “Nothing else.”

Shanks turned to local attorney Bob Bishop for help, who said he couldn’t believe what he saw when he took Shanks’s case. “There has to be something, some evidence of wrongdoing that has placed a child in danger or has hurt the child, and a pattern of conduct not due to poverty alone,” said Bishop.

In response, CPS removed Bishop’s adopted daughter from his home. “They said if you don’t cooperate with us, we’re going to take all of your children away, and we’re going to charge you with emotional abuse,” said Jennifer Bishop, the attorney’s wife.
(Source - Poor Parents Lose Kids to Authoritarian Welfare State)

The Shanks Scandal revealed the risks inherent in unregulated child protection work and secretive and easily influenced/corrupted secretive family courts – whether they be in the UK or US or elsewhere. The scandal also drew attention to a perceived tendency for child protection workers to remove children from families deemed to fall below the poverty line, rather than offering support.

Following the intervention of the media the children were returned and a number of social workers were suspended and subsequently disciplined, following an investigation by the State legislature.

(See also Rt Hon. Gordon Brown MP, Vanessa Brookes, Shami Chakrabarti)

Paul Shattock (Dr. OBE)

Director of the Autism Research Unit at Sunderland University.

A researcher and frequent contributor to academic journals on autism-related subjects, Dr Shattock drew attention in 2000 to the alleged use of false MSBP allegations against women as a means to forcibly take children in care after suspecting the MMR vaccine was the cause of their child's autistic condition developing;

A leading autism expert said yesterday that an estimated 200 such families in the UK, including Scotland, had lost their children after being accused of Munchausens syndrome by proxy.

"There have been cases where people say their children are autistic and blame the vaccine. Then social services come and say the child is not autistic, you have made him that way because of Munchausens, and they take the children away," he said.
(Source: The Herald – parents 'risk losing children' over MMR complaints, by Alan MacDermid October 20th 2000)

The scandal of autistic children forcibly removed from women and parents using false MSBP allegations - including those removed after parents complained that vaccinations had contributed to their children's conditions is probably the most serious under-reported scandals of modern times. Although the medical profession is almost unanimous in declaring that vaccination don't cause autism, the sheer number of children removed through MSBP allegations is so colossally above the predicted official government estimates of the numbers of MSBP allegations anticipated to occur in the UK, that the suspicion that something corrupt and awry was afoot is hard to dispute.

(See also Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown , Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP, Anne McIntosh (MP), Bruno Bettelheim)

Sally Sheldon


Virginia Sherr (Dr. T.)

US psychiatrist and author of the 2005 paper Munchausens syndrome by proxy and Lyme disease: medical misogyny or diagnostic mystery? which examines and discusses the use of false MSBP allegations made against women whose children are suffering from Lymes Disease, a pernicious bacterium delivered through the vector of ticks.

(from the abstract) Chronic, tertiary Lyme disease, a vector-borne infection most accurately designated neuroborreliosis, is often misdiagnosed. Infectors of the human brain, Lyme borrelial spirochetes are neurotropic, similar to the spirochetes of syphilis. Symptoms of either disease may be stable and persistent, transient and inconsistent or severe yet fleeting. Characteristics may be incompatible with established knowledge of neurological dermatomes, appearing to conventional medical eyes as anatomically impossible, thus creating confusion for doctors, parents and child patients.

Physicians unfamiliar with Lyme patients’ shifting, seemingly vague, emotional, and/or bizarre-sounding complaints, frequently know little about late-stage spirochetal disease. Consequently, they may accuse mothers of fabricating their children’s symptoms-the so-called Munchausens by proxy (MBP) diagnoses.”

Women, following ancient losses of feminine authority in provinces of religion, ethics, and healing-disciplines comprising known fields of early medicine, have been scapegoated throughout history. In the Middle Ages, women considered potentially weak-minded devil’s apprentices became victims of witch-hunts throughout Europe and America. Millions of women were burned alive at the stake.

Modern Medicine’s tendency to trivialise women’s “offbeat” concerns and the fact that today’s hurried physicians of both genders tend to seek easy panaceas, frequently result in the misogyny of mother-devaluation, especially by doctors who are spirochetally naïve. These factors, when involving cases of cryptic neuroborreliosis, may lead to accusations of MBP.

Thousands of children, sick from complex diseases, have been forcibly removed from mothers who insist, contrary to customary evaluations, that their children are ill. The charges against these mothers relate to the idea they believe their children sick to satisfy warped internal agendas of their own. “MBP mothers” are then vilified, frequently jailed and publicly shamed for the “sins” of advocating for their children.


Dr. Sherr's reference to the witchcraft hunts of the 17th century came into stark relief with the publication of historian M.M. Drymon book Disguised As The Devil: A History Of Lyme Disease and Witch Accusations in 2008.

When asked:Why do you think that the Salem witches had Lyme disease, Ms. Drymon responded;
The author noted that she actually thinks that "the witches in New England were convenient scapegoats accused of creating the symptoms of Lyme disease and its co-infections that appeared in the afflicted." Some of the people who testified at the witch trials talked about having rashes on their skin. For example, the book notes that Jarvis Ring had “the print of the bite (of a woman) on the finger of his right hand. Mary Hortado was “bitten on both arms...the impression of the teeth being like a man’s teeth... were plainly seen by many.” The afflicted Godwin children developed red streaks on their bodies. Sam Wilkins had red marks like stabs of awl on his body. Dorcas Good had a deep red spot the size of a flea bite on her finger. Mary Walcut had the marks of teeth on her wrist. Abigail Williams had a mark like the print of an orange on her skin. One child in Connecticut had a deep red spot on her cheek when she died. Finding that "a bulls eye rash can look a lot like a bite mark", Drymon found that most of these afflicted people also developed neurological symptoms, like seizures, hallucinations, brain fog, and lethargy, as well as joint swellings. The Shattuck child, a little boy, seems to have developed bells palsy with one side of his face “drawne so aside as if they would never come to right againe.” "When coupled with the relapsing quality of the symptoms and a list of sick cows, horses, cats, and dogs," Drymon noted," it looks like there was an epidemic of Lyme disease."
(Source: M.M Drymon in conversation - Did the Salem Witches of 1692 Have Lyme Disease?)

Although many campaigners against the easy and extensive use of false allegations of MSBP against women have noted the parallels with witchcraft allegations of past centuries, these have to a significant degree been coincidental. Allegers of MSBP/FII against women invariably use "profiles" - brief summaries that assist an accuser in identifying a woman likely to be "Munchausens." Profiles routinely conflict with one another; so one profile will identify a women who shows perceived undue concern about her child's health as being "Munchausens" whilst another profile will determine that a woman who shows none or little interest is also a sufferer of the syndrome. This "ducking-stool" analogy ensures that few women can escape an accusation of MSBP/FII once labelled against her (see the Entries for Dr. Lynne Wrennall, Dr. Helen Hayward-Brown).

The parallels with witchcraft and MSBP allegations were further emphasised with the revelation that MSBP "creator" Sir Roy Meadow had played the role of Judge Danforth in an amateur production of Arthur Miller's play The Crucible that examines the hunt for communists in 1950's America through the vehicle of comparison with the Salem witch-hunts.

The theory that MSBP and witchcraft "share" a common heritage through the misdiagnosis/misunderstanding of Lyme Disease is though the most significant connection between the two uses of false allegations against women, stretching across four centuries of time. Both a witchcraft allegation and a false allegation of MSBP/FII see a woman accused of causing deliberate harm, of being outside the realm of normal society. A false witchcraft allegation could of course see the death of the woman at the hands of the State, through hanging, burning or drowning, whilst an MSBP/FII false allegation can see a woman's children forcibly removed by the State - an act which Family Court judge Justice James Munby identifies as the most serious punishment the modern State can inflict on a woman (greater even than the criminal punishments available for murder).

Has the availability of MSBP as a mechanism to make false allegations against women seen a resurgence of witchcraft allegations in modern times? The answer, due to the very nature of the use of MSBP allegations in dealing with women whose children have autism spectrum disorders, together with the hundreds of other medical conditions now routinely explained by being caused by MSBP - using undocumented explanations unknown to science and medicine - is probably yes. Belief in witchcraft is not unknown amongst social workers (see Carol Baptiste) whilst there is some documented belief in demonic possession amongst members of the NHS (see Nick Land) However it cannot easily be determined if MSBP's parallels with witchcraft allegations are the result of deliberate misogyny as detailed in Dr. Sherr's paper and others, or is simply the result of failings by physicians over the centuries to get to grips with afflictions and conditions that are still not easily diagnosed.

(See also Dr. Darren Oldridge, Sister Prudence Allen, David B, Allison)

Sharon Shoesmith

Director of Children's Services, Haringey Council

(See also Baby P "Peter", Ed Balls MP)

Frank Simons

Canadian author of Courts From Hell – Family Injustice in Canada (2007) detailing allegations that Canada's family court parallel those of the US and UK family courts in encouraging the break-up of families and lowering the standard of living for all family members unnecessary litigation and biased decisions.

Paul Simpson

American psychologist. As a Christian therapist specialising in RMT (Recovered Memory Therapy) Mr. Simpson took the time in the early 1990's to re-evaluate his use of RMT. His conclusion was that he, and his fellow practitioners were engaging in a process that was wrong, damaging to their patients, and fundamentally flawed. Mr. Simpson went on to contact his clients and former patients and warn them of his conclusions. He also made every effort in public speeches to inform his profession of his findings. His book Second Thoughts (1996) committed his findings to writing and with few exceptions Mr. Simpsons willingness to openly express his doubts and expressions of the harm of his former practices have received huge acclaim and respect.

In Second Thoughts he describes the problem that the various factions who have an interest in RMT, SRA and MPD have in "owning" the therapy;

As I've talked with regressionists from the different "denominations," I've found they take great offence at being associated with the others." Usually they'll ask me to quit bringing up the other denominations and stick with their particular camp (which is, of course, the legitimate one). Interestingly, when I ask one camp about other forms of repressed memories, they explain them to their own particular worldview. The feminists tell me that recovered memories of space alien traumas are due to an abused child's distortion of actual sexual abuse. The Christian regressionists agree with the feminists but point out that space alien abductions are actually satanic ritual abuses in which the victim has been preprogrammed to see the cult members as space aliens. Meanwhile, the science-fiction advocates tell me that ritual abuse believers are actually seeing traumas on spaceships but because of religious bias are mistaking the images as being satanic in nature. The New Age believers agree with the science-fiction advocates and feminists, but think that the Christians are misguided fanatics and that satanic ritual abuse(SRA) is actually space alien and past life trauma that has been distorted.

(See also Dianne Core, Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP, Ray Wyre, Rev. David Woodhouse, Dr. Lawrence Pazder, Dr. Sara Scott, Joan Acocella", Diana Napolis, Dr. Darren Oldridge, Bea Campbell (OBE))


Dr. Valerie Sinason

Valerie Sinason (Ph D MACP M Inst Psychoanal.)






British psychotherapist and advocate for the existence of Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA)

Dr. Sinason's contribution is detailed in Bea Campbell (OBE) discussing collusion between feminists and religious fundamentalists in their advocacy of the SRA Myth. Two far longer entries concerning Dr. Sinasons contribution to belief in the SRA Myth in the UK after 1994, and its impact on child protection policy in the UK can be found under Dr. Buck & Dr. Valerie Sinason - RAINS Part Two, Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS, Part Three, Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS, Part Four and Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS, Part Five which include a lengthy examination of the parallel beliefs of Dr. Sinason and David Icke. The pages also discusses the nature of belief in the SRA Myth by British psychiatrists, psychologists and psychotherapists/analysts, some of whom act as expert witnesses in English and Welsh secret Family Courts.


Sir Roger Singleton

The entry for Sir Roger Singleton and the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) now has it's own Index entry page. Please click on Sir Roger Singleton (CBE)

Ruth Skeldon (Dr.)


Jacqui Smith (Jacqueline Jill)

Former Home Secretary and MP for Redditch since 1997.

During her time as Home Secretary Mrs. Smith gained a reputation for backing totalitarian measures, including a desire to see the 42-day maximum pre-trial detention of terrorist suspects, and restrictions on the hobby of photography. Mrs. Smith was appointed Minister of State at the Department of Health after the 2001 election. There, together with Jenny Gray she was the recipient of the concerns from the National Autism Society that the criteria being defined for MSBP was remarkably similar to the recognised diagnosis for autism, through the report Safeguarding children in whom illness is induced or fabricated (October 2001) for the National Autistic Society, written by Dr. Judith Gould and Judith Barnard.

The fears expressed in the NAS paper, together with those communicated to Mrs. Smith and other Ministers by other experts such as Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown subsequently came to fruition with hundreds, perhaps thousands of autistic children taken into care, together with those suffering from Aspergers Syndrome and ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) after their mothers were falsely accused of MSBP. It should be noted though that NAS gave it's acceptance of the final draft of the Working Together text, though the end result was the same.

Mrs. Smith is credited with the establishment of the regime that allowed for the regular easy use of false allegations of MSBP to be made against women in the UK, from 2001 onwards. There is no evidence that this was an intentional policy - although support and belief in MSBP theory is intense within the Labour Party it is by no means certain that, despite ignoring reports such as Taking The Stick Away Mrs. Smith or the Labour Party had any deliberate intention of establishing the false allegation regime.

In November 2008 a frequent critic of the false allegation regime using MSBP, Conservative Shadow Immigration Spokesman Damian Green MP, was arrested by anti-terrorist police officers from the Metropolitan Police, and his home and Parliamentary offices searched and computers and correspondence removed. Mr. Green was arrested, ostensibly through an investigation into the leaking of stories of Home Office failings to the public, when national security or the correct retention and protection of citizens data had been compromised through data losses.

The Green Scandal provoked numerous streams of protest. Mrs. Smith denied prior knowledge of the arrest and 9-hour detention of Mr. Green, although previous Home Secretary's have invariably been informed by police that an MP is to be arrested for even a minor offence. The Speaker of the House - Michael Martin came under suspicion that he had given-in too easily to the illegal police search of the MP's Commons office. The Prime Minister, Rt Hon. Gordon Brown MP came under suspicion, notably because the government curtailed debate on the subjects raised.

The Metropolitan Police suffered perhaps the worst indignity, inasmuch as the Scandal revealed a degree of hopeless incompetence not seen before (the search of Mr. Green's Commons office was videotaped by Conservative Party workers) and it also revealed that anti-terrorist officers were remarkably under-worked - being able to dedicate time to arresting people for revealing national security blunders, rather than terrorist suspects. The modern Labour Party's tendency towards fascist-like activities was for many lay people confirmed, and the debate over civil liberties and freedom of expression intensified. Nonetheless the Press didn't pick-up on the fact that Mr. Green and Ms. Smith were previously politically-linked-and it is unknown what if any false-MSBP-allegation research that Mr. Green had in his possession had been removed by anti-terrorist police.

In mid-December though the Scandal looked as if it was to be heading to a rapid conclusion, and indeed early in 2009 the Metropolitan Police announced that no charges would be pursued. The resignation of the Head of the Anti-Terrorist department for the Metropolitan Police, Bob Quick, a short time later, after revealing secret correspondence whilst getting out of a car in Downing Street suggested cynically, to some, that the Yards' anti-terrorist operations were being run by Crusty-The-Clown;

Green was questioned for nine hours about allegations that he had conspired to commit “misconduct in public office”.

Police had been called in by the Cabinet Office after Sir David Normington, permanent secretary at the Home Office, said the leaks could potentially jeopardise national security.

Christopher Galley, 26, an assistant private secretary to Jacqui Smith, the home secretary, was also arrested. He is accused of passing documents to Green which were later published.

The Yard operation led to a political furore with opposition MPs claiming ministers were using the police to plug leaks that embarrassed them but did no harm to national security.

Part of the Yard’s problem is that the raid on Green’s Commons office may have been unlawful because it failed to follow correct procedures.
(Source: Tory MP Damian Green's ‘bungled’ leaks case faces axe-David Leppard. The Sunday Times, December 4th 2008)

In May 2009 Mrs. Smith declared that she would be leaving the Government and didn't wish to be considered in a then-anticipated Cabinet reshuffle. Problems with expenses on her second home and the claiming of expenses for her husbands need to view a pornographic film on cable TV had made her position difficult, particularly in light of the parliamentary expenses scandal that engulfed the Commons for months, together with the Green Scandal. Despite many of the controversies that have dogged Mrs. Smith's tenure as Home Secretary, she had managed to bring stability to the role when previous incumbents have been found sadly lacking. The rise in international terrorism and the increased emphasis on home domestic security issues have ensured that the role is of ever greater importance - and Ms. Smith had shown she was a capable and confident occupier of the position. Indeed a measure of a her success is that anti-terrorist officers, rather than being frantically busy, had the time to arrest a senior Member of Parliament who was exposing security blunders and potential vulnerabilities for terrorists themselves to exploit, suggesting that the police and security services don't really have enough to do. However it is likely that her involvement in the establishing of a false allegation regime, particularly employed against the mothers of autistic children, using the vehicle of MSBP, will be what social history remembers her most for.

(See also Bruno Bettelheim, Bridget Prentice (MP), Dr. Paul Shattock OBE, Sir Roy Meadow, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, Beverley Hughes MP, Dr. Clive Baldwin, Dr. Helen Hayward-Brown, Krysia Canvin, Amy Neustein, Anne McIntosh (MP))

Mark Smith

Former residential child care worker. He is currently a lecturer in social work at the University of Edinburgh. Mr. Smith has provided a fascinating insight into the nature of modern child protection social work online;

(extract) Having spent almost 20 years working in residential child care I now teach social work. I was horrified (although sadly not altogether surprised) when a student reported back from a field visit that she had been told by a children and families social worker, ‘we don’t do relationships anymore”. It wasn’t even said with regret apparently, just a statement of what the social work role had become. In fact it seemed to the student that there appeared to be an almost ‘macho’ element in the assertion ‘ ‘forget that namby-pamby stuff they teach you in University, this is the real world’. In this ‘real world’ social workers spend most of their day policing and processing families from a distance. They rarely see them anymore but are quick to send letters telling them that they have ‘failed’ the appointment made for them in the social work office, now relocated, off the beaten track, away from where people actually live. In this new office social workers spend their days plugging information about a family’s failed appointments, into a software package developed for a business environment. This amassed information can then be used to establish the pattern of non-compliance necessary to justify ‘heavier’ interventions or to be called upon to show that they had ‘done the work’ or at least left a paper trail. Welcome to the world of real social work...

This is not to say that there are still many genuine and caring social workers out there; but it becomes increasingly difficult to hang on to caring qualities in a climate where care itself is not valued, where it is seen as insufficiently ‘hard’, too ‘woolly’ and, heaven forbid, encouraging of dependency. Care, dependency, relationships, these aren’t ‘professional’. To be professional nowadays requires objectivity, detachment, keeping your distance and avoiding kids and families, in short not doing the things that a good social worker should do.

Few might go as far in rubbishing relationships as the social worker my student met. Most still hang on at an intellectual level at least to ideas of relationships being a ‘good thing’. They could no doubt describe attachment as relational bonds that endure over time. They might even be attracted to Bronfenbrenner’s assertion that ‘every kid needs at least one adult who’s crazy about them’ and that having someone who’s crazy about them is actually implicated in improved life chances.

They just find it very difficult to countenance that they might be that adult. And of course they wouldn’t call kids kids; that would be disrespectful; they are all young people now.
(Source: Loving or fearful relationships By Mark Smith)

Mark Smith is the author of Rethinking residential child care: positive perspectives (2009) which points out the value of having a comprehensive and regulated residential child care establishment in England and Wales, at a time when it has been effectively dismantled through the Waterhouse Enquiry and the use by police of 'trawling' for evidence from former residents in an effort to persuade them to raise false allegations of past abuse against residential care home staff, with the promise of financial compensation.

(See also Krysia Canvin, Rt Hon. Gordon Brown MP, Mark Ivory, Eric Pickles MP, Ken Loach, John Hemming MP)

Roger Smith (OBE)

Director of British human rights group Justice.

As with Liberty (see Shami Chakrabarti) Justice has determined not to engage in the debate and controversy over the English and Welsh Family Justice system that has engulfed the sector in the last decade, even in the face of numerous European Court of Human Rights judgments. Unlike Liberty, Justice is not exclusively associated with current or former Labour Party members and describes itself as < a href="http://www.justice.org.uk/enterb/index1.html" rel="external"> an all-party law reform and human rights organisation

As in the case of Liberty and Amnesty International the reasons for Justices' abject refusal to even so much as commit to a study program on the subjects may simply be that vested interests - namely the potential loss of income for some of its members in the legal industry should reform succeed, may take precedence over the desire to address genuine human rights abuse taking place in England and Welsh secretive family courts. Justice claims to ensure that UK law protects the fundamental rights of everyone affected by it though it appears that this commitment does not extend to the protection of (notably) women and children exposed to the risks of a secretive justice system inside the United Kingdom.

In parallel with Liberty, Justice will not discuss or respond to any correspondence by email, letter or phone call querying what it's stance is on the secretive Family Court system in England and Wales.

(See also Kate Allen)

Michael Snedeker

US criminal defence lawyer and author of the California State Prisoners Handbook. Co-author with journalist Debbie Nathan of Satan's Silence (1995) regarded by many as the definitive history and analysis of the moral panic that gripped the US throughout the 1980's and 1990's. The 'panic saw the satanic ritual abuse Myth extend beyond the fantasies of a minority of extreme right-wing Christian Fundamentalists all the way to dominate the agendas of liberal and leftist intellectuals and academics, many police officers, social workers, lawyers, psychologists and politicians. As the panic ran its course, the basis for US justice provision was altered, perhaps permanently, and the spectre of the witch trials in Salem returned to haunt US society. Many prosecutions echoed the witch trials, often requiring the defeat of modern science, the denial of forensic evidence advances, and a belief in the paranormal, magic and the fantastic.

Satan's Silence



(See also Gerard Armirault, Martha Coakley, Bea Campbell (OBE))

MS. Somani (Dr.)


Christina Hoff-Sommers

US-born feminist and author of (2001) and Who Stole Feminism?: How Women Betrayed Women (1995) that addresses the contention that feminism has been hijacked by its "radical" sub-branch and transformed into a movement that deliberately demeans and injures women. Rather than present an opposing argument in the traditional manner, Ms. Sommers simply presents the written and spoken words of those radical feminists she identifies as bringing the movement into disrepute, so that they condemn themselves.

One of the most notable instances is her review of the claims by
Gloria Steinem in her book Revolution from within: A Book of Self-Esteem and Naomi Wolf, in her book The Beauty Myth that about 150,000 females in the US die of anorexia each year. In fact the true figure (at the time of the books' writing) is less than one hundred. Throughout Who Stole Feminism are numerous instances when research has been doctored or simply blatantly presented with lies by radical feminists who have found that scientific or statistical truth does not fit the results they initially discovered. Of particular concern is the manner in which generations of American women, taught by radical feminist teachers and professors are seemingly unable to practice independent research without prejudging the results, or are unable to practice free will or expression.

In the US and UK the end result of the wholesale destruction of "proper" feminism is that subjects like female genital mutilation cannot be discussed in public debate (because it offends the cultures who practice it) and the abuse of women by the judiciary is a "non" subject.

In the field of child protection radical or "gender" feminism is most often associated with it's allying to Christian Fundamentalism during the SRA Myth of the late 1980's and 1990's. That combination has continued unabated, assisting in the pursuit of mothers and particularly mothers who have maintained a professional career (such as lawyers or senior company officers) simply because such women challenge the basis of radical feminism in being able to do both (maintain a career and a family.)

In recent years the increased use of "pseudo" science in the secretive family courts, together with the continued use of PAS and MSBP have been encouraged by radical feminists, even when such abuses have encouraged a social care system more akin to pre-1940's times. The core problem appears to be that the hate-driven, anti-family philosophy practiced by a number of particularly vitriolic radical feminists has seen them determine that mothers and many heterosexual women are "fair game" for any form of abuse - whether it be through the aligning of the feminist campaign with Christian Fundamentalists or through the their abuse through a secretive judicial system. In addition many in the radical feminist movement are "uncomfortable" with traditional science, principally because it requires a degree of acceptance of peer review, and the possibility that any prejudgement's may provide to be incorrect.

The radical feminism collusion with religious conservatism has seen the rise of the likes of "Islamic Feminism" - caused simply because traditional Western radical feminists are now routinely unwilling or unable to assist in fighting for the rights of women in sometimes vicious cultures. The rise of conservative values in radical feminism have been reflected in somewhat disturbing trends - most notable of which is the rise of the perception that mothers are physically or mentally challenged and obviously unable to perform both demanding roles AND look after a family. This seemingly misogynist expression of prejudice stems not from traditional males in modern times, but from a sometimes rabid-like hatred of women with children from the radical feminist community. More recently scientific and cultural principles and discoveries determined to be "male-centric" are increasingly subject to conservative values - such as the covering of female mummies in an Egyptian museum (to preserve the mummies "dignity") and even doubt expressed about evolutionary biology, seeing an interest in Creationism amongst some radical feminists.

Non-gender feminism is still a force of both change and progress, rather than a force to engender a return to historic prejudice against most notably, mothers. "Choice Feminism" a relatively new term, shouldn't exist by all rights. Yet it defines women who will not devalue their status or compromise their values but certainly won't be dictated-to by college professors, many of whom do not have children, or families, or "proper" jobs. Choice feminists determine the nature of the lives they lead and with who. As stated elsewhere a primary problem that radical or "political" feminism has is that the rise of the career woman who lives within (and most likely dictates) a family was never anticipated. Feminist writers and campaigners/lecturers in the past assumed that women would throw off the shackles of patriarchal marriage and embrace a world without male influence (presumably through lesbian relationships). Children, seen as a tradition imposed by hormones, tradition and evolution, would be dispensed-with as an unnecessary burden, or at least would be consigned to State creche upbringing. The existence of SAHD (Stay-At-Home-Dads) or husbands who earn less than wives was never envisaged by radical feminists, though such arrangements and marriages are direct indicators of the success of non-gender-hate-driven feminism. Unable to comprehend that a "third way" was possible, many radical feminists have become enraged with mothers.

Child protection has regrettably become the refuge within which such hate can be practiced; using "pseudo" science concepts, a secretive justice system, and the opportunity to punish any slight or lack of deference, particularly from a mother, is possible, without fear of public condemnation or peer-review. Prejudice against fathers grandparents is also enabled, in an environment of bitterness and decay.

(See also Bea Campbell (OBE), Noam Chomsky, Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP, Dr. Mary Jo Bane, Pamela Bjorklund, ML Bergeron, Simone de Beauvoir, Joan Acocella)

David Southall (OBE, MD, FRCP, FRCPCH)

Prominent British paediatrician, regarded by some as a leading expert in Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy, or Fabricated and/or Induced Illness (FII) as it is presently known Dr Southall came to the publics attention after declaring to Staffordshire child protection police officers that the husband of Sally Clark was responsible for murdering his children. This diagnosis was reached after Dr. Southall had watched a television interview about the Sally Clark case. In 2004 Dr Southall was found guilty of serious professional misconduct by the GMC, and banned him from child protection work for three years. An attempt to gain a lifetime ban was overruled by the High Court in 2005. From 1986 to 1994 Dr Southall had led a pilot project investigating MSBP/FII through the use of covert video surveillance of women in hospital with children.

In the early 1990's Dr. Southall took part in a controversial experimental project to pioneer the use of continuous negative extrathoracic pressure therapy, a treatment for breathing difficulties in young children involving the application of pressure to the patients' chests. Although there were allegations made of death or brain injuries inflicted on subject babies, an independent study in 2006 found "no evidence of disadvantage, in terms of long-term disability or psychological outcomes" from the use of the technique. In 2007 the Attorney General Lord Goldsmith ordered a review of Dr. Southall's involvement in numerous criminal cases when it was alleged he had kept up to 4.450 personal case files on child patients, kept separate from official hospital records.

In September 2008 Dr. Southall was reinstated by the GMC and is allowed to work in the child protection field in England and Wales again.

A revealing 1997 documentary, to date unseen in the UK, about Dr. Southall, featuring psychologist and frequent critic of the MSBP/FII false-allegation regime, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown is linked below;

What Prof David Southall didn't want you to see

In May 2010 leading feminist Bea Campbell (OBE), perhaps most famously known for her collusion with religious fundamentalists during the 1980's and '90's when promoting the satanic ritual abuse Myth, reiterated her long-term support for Dr. Southall, and for the MSBP mechanism that has proven so effective when employed against women in the UK over the last two decades;

Dr David Southall: a cautionary tale of child protection

A cursory review of the subsequent Guardian Comment Is Free subscriber comments suggested that with friends like Ms. Campbell OBE, Dr. Southall has no need for enemies.

Dr. Southall established the charity Child Advocacy International following his return from a visit in 1993 to Sarajevo during the Bosnian War, as a participant in a medical evacuation program for sick children in the area. The organisation campaigns on international child health issues (see also Ray Wyre.) For his commitment to CAI, Dr. Southall received an OBE.

On May 12th 2011, British television's Channel 4 broadcast the documentary A Very Dangerous Doctor under its Cutting Edge banner.

(See also Penny Mellor, Sir Roy Meadow)

Sean A. Spence (MD MBBS BSc DGM DRCOG MRCGP FRCPsych)

Professor of General Adult Psychiatry at The Medical School, The University of Sheffield, England. He is also Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist to the Homeless Assessment and Support Team (HAST), Sheffield Care Trust

As a leading European psychiatrist, Dr. Spence has researched and written numerous academic papers, and worked with other professional partners in the rapidly developing fields of neuroscience and neuropsychiatry. He is also a frequent external examiner for other academic organisations and member of the International Centre for Research in Forensic Psychology, Portsmouth University. A particular feature of neuropsychiatry is its employment of high technology, notably MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) scanners. By imaging the human brain subtle changes in neurological activity can be traced and recorded, allowing analysis to determine, for instance, which part of the brain it used for what purpose, and how the brain responds and contributes to the generation of action, determination, thought and emotion.

Dr. Spence and his fellow colleagues at the University of Sheffield have been notable in being able to pursue their research through the lens of real-world subjects that are always close to having practical applications - an example being his presentation to the 2007 British Association of Psychopharmacology Annual Meeting - Imaging frontal lobe function in schizophrenia.

A particular line of research is apparent in Dr. Spense's work - that of investigating the nature of lying and deception generated by the human brain. For obvious reasons this has huge potential for real-world applications, and this is reflected in presentations such as A biological perspective on human deception (Nordic Network for research on Psychology and the Law, Finland), Interpersonal Deception: Detection, Neuroimaging, and Pragmatic Inference, University of Aarhus, Denmark and Investigating the antisocial brain The First Maudsley Mediterranean Forum, Sicily. He is a peer reviewer for numerous academic journals and the author or co-author of numerous papers, including Prefrontal white matter - the tissue of lies? (British Journal of Psychiatry, 2005).

In 2007, Dr Spence co-authored with colleagues CJ Kaylor-Hughes, ML Brook, ST Lankappa, and ID Wilkinson 'Munchausens syndrome by proxy' or a 'miscarriage of justice'? An initial application of functional neuroimaging to the question of guilt versus innocence (published in European Psychiatry);

'Munchausens syndrome by proxy' characteristically describes women alleged to have fabricated or induced illnesses in children under their care, purportedly to attract attention. Where conclusive evidence exists the condition's aetiology remains speculative, where such evidence is lacking diagnosis hinges upon denial of wrong-doing (conduct also compatible with innocence). How might investigators obtain objective evidence of guilt or innocence? Here, we examine the case of a woman convicted of poisoning a child. She served a prison sentence but continues to profess her innocence. Using a modified fMRI protocol (previously published in 2001) we scanned the subject while she affirmed her account of events and that of her accusers. We hypothesised that she would exhibit longer response times in association with greater activation of ventrolateral prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortices when endorsing those statements she believed to be false (i.e., when she 'lied'). The subject was scanned 4 times at 3 Tesla. Results revealed significantly longer response times and relatively greater activation of ventrolateral prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortices when she endorsed her accusers' version of events. Hence, while we have not 'proven' that this subject is innocent, we demonstrate that her behavioural and functional anatomical parameters behave as if she were.
(Source: The Abstract. Note this is an academic paper, downloadable via either subscription or one-off payment. The Site editors have not to date been given permission to quote extensively from it).


Jonathan Stanesby ("Jolly")

Fathers 4 Justice campaigner.

Mr. Stanesby first came to public attention when he conducted an F4J protest at Buckingham Palace. Later in 2004 he and a fellow campaigner confronted
Margaret Hodge MP, the then Children's Minister, outside a Law Society conference at the Lowry Hotel in Manchester in 2004 and subsequently made a citizens arrest and handcuffed Ms Hodge to a railing. Stanesby was arrested and bailed for nearly a year and then summonsed to Magistrates Court whereupon he requested committal for trial. In September 2007 he was acquitted of the charge of false imprisonment.

Mr Stanesby, who has taken part in numerous F4J demonstrations, came to further public light in June 2008 when he and Mark Harris staged a rooftop protest at Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP house in Herne Hill, London. When he finally retuned to earth, Stanesby was arrested and subsequently bailed. In November 2008 Mr. Stanesby was jailed for two months by a District Judge at the City of Westminster magistrates court for "causing distress and alarm and refusing to obey a police officer." He was also fined £250 and ordered to pay £500 costs." The charge was non-triable, presumably because a conviction would have been harder to secure before a jury.
(Source: Fathers 4 Justice campaigner jailed after protesting on Harriet Harman's roof dressed as superhero)

Gloria Steinem

Please note the extended entry for Dr. Gloria Steinem, which discusses her collusion with far-right religious fundamentalists in the promotion of the satanic ritual abuse myth, multiple personality disorder and repressed memories from the 'moral panic' of the 1980s to the present-day, has moved to this dedicated page.

Darin Strauss

US author of Chang and Eng and The Real McCoy. His third novel is More than it hurts you (2008) - the plot revolves around an allegation of MSBP;

"Josh Goldin is a happily married TV airtime salesman with an eight-month-old son. When baby Zack is treated twice for mysterious and life-threatening symptoms, the head of a paediatric ICU, Dr. Darlene Stokes, tells Child Protective Services that she thinks Josh's wife, Dori, suffers from Munchausens syndrome, whereby the afflicted injure their children deliberately to draw attention to themselves."
(From: http://www.darinstrauss.com/hurts.html)

(See also Maribeth Fischer, Wilkie Collins)

J. Michael Straczvnsk (Joseph)

American screenwriter, most popularly known for the long-running science-fiction television series Babylon 5 that ran for five seasons from 1994.

In addition to offshoots of Babylon 5 Mr. Straczvnsk researched and wrote the screenplay for the movie Changeling (2008) directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Angelina and John Malkovich. The movie earned him a British BAFTA nomination and displayed to the movie world that he wasn't typecast in sci-fi. The movie also attracted three Oscar nominations.

The story behind the research and writing of the Changeling is worthy of a drama presentation of its own. Long before writing the script Straczvnsk was contacted by Los Angeles City Hall and was told of an intention to burn numerous archived documents but that there was something he should see. The result of the lengthy research (ivolving 6,000 historical documents) was Straczvnsk's writing of a speculative script The Strange Case of Christine Collins. After a long gestation in pre-production the movie was finally released as Changeling

A trailer for the movie can be found at Changeling trailer

Please note the following section after the poster reveals much of the plot of the movie

The Changeling


Changeling is set in 1928 Los Angeles. It tells the true story (though adapted in parts with some character concatanated) of single mother Christine Collins, played by Jolie, who finds upon returning home that her 9-year-old Walter has gone missing. After some time, the LAPD tells Collins that her son has been found alive. Except the boy isn't her son, and Collins insists upon it. The head of of LAPD Juvenile Division Captain J. J. Jones insists that the boy is Walter and pressures Collins into taking the boy into her home. She continues to insist the boy isn't hers, to the point that it provokes a doctor arranged by Jones to say that the boy presented to her is smaller because trauma has shrunk his spine, and that the man who kidnapped him had him circumcised. As Collin's continues to persist, and despite her dentist providing signed letters to say that the 'new' Walter is a doppleganger, the newspaper rail against her and she is consigned by Jones to the psychopathic ward of Los Angeles COunty Hospital. There she is told by another inmake that other women had been committed there for challenging police authority. A Dr. Steele insists that Collins is delusional and insists that she take mood-regulating pills. He promises that if she admits her mistake about the "new" Walter she will be released, which she declines.

In the meantime a Detective by the name of Kelly is engaged in another case outside the city, intent on deporting a teenager back to Canada. His uncle (Northcott) flees and the youngster tells the Detective that he had participated in the kidnap and murder of around 20 boys and identifies the (correct) Walter amongst them. The conver-up unravels when a Reverend Briegleb (played by Malkovich) secures Collin's release after Ybarra finds the murder site. The "new" Walter reveals that he'd just wanted to get to Los Angeles to see his favorite actor, but that the police had fed him the brief to act as Walter. Collins's lawyer secures the release of the other incarcerated women.

At the Northcott trial the uncle is found guilty and sentenced to be hung. In the face of protests the Town Hall determines to limit the power of police extrajudicial internments.

In real life the scandal had a significant impact on the treatment of single women by police authorities and other agencies, Federal or otherwise, in the US. Collins sued twice, winning damages in the second case, though she was never paid. Some of the key officials removed from their posts were later reinstated. The scandal did though contribute to to the comprehension that women remained effectvely disempowered in the US, particularly single women. The ease with which the LAPD, instructing the newspapers, had her easily labelled as hysterial, unreliable, or just mad, had a huge impact on the liberal elite. The wilingness of some professionals, particularly doctors, to brazenly lie to her detriment also had a significant impact. The scandal became known as an early victory for US feminism.

Unfortunately, particularly in the UK, the Collins Scandal still has huge resonance with similar scandals of today. Women, notably those who encounter the secret Family Court system, routinely find themselves accused of being mentally ill. On occasions such 'awkward' women are consigned to mental institutions, apparently in a effort to 'shut them up'. In September 2010 the Daily Telegraph columnist Christopher Booker reported on one such case, of a woman bundled away to an asylum after she protested about the care her child had received by doctors, in Child protection: why did this woman lose her children?;

Nine days ago six policemen, three psychiatric workers and three social workers from the local council arrived outside a house in south London, threatening to beat the door down unless they were given entry. Inside were a mother and her two terrified children, aged nine and 11. Once inside, they removed the mother to a psychiatric hospital under the Mental Health Act, and gave the children to her estranged husband, a solicitor, from whom she parted some years ago because she didn’t consider his promiscuous lifestyle compatible with bringing up two young daughters.
(Source: Child protection: why did this woman lose her children? By Christopher Booker, The Daily Telegraph, 18th September 2010)

Fortunately, upon assessment seven days into her incarceration, it was realised that the mother had no sign of mental illness, and had simply been committed to shut her up. She was immediately released.

The subject as to why women in the UK, notably in England, are easily accused of mental illness, particularly if they question the judgement of a social worker, or even incarcerated in mental institutions, is discussed under the Entries for Christopher Booker and the 18th-century English novelist Wilkie Collins, whose The Woman in White (1859) was written in response to a rush of scandals about women consigned to mental asylums in the 1850s, for speaking-out or being 'too free'.

A possible explanation for the continuing labelling of questioning or free-thinking women, notably mothers encountering officialdom, can be attributed to the changing nature of feminism in the last two decades. In the past feminism fought for the rights of women, particularly single women. Since the late 1980s though, typified by the collusion with religious fundamentalists during the SRA Myth years, feminists - notably 'gender' feminists have taken a distict negative view of single mothers, notably intelligent single mothers. These are classified as having, like women in married relationships, as having aided the 'patriarchy' - the imaginary Vast Conspiracy, similar to James Bonds's foes SPECTRE that feminism tries to combat. Having identified an enemy, such women are vulnerable as 'fair game'. In the last two decades every single child protection and family justice scandal and 'fad' that has taken place, has done so without any positive intervention from the feminist community, including; the Sally Clark Scandal, the Angela Canning scandal, the use of widespread false allegations of MSBP against women with autistic children, the SIDS sand MSBP scandals, and the now-routine use of a plethora of 'personalty disorders' women can be diagnosed with, many using pseudo/crank science methodologies.


Lauren Stratford (Laurel Rose Willson)

Born in Washington in 1941. Writing as Lauren Stratford, Ms. Willson wrote Satan's Underground: The Extraordinary Story of One Woman's Escape (1988) with her psychiatrist Johanna Michaelson, I Know You're Hurting: Living Through Emotional Pain (1989) and Stripped Naked: Gifts for Recovery (2001) all purposrting to be written by a survivor of satanic ritual abuse as a child. The Christian magazine Cornerstone investigated the claims made in Satan's Underground, including that Stratford/nee Willson had given birth to three children as a result of rape; two being allegedly killed in snuff films, and the third was supposedly sacrificed in her presence at a Satanic ritual. However, Cornerstone found no evidence that she had ever been pregnant or adopted a child (from her Wikipedia entry). Cornerstone magazine no longer archive the revelations into Willson, who had a history of making false allegations and came from a privilaged background. The investigation and the subsequent withdrawal of Satan's Underground can be read at LAUREN STRATFORD UPDATE: THE BOOK'S WITHDRAWN, SOME QUESTIONS REMAIN by Jon Trott, Cornerstone, vol. 18, issue 91, p. 16, 1990)

Despite the revelations, Willson continued to write, though with diminishing sales. She changed her name to Lauren Stratford, and then in 1999 reappeared on the 'survivor' scene as Laura Grabowski, a Holocaust survivor of Auschwitz-Birkenau. As 'Grabowski', Stratford/Willson collected thousands of dollars in donations intended for Holocaust survivors.

She died in April 2002.

Jack Straw (John Whitaker, MP)

Senior British Labour politician and MP for Blackburn. Former Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain and former current Secretary of State for Justice before the Labor Party left office in May 2010.

As a young man Mr. Straw was a notable student activist. He qualified as a barrister and practiced in criminal law from 1971 to 1974. In 1997, as a member of the then-elected New Labour government, he was made Home Secretary, having acted as a political adviser for the pre-Thatcher Labour administrations and in Shadow Opposition.

As Home Secretary he gained an immediate reputation for pursuing policies that challenged civil liberties (beginning with the infamous Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) that was enacted long before the post 9/11 concerns with national security) and this thread has remained with New Labour administrations to the present day.

Despite Mr. Straws seeming tendency towards totalitarianism, he is seen as a committed Parliamentarian and democrat, being still willing to regularly stand on a soapbox in the middle of his Blackburn constituency town centre and engage with debates with members of the public in a manner few other MP's would feel comfortable with or capable of.

In July 2008 Camilla Cavendish article A moving response to our family justice campaign drew attention to the lack of comment by Mr. Straw to address the criticism of the secretive English and Welsh family law system in his capacity of Minister for Justice;

Only one person has remained silent. Jack Straw, the Secretary of State for Justice, holds the power to change the system for the better. It would be good to know what he is going to do about it.
(Source: A moving response to our family justice campaign)

In response to The Times campaign for the opening-up of the secretive Family Courts, Mr. Straw announced a proposed change in emphasis in mid December 2008. Responding directly to Camilla Cavendish's articles, which by then had won her the Paul Foot Award for investigative journalism, Mr. Straw seemed determined to address many of the failings of the secretive courts.

It follows a series of articles in The Times stretching back three years and highlighting the potential for miscarriages of justice because of the secrecy surrounding family court proceedings.

Mr Straw spoke to The Times as he was preparing to unveil a far-reaching shake-up of the family court system, to make it more transparent.

"Local authorities aren't routinely named at the moment. My view is that ought to be. There should be no restriction on naming social workers or medical experts unless it could lead to the identification of [children] ," he said.

In a second change, Mr Straw announced this afternoon that the media will be able to attend family courts and report on cases as long as they do not name the parties or give out the kind of personal details which allow nosy neighbours to identify them.

People involved in family court proceedings will be able to apply for specific reporting restrictions, Mr Straw said. But he hopes that judges will only rarely accede to such requests. "My hope is that the courts are reluctant to grant these," he said.

Mr Straw will have the support of the senior judiciary. Sir Mark Potter, Britain's most senior family judge, told The Times recently that family courts should be opened to the media to dispel the "myths and inaccuracies" surrounding the system.

The balance had come down "in favour of increased openness by permitting the attendance of the media", subject to protecting the anonymity of children and, "where appropriate, the parties," Sir Mark said.

Mr Straw said that the family courts has been "a closed world". Opening it out would provide a chance that standards would rise and "egregious practices spotted before they become harmful."
(Source: Family courts to be opened up as Jack Straw announces massive shake-up - The Times, December 16th 2008 by Frances Gibb)

In February 2009 though it looked as if Mr. Straw had absolutely no intention of opening-up the secretive courts, and if anything, was intent on imposing more secrecy in the system.

A famous legal precedent, in the case of Clayton vs. Clayton has, since 2003 established the right for a parent to express him/herself in public. This very Court of Appeal ruling had allowed numerous parents, victims of injustice such as the Webster's to draw their plight to the publics attention.

A unreported last sentence in the Ministry of Justices statement defining the so-called new lifting of the veil of secrecy http://www.justice.gov.uk/docs/family-justice-in-view-ia.pdf determined that the Clayton ruling would be reversed;

The identity of children will be protected beyond the end of proceedings (reversing the case law consequent from the decision in Clayton vs. Clayton)


The consequence of such a policy would be that nothing that could possibly identify a child who had been involved in secretive Court proceedings could be divulged to the Press. This would include parents or women who approached the Press with their stories of institutionalised injustice. In particular though this ruling would bar any child, perhaps being physically or sexually assaulted in care from approaching the Press to complain about their treatment;



It is because of that Clayton v Clayton ruling that the Webster's were able to speak of their distress on Thursday. "Reversing it will mean that any child or adult who has been in a family court case cannot identify themselves in public," says Clayton. "The implication of this for papers is bad – editors are only interested in a story if it has a human dimension, if you can see the people or read about them by name."

Liberal Democrat MP John Hemming MP agrees: "There are two issues here. One is that the press will be prevented from reporting cases like the Webster's with their names and faces. The other is that, at the moment, children who are in care are entitled to speak out if they are unhappy, although it doesn't happen very often because nobody knows how to do it. The effect of this change will be to gag them."

Since Clayton v Clayton there have been no complaints of invasion of privacy. "

Fran Lyon, Angela Canning, Bob Geldof, Jack Frost – there are more than a dozen people who have benefited from being able to go public with their stories," says Clayton. "There are thousands of people like the Websters out there who, once their cases are over, will want to log on to a forum and discuss what happened to them and get support. As of April, it will be illegal to identify yourself in any way that could lead to the identification of the child." Similarly, there are occasions when the children may wish to make a public statement.
(Source: Justice Ministry to bar parents from telling their own stories - 15th February 2009)

The decision to impose more secrecy not less on the already secretive family court system mystified the journalist Camilla Cavendish, whose writing had contributed hugely to the perception that Jack Straw had determined that the secrecy would be challenged. Even The Independent newspaper, normally associated with former Left-Wing newspapers The Guardian and Observer as being hugely supportive of the Secret Court system appeared to sympathise with her;

Cavendish takes a less conspiratorial view, but is nonetheless perplexed about the reversal of Clayton. "It won't cancel out the new legislation but it will make it increasingly difficult to report these cases," she said. "I'm afraid I don't know why it is happening."
(Source: Justice Ministry to bar parents from telling their own stories - 15th February 2009)

It is uncertain why Mr. Straw seemingly attempted to deceive both the Press and public into believing that the government intended to reduce and challenge the secrecy obsession of the English and Welsh Family Court system, when it seemed at the time of the Clayton vs. Clayton announcement that there was no such desire whatsoever. However a few months later he announced that there would be no proposal to change legislation to disallow the Clayton vs Clayton precedent, apparently in direct response to the concerns discussed widely in the media to the initial proposal.

It is conceivable that, nearing the end of his political career, officials within the Ministry of Justice have, with an axe to grind, deliberately saddled Mr. Straw with a policy commitment he has neither any knowledge of or any desire to pursue.

In July 2009 Mr. Straw, in an interview with The Times, made it clear that his commitment to reform of the Family Courts was still uppermost in his mind.

Mr Straw said: “The first change was to allow the media into the courts and that came into force at the end of April. The second change relates to the concerns that have been expressed that although journalists can report the gist of proceedings they cannot report the substance without being in contempt of court.”

The changes will be considered next week and are likely to take effect this autumn. Legislation will then be introduced in the Improving Schools and Safeguarding Children’s Bill to rationalise reporting rules across all family courts in line with the regime that applies in the youth courts. Judges would have a discretion to lift anonymity provisions in the public interest at the end of a case. “All of this is turning around a tanker,” Mr Straw said. “But the tanker is turning.”
(Source: Straw promises another increase in media scrutiny of family courts by Frances Gibb, The Times, Thursday 9th July 2009 page 13)

Mr. Straw's determination to reform the secret court system in England and Wales was underlined with the announcement that he intended to ensure that social workers, as public professional officials, could be named in court proceedings, and the judgements made public. Opposition to the proposal was intense, with attempts made to suggest that social workers were somehow unique, compared to say police officers named in serious criminal trials, and that their 'human rights' would be impacted if they were named.

At a recent meeting, Professor Judith Masson, a family law academic from the University of Bristol, condemned the proposals as “wholly misconceived” and expressed “strong doubts” that they were compliant with human rights laws.

A paediatrician added that providing medical reports could conflict with rules on confidentiality while a psychologist said that the result would be sanitised reports of less value to the court. Fears were also expressed that the move would deter people from becoming social workers and that judges would face heavy criticism from the media if they refused to lift anonymity provisions.
(Source: Jack Straw’s plan to name social workers in family courts ‘breaches human rights’ - by Frances Gibb, The Times September 28th 2009)

Whilst Mr. Straw's proposed reform of the secret court system offered the possibility of him leaving a tangible and positive legacy to British politics, on Thursday October 22nd 2009 he became involved in an event that is likely to be referred-to as a low point in his political career in his eventual obituaries.

In September 2009 the BBC announced that as the British National Party (BNP) had gained two European Parliament seats - through proportional representation in the last European elections - it was now eligible to appear on a popular weekly political debating show called Question Time. Over 1.5 million voters had provided a degree of political "respectability" to the BNP, though it's right-wing and occasionally Nazi-like credentials take it beyond the normal bounds of political life in the UK.

The response though from the left-wing and liberal elite in the UK was though hugely shocking. Led by Labour MP Peter Hain, who in an effort to dissuade the BBC from allowing the BNP's leader (and Euro MP) Nick Griffin onto Question Time, managed to achieve the opposite; increasing public perception of the upcoming program, whilst bringing into question his own commitment to democracy.

Despite protests, Mr. Griffins invitation stood, and he duly appeared at the BBC's studio's in West London, subjected to a huge security presence whilst hundreds of demonstrators from an organisation called Unite Against Fascism.

Jack Straw, plus Chris Hulne of the Liberal Democrat Party, plus two other guests acted as co-panelists - with Nick Griffin. The show was hosted by the normally-reliable David Dimbleby, in front of a hand-picked audience, given permission to 'boo' by chairman David Dimbleby.

What followed was a disaster for the liberal and left-wing elite. Hopelessly inept and unquestionably weird, Nick Griffin was verbally assaulted for nearly an hour, during which the normal Question Time format (though sometimes circumvented in the past) of having studio audience members asking questions about current affairs was abandoned in favour of a sustained stalking of Griffin by both the other four members of the panel, and Dimbleby himself, in concert with an audience that contained an extraordinarily high percentage of ethnic minority members.

Worse, when asked about the governments policy towards immigration - the subject that had contributed more than any other to the rise of the BNP's popularity-Mr. Straw comprehensibly fluffed his answer, in effect blaming the perceived concern on the British public being unable to cope with the changing modern world.

Instead of exploiting an opportunity of engaging the BNP in a 'normal' political debate, where the BNP's policies would have been doubtlessly exposed, instead the program finished with Nick Griffin garnering public support as a 'victim' of a liberal/left-wing staged mugging. The BBC, particularly its News division, that had broadcast a ham-fisted and biased preview of the show before it had been shown, took the publics distaste full in the face (see What's your reaction to BBC Question Time program? - BBC Have Your Say debate). Mr. Straw though was probably the greatest individual victim of the show, apparently well equipped to attack Mr. Griffin as part of the 'mob' but seemingly hopelessly unable to defend himself when proffered a difficult question.

In May 2010, Labour left office, replaced by the Coalition Government. A final action taken with respect to the family justice system was the appointment of Lord Justice Nicolas Wall as President of the Family Court Division of the Royal Courts of Justice, despite the alleged initial reservations of Mr. Straw. LJ Wall is most famously known for the P, C & S Scandal (see the extended entry for Dr. Clive Baldwin), the finest example of judicial abuse of a woman in an English and Welsh secret court hearing. His appointment to the highest office in the provision of family justice in England and Wales can be interpreted as confirmation that the attitudes to justice for women in the secret courts, typified by the P, C & S case, were indeed a core tenet in Labour Party policy.

(See also Bridget Prentice (MP), Shami Chakrabarti, Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP, Rt. Hon. Patricia Hewitt MP, Margaret Hodge MP, Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP, Rt Hon. Gordon Brown MP)

Colin Sumner (Prof.)

British Former Professor of Criminology, now retired. See the entry for Prof. Mary deYoung.



John Sweeney

Author, journalist and investigative journalist for the BBC Panorama series.

Mr. Sweeney previously worked for The Observer for twelve years before joining the BBC in 2001. His most notable family law-related work concerned a four-year investigation into the cases of Sally Clark, Angela Canning and Donna Anthony, all of whom had been falsely imprisoned for killing their children. Mr Sweeney's investigation assisted in clearing their names. He has also reported on Zimbabwe and Scientology and is the winner of numerous awards, including the Paul Foot award in 2005.

(See also Camilla Cavendish, Richard Webster, Rosie Waterhouse)



The high point of the trial was Ginde's dramatic closing argument, in which he claimed that the many inconsistencies and absurdities in the children's testimony showed how terribly their elders had damaged their young psyches. In a passionate summation, he berated the defendants for their sexual "gluttony" and quoted the New Testament, warning the jury that "self-indulgence is the opposite of the spirit" and that people like Pitts clan would not "inherit the kingdom of God." Neither would the jury members, Gindes implied, if they acquitted the defendants. He finished his inflammatory peroration by waving large school portraits of each child, intoning the youngsters' names one by one, then chanting the word 'victim.' Then staring fixedly at each defendant, he recited their names, then the phrase 'child molester.' The appalled defence attorneys' objections were dismissed by Judge Friedman. The jury made is determinations without rereading any of the 13,000 pages of trial transcript, convicting each defendant on every one of more than 400 felony charges.

Their sentences ranged from 273 to 405 years in prison; the woman's time shattered previous state records. When a newspaper reporter asked Friedman why he had meted out such draconian punishments, he answered that it was because he had seen pictures of the defendants molesting the children and committing "every perversion imaginable." Yet no such evidence had been presented to the jury, nor was there any found by the sheriff's office after countless searches.
(Source: Page 98 - Chaos in Kern County - Satan's Silence - 1996)

As the moral panic subsided, the realisation of what had engulfed US society struck many, resulting in numerous appeals and acquittals. But hundred of individuals (65% of whom were women) had their families, employment prospects, and often their lives, utterly destroyed. Rather than recovering, the US remains in the grip of a moral panic, and recognition of how the extreme religious fundamentalist right drove a spear into the heart of US progressive politics and liberal academia, is only now being fully realised. How the Liberal and Leftist elite of US progressive politics were changed, it seems permanently, by the influence of the extreme Christian Right, is to be discussed at length in a forthcoming extended Index entry From Rocket Ships in Backyard to Camp Delta.

Together with professional colleague The National Center for Reason and Justice that fights for those jailed on the basis of false allegations in the US.
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


- Surnames T-V



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

T



Jamie Talen

Co-author with husband Richard Firstman of The Death of Innocents: A True Story of Murder, Medicine and High-Stake Science (1997) that promoted the concept that SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) was invariably caused by mothers murdering their babies.

(See also Sir Roy Meadow and Anne Diamond.)

Timothy Tate

Christian fundamentalist journalist.

His book Children for The Devil (1991) promoted the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth, using the same 'evidence' as employed on investigative journalist Roger Cook's discredited Cook Report documentary Devil's Work, which Tate had contributed research to. At the time both ITV's The Cook Report and Channel 4's Despatches production teams had been penetrated by Christian Fundamentalists and feminists, desperate to promote the SRA Myth, despite the somewhat glaring lack of evidence. Mr. Tate addressed this difficulty by simply generating false evidence. In doing so though the Cook Report documentary series, although not fatally wounded by the The Devil's Work was seriously compromised as a source of trusted journalism.

Mr. Tates Children for the Devil: Ritual Abuse and Satanic Crime suffered a worse fate;

The Curse of the Satanic Child Abuse Myth has consumed its most active promoter. Tim Tate, the man who unveiled the 'threat' of Satanic Abuse to the British Public in the Cook Report's DEVIL'S WORK, has admitted in the High Court that allegations contained in his book, Children for the Devil, were 'utterly without foundation' and agreed to pay out 'very substantial damages'.
...
The Broxtowe Case was the first incident upon which all further alleged Satanic Abuse Cases in the U.K. were built and was absolutely pivotal to the acceptance of the Myth. Tate played an instrumental part in promoting and publicising it in the discredited Cook Report and collaborating with key social workers in seminars and programmes. In the process Tate brought the public and many professionals to believe in his interpretation of events at Nottingham, yet when brought to book, Tate has been forced to eat his words. The interpretation we were being sold as fact, turned out to be Tate's personal opinion and supposition.

Peter Coles action vindicated himself and his colleagues in Nottinghamshire Police Force. The outcome of this case also vindicates those people who have maintained, despite a welter of accusations by Tate, that Satanic Abuse is a figment of the imagination of obsessed religious fanatics. When the first real test was applied to Tate's main case, the Satanic Abuse Myth crumbled instantly to dust.
(Source: Court Pulp Tate's Devil Book)

Despite being a committed religious fundamentalist, Tate's work has been referenced as 'factual' in academic papers authored by feminists, including Dr. Sara Scott and Manchester Metropolitan University lecturer in Criminal Law, Criminology, Gender and the Law and Law Reform Dr. Kate Cook and Director of the Child and Woman Abuse Studies Unit at London Metropolitan University (previously North London University) Dr. Liz Kelly in their paper “The Abduction of Credibility: A Reply to John Paley”, British Journal of Social Work, (1997), which challenged John Paley's paper, published in the same volume of the BJSW that related similarities in 'victims' of both alien abduction cases satanic ritual abuse myth cases.

Ms. Kelly and Ms. Cook's paper from 1997 had come at the extreme end of the SRA Myth, at a time when its credibility had been pretty much destroyed, leaving only the most very extreme 'witch burning advocate' religious fundamentalists and some committed and colluding feminists. Significantly, whilst Dr. Cook references her previous pro-SRA Myth papers on her online page (Dr. Kate Cook MMU) Dr. Liz Cook's academic web page is notably missing references to these papers, written at a time when feminism had openly and repeatedly colluded with religious fundamentalism, with each group feeding the obsessions of the other. Neither academic has written on the subject of the SRA Myth since, or made any apology or retraction of their historic adoption of the religious beliefs of those who included amongst their number, those who would have happily seen women and men burnt at the stake (see the extended entry about the SRA Myth under Kate Cook).

Although British copies of Mr. Tate's book are unavailable, having been pulped at the order of the High Court, it can still be purchased abroad, though as an expensive collectors item - see Children For The Devil, via the US Amazon store)

(See also Roger Cook, and Maureen Davies.)

Charles Taylor (Roy)

As a 71-year-old pensioner, the Charles Roy Taylor Scandal of 2007 drew attention to the alleged secret jailing of individuals by English and Welsh Family Courts. Being the step-grandfather of a teenager in local authority care in Nottingham he and his wife been apparently banned from contacting the boy, possibly following a long-running series of confrontations with the boy's mother. The boy allegedly contacted his grandparents, informing them he was being physically abused in care, whereupon, having broken the terms of the Family Court, Mr Taylor was jailed for contempt two years and his wife given a suspended sentence for two years. There was some indication that the local authority would attempt to ask the Family Court to illegally extend the boy's time in care beyond his 16th birthday in an effort to prevent him "going public" with his allegations. This though is all speculation; whatever the reason for Mr. Taylor's jailing, for contempt, the issue was executed in a secret court and therefore beyond the gaze of public or press scrutiny.

Whatever the merits or otherwise of the Charles Roy Taylor Scandal, the jailing of a elderly man with a heart condition (he is serving his time in HMP Ford) was questioned in respect to the sentences that violent offenders received in the criminal justice system.

On the 12th November 2007 Rt. Hon. John Hemming MP, in response to his question as to why Mr Taylor had been secretly jailed for two years, received this response from Maria Eagles – Parliamentary Under-Secretary for the Ministry of Justice;

My Department will not comment on individual prisoners

(See also PrisonerX, Rt. Hon. Jack Straw MP)

Ceri Thomas

Editor of the BBC Radio 4 flagship news program Today broadcast from 6am to 9am weekdays.

Mr. Thomas assumed the role in February 2006, taking over from Kevin Marsh who moved to the newly-created post of editor-in-chief of the BBC's new College of Journalism.

A regular subject of discussion on child protection and family justice Internet forums, together with criticisms made in Jack Frost's book The Gulag of the Family Court's is that the BBC is biased against reporting the controversies surrounding English and Welsh secret family justice courts and child protection issues.

This perceived reluctance was acutely felt during the Fran Lyon Scandal when ITV's GMTV saw Fran Lyon interviewed live in a studio on 30th August 2007, with not even a brief mention of the story on the Today program (though it was reported on the BBC News Web site.) Extensive coverage of the story featured in both national and international newspapers, including The Daily Mail/Mail on Sunday, The Telegraph plus a second appearance several months after the initial controversy was raised on Tonight with Trevor McDonald (November 26 2007.) Once again there was no mention on Today In addition there was extensive reporting by Sky News, CNN, and Independent Television News (ITN) such as http://itn.co.uk/tags/fran_lyon.html.

Amongst the subjects that the Today program is unwilling to report on/investigate is the forced adoption of babies (rather than the temporary provision of foster care) taken from women suffering Post Natal Depression, the extensive use of MSBP false allegations against women (particularly those with children with an autistic spectrum conditions) and the employment of pseudo/crank science in cases of forced adoption.

Ostensibly it would appear that there is a case for the BBC and in particular the Today program to answer.

It is unclear where the perceived bias against reporting child protection and family justice issues stems from; there is no government "D" Notice in force on the subjects, and CNN, Sky News and ITV cover stories that the BBC appear unwilling to address. It has been speculated that the Today program, which is routinely beset with allegations of pro-government support following the controversy of the David Kelly affair, is simply appeasing Ministers over a subject that would leave the Labour administration vulnerable.

A similar concern about a lack of interest in such stories has been found in coverage by the British television organisation – Channel 4 (see also Dorothy Byrne, Jim Gray.)

On the 25th June 2009 the Today program featured a rare article and subsequent interview about the secret court system - featuring the Minister for Justice Bridget Prentice (MP) and the Times journalist Camilla Cavendish. The subjects discussed concerned the difficulties journalists had in reporting secret court cases when judges were reluctant to release the key documents of the case to attending reporters. As secret court cases against (invariably) women revolve around experts' testimonies, often involving the use of pseudo/crank science, the subject of how free the Family Courts will ever become in the face of such intransigence is hugely pertinent. During the conversation Ms. Cavendish mentioned how some reports from experts concern predictions that a woman will turn "Munchausens." Regular listeners of Today though will be most likely utterly ignorant of the arguments and issues concerning the secret courts if they depend on the show, and it's sister program PM for news.


Penny Thompson

Appointed Chief Executive of the General Social Care Council (GSCC) from 4th February 2010which regulates social workers in England. Ms. Thompson replaced interim CEO Paul Snell, who in turn had taken over from Michael Wardle following his dismissal after a scandal was revealed that the GSCC wasn't dealing with complaints against social workers including some individuals who may have been deemed a risk to the public or children.

Ms. Thompson, a former social worker, takes on a difficult role, with an organisation that has a poor reputation. Amongst the many problems the GSCC has to contend with is the now routine negative allegations made against child protection social workers in both the Press and on the Internet. In this regard, the UK and in particular England is unique in Europe in having a well developed 'industry' of Internet bloggers and journalists who produce copious work on the subject (see the entry for Rachel Williams

In mid-2010 though the GSCC showed every indication that in some instances, it is willing to grant a 'by' for some individuals to continue to trade as social workers , even when not registered with the GSCC or its equivalent bodies in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland. Norma Howes is a significant individual in modern British social history, having been instrumental in introducing the satanic ritual abuse (SRA) Myth to the UK from American Christian Fundamentalist sources in the late-1980's (see the extended entry for the SRA Myth under Bea Campbell (OBE)).

Mrs. Howes, from Reading, Berkshire, continues to trade, as a psychologist and 'independent social worker' (her own advertising) although claiming to be a social worker and being unregistered is an offence under the Care Standards Act 2000, which is administered by the GSCC. Her 'trade' comprises dealing with traumatised children and training on the subject of Disassociation, a key component of the SRA Myth.

The GSCC has confirmed in writing that Ms. Howes is not registered. A query about policy with respect to the issues raised by this subject was raised by an editor of this site was submitted to the GSCC, and received an appropriate response. No further word was heard from the GSCC about the issue.

In late June 2010 Earl Howe (no relation) responsible for overseeing the 'hands-off' agencies for the Department of Health for the Coalition Government, including the GSCC, was written-to at the House of Lords and appraised of the issue.

In July 2010 the Health Secretary Andrew Lansley announced that the GSCC was to be abolished, together with other 'hands-off' agencies, and it's role taken on by the Health Professions Council. Such a step will require primary legislation in Parliament, and is unlikely to be performed before 2012. In May 2011 it was announced that a 'listening exercise' would be performed by the Coalition Government, prior to enacting any widespread reform of the NHS (the British National Health Service) and associated services. The proposed handover to the HPC of the GSCC's responsibilities was therefore on-hold at least until 2013.

On the 23rd August 2010 Norma Howes of Reading was registered on the GSCC registration database. The action confirmed that she had not been registered beforehand. There is no record of any GSCC disciplinary hearing scheduled or any proposed prosecution scheduled;

GSCC


Attending some of Ms. Howes courses can see a CPD (Certificate of Personal Development) issued. Belief in the SRA Myth continues to persist in British child protection social work, including the 'Mind Control" version and possibly the David Icke-derived alien reptile version (see the summary of three versions of the SRA Myth at Bea Campbell (OBE) Part Three). Mrs. Howes contribution to contemporary English history is substantial, and supplemants that detailed in the extended entry concerning the history of RAINS - the Ritual Abuse Information Network & Support organisation found at Dr. Sandra Buck. An extensive discussion and investigation into the current state of belief in the SRA Myth and the dissociation/MPD (Multiple Personality Disorder) mechanisms, predominant amongst white, English-speaking middle-aged women, can be found at Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS Part Three, Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS Part Four and Dr. Valerie Sinason & David Icke - RAINS Part Five


Alex Thomson

Newsreader for Channel 4 news. His son was initially diagnosed as on the autism spectrum but, apparently in a effort to save money his Local Authority-appointed expert later determined that the child was no longer autistic. (See Laura Collins)


Charles Thoreton (Lord Falconer, Leslie, Baron Falconer of Thoreton)

Former Lord Chancellor (from July 2003) and first Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs (a role created to take the position of Lord Chancellor.) A firm friend of former Prime Minister Rt. Hon. Tony Blair and a Labour politician who enjoyed a privileged upbringing with an education that spanned Edinburgh Academy to Queens' College, Cambridge.

As Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer is perhaps most known for his July 2007 decision to squash any attempt to open the secretive Family Court system in England and Wales to scrutiny following a consultation program. The decision provoked almost universal condemnation, though the Lord Chancellor based his decision on unpublished feedback from children and other groups. The decision, seemingly deliberately intended to ensure that controversy continued around the English and Welsh judiciary failed to satisfy any party and throughout 2008 even greater pressure was placed on both the government and Royal Courts of Justice in an effort to provoke reform.

(See also Justice Andrew McFarlane)



U





V



Jeffrey S. Victor (Ph.D.)

Professor of Sociology at Jamestown Community College, New York. Author of Satanic Panic: The Creation of a Contemporary Legend (1993) that investigated the nature of the SRA Myth in the late 1980's and early 1990', with particular detail afforded to the collusion of feminists and Christian Fundamentalists

(See also: Beatrix Campbell (OBE), Prof. Mary deYoung)
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


- Surnames W-Z



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

W



B. Wahl (Dr.)


John Waite

Long time presenter of BBC Radio 4's Face The Facts documentary and investigative report series established in 1986. Face The Facts and a related "magazine" program You and Yours have occasionally devoted time in investigating matters concerning family justice and child protection provision in the UK, including Forced Adoption first broadcast 24th August 2007, and Dr. David Southall July 20th 2001.

LJ Wall

Nicolas Wall (Lord Justice Wall, Sir)

President of the Family Division of the Royal Courts of Justice for England and Wales. former Appeal Court judge and Family Division Judge at the Royal Courts of Justice, The Strand. LJ Wall is probably most famous for the original family court hearing that was later examined by the European Court of Human Rights in 2002 (P, C&S v. HM Government.) The P, C&S case is routinely referred-to as a perfect example of family court malpractice and judicial abuse, whereupon a woman was faced with the prospect of having to fight her own case in court bereft of professional legal council. The ECHR determined several breaches of Human Rights relating both to the trial presided-over by Justice Wall and the activities of Rochdale Social Services. LJ Wall has to date made no apology for his role in the scandal. The case was studied at length by Dr. Clive Baldwin.

In 2008 LJ Wall made a public judgement in an appeal of a family law judgement that saw the attendance of the MP John Hemming acting as a Mackenzie Friend. LJ Wall criticised Mr Hemmings attendance, and in particular his suggestion that an evidence bundle had been interfered-with. The appeal, which was dismissed, also concerned an alleged lack of proper legal representation for a woman.

By way of contrast, in May 2008, sitting with Lord Justice Thorpe, LJ Wall issued a strident and stinging attack on East Sussex Social Services department who had pursued a forced adoption of a baby whilst blatantly ignoring the wish of the father to be involved in the decision-making issues, though his solicitors had registered their interest in the case with the Family Court.

Unusually the BBC, who rarely report on the issue of forced adoption, did so in this case, including an interview with Nadine Taylor, from the campaign group Fathers For Justice



In 2010, prior to the Labour Party government leaving office, LJ Wall was appointed as President of the Family Court Division of the Royal Courts of Justice, despite the alleged initial reservations of Minister for Justice Rt. Hon. Jack Straw MP. His appointment to the highest office in the provision of family justice in England and Wales can be interpreted as confirmation that the attitudes to justice for women in the secret courts, typified by the P, C & S case, were indeed a core tenet in Labour Party policy. For LJ Wall the challenge is to prove his detractors wrong, and demonstrate that he can put P, C & S behind him and genuinely reform the family court system to be fit for the 21st century. Early indications though suggest that he continues to support the culture of secrecy and the use of pseudo/crank science that dominates the proceedings of English and Welsh family courts.

Michael Wardle

Chief executive of the General Social Care Council that regulates social workers in England and Wales. The GSCC is routinely accused by parents and women with children of flagrantly ignoring complaints made against child protection social workers who exceed their authority or abuse both process and their clients.

The General Social Care Council has suspended its chief executive Mike Wardle after the discovery of a backlog of more than 200 referrals involving social workers accused of misconduct.

Health Secretary Andy Burnham announced the move yesterday after it emerged that 21 of the 203 cases concerned allegations suggesting the public could be at risk.

The build-up of a backlog of complains and the failure to ensure risk assessments were carried out was a "matter of extreme concern." Burnham said in a written statement to the House of Commons
(Source: GSCC suspends chief Mike Wardle over conduct backlog by Daniel Lombard, Community Care (online) 21st July 2009)

The impact the GSCC's failure to act was immense;

Among the social workers who remained free to work for months after allegations were lodged with the GSCC were individuals who were later struck off for sexually abusing their own children, or for repeated attacks on young girls in care homes, according to evidence seen by The Sunday Telegraph.

Delayed cases for which adjudications have been published by the GSCC include:

– Senior social worker Douglas Makey, struck off in September for grooming and sexually abusing girls at a children's home in Gravesend, Kent, stayed on the social work register for eight months after the complaint against him went to regulators.

– A man struck off last month for a seven-year campaign of sexual abuse of his partner's young daughter, remained on the register for 11 months after the allegations were raised. Another who abused his three-year-old son was only suspended three months after the complaint was lodged.

– It was three months before Christopher Hardman, from Batley, Yorkshire, was removed from the register after regulators were told he had encouraged vulnerable teenagers to pose naked for cash.

– Craig McLoughlin, from Sheffield, was free to work for four years after an incident in which he encouraged a recovering alcoholic to drink whisky, while informing pub-goers that he was the man's social worker.

– The GSCC's conduct committee said it was "lamentable" that Andrew Forbes McLauchlan, from East Sussex, had carried on working for three years with complaints against him pending. A charge of dishonesty was upheld but no sanction was imposed, due in part to the time elapsed.
(Source: Pedophiles continued as social workers because of watchdog failings, by Laura Donnelly, The Daily Telegraph, 28th November 2009)

In November 2009, Mr. Wardle was dismissed from his position;

The General Social Care Council has sacked its chief executive, Mike Wardle, in the wake of a damning review of the organisation's conduct system.

England's social care regulator is recruiting a new senior management team in an attempt to draw a line under the serious operational failings highlighted by the report by the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence, published last week.

Wardle, who was suspended from his post in July, was dismissed following an internal investigation prompted by the discovery of 203 unallocated conduct cases, including 21 with public protection concerns.

GSCC chair Rosie Varley (pictured) took the decision after a disciplinary hearing on 3 November, the day before the CHRE report was published.

A GSCC spokesperson confirmed the former civil servant's £147,500-a-year contract had been terminated and he will not receive a pay-off.

Varley said the new chief executive and three directors would come into an organisation with "greater clarity of purpose" which had public protection at the heart of its work.

She added: "We are also looking at how we can continue to raise standards in the sector by strengthening social work training, and holding the profession to account for competence as well as conduct."
(Source: GSCC dismisses chief executive Mike Wardle by Daniel Lombard, CommunityCare online, 9th November 2009

Two Interim Managers performed the role of Chief Executive until the permanent appointment of Penny Thompson, a qualified social worker, in February 2010. In the past Ms. Thompson had interim deputy chief executive at NHS Haringey in the wake of the Baby P scandal. Although the appointment of a qualified social worker could be seen as a case of 'poacher turned gamekeeper' Ms. Thompson has a reputation for being able to turn organisations around.

The role of Chief Executive of the GSCC is perhaps one of the most high-pressure roles in public life, with widespread public mistrust of social workers, routinely accused of poor performance, of generating non-existent evidence in the secret court system, and of using 'crank science' on a regular basis. In particular child protection social workers in England and Wales are often accused of avoiding 'proper' child protection cases and concentrating on cases that should have no resources wasted on them, or are instances when families or women should be receiving help, rather than having children forcibly removed. Thus, serious cases of neglect or abuse are allowed to persist, often resulting in death or serious injury to a child, whilst huge resource is spent pursuing 'pathetic' cases, such as against women who insist their children eat a healthy diet. The development of the World Wide Web, allied to the rising use of digital technology amongst the public provides two further challenges for the GSCC; as it constantly runs the risk of being ambushed in exonerating accused professionals who are later revealed to have committed offences or flouted regulations, with the subsequent release of digital recordings. As the GSCC enters the second decade of the 21st century, the challenges it faces, and the potential pitfalls it faces every day, are only increasing.

The GSCC still retains serious structural deficiencies, including indications that religious fundamentalists have penetrated the organisation. This is discussed at length in the entry for Penny Thompson.

(See also Sir Rodney Brooke, Eric Pickles MP, Camilla Cavendish, Mark Ivory)

Rosie Waterhouse

British investigative journalist, and now lecturer in the Department of Journalism and Publishing at City University (London)

Ms. Waterhouse worked on the staff of five national newspapers and as a TV reporter. She has twice been a member of the Sunday Times Insight team and worked for the Independent and Independent on Sunday, where she was investigations editor. She has also worked for BBC Newsnight, and is widely regarded as Britain's best investigative journalist. She was the first British journalist to expose the Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) scandal of the early 1990's in the UK in August of that year. In September 1990, as the Rochdale SRA Scandal was breaking she wrote a summary of the SRA scandal to date - Satanic cults: how the hysteria swept Britain - The Independent on Sunday – 16th September 1990.

The satanic indicators were passed to social workers in Congleton, Cheshire, who were also dealing with a case of incest. One social worker associated with the Congleton case is the secretary of the Social Workers Christian Fellowship. The Congleton social workers sought advice from their counterparts from Nottingham, Christine Johnson and Judith Dawson, who are widely consulted on satanic abuse.

Three key conferences on satanic abuse for social workers, police officers, psychotherapists and other child-care groups, followed in April and September 1989. The first was organised by the Association of Christian Psychiatrists. Norma Howes and Pamela Klein the organised two more conferences, in Reading and at Dundee University.


The September article was a follow-up to her groundbreaking The Making of a Satanic Myth published by The Independent on Sunday on 12th August 1990.

(See also Judith (Dawson) Jones, Ray Wyre, Norma Howes, Det. Sup. (ret) Peter Coles, Bea Campbell (OBE), Maureen Davies, Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP, Dianne Core, Prof. Jean La Fontaine)

Mark Webster


The case of the Websters is seen as one of the clearest examples backing persistent allegations of social service and family court abuse of families in England and Wales.

In 2005 the Webster's three children were forcibly adopted following a secret family court ruling in 2004 that one or the other parents had knowingly caused a series of fractures to the middle child (the children were removed from their parents in 2003.) The allegations were made by Norfolk County Council Social Services. The Webster's fled to Ireland, fearing that their yet-to-be born fourth child would be forcefully removed. When they returned is was to a special assessment unit where followed five months of intense observation of their parenting skills. They were eventually allowed to return home with their baby (Brandon) but kept under close supervision by Norfolk CC social workers.

The hearing in 2004 hinged on the evidence of four medical experts who said the fractures must have been caused non-accidentally. But subsequently, a series of nutrition experts said the middle child may have suffered fractures as a result of undiagnosed scurvy, which came about through a vitamin-deficient diet made up solely of soya milk.
(Source: Father's emotional message to adopted children)

In June 2007 Justice Holman (who see) determined that Norfolk CC could drop the care proceedings against the fourth child with the agreement of the Family Court. However the three older children have been forcibly adopted. The Webster's then faced the legal hurdle of undoing the forcible adoptions when such instances are normally permanent.

The Appeal Court case was heard in December 2008 and the results published as a judgement in February 2009. The Websters were informed that they could not have their children, wrongfully removed from them and adopted by force, back. The reason stated being that the court process had taken too long and the children should now not be disturbed in being returned to their proper parents.

For Mr and Mrs Webster, the parents of the children concerned, the case has been a disaster, quite apart from any breach of their rights under the ECHR. From their perspective, they have been wrongly accused of physically abusing one of their children, and three of their children have been removed wrongly and permanently from their care. The only mitigation, from their point of view is the local authority’s belated recognition that they are fit and able to care for Brandon.
...
4. For the Norfolk County Council, despite its forceful forensic stand in this court, the case has been a worrying and deeply regrettable experience, not least because, in the result, a family which might well have been capable of being held together, has been split up.

5. For the medical profession, the case has also been a painful learning experience, and a further illustration of the proposition that things may not always be what they seem.

6. Finally, both for the Family Justice System (FJS) in general, and for this court in particular, any miscarriage of justice – or potential miscarriage of justice – is both regrettable and embarrassing, not least when so much multi-disciplinary effort has been put into the promotion of good practice and the creation of procedures designed to ensure that the events which occurred in this case are not repeated.
(Source: Lord Justice Walls comments - Judgement W (Children)

Reaction to the news that the Websters route to justice in the UK courts was now blocked was swift and almost universally vitriolic. Key was that many people, unaware or perhaps disbelieving of the controversy surrounding the use of forced adoption in England and Wales suddenly realised that claims that the system could and is routinely guilty of injustice and appears to be less scrutinised than it should be, had some merit.

One example of the reaction was printed in the Daily Mirror - not noted for criticism of the secret court establishment;

All three children were put into foster care and, six months later were offered up for adoption. “Offered up”, like commodities, like unwanted pets, like their feelings didn’t matter.

Like licensed child abuse, delivered from the highest level: the law.

So it’s legal. So it’s OK then.

Imagine those little babies wrenched from their mummy and daddy, and placed with complete strangers.

Imagine when they’re older and are told what happened. The law knows no humanity, no compassion.

Lord Justice Wall said he had “profound sympathy” for the Websters, but could do nothing for them.

Why not? Because on some piece of legal paper somewhere it states the “finality” of adoption orders and the fact that they can be revoked only in extremely limited circumstances.

“The court concluded that after three years it was too late to set the adoption orders aside, and it would not be in the interests of the children to do so.”

Any parent, any compassionate human being, any child that’s been wrested from its parents knows that’s not the case. It’s just the law. And the law won.


(Source Adoption Law is Like Licensed Child Abuse - By Fiona Phillips, The Daily Mirror, 13th February 2009)

Director of Children's Services for Norfolk County Council Lisa Christensen issued a statement of huge crassness;

"I have huge sympathy for Mr and Mrs Webster.

"It has taken a very long time to reach this stage and this must have been a very hard experience for them.


Presumably deliberately ignoring that the "very long time" appears to have been the primary reason why the children were not returned to their parents.
(Source Abuse case children stay adopted)

The comments of Lord Justice Wall were particularly poignant as as a secretive Family Court judge,
Lord Justice Nicolas Wall had himself presided over the infamous P, C & S (see Dr. Clive Baldwin) case - perhaps the worst example of judicial abuse of a woman in an English and Welsh secret court. Once again in that case a forced adoption had been allowed to go through - this time driven by Rochdale Borough Council, who had pressed ahead even though it was realised that the case would be heard in the European Court of Human Rights. One feature of the Webster's case was the extraordinary speed with which the Webster's children were adopted - whilst most children in care languish for year-upon-year awaiting the chance of permanency with adoption parents, the pace at which all three of the Webster's "stolen" children were offered out to adoption was breathtaking.

As mentioned the Websters case drew huge Press and media attention, with the Websters appearing on television repeatedly in interviews. Even the BBC, notable for it's apparent tacit support for forced adoption and the secret court system, ran stories on the subject. Incredibly even the Radio 4 news show PM ran a story on forced adoption - a first for the show - though being new to the subject the show embarrassed itself due to the lack of previous research performed on the subject.

For a generation used to the idea that judicial blunders of the past could be repaired by the judicial system itself - particularly through the Appeal Court, such as the cases of the Birmingham Six and the Guildford Four, the Websters' case was hard-to-swallow. The Appeal Court apparently recognised that injustice had occurred, but unlike persons wrongly accused of terrorism, the Webster's were not to be satisfied by the English and Welsh judiciary. It is unclear whether satisfaction can be gained through the European Court of Human Rights.

Nicky Webster (Nicola)

(See entry for Mark Webster).

Richard Webster

Journalist and researcher. Author of the comprehensive and recently republished (January 2009) investigation into the Welsh modern moral panic scandal The Secret of Bryn Estyn The Making of a Modern Witch Hunt. Richard Webster passed away June 23rd 2011 on the eve of publication of Casa Pia - a huge and comprehensive investigation into a paedophile-ring scandal in Portugal that engulfed the nation but was built on false allegations against leading left-wing politicians, an ambassador, a lawyer and a famous Portugese television presenter.

(From The Secret of Bryn Estyn)

The Secret of Bryn Estyn is a richly documented account of the development of a modern witch-hunt. Full of human interest and drama, it focuses initially on a small number of key players in the North Wales story and shows how their actions helped to shape an unprecedented police investigation, which would eventually spread to the whole of the United Kingdom.

The book traces the origins of the gravest series of miscarriages of justice in modern British history, as a result of which thousands of people have been falsely accused and as many as a hundred wrongly imprisoned. The book records these continuing injustices and sets them in the context of earlier historical witch-hunts. And, in chapters interspersed through the narrative, The Secret of Bryn Estyn offers an illuminating analysis of the development of the modern child protection movement, tracing its roots back to Victorian London.

Although both journalists and lawyers played a major role in driving this modern witch-hunt forwards, the ideas and fantasies out of which it grew developed within the profession of social work. The book traces the origins of these ideas and sets them in a much broader historical context, arguing that the modern child protection movement is a revivalist movement, rooted deeply, for all its apparent secularism, in an ancient religious tradition.


Richard Webster also investigated the Shieldfield Scandal - see Christopher Lillie, Robert Woffinden, Dr. Camille de San Lazaro)

Iain Weir (Kirkland, Dr.)

Consultant child psychiatrist, based in Ipswich in the United Kingdom. Dr. Weir is probably most known as a psychiatrist retained by Nottinghamshire County Council during the infamous Broxtowe Scandal in 1988 when a team of social workers became entranced by right-wing Christian Fundamentalist imagery and literature, together with instruction from former trainee Baptist Minister Ray Wyre into becoming convinced that a case of family incest they and the police were (successfully) investigating was actually a case of murderous satanic practises and rituals, complete with supernatural and magical acts. Such was he conflict caused by these obsessions that the previously effective working relationship with the Police Team broke down. The Broxtowe Scandal provoked the JET (Joint Enquiry Team) made up of social workers and police officers unconnected with the case. Although suppressed for many years, the report is now freely available (see the extended entry under Margaret Jervis).

In the official JET Report findings, Dr. Weir was identified as 'Dr. W' and it was noted that he too shared the same opinion as Ray Wyre;

The experts Mr. W. and Dr. W. supported the view that satanic abuse was involved.
(Source: The JET Report, Part 2)

He was named by a team of journalists, including Margaret Jervis, who published the JET Report (see Cast)

As of early 2010 Dr. Weir was continuing to practice in the child protection arena in England, as an expert witness. The involvement of expert witnesses known to have taken part in the SRA Myth is known to 'grate' with parents and women who are engaged in secret court hearings, exemplified by the experience of one woman whose apparent request for Local Authority assistance with her Aspergers son, was answered by having her son removed from her;

Dr IK. Weir - satanic ritual abuse/child sexual abuse expert- see: Broxtowe Files-see Jet Report (court appointed) fourth doctor – appointed expert – No specialism in Autistic Spectrum Disorders- very popular with the judges...
(Source: Justamum's Justice Blog

(See also Judith (Dawson) Jones, Det. Sup. (ret) Peter Coles, Bea Campbell (OBE))

Margaret Whitehead



Angela Wileman

Please note that this entry, discussing the Angela Wileman Scandal and the use of the terms 'emotional abuse' and 'possible emotional abuse' can be found on it's dedicated Index page at Angela Wileman

Rachel Williams

Journalist with former left-wing British newspaper The Guardian specialising in the subjects of education and social care. Before working for The Guardian she worked as a US correspondent for the Press Association.

Her article Abuse of 'baby-snatcher' social workers finds an outlet online, 24 March 2010 is a testament to the alternative attitudes towards journalistic writing practised by The Guardian in recent times (see also Bea Campbell (OBE)).The article concerns the reporting that women and families, in an effort to avoid the gagging orders imposed by the secret court establishment, have established Web blogs, often based in the US, with which to name social workers and other professionals working in the secret court system, and thereby impacting upon the confidence and perhaps security of those individuals.

Managers are almost powerless to stop what Simon White, director of children's services in Suffolk, describes as "floods of information about the council that is completely false and misleading".

Some of the blogs are hosted in the US, where the constitution's first amendment, guaranteeing the right to free speech, makes them all but untouchable.

White's concerns about the content range from the impact on the targeted social workers and the reputation of the council to the effect the content of the sites may have on the cases and the families involved. "There's quite a lot of abusive and personal stuff aimed at named individuals," he says. "Some is clearly defamatory, and obviously we have duties to those staff. And when you get into the wilder edges of it, you are sometimes worried about their personal safety."
(Source: Abuse of 'baby-snatcher' social workers finds an outlet online, 24 March 2010)

It has to be said that a number of the blogs (that Ms. Williams, perhaps to the dismay of child protection professionals, had drawn attention to their very existence) are incredibly vitriolic in their language, often reflecting the rage that women and families experience in the face of 'gagging' orders placed on them by a secret court. In other cases the perceived overbearing and sometimes judgmental attitude of a minority of social workers grate on individuals, particularly if they are tinged with an element of religious fundamentalism or anti-family or racist/sexist values.

A normal expectation for such an article is that it would include a section quoting from one such 'blogger' trying to justify their activities. Ms. Williams though appeared to be unable to consider this as a necessary element of a serious work of journalism. It should be pointed-out though that the article allowed moderated comments to be made in its online edition, and it is reasonable to say that these constituted the repair for the 'missing bit'.

The blogging community in opposition to British social workers (there are equivalents for other countries, such as the US and Australia, but certainly not for nations like France and Sweden) reflects the peculiar nature of the secret court system in England and Wales, with court-appointed experts able to give opinion, often employing 'crank science' concepts without fear of rebuke or review by their fellow peers. For many women and families who become embroiled in the system, rather than being enraged that they have actually come to the attention of social workers, they are rather outraged that their previous presumptions of justice and fairness - present in most British citizens of whatever 'class' is challenged by the very existence of the secret court establishment.

The maturity of the blogging community is such that it is gradually employing the multi-media capability of the Web to best effect; many bloggers produce YouTube videos, and some artwork, such as this from a blog concerned with Staffordshire Social Services

Staffordshire Social Services blog


Probably the most mature, honest, and certainly the most technically competent and involved blog to be found at present is that of Justamum whose extraordinary account of her fight with her Local Authority to secure support for her Aspergers son has seen the local social services department employ two EPO's (Emergency Protection Orders) against her, accompanied with numerous police officers (who to their credit showed little enthusiasm for the case) seemingly at odds with the specific instructions provided by senior Family Court judge Justice James Munby that determined that EPO's should only be used for that - namely Emergencies. The accompanying artwork, both by the blogger and others, sets the site apart from others, displaying a likely future for the blogging community that might ditch is vitriolic bile and replace it with a more widespread means of appeal;

Justamum blog


Justamum blog


Justamum blog


An interesting technical and editorial oddity accompanies the publication of the Ms. William's article. It's title header was accompanied with a picture taken from the 2010 Canadian movie Case 39 portraying the actress Renée Zellweger who plays a social worker called Emily Jenkins crouched on the floor of a house, seemingly protecting a girl - 10-year-old Lillith Sullivan, played by Jodelle Ferland.

Paramount Pictures Case 39


The emotive picture, seemingly intended to be used by The Guardian to portray how social workers' divine role as being supreme protectors of children is being challenged by those who would abuse children (and happen to write blogs), was perhaps unwise, and distasteful. Yet it reinforced, it seems intentionally, the editorial stance of The Guardian as regards Ms. Williams piece - that the bloggers were to be seen as essentially evil. The snag though with the selection of the still from this movie, indicative of laziness on the part of both the picture editor and article author was it wasn't a movie of how social workers valiantly protect children - Case 39 is a horror movie, directed by Christian Alvart. At the end, having driven her car of a road and into a river, and with the child locked in the boot, the social worker escapes her charge, seemingly demonically possessed, who is left to drown in the descending automobile. A worse choice of archive picture could hardly be imagined.


Tim Williams

The 2006 scandal engulfing the Welsh family of Tim Williams, his wife Gina and their children was perhaps one of the most visible and well-documented instances demonstrating that child protection cases in the UK are invariably investigated by professionals exercising poor judgement and lapse procedures, as well as, on some occasions, simple maliciousness. The scandal also revealed a willingness to pursue cases in the absence of evidence, trusting that parents would have insufficient ability or knowledge to question 'experts' opinion or find suitably-qualified experts to challenge the, in this case, somewhat glaring lack-of-evidence.

The Williams scandal commenced in May 2004 when Tim Williams went upstairs and found an 11-year-old boy, an acquaintance of the family, lying on top of his five year-old daughter. Both had no clothes on their bottom halves.

The police were called and the child was then medically examined.

But the court heard on Tuesday that the doctor was using dated practices to examine the girl and also took just one photograph to support her diagnoses that the child had been "chronically abused".

The boy was interviewed by police and denied the allegations - and it has since been decided that what went on between the boy and the girl was non-criminal, with no evidence of an offense having taken place.

The court heard that social services decided the parents were failing to protect the children from abuse and they were placed in care in August 2004.
(Source: Family reunited after abuse error)

It isn't clear if the 'dated practises' employed by the examining paediatrician was in fact RAD - Reflex Anal Dilation. In 2008 it was revealed in a public Family Court judgement that paediatricians in Leeds, West Yorkshire were still employing the long-discredited RAD technique (see the entry for Justice Edward Holman). It is believed the technique is still widely used in the UK by English and Welsh paediatricians, but its usage is unregulated through the use of secret Family Courts.

The police declined to take any action, as there was no evidence of an offence. However Newport Social Services determined that all three of the Williams' children were at risk, and had them removed, although it took until August 2004 to to do so. The children were bereft of their parents for two years, whilst their parents were only allowed two 90-minute supervised visits with them per week. The case was notable that no evidence of abuse or neglect was presented to a secret court hearing - and it was the father - Tim Williams, who had originally called the police.

In October 2006, the case came to Cardiff Civil Justice Court. By now the parents had commissioned US medical expert Dr Astrid Heppenstall-Hegar, who had recommended that further examinations be performed. Those examinations found zero trace of any abuse, let alone 'chronic abuse'.

In his judgement, Judge Crispin Masterman criticised the local authority for failing to follow recommended.

He said they failed to provide a child protection conference, and that parents were excluded from meetings.

A court hearing scheduled for May 2005 to determine if there had been abuse, and if so by whom, was delayed until September 2006.
(Source: Family reunited after abuse error)

When the case came to court, with the children having been separated forcefully from their parents for two years, Newport Council attempted to drop the case before the hearing took place. Judge Masterman insisted though that the Council present its evidence, and having none whatsoever, immediately reunited the family.

In the face of such outstanding professional incompetence and maliciousness to the family, the Judge was scathing in his comments, as were the parents;

The judge added that the tenacity of the parents and their legal team had prevented "an even more serious miscarriage of justice that has already occurred".

Speaking after the judgement, Mr Williams said the family have been the victim of a "whispering campaign" and that he had been falsely accused within his local community of being a paedophile.

"Both myself and my wife have been completely cleared of any abuse," he said.

"The effect of the separation on myself, my wife and my children's lives has been devastating.

"I cannot tell you the worry and fear you go through when your children are taken away." His solicitor Jessica Good said: "This has been a miscarriage of justice from beginning to end."

She added: "The family will be pursuing civil action against the council and possibly the health trust. He's made it clear it's more for the children than him."
(Source: Family reunited after abuse error)

Prominent The Times/Sunday Times columnist and investigative journalist Camilla Cavendish wrote of the way the secrecy of the Family Court had ensured even in this case that the malicious professionals remained anonymous;

The Williamses were saved because an American doctor testified that there was not a shred of evidence of abuse. In a searing judgment, Judge Crispin Masterman has ruled that the children should never have been removed. He criticised social workers for failing to follow the most basic procedures. Yet the doctor and the social workers remain anonymous.

Newport City Council, named as the local authority, has promised a review. This is unusual. In many such cases, even local councillors do not know when their own staff perpetrate miscarriages of justice.
(Source: Blind justice without a name, Camilla Cavendish, The Times, October 19th 2006

Such was the brazen unprofessionalism displayed by Newport City Council social workers in the case, that there was no difficulty finding a legal team to pursue the Council for damages, led by Robin Tolson QC, of St John's Chambers, Bristol. In December 2008 the Williams family were offered an undisclosed six-figure sum (that's a minimum of £100,00) from Newport City Council and Royal Gwent Healthcare NHS Trust, payed-for through it's rate-payers (it was unlikely in such a case professional indemnity insurance would payout, due to professional incompetence and maliciousness in the case).

The Williams family also received a full written apology from Newport Council. Under the terms of the settlement, the Williams's are banned from commenting further on the case. But they have previously spoken about the devastating impact the separation caused their children.
...
The couple were banned from discussing the ongoing investigation with their children. When the day came for them to be handed over to social services, they told the trio they were going on a little holiday.

As they walked out of the social services office, they heard their children screaming 'Mummy! Daddy!'.

Over the next two years, they missed milestones such as birthdays, learning to ride bikes and school plays, and two Christmases.
(Source: Parents who had children wrongly snatched by social services win thousands in compensation, by Andy Dolan, The Daily Mail, December 2008

The Williams Scandal was perhaps the most obvious example of a child protection system in England and Wales gone awry. For apologists for the system the case has proven to be a difficult issue, being used regularly by campaigners as a case that has no possible alternative explanation for the abuse performed against the family, other than sheer maliciousness. The poor judgement of the paediatrician and the social workers engaged in the case has never been explained to the public (though it may have been to the Williamses in their letter-of-apology from the Council). Newport City Council and Royal Gwent Healthcare NHS Trust have never to-date indicated that disciplinary action was taken against their staff, suggesting that they had followed formally-agreed processes at-the-time. An internal investigation by Newport City Council Safeguarding Children Board made 38 recommendations, but the report was, and still is, secret - ensuring that both the public and the wider body of child protection and health professionals were unable to benefit from its findings.

The case also bears comparison with that of Baby P (Peter Connelly) where evidence of abuse, neglect and even a broken spine were present, but no action to remove the child into care was taken.

In addition, the scandal revealed the willingness of 'rogue' social workers to waste extraordinary sums of public money - and their own social services departments budgets, pursuing manufactured and hopeless cases. The lowest estimate for the money wasted was just under £1 million. The scandal suggests that the issue of social services budgets being allegedly too small is spurious; the problem is rather that the money provided through the public purse is simply not employed correctly and is sometimes being blatantly wasted.

The Williams Scandal, regrettably, is not an isolated incident. As families, and particularly single women begin to gain confidence in challenging the decisions and investigations of errant and/or malicious social workers and 'experts' (notably because of the influence of the World Wide-Web) then so too have reports of such cases increased. Since 2010 the British newspapers The Telegraph (notably through Christopher Booker, and The Daily Mail have highlighted numerous instances of rogue social workers or perverse secret Family Court judgements.

The Emily McCulloch Scandal in Scotland in 2009 was a well-documented example of simple plain vindictiveness on the part of child protection and health professionals, determined to inflict abuse on a child and her family that had sought help from the very same professionals.

In the Williams Scandal, the Family Court judge, in the absence of any evidence to the contrary, made the correct decision. The continuing anonymity though granted to the social workers and their management has ensured the public are protected from the possibility of current or future 'rogue' activities. The anonymity also ensures that the 'outdated' medical procedures employed were not corrected officially. The use of RAD requires a sexual assault to be performed on the child subject by a paediatrician, condoned by British medical authorities and police officers. The entry for Dr. Geoffrey Wyatt, the colleague of Dr. Marietta Higgs who together provoked the Cleveland RAD scandal of 1987, includes the recollections of such an assault from Dr. Wyatt from one of the children, now grown up.

(See also TIm Loughton (MP), Eileen Munro (Prof.), Shami Chakrabarti, Matthew Dean)

Robert Woffinden

Journalist.

In New Statesman January 2000 edition, Mr Woffinden wrote of the English and Welsh Family Courts and the "culture" of secrecy;

"One journalist who has specialised in similar cases, usually involving children, families and social workers, told me he could wallpaper his room with injunctions. Whenever the authorities get to hear of press interest in a case (as they inevitably will, if the case is being conscientiously researched), then they quickly apply for an injunction. Judges always grant them; they never rescind them. No doubt they genuinely believe they are acting in the interests of the child."


Mr Woffinden, together with fellow journalist Richard Webster exposed the Shieldfield Scandal (see Christopher Lillie, Judith (Dawson) Jones) finding both Chris Lillie and Dawn Reed in hiding following the publication of the infamous "Review Team" report by Newcastle City Council, and assisting in finding them appropriate legal representation that led to both receiving £200,000 each (the maximum a Judge could award) in the High Court on 30th July 2002, having been found to have been maliciously libelled by the Newcastle City Council-appointed Review Team.

Questioned and interrogated, subjected to intimate examinations and then re-examined, constantly reminded of traumatic incidents which had never happened, some Shieldfield children became anxious or withdrawn and began to exhibit disturbed behaviour. They were the victims not of a pedophile ring but of police officers, social workers, therapists and paediatricians, driven on by the best and most noble of intentions, but utterly blind, because of the nature of their training, to the terrible harm that zeal such as theirs can inflict.”
(Source: Cleared: nursery nurses' fight for justice by Robert Woffinden & Richard Webster The Guardian July 31st 2002)

Naomi Wolf

Feminist author and campaigner. Most famous for her "adaptation" of statistics, even when blatantly incorrect, in a seeming effort to assist her insistence that Western society is patriarchal to the degree of forcing the death of women and girls (see Christina Hoff-Sommers).

Her article Behind the veil lives a thriving Muslim community, published in The Sunday Morning Herald - August 30th 2008 was interpreted as further evidence that feminists are vulnerable to the charge that they have a special exception for the Muslim oppression of women (see also As Muslim women suffer, feminists avert their gaze by Robert Fulford, National Post, July 25th 2009).

Ms. Wolfs inexplicably determined that the Muslim regime was perfect for women, in that it enabled safety and security through the establishment of families - the very thing that Western feminists protest about;

Many women said something like this: "When I wear Western clothes, men stare at me, objectify me, or I am always measuring myself against the standards of models in magazines, which are hard to live up to - and even harder as you get older, not to mention how tiring it can be to be on display all the time. When I wear my headscarf or chador, people relate to me as an individual, not an object; I feel respected." This may not be expressed in a traditional Western feminist set of images, but it is a recognisably Western feminist set of feelings.

I experienced it myself. I put on a shalwar kameez and a headscarf in Morocco for a trip to the bazaar. Yes, some of the warmth I encountered was probably from the novelty of seeing a Westerner so clothed; but, as I moved about the market - the curve of my breasts covered, the shape of my legs obscured, my long hair not flying about me - I felt a novel sense of calm and serenity. I felt, yes, in certain ways, free.

Nor are Muslim women alone. The Western Christian tradition portrays all sexuality, even married sexuality, as sinful. Islam and Judaism never had that same kind of mind-body split. So, in both cultures, sexuality channeled into marriage and family life is seen as a source of great blessing, sanctioned by God.
Perhaps not surprisingly, Ms. Wolfe ran head-on into commentators who relished the opportunity to emphasise the support for the veil that feminists find themselves having to constantly deny;
Feminist leader Naomi Wolf howls as her justifications of Islamic misogyny are exposed

and

Fitzgerald: Naomi Wolf and the hijab

Ms. Wolf re-emphasised her conviction that wearing the hijab or other Muslim dress was a "freedom" for women in an on-line interview at Naomi Wolf on Third Wave Feminism

The concept that life under a Sharia regime is somehow 'liberating' isn't entirely alien to modern feminism. It is though unclear what other elements of such regimes are being determined as being 'liberating' - including public stoning, flogging or female genital mutilation in some societies. Conservative columnist Warner Todd Huston in his 2008 article Feminists Truly Hate Women discussed the subject of how modern feminists in the Western world consistently ignore the plight of women outside the Western world, preferring instead to to concentrate their energy on pursuing minor, hardly consequential and often pathetic causes.

A somewhat critical appraisal of the feminist attitude towards the burqa, by a woman who is certainly unwilling to be seen as a victim can be viewed below;



In May 2010 Ms. Wolf made a somewhat belated effort to try to reinterpret her original statements, but in doing so (probably) accidentally associated feminists with the burqa, referring to them choosing to wear the burqa, not necessarily as a fashion statement, but in an effort apparently to avoid sexual harassment;



(See also Gloria Steinem, Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP, Bea Campbell (OBE))

David Woodhouse (Reverend)

English vicar and leading advocate in promoting the concept that satanic ritual abuse was rife throughout Britain in the late 1980's and early 1990's. In 1988 the Rev. Woodhouse went to work at Ellel Grange, a Christian healing centre near Lancaster From 1990 he was speaking at conferences as a recognised expert on the subject of satanic ritual abuse, training social workers, psychiatrists and child protection police officers in how to identify SRA.

He was a key speaker at a conference in Cardiff that June; in his audience were social workers from Rochdale who, the following week, took 12 children into care on suspicion that their families were Satanists.

I am not suggesting that Woodhouse is a fanatic; on the contrary, on my brief meeting with him he struck me as a genial, trusting gentleman. The problem, I guess, lies in a credulous nature which leaves him indisposed to assess stories critically. This would explain his unusual beliefs – e.g.., that in some Satanic covens, "girls have been impregnated with the sperm of an animal such as a cat or with frog-spawn." Whatever doubts Woodhouse may have about such incredible claims – "Whether they have birthed a kitten or frogs is unclear" – he seems content to believe that his informants are "certainly under that impression."
(Source: Satan in Suburbia by Gareth Medway - Fortean Times November 2001)

(See also Ray Wyre, Maureen Davies, Judith (Dawson) Jones, Bea Campbell (OBE).)

Lynne Wrennall (Dr.)

Lecturer and tutor for ‘Children and Youth: Frameworks of Policy and Practice,’ ‘Criminological Perspectives’ and ‘Research Design’ School of Social Science, department of Criminology, Liverpool John Moores University.

Dr. Wrennall has been engaged in many studies into youth justice and the care system, both in the UK and Australia. She is the author of numerous papers, including;

Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy/Fabricated and Induced Illness: Does the diagnosis serve economic vested interests, rather than the interests of children?? which amongst other issues addressed the disturbing analogy between the use of MSBP allegations and Witchcraft allegations made against women in the 17th Century (see Sister Prudence Allen);

There is a further problem with the use of confessions as evidence. If the mother denies the accusation, this is taken as evidence of guilt. Indeed, denial of the accusation is one of the diagnostic criteria of MSbP/FII. On the other hand if she confesses, this is also taken as evidence of guilt. In other words, the discourse is constructed in a manner that makes denial of the allegation almost impossible, regardless of the evidence.
(Source: from Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy/Fabricated and Induced Illness: Does the diagnosis serve economic vested interests, rather than the interests of children? By Dr Lynne Wrennall - 2007)

also;

Child Protection in Britain: When will they ever learn? (2007 – for the Victoria Climbié Foundation).

In 2008 Ms. Wrennall was engaged in a barely-noticed and probably unintended academic battle with Dr. Louisa Lasher a prominent advocate of MSBP. Since the submission of the following paper by Ms. Lasher no further engagements have taken place;

Misdiagnosis of Child Abuse Related to Delay in Diagnosing a Paediatric Brain Tumour (2008) which relates the case of the making of an allegation of MSBP against the mother of a young girl who was suffering from a brain tumour.

Dr. Wrennall was also the joint author of Taking The Stick Away a report submitted to the New Labour government about concerns about child protection provision. The report included Dr. Wrennalls concerns about instances when removing a child is performed for economic reasons alone, detailed in her paper Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy/Fabricated and Induced Illness: Does the diagnosis serve economic vested interests, rather than the interests of children?;

It is becoming increasingly difficult to believe that Child Protection actually has an agenda of protecting children from abuse and neglect. Though the other agendas are becoming more visible, community organisations and their clients, are increasingly forming the view on the ground, that the current framework is being used to re-brand children with disabilities as either, falling within a broadened spectrum of normalcy, or as children “at risk”. This, they believe, is deployed as an attempt at cost-saving. However, the health and social impacts of the strategy are likely to be very high indeed. It must be seen as socially regressive, when families who have a child with a disability, believe that they may have to hide their child’s disability away, so as not to risk losing the child to the authorities.


Dr. Wrennal's skill as a public speaker is demonstrated in her 35-minute UK Future TV presentation on the subject of miscarriages of justice, concentrating on youth justice policy and the family court system in England and Wales. Note that some browsers may need to download a media-player before playing the clip.

Dr. Lynne Wrennal on UK Future TV

(See also Dr. Clive Baldwin, Dr. Judith Gould, Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP, Paul Shattock, Krysia Canvin, William R. Long, Jan Loxley, Fran Lyon, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, Amy Neustein.)

Paula Wright

Social worker, Northumberland County Council.

Ms. Wright was involved in the Fran Lyon Scandal, and came to the publics attention when Dr. Rex Haigh, a consultant psychiatrist who wrote a character reference for Fran Lyon, was spoken-to by Ms. Wright. Dr Haigh reported that he was placed under pressure to remove his support for Ms. Lyon by Ms. Wright (Secrecy culture of social services) having been initially contacted by another social worker in the case – Pamela Burke.

Geoffrey Wyatt (Dr.)


Jane Wynne (Dr.)


Ray Wyre (Raymond)

Leading British-based expert in child sex offender treatment until his death in June 2008. He launched the Gracewell Clinic in Birmingham, dedicated to the treatment of sex offenders and the worlds first such establishment. Public opposition to the centre though saw its pioneering work curtailed and it closed within five years. Mr Wyre also worked in Kosovo, assisting with child abuse investigations (see Dr. David Southall.)

Mr. Wyre first came to prominent public notice in connection with the Broxtowe SRA (Satanic Ritual Abuse) Scandal of 1988, having previously trained to become a Baptist minister and having made four lecture tours in Australia that influenced the spread of belief in SRA on that continent. The promotion of SRA "theory" was documented in Satan's Excellent Adventure in Australia by Michael Hill.

Rosie Waterhouse documented how Mr. Wyre influenced the course of a otherwise conventional child abuse investigation;

According to Christine Johnston, a senior social worker, and Judith Dawson the team leader, the children began telling bizarre stories which they could not understand. They called in Ray Wyre, a former probation officer runs a clinic in Birmingham for sex offenders.

He gave them a list of "Satanic indicators", a profile of signs and symptoms used by American police officers which told the Independent on Sunday he was given by Pamela Klein, a Chicago social workers who lectures on Satanic abuse.

Wyre had other literature on Satanic abuse from the United States, where he had first studied child abuse in 1984. He had picked up some of the material himself on a visit in 1988; other information he had been sent.

Mr Wyre said the social workers initially asked him if he knew anything about witchcraft because the children were writing strange things in their diaries. He said he told the social workers and foster parents the sort of things said by children who had been ritually abused.
(Source – The Making of a Satanic Myth Rosie Waterhouse Independent on Sunday 12th August 1990, page 8)

A rather more detailed explanation as to how Mr. Wyre became so involved in the Broxtowe Scandal is also available;

Tim Tate has never denied that he was instrumental in introducing Ray Wyre to the Nottingham case. Wyre, a former prison probation officer and self-promoted expert on child sex abuse, first visited the city on 9 February 1988. It was a day that Wyre is unlikely to forget.

Central to Social Services Team 4’s claim that the children in the case had been Satanically abused was its insistence that the children independently told their foster parents corroborating accounts of the abuse they had allegedly suffered. The foster parents then used diaries to record what the children had said.

But this process had been corrupted in the following way. When Tate had visited the United States for the Cook Report he returned with a file of so-called "Satanic indicators" (signs for investigators to look for), given to him by cult-crime "experts" involved in the McMartin Pre-school Case. According to the JET Report, he gave these to Wyre (who knew nothing until then about Satanic Abuse). Wyre then used the indicators to brief the foster parents on the evening of 9 February.

What the JET Report does not reveal was how the police knew that Wyre had the indicators. Earlier the same day, Team 4 leader Christine Johnson took Wyre to the Incident Room at Hucknall Police Station -- centre of the criminal investigation into the Broxtowe case. Wanting Wyre to look over the files, Johnstone just walked in with him unannounced. The sergeant in charge of the Incident Room stopped them and demanded to know who Wyre was.

"It’s OK, he’s with me. He’s a consultant to Social Services."

It’s not all right, said the sergeant and led Wyre out of the room until he could confer with Det Sup Peter Coles, head of the enquiry. Coles told him to throw Wyre out. But, while all this was going on, and unknown to Wyre and Johnsone, Wyre’s briefcase was searched. It contained a copy of Tim Tate’s imported "Satanic indicators".
(Source: Roger Cook when both worked together on a documentary that resulted in child pornography being outlawed through legislation in the UK.

(See also Bea Campbell (OBE), Judith (Dawson) Jones, Prof. Jean La Fontaine, Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP, Iain Weir (Kirkland, Dr.))



X





Y



Tim Yeo (Timothy Stephen Kenneth MP)

Conservative Member of Parliament for South Suffold since 1983. A Minister in John Major's government, he was forced to resign due to the revelation of him being the father of a 'love child' with a Conservative councillor. The revelation came about during the middle of the Major governments "Back to Basics" campaign. In Opposition his opportunity to gain a Shadow Minister role have been curtailed, after he backed Ken Clarke for the role of Conservative leader.

As a backbench Opposition MP, Mr. Yeo has been consistent in his criticism of the family court system and the practises of some child protection social workers in England and Wales. The issues are important enough to him to transcend party politics, seeing him combine with other MP's, such as Liberal Democrat John Hemming.

On 25th November 2009 Mr. Yeo secured a Commons Adjournment Debate on the subject of Adoption and Custody in his constituency county, Suffolk. In a virtually empty House he proceeded to deliver probably the most vitriolic attack on the secret court system and the use of forced adoption by social workers, together with the behaviour of Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) officers, and the judge in a secret court. Despite the House being empty, the speech was televised and recorded, becoming available on You Tube;

and

Part two



Quoting from a lengthy speech runs the risk of losing the context. In essence, Mr. Yeo related his experience in assisting a family whose child was, in his words, 'kidnapped' by social workers, using spurious reasons that change constantly as secret court proceedings continue, and increasingly bizarre attempts to justify the action against the family are presented by a social services department that has apparently gone 'rogue'. The speech came at a difficult time for advocates of the current secret court regime, constantly having to deny that social services and secret courts act improperly, following political or religious dogma to forcefully remove children from women or families without just cause.

The appalling truth is that, in Suffolk in 2008, social workers and police could burst unannounced into a home to snatch a nine-week-old baby from the arms of her mother-a mother who is not only totally innocent of any offence but who is not even suspected of having harmed her child. Such is the extraordinary power of the social workers that all of that happens in a way that cannot be challenged. When the innocent victim asks her Member of Parliament for help, his inquiries are met with a wall of silence. This wall of silence is said to be in order to protect the privacy of the child. The truth is that it serves to conceal the actions of social workers from public gaze.

It is very probable that if social workers had to operate with the same level of transparency and public scrutiny as every other profession takes for granted, some of the terrible cases where a failure to intervene, as opposed to the problem of unnecessary and unjust intervention in the case that I am describing, would not take place.

To make matters very much worse, the circumstances of the raid were seriously misrepresented when council staff gave evidence in August this year to the adoption panel considering Poppy's future. Following the removal of Poppy from the care of her parents, a bitter legal battle took place, which continues to this day. Throughout this process Suffolk county council has repeatedly changed the grounds for removing Poppy, alternating between blaming one parent and then the other.

The council's search for a justification for its cruelty became increasingly frantic as one initial diagnosis was overturned and replaced with another. Numerous contradictions arose which cast serious doubt on the soundness of the case against the couple. The first doctor's psychological assessment of Carissa declared that she qualified for a diagnosis of factitious disorder. Then a consultant forensic psychiatrist decided after the briefest of assessments that she fulfilled the criteria for the much more catch-all narcissistic personality disorder. The first doctor assessed that Jim was "a pathological liar". Later, a consultant clinical psychologist

"would not endorse the expression".

Expert witnesses also expressed misgivings. At a professional meeting on 18 March the doctors wanted to go on record

"as being very concerned about the fragmented process of this case".

Only Dr. B had seen both parents. Dr. D had only interviewed Jim and Dr. S only Carissa. Dr. B remarked that the fragmented information was a

"disadvantage to the professional assessment as each had only part of the picture".
...

In the case of Poppy it was only in September, after a court had ruled that she should be permanently and forcibly adopted, that I was finally allowed access to the detailed case notes. Poppy's parents themselves are still struggling to see the data held on them despite wanting to mount a private appeal. Once again, the rights of people accused of crimes, however serious, are far greater than those of parents of children whom social workers want to seize for adoption. In criminal cases, defendants have a right to receive copies of case conference notes and all the evidence that is used against them in court.


The government side to the debate was advanced by Diana Johnson MP, The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families. Inexplicably and bizarrely, rather than ask for more specific detail in writing from Mr. Yeo, with perhaps the promise of an investigation into the allegations made, Ms. Johnson simply repeated the "routine" mantra that everything is fine with the secret court system and child protection procedures in general;

Before I close, I feel it is worth noting that Ofsted's last inspection of Suffolk described the authority's adoption service to children and families as both strong and child-focused, with birth families being involved in adoption plans and invited to attend the adoption panel to give their views. It stated that they can also access independent support and receive help with maintaining indirect and direct contact with their children, and that they are treated with respect.

I reiterate that I am proud of this Government's record in delivering for families and safeguarding children. There are already extensive checks and balances in the system, including the independent judiciary, publicly funded solicitors for all parties and CAFCASS children's guardians, which combine to ensure that care and adoption orders are made only after proper scrutiny of local authorities' work and proposals.
(All quotes sourced from House of Commons Debates for 25 November 2009)


Katherine Young

American writer. (See also for Paul Nathason)


Z

"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


Roger Singleton (CBE) & the ISA



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

Please note in mid-June 2010, Sir Roger Singleton resigned from his role as chief adviser to the government on the safety of children following the scrapping of the cross-departmental National Safeguarding Delivery Unit (NSDU). In addition the new Coalition Government Home Secretary Theresa May announced a review of the scope of power that the Independent Safeguarding Authority would enjoy, and indeed how many of the original estimated nine-and-a-half million English and Welsh citizens previously anticipated to be impacted by the ISA would now be required to register with it. Accordingly this Index entry is an archive of the reaction to the ISA's original 'brief' and the history of its inception and the influences that spawned its creation. If the ISA does indeed change significantly in scope, then this will be reflected in future edits for this Entry. As of mid-June 2010, Sir Roger Singleton continued to be Chairman of the ISA.



Sir Roger Singleton

Former Chief Executive of Barnardo's for 21 years and first chairman of the ISA (Independent Safeguarding Authority) based in Darlington, North East England.

The ISA was established through the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act (2006). This legislation was, in the official public view, inspired by Sir Michael Bichards 2004 report into Ian Huntley's murder of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in Soham, Cambridgeshire - when incompetence by a police authority (Humberside) ensured that Cambridgeshire Police were unaware of Huntley's past convictions. Sir Bichard has already stated publicly that the ISA, which was established after his report was delivered, appeared to have an ill-defined brief;

Sir Michael said there were a number of issues with the scheme which "need to be looked at again" and that "there will always be situations where you you could argue that the line has been drawn in the wrong place."
...
The Government initially estimated that 11.3 million people - almost 20 per cent of the population - would have to register within five years.
(Source: School protection register is flawed - by Chris Green, The Independent, 6th August 2009)

The primary role of the ISA will be to ensure the safety of children and vulnerable adults in England and Wales through as vetting process that will involve checking for relevant criminal convictions - a role performed by the Criminal Records Bureau at present, and which will continue even with the ISA operating. As such a considerable minority of the public will require a check from two government bodies to indicate they are not pedophiles.

This index entry is split into three primary sections; the ISA's history, the subject of the likely impact the ISA will have on English and Welsh society, and the manner in which the ISA deals with false allegations and not-guilty findings in court.

The history behind the ISA

A popular misconception is that the ISA can trace its inception to the murder of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman as prevously mentioned, and Sir Bichards subsequent inquiry recommendations. This though wouldn't be an accurate statement; the ISA's heritage stretches back initially to 1999, through the introduction of the Protection of Children Act (POCA) that the ISA employed until 12th October 2009 under its training and parallel 'work-up' brief. It is POCA (1999) that ISA staff were initially trained upon, and the legislation that effectively set the 'tone' for the authority. After 12th October the ISA will employ the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act which combines the powers of POCA and the Protection of the Vulnerable Adults Act (POVA) into one, and provides the enabling legislation for the ISA. In addition, from the 12th October 2009, the ISA will merge the three barring lists in use - the POCA list, the PoVA list and the secret List 99. List 99 has been present for 80-odd years and is maintained by the Department of Education and Skills (DfES) through the Children's Safeguards Unit.

The legacy of the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth

The ISA can trace its heritage back before even 1999, all the way back to the Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) Myth, promoted enthusiastically by a combination of colluding christian fundamentalists and feminists and other groups on either side of the Atlantic, during the late 1980s and early 1990s. The SRA Myth years, routinely described as a 'moral panic' and chillingly reminiscent of the 17th century witchcraft trials, wasn't an isolated phenomena; the 'panic has continued, in one form or another, but most notably in the perceived public obsession that pedophiles are rife in society, waiting to pounce on any child at any time, most notably in full public view at events such as school sports days. The perception that society is rife with pedophiles was one promoted during the 1980s, initially in concert with the perceived feminist view that "all men are rapists." That term was never accurate - the assertion was that "all men could be rapists."

Unfortunately, whilst the phrase "all men are rapists" was never stated by any woman identifying herself as a feminist, the accusation that "all men are pedophiles" is regularly made, even in recent years. This subject is discussed at length n the Entry for Catherine Itzin (Prof.)

It should be noted that a number of 'outside edge' child-savers believe that some pedophiles possess paranormal or super-human powers, granted by Satan, enabling them to sexually abuse a child, in say a public place, such as a school carol service, by moving quicker than the human eye or camera can detect. It isn't clear if the role of the ISA has been created to include suspicions that some citizens may possess such powers.

Although by definition a secular organisation, it can be argued that the ISA can be legitimately described as a fundamentalist religious organisation, as its operating principles (see later in this Section) satisfy many of the requirements of the 'Satan Hunter' lobby in both the US and UK during the SRA Myth years. It is questionable if the ISA can prevent religious fundamentalists joining its staff to satisfy their need to root out Satan, if indeed those staff are not already present.

With the SRA Myth came the dogmatic belief that paedophile satanists were at large throughout the land, killing tens of thousands of children each year. in the US SRA advocates attributed more unknown murders of children to satanism than the total number of homicides in the country each year.

As the years following the the SRA Myth have rolled-by, then so to has has the growing influence of the child-saver lobby - the collective term given to those who pursue child protection measures to an obsessive, dogmatic, and often religious or gender/political-inspired degree. The SRA Myth years left both feminists and christian fundamentalists feeling aggrieved; the Conservative government had taken decisive actions against the collusion (see Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP) and the pioneering investigative journalism of Rosie Waterhouse amongst others had deconstructed the SRA obsession.

Although the SRA Myth seemingly came to a sticky end by the mid-1990's the underlying obsessions of the child-saver lobby weren't challenged. The Conservative Government of John Major left office with the job not even half-done, let alone even understood. The child-saver lobby, split principally between the two groups that had merged during the SRA Myth years; religious fundamentalists and feminists, continued to function. The fundamentalists continue to pursue what they see as the righteous need to tackle satanic paedophilia they saw as being rife through British society. Feminists in the meantime, have long taken on the rhetoric of religious fundamentalism in a desire to repeatedly prove to all and sundry that men were evil devils, prone to paedophilia and violence against women, and that families were implicitly vicious regimes designed only to hide abuse. Mothers (both single and married/cohabiting) have been defined as being invariably willing partners in the abuse. Key to comprehending the influence of the child saver lobby is recognition that the concept of "pure evil" has taken hold in British society to almost the same degree that it existed in the 17th century.

Feminists and christian fundamentalists continue to collude together in the UK, and have done so since at least 1988. The flow of information from the US fundamentalist circuit continues to act as a spur, whilst feminism has itself changed substantially, rigorously enforcing concepts such as the belief that evidence and scientific reasoning are 'patriarchal' concepts, and colluding again with religious fundamentalism in their rejection of evolutionary biology (see the entry for Patricia Gowaty). Feminists and religious fundamentalists continue to jointly staff organisations like R.A.I.N.S ((Ritual Abuse Information Network & Support) and R.A.N.S - its Scottish equivalent, which distributes fundamentalist literature to child protection professionals, fundamentalist or otherwise (see the lengthy entry for Dr. Sandra Buck detailing the history of RAINS and its continue existence.)

An example of the continued collusion and the driving forces of the feminist lobby can be seen in the publication of the academic book Home Truths about Child Sexual Abuse: A reader contributed-to and edited by Catherine Itzin. The book included the essay/paper Confronting sexual abuse Challenges for the future from feminist Sarah Nelson, that advocated for the SRA Myth, in it's Mind Control form - see A summary of three versions of the SRA Myth that is derived directly from right-wing US Christian Fundamentalists.

Prevention or reduction of child sexual abuse is not possible, except in a very limited way, until professionals and the public discover and confront its full scale and nature. To tackle a social evil you must know what you are dealing with, and however disturbing the truth may be, it is necessary to know the worst before building an effective strategy. I suspect that we still have very little idea of the true extent, nature, savagery, planning and organisation of child sexual abuse in society. Many new clues have been garnered, especially over the past decade: what Roland Summit describes in his moving paper 'Hidden Victims, Hidden pain' as 'fleeting glimpses of the reality brought by each brief clearing of the fog (Summit 1988). These include revelations about the extent of repressed memory among adults; the scale and organisation of paedophile rings, especially in the residential childcare sector, the existence of sadistic child murder, the scale of the multi-million international child pornography industry, and of international 'sex tourism'; and the existence of ritual abuse by cults, who use hitherto unimagined physical, sexual and emotional torture and mind control.
(Source: Page 389 Home Truths about Child Sexual Abuse: A reader (2000) contributed-to and edited by Catherine Itzin, from the paper Confronting sexual abuse Challenges for the future by Sarah Nelson)

Ms. Nelson had previously presented her paper, including her advocacy for the SRA Myth in its 'Mind Control" version, to the British Association for the Study and Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (BASPCAN) Third National Congress in Edinburgh in 1997, and part of it was published in Child Abuse Review (1998).

The 'Mind Control' version of the SRA Myth that Ms. Nelson determined is a 'revelation' (though in 2000 it was probably a revelation that a 'serious' academic publication would be willing to publish advocacy for the religious fundamentalist-derived theory) is the second version of the 'Myth to come to Britain's shores. It was driven this time by fundamentalists in the US who had realised the shortfalls in the older 'Classic' version of the SRA Myth, with its flying witches and inanimate objects, spacecraft in the back yard and inanimate objects being turned into magical creatures. The Mind Control version envisioned all the previous impossibilities, together with satanists being able to be in two places at once, and, a huge government/CIA conspiracy that used ritual abuse as a means to control the thoughts of hundreds of thousands of people. As it was, persuading many that Britain's MI5 had much interest in Mind Control was tough, so as with Classic SRA Myth, the poor and disadvantaged in the country were and are blamed as being the those who have the Mind Control skills to inflict suffering on their young charges. A summary of the three versions of the SRA Myth (the most recent one involves space aliens and 12-foot tall lizards) is provided at A summary of three versions of the SRA Myth).

In addition to Ms. Nelsons paper, Home Truths about Child Sexual Abuse: A reader also featured an essay co-authored by Dr. Liz Kelly, head of the CWASU (Child & Woman Abuse Studies Unit) hosted by the London Metropolitan University, and which describes its original establishment as being to both develop feminist theory and practice, and take this perspective into professional training, especially that of social work. The CWASU is a leading center for feminist research that attempts to bolster belief that rape and child abuse are rife in British society, and that evil men require greater restriction and supervision. Despite her feminist credentials, as with many other feminists, Dr. Kelly is a leading advocate for the Christian Fundamentalist-derived SRA Myth, having jointly authored numerous papers on the subject (although there is no evidence that she has taken on the Mind Control version of the 'Myth or the 'Lizard' version.)

Before her death Catherine Itzin was aleading member of the feminist lobby, intent on identifying all males - boys and men, as pedophiles. Home Truths about Child Sexual Abuse: A reader though couldn't be subjected to any confusion; it simply determined all men (or certainly the vast majority) to be pedophiles - either active or waiting for the opportunity. The contributor and editor determined in her introduction that she would make it patently clear what the book was intended to do;

This book aims to make and to try to keep, visible this maintaining of men's sexual access to children as essential to the formulation of an effective public policy response to child sexual abuse. The radical feminist contribution to child protection is the identification of child sexual abuse as being what ordinary men want and what ordinary men do. What this book does I hope, is to make it clear that this is nothing to do with 'feminist anti-men thing', but a fact for which there is a substantial body of empirical evidence. This is what men do because they want to; because they can; and because, largely, they can get away with it.
(Source: Page 5 Home Truths about Child Sexual Abuse: A reader (2000) contributed-to and edited by Catherine Itzin)

In 2000 Dr. Catherine Itzin was Research Professor in Social Work and Social Policy and Co-director of the International Centre for the Study of Violence and Abuse at the University of Sunderland. She died in March 2010. Unlike the Dr. Liz Kelly-led CWASU (Child & Woman Abuse Studies Unit) at the London Metropolitan University, which references the papers advocating for the religious fundamentalist-inspired SRA Myth, the University of Sunderland's International Centre for the Study of Violence and Abuse makes no mention of the Myth and presumably has purged itself of all fundamentalist attributes.

Dr. Itzin, prior to her death and together with leading SRA Myth advocate Dr. Kelly, imposed a huge influence on academic belief in the extent of sexual violence, notably domestic violence, incest and organised abuse, including the SRA Myth, still believed by a sizeable minority of key individuals in key positions. These beliefs are buttressed by a further series of distinct beliefs - including the idea that the primary reason for the existence of families is to allow males to sexually abuse and rape their daughters, that most women with children are subject to serious personality disorders (including MSBP, BPD and bi-polar disorder) and that Vast Conspiracies exist within government, the police and the security services to buttress the 'patriarchy', which includes the use of Mind Control to exert influence. A primary concern of Dr. Itzin was to draw attention to the invisibility of the normal, ordinary, heterosexual family men who sexually abuse their own and other people's children on a very substantial scale (from Incest, paedophilia, pornography and prostitution: making familial males more visible as the abusers by Catherine Itzin, Child Abuse Review, Volume 10, Issue 1, pages 35–48, January/February 2001).

Consequently, particularly during the period of New Labours time in office (1997-2010) government policy was increasingly driven by the sometimes obsessive conspiracy-theory-driven fantasies of a small number of civil servants, academics and researchers, sometimes intent only on pursuing political or religious dogma, but most often concerned with simply consolidating a power base in departments that attract substantial investment and funding. As of 2012 there is no indication that this environment has changed, and it appears relatively vulnerable from budget restraints.

An insight into how much Dr. Itzin extended her guidance and beliefs into both government and academia is illustrated below (courtesy of the 2005 annual report of leading SRA Myth advocacy charity - 1st person plural);

Structure of sexual abuse resources


Another academic, Dr. Kate Cavanagh also now deceased, pursued similar ideals within academia, her legacy being to document the use of gender-discrimitory social work in her jointly-authored study guide for student social workers Working with Men: Feminism and social work (1996).

With an academic environment established over several decades to effectively and efficiently demonise males, it perhaps isn't a huge surprise that England and Wales became the only country willing to instigate something like the ISA.

As the Conservatives left office in disgrace in 1997, they left a charged social atmosphere. The Shieldfield Scandal in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne had galvanised the child saver lobby again, and reinvigorated, they found to their joy that the new government, elected in 1997, was far more approachable and enthusiastic about their obsessions.

The ISA is a unique organisation in Europe and equally unique across the world. Discerning why Great Britain should be so singularly in apparently desperate need for such an organisation is, as mentioned above, perhaps not hard to fathom. During the SRA Myth 'crazy' years of the late 1980s and much of the 1990s, 'child savers' had two explanations as to why the UK and the US (and to a lesser degree Canada, Australia and New Zealand) were the only nations when any significant obsession with the SRA Myth took hold. For secular believers the explanation would be that these societies were particularly prone to hosting huge organised paedophile groupings. Non-secular believers have simply determined that Satan himself exerts a particularly strong grip in places like Nottingham and Rochdale.

One academic sociologist Jeffrey S. Victor (Ph.D) identified a possible explanation as to why countries like France had no interest in SRA Myth allegations, and where the collusion of religious fundamentalist and feminist - who would normally be expected to be at each others' throats, simply hadn't occurred, and how European feminism, as opposed to Anglo-American ('Anglo-Saxon') feminism, has managed to retain its Marxist credentials;

A contrast with a culture where claims about satanic cult crime have not taken root is useful. In France, SRA accusations being made in American society and nearby England are regarded with ridicule, if they are known at all. Journalists and popular writers are often quite critical of the foibles of American culture and often resistant to what they consider to be cultural fads coming from America. In France, only 17% of the population believe in the existence of the Devil compared with 65% in the U.S., according to opinion polls (Gallup 1982:98). Fundamentalist Protestantism has no political significance. French feminism, which centers its demonology upon a critique of the capitalist elite and socioeconomic injustice, is ideologically quite different from Anglo-American feminism. It is likely that cross-national, personal contacts between people in the same occupations, such as medical doctors, psychotherapists and police, are relatively uncommon, due in part to language and cultural differences.
(Source: Satanic Panic: The Creation of a Contemporary Legend (1992.) by Dr. Jeffrey S. Victor)

The legacy of the Shieldfield Scandal

The Shieldfield Scandal of 1994 came at the very end of the SRA Myth years, at a time when its advocates were at a low ebb. By now academia had found the subject to be a rich source of discourse, comparing the moral panic of the SRA Myth craze to the events in Salem during the 1690's. For the child-saver lobby though, it was recognised that things had to change; that the normal criminal justice system simply didn't account for the evil of organised groups of pedophiles, particularly those able to defeat the laws of physics and medicine.

In the US and UK, increasing numbers of religious fundamentalists, backed by other groups, notably feminists, had concluded that the criminal justice system had to change to account for satanic pedophiles. One such advocate for change was a US police detective, speaking in 1991;

Detective Vukich would like to overhaul the rules that law enforcement plays by. To be able to prosecute satanic criminals, according to Vukich, you'd have to "revamp the system", to allow for lack of evidence and incoherance on the part of the victims. "They hide the evidence or move it", he says in a conspiratorial tone, as if this tactic wouldn't occur to other criminals. "And they use brainwashing techniques, deception, and magic, so the victims are disorientated. It's extremely difficult if not impossible to come up with the physical evidence that you need to take them to court."
(Source: Page 65 The Devil in Mr. Ingram by Ethan Watters, Mother Jones magazine, July/August 1991)

The Shieldfield Scandal was perhaps the final SRA Myth scandal to be rendered in England and Wales, and the allegations, thrown out of a criminal court due to their sheer daftness, incorporated elements of magic in them in an effort to plug the gaps in the evidence. Physical evidence was devoid, forensic evidence was simply missing, and any 'disclosures' by children were the result of the coersive questioning that had typified the original SRA Myth fiascos of previous years.

For some though, the total absence of evidence was in itself the very definition of 'evidence'. That a 'thing' didn't exist is in such minds, clear evidence that it did - and it simply meant that the perpetrators had used some cunning and wily method for hiding the evidence - such as magic. By the early 1990s the British criminal justice system was tending towards the now-modern view of justice in the US and UK; that the allegation is far more important than the existence of any evidence.

The Protection of Children Act (1999) is the direct result of the Shieldfield Scandal, and would be the culmination of that desire. Later the establishment of the ISA would become the body tasked with employing that legislation (and its upgraded version) to perform the changes to society that were demanded by the child-saver lobby. After two decades, thanks in part to a ready-and-willing Labour Party, entranced by the message from the child-saver lobby, the combination of religious fundamentalists and feminists would be seen to win; imposing upon England and Wales - and later Northern Ireland and Scotland whose politicians prefer the 'English' form of child protection, rather than the evidence-based practise model employed in most of Europe - an organisation that can trace its history back to the worst example of ludicrous and vicious false allegations seen since the witchcraft trials of the 17th century.

POCA came about as a direct response to the Shieldfield Scandal. Mr. Lillie and Ms. Reed were falsely accused of vile acts of ritualised sexual abuse of children at a nursery in Newcastle-upon-Tyne in 1984. The case was dropped when it was realised by a judge that there wasn't any evidence to support the allegations, even before it got to trial. Despite this a media frenzy saw Reed and Lillie pursued. Eventually, following a corrupted public report into the affair, commissioned by Newcastle Council, the pair were awarded the highest sums available for defamation by the High Court in London.

The judgement can be viewed and downloaded through the Bailii database from here Judgement: Christopher Lillie & Dawn Reed - and - (1) NEWCASTLE CITY COUNCIL (2) RICHARD BARKER (3) JUDITH JONES (4) JACQUI SARADJIAN (5) ROY WARDELL. The judgement is probably the most important document in British social history of the last fifty years, and any social history of the British Isles that fails to make mention of it is likely worthless. In a stunningly detailed undertaking, Justice Eady enscapulated all of the fallacies that the child protection 'industry' in England and Wales had accumulated, from the Cleveland RAD Scandal, and all the way through the feminist/religious fundamentalist SRA Myth years. Yet, despite the stunning denunciation contained within the judgement, the government, the Labour Party, chose not to reconsider the nature of child protection in the UK, but rather threw itself into the task of complying with the child-saver lobbies demands as best it could.

The Shieldfield Scandal enraged christian fundamentalists and feminists of the child-saver lobby, who were aghast that the criminal justice system wouldn't convict adults falsely accused of the vilest crimes simply on the basis of an accusation alone. The issue of a need for evidence has raised its head before during those years of the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth of the late 1980's and early 1990's.

Advocates for the SRA Myth had been driven into frenzy's that the justice system requirement for factual evidence that could be examined didn't fit the needs of activists and believers in SRA who felt that the alleged crimes were "special" and should therefore be dealt-with outside the normal bounds of justice.

Key to the ethos of the child-saver is that the concept of innocent until proven guilty is an alien idea, whilst "guilty on accusation" is perhaps more appropriate. The abject refusal of the criminal justice system in England and Wales to universally adopt the use of "spectral evidence" was seen as an impediment that had to be overcome, though in the US, the use of "spectral evidence" not seen since the 17th century, was allowed in some cases, and in Wales, spectral evidence (or a near equivalent) was used in the absence of other evidence in the Pembroke "sex ring" trial (see Pembroke.)

As discussed earlier, a widespread belief, shared between feminists and christian fundamentalists in the child-saver lobby was that no evidence of ritualised satanic abuse was in itself sufficient evidence to prove it had happened and was present. This use of non sequitur (when the evidence or rather lack of evidence is used to support a seemingly incomprehensible conclusion) is now a key underpinning of the operation of the Family Court system in England and Wales. This reverse logic, that sees the non-existence of something as being the sure-fire evidence that it exists, drove the obsessions of the Satan Hunter/child saver lobby.

Following the Prof. Jean La Fontaine report into the SRA Myth, commissioned by Conservative Health Secretary Rt Hon. Virginia Bottomley MP, which reported no evidence for the obsessions of a then large number of social workers, child protection police officers and other professionals, such as then-Labour MP, Llin Golding, vice-chairwoman of the parliamentary children's dismissed the report with;

'Just because one person found no evidence, that doesn't mean satanic abuse does not exist.'
(Source: Satanic abuse dismissed as 'myth' by government enquiry...by Rosie Waterhouse, The Independent, Friday 3rd June 1994)

Mrs Golding's words strangely echoed those of Christian Fundamentalist, SRA Myth advocate and former nurse Maureen Davies

Ms. Davies once said "Sometimes no proof is proof [of a conspiracy]" She is considered an "expert" in England.
(Source: The Making of a Satanic Myth - Rosie Waterhouse - The Independent on Sunday 12th August 1990, page 8)

POCA

The Protection of Children Act (1999) went some way to address the perceived shortfall in the application of justice. With POCA it became possible for false allegations to be made against adults, notably teachers, and in the absence of any evidence, for careers to be curtailed. Feminists were enthusiastic about such a facility because it was perceived that it would ensure that males could be removed from the teaching professions - and in actuality that process has worked inasmuch as few males now teach in English and Welsh primary schools. Religious fundamentalists and feminists both employ the view that only pedophiles would wish to have any dealings with children, whether male or female.

Finding public supporters of the ISA's establishment is hard. However Beatrix Campbell (OBE), perhaps most famous for her trumpeting of the Christian Fundamentalist cause during the SRA Myth years - an event in history which, with the exception of the Cleveland Scandal, may be regarded as being the genesis of the moral panic over child protection that led to the ISA, made a good attempt. In her rebuttal to protests by children's authors such as Phillip Pullman, who would also have to undergo ISA checks if they attended schools to perform readings and workshops, she wrote;

Philip Pullman is fizzing… dark antibodies are fighting his freedom of speech. He is one of a clutch of esteemed children's writers and illustrators protesting against a vetting scheme that would extend to writers what already applies to anyone working with children in schools: a vetting scheme.

They protest that they're never "alone with children", so why should they be vetted. They've been going into schools for years, they say, so why now? Pullman, in particular, feels that vetting is "demeaning and insulting", another index of "corrosive and poisonous" state intervention.

What on earth is their problem?
(Source: Vetting: it should happen to an author by Bea Campbell (OBE) - The Guardian (online, Liberty Central) 16th July 2009)

Polly Toynbee, a regular Guardian columnist, also sprang to the defence of the ISA in checking 'volunteers', whilst expressing concern that Pullman was gathered-in to its embrace;

Philip Pullman is understandably indignant at needing a check to visit schools (though I imagine he's rarely left unaccompanied by admiring teachers). Checking him sounds excessive, and Ed Balls's new guidelines may frame an exemption while still allowing for volunteers who do extra reading sessions to be checked.
(Source: Those who blamed the state for Baby P now cry freedom, by Polly Toynbee, The Guardian 14th September 2009)

It is perhaps a coincidence that the two most vocal supporters of the ISA have had there work published in The Guardian - a newspaper notable for its abject support for the advocates of satanic ritual abuse in the late 1980s and early 1990s (though under a different editor). Bob Reitemeier, head of the Children's Society in the UK, a religious children's charity, also had his essay in support of the ISA published in The Guardian - which will be discussed later.

Other than the writers for The Guardian, finding a vocal supporter for the ISA is a difficult thing; despite its public personae about being inspired by the murders of Holly and Jessica, no politician outside the former Labour Party cabinet has been willing to publicly back it. It should be noted though that the ISA was established through Parliament, and other parties, including the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, voted for its creation.

Anticipated impact of the ISA on society

It is hard to quantify the depth of change within English and Welsh society that the ISA is likely to contribute to, but it is likely to be huge. Welsh and English society though have changed substantially in the last decade, partly in response to the child-saver lobby. The ISA can legitimately be seen as the ultimate expression of the will of the child-saver lobby; imposing an organisation unique in Europe and the rest of the world, but perhaps a logical extension of the 'moral panic' that was first established through the SRA Myth and Cleveland Scandals of the 1980s.

The establishment of the ISA has proven to be a huge source of speculation by writers, journalists and academics. The number of articles and essays written on the nature of the ISA and the nature of the political process and individuals who condoned and enabled it is immense, and quite likely this body of work will grow exponentially in the next few years. This entry cannot hope to provide more than a simplistic overview of a fraction of the written material concerning the ISA, and it seems unlikely that anything other than "full-blown" academic works can do the subject justice. This section of the Entry concerns the nature of English and Welsh society and its attitude towards child protection, and the nature of the changes that the introduction of the ISA are likely to make on already-established structures, morals, and normal human behaviour between children and adults.

Perhaps easily justified to write about the subject of how English and Welsh society has changed in recent years was retired detective chief superintendent Christopher Stevenson, who was the senior detective during the infamous Huntley case, that is (incorrectly) quoted as being the original inspiration for the creation of the ISA;

One of my hobbies is photography. So I took my camera to take a few 'action shorts' of my grandson. Ten minutes later I was approached by the manager, who said: "Can I ask you not to take photographs, it's against the regulations. You have to get permission in writing from every parent of every child".

I felt humbled. I am now a suspected paedophile - along, I fear, with millions of other parents and grandparents. I looked at the pictures I had taken. They were of my grandson making saves as his team came under pressure. I am sure he would liked to look back on them in the future. Who knows, he may be England's future goalkeeper at a future World Cup, although it's a remote chance. I deleted the photographs.
(Source: This CRB-check paranoia won't stop another Soham by Detective Superintendent Chris Green (ret) The Times, September 15th 2009)

The moral panic that has produced the ISA depends on the conviction that pedophiles are everywhere, rife in society and at any moment likely to molest a child or worse. During the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth that the ISA can trace it's heritage back to, the child-saver lobby tried to foist that vision of society on a public who, for a few years at least, lapped it up, until the hopeless lack of evidence for SRA shattered the illusion. One theory produced was "the Rule of P";

This notion of the banality of evil is given an alliterative twist in the panic discourse of Braun(1988), one of the most prominent American child-savers, whose 'Rule of P's' reveals the public persona of secret satanic ritual abusers: physicians, psychiatrists, psychotherapists, principals and teachers, pallbearers, public workers, police, politicians and judges, priests and clergies of all religions, parents and providers of day care.
(Source: The Devil Goes Abroad': The Export of the Ritual Abuse Moral Panic by Mary deYoung)

Religious fundamentalism, feminism and the ISA

With the demise of the SRA Myth, the child saver lobby simply switched to obsessing publicly that the "satanic ritual abusers" were now simply pedophiles. Feminists had willingly joined in, typified by Beatrix Campbell (OBE) who had openly colluded with religious fundamentalists by trying to present the "nuclear" family as nothing more than a haven for abuse, and to present males as nothing more than raping pedophiles. At the same time fundamentalists continued to push their passionate belief that the Devil was abroad, intent on corrupting the most innocent of mankind - children - through paedophilia. A willing media, notably The Guardian, Marxism Today and The New Statesman magazine were enthusiastically willing to publish the right-wing fundamentalists theories, so long as it could be somehow seen as being a war against patriarchy.

Throughout the 1990s, in countries where the SRA Myth had thrived - the US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand - a new generation of police officers, child protection social workers and paediatricians became indoctrinated into the child saver lobby obsessions. Just as a previous generation had been "programmed" into believing in SRA by the likes of the christian fundamentalist group The Reachout Trust, then so too did a new generation take up the cudgel of the moral panic.

The new generation of child savers were distinct in one key areas; this time had the support of politicians. In the US and UK the governments of Bill Clinton and Tony Blair respectively contained members who were distinctly pro-child saver lobby. State legislatures and local authorities also contained civil servants hugely influenced by the child saver lobby obsessions. In the UK the National Union of Teachers (NUT) sat back whilst male teachers were effectively hounded-out of teaching primary school children though a seemingly unorganised campaign based on the idea that male teachers must obviously be pedophiles. Too late, the teaching unions would realise that the child saver lobby wouldn't stop at just intimidating male teachers.

And so, using religious terminology, it came to pass that a climate of false allegations ensured that adults became increasingly wary of chastising children, talking to them, even saving them from injury or death. Into this world, in England and Wales, millions of adults were required to undergo a Criminal Records Bureau check to confirm to potential employers that they weren't convicted pedophiles. But the CRB check, through the the "Enhanced" version, provided a facility to legitimise false allegations and malicious rumours.

In 2008 sociologist Frank Furedi enscapulated the recognition of this new regime with his report for Civitas Licensed to Hug. As one of the first academics to realise the risks inherent with the introduction of the ISA, Mr. Furedi's report would become a focal point for many articles and discussions;

Civitas' report Licensed to Hug claims the checks have driven suspicion of all adults, which has led in turn to a breakdown of communities. Afraid to tell off or even talk to misbehaving children, adults have become "deskilled" in dealing with younger generations, it argues.

It's claimed one in four will be subject to checks once the forthcoming Independent Safeguarding Authority, mandated by the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, begins work in 2009. It will run alongside the existing Criminal Records Bureau (CRB).

University of Kent sociology professor Frank Furedi, the report's author, writes: "When parents feel in need of official reassurance that other parents have passed the paedophile test before they even start on the pleasantries, this indicates that something has gone badly wrong in our communities."
(Source: Think tank slams paedophile paranoia culture - by Chris Williams, The Register 26th June 2008)

English and Welsh society changed significantly as the century turned - going down a path that had never been seen before in history. The ease with which false allegations could be made against adults, mirrored in the manner by which false MSBP allegations could be made against women, has created a strange, repressed environment, where even human kindness is to be mistrusted and punished.

What began 25 years or so ago as an understandable desire to raise awareness of child abuse is turning into something extremely destructive – an instinctive suspicion of any encounter between grown-ups and unrelated children. It has happened without any political debate or rational discussion. It’s starting to poison our society. And with every passing month it’s getting worse.

Last month in Bedfordshire, 270 children from four primary schools had their annual sports day without the normal audience of proud parents watching them compete. All adults except teachers were banned. The reason? The organisers could not guarantee that an unsupervised adult might not molest a child. They preferred the certainty of ruining the pleasure of hundreds, and the instilling of general paranoia, to the phenomenally slight possibility of a sexual attack.

This is part of an insidious new orthodoxy that’s taking hold: that only authorised adults have any business engaging with children. It is no longer just about sexual abuse. In Twickenham last month the mother of a five– year-old who was being bullied decided to talk to the offender. She knelt by his chair and asked him politely to stop. The next day she was banned from the classroom for doing something that would have been regarded as rational and responsible behaviour at any other time in the past century.

Much worse was to happen a few days later to Anisa Borsberry, from Tyne and Wear, whose 11-year-old was being bullied by a group of girls. She, too, asked the bullies to stop. In retaliation, and knowing what a powerful weapon this was to use against an adult, the girls claimed Borsberry had assaulted them. Within hours they admitted lying. Nevertheless, the accusation of assault against a child is regarded as so serious that Borsberry was handcuffed in her home and held in police cells for five hours before hearing that no further action was being taken.
(Source: We approach others’ children at our peril, by Jenni Russell, The Sunday Times, August 16th 2009)

In the US similar attitudes have taken hold amongst citizens, causing many to question what the point is for society, the rule of law, and of being human. In at least one case a child has died because of this new regime;

Last summer, an Illinois man lost an appeal on his conviction as a sex offender for grabbing the arm of a 14-year-old girl. She had stepped directly in front of his car, causing him to swerve in order to avoid hitting her.

The 28-year-old Fitzroy Barnaby jumped out his car, grabbed her arm and lectured her on how not to get killed. Nothing more occurred. Nevertheless, that one action made him guilty of "the unlawful restraint of a minor," which is a sexual offence in Illinois. Both the jury and judge believed him. Nevertheless, Barnaby went through years of legal proceedings that ended with his name on a sex offender registry, where his photograph and address are publicly available. He must report to authorities. His employment options are severely limited; he cannot live near schools or parks.

Arguably, the law would have punished Barnaby less had he hit the girl or not cared enough to lecture her. Perhaps that's the equation that ran through Peachey's mind.

Again, Barnaby is an extreme case. But ordinary people make decisions on how to interact with children based on such high profile stories.

The effect on average people in non-extreme situations can be partially gauged through a study conducted by Dr. Heather Piper at Manchester Metropolitan University: "The Problematics of 'Touching' Between Children and Professionals." Piper examined six case-study schools through interviews with teachers, parents and children regarding the propriety of touch.

Commentator Josie Appleton reviewed the study, "Reported cases include the teacher who avoided putting a plaster [bandaid] on a child's scraped leg; nursery staff calling a child's mother every time he needed to go to the toilet; a male gym teacher leaving a girl injured in the hall while he waited for a female colleague."

One school reportedly kept an account of every 'touching incident.' They stated, "We write down a short account and date it and put which staff were present and at what time, we then explain it to the parent and ask them to read and sign it."

Appleton observed that this is more in keeping with "police logs than teaching children."

The last words encapsulate the problem.

Touching a child, even to render medical assistance, has become a potential police matter.

Child abuse must be addressed but it is worse than folly to punish those who help children. Our society is creating Clive Peachey -- decent men who will walk away from a child in need.
(Source: Did Pedophilia Hysteria Cause Child's Death? by Wendy McElroy, Fox News Tuesday 4th April 2006) )

Society and fear of children

Columnist and writer Jenni Russell, quoted earlier from her Sunday Times Leader article, written whilst Dominic Lawson was away, produced probably the most-commented and hard-hitting piece of journalism on the subject of society changing to accommodate the needs of the child saver lobby. But now, with false allegations so rife, children themselves are being branded as temporarily insane - a toxic chemical no sane adult should have anything to do with;

Traditionally, teachers have been thought of as potential mentors for children or confidants for those in distress. Increasingly they are being warned away from that role and told to keep their distance by schools. Nowhere is that made clearer than in a draft advice guide for teachers issued this spring by the Purcell school for young musicians.

The guide begins by telling staff: “Some adolescents experience periods of profound emotional disturbance and turmoil when they may be unable to differentiate between fantasy and reality. They may even be temporarily insane. They can thus present a danger to even the most careful of teachers.” This is child as wild animal; one that may bite at any moment. Teachers are told not to talk to pupils after coaching sessions, but to “usher them out of the room in a brisk no-nonsense manner”. They are told never to text pupils from their private mobiles, but to buy a second one for school use. This “should only be used for arranging appointments; chit chat should be avoided”. Nor can a teacher ever be alone with a pupil in a car, except in case of medical emergency, when the child must be seated in the back, a written record made of time, date and place and a telephone call made to the pupil’s parents to justify it.

The guide concludes that these procedures must become second nature, as any child may accuse a teacher and “your accuser could be of unsound mind”. It finishes with this chilling sentence: “It is helpful to think of current pupils as clients, rather than friends, as a doctor does.”
(Source for both sections: We approach others’ children at our peril, by Jenni Russell, The Sunday Times, August 16th 2009)

This was probably not what even the most ardent child-saver wanted; for society to progress from being compelled and convinced that child abusers were everywhere and anywhere, to the idea that children suffer "temporary insanity" because of their perceived gross tendency to employ the facility of false allegations. To a degree this is the core controversy surrounding the ISA - that it contributes to English and Welsh society being taken down a route never contemplated before - as if we are all engaged in a giant social experiment to test if it's possible to have adults and children dissociated from one another. It may be facetious to say that the ISA's 'mission statement' could be "to promote mass fear and distrust" but it wouldn't be entirely inaccurate.

Once it receives your application, the ISA will invite people to submit information about you. The ISA’s officials will be looking for any claim to the effect that you have done something which might have caused “physical, emotional, financial or developmental harm” to a child. Don’t ask for a definition of such “harm”, for there is none – the term will be interpreted in any way the Government’s assessors choose.

Those assessors will not be required to ascertain whether or not “harm” actually took place, nor whether you were in fact the cause of it. They will only have to come up with a measurement of the seriousness of the harm you might have caused: a number between one and five. Then they will have to put a number (also between one and five) on the likelihood that you’ll do something similar again. Those two numbers will then be used to determine whether it is safe to allow you to drive your child and three of his friends to that football practice.

The procedure is lunatic: it won’t, except by chance, result in accurate assessments. The Government says it is justified because it will help prevent another child killer like Ian Huntley, the murderer of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman. This is blatantly false. The problem with Huntley wasn’t a failure to put him on an official list of potential pedophiles: he was on such a list. The problem was that the police force that had the information failed to pass it on to the school in Soham that hired him.

Incompetence of that kind will, inevitably, be a feature of the ISA. The task of inputting and assessing data on 11 million individuals will be given to just 200 officials. Does any one seriously imagine that the result will be more accurate and effective than, say, the Child Support Agency – which, when it was first set up, made errors in around 50 per cent of the cases with which it dealt?

Furthermore, there is a simple way to dodge the new vetting procedure: use a false name. It is the oldest trick in the pedophiles book – Huntley himself used it – and nothing in the new vetting procedures will do anything at all to detect it.
(Source: Why the Vetting and Barring Scheme is pure madness by Alasdair Palmer - - The Daily Telegraph, 12th September 2009)

False allegation & acquittals

The subject that has doubtlessly attracted the most comment, both in newspapers, journals and through Internet forums and 'blogs', concerns the manner in which the ISA treats individuals who have been found not guilty, or have been the subject of false allegations. In this regard the ISA cannot be said to have introduced new concepts to English and Welsh society; as the section below will indicate, there is already sufficient concern about the use of the "extended" facility of the Criminal Records Bureau. The ISA has simply, it appears, taken the facility for misusing authority and data that has been employed by the CRB, and has built into its documented Standard Operating Procedures, a means to defeat the judicial system and even perhaps the European Court of Human Rights.

The manner in which a decision is made about a candidate for vetting is probably the most contentious element in the ISA's running brief. Because the organisation is founded around POCA 1999, its credos and ethos is likely to be based around how POCA has been employed to date by Local Authorities and the Secretary of State (who had transferred his power to regulate through POCA to the ISA, whereupon on the 12th October 2009 the ISA switched to using the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act .)

The ISA has a number of techniques for determining if a person is suitable to both work with children, or be in their presence. These are published on the ISA web site as Guidance Notes for the Barring Decision Making Process. The vast majority of instructions published by the ISA are perfectly reasonable and sensible. But a few are likely to cause issues in the future, and hark back to the the heritage of the ISA - as, as mentioned in the History section of this Index entry, the organisation was bought into being using ten-year-old legislation that itself came about from vile false allegations made against nursery workers Christopher Lillie & Dawn Reed

Bob Reitemeier, head of the Children's Society in the UK, a worldwide religious children's charity, wrote a reasonably-worded defence of the ISDA's establishment in The Guardian newspaper - the only UK publication that has to date published articles supportive of the organisation;

The Guardian site has been full of comment claiming that the government's new move to prevent the abuse of children was somehow "the nanny state gone mad'' or an attempt wrap children in "600 million tons of cotton wool". I profoundly disagree with this criticism.

The Children's Society welcomes the new Vetting and Barring Scheme. The requirement to ask anyone taking part in activities involving frequent or intensive contact with children or vulnerable adults to register is a rational and proportionate response to a genuine problem.

It is not a knee-jerk reaction provoked by media hype and moral panic. Nor do I agree that it would produce more social evil than it is seeking to prevent. This is about preventing unsuitable people from working with children and vulnerable adults.
(Source: Vetting keeps our children safe by Bob Reitemeier, The Guardian 11th September 2009)

Reading the comments left for all of the articles published on the subject of the ISA indicated that a substantial number of people had taken the time to digest the ISA's own documentation. An example being;

Let me (although I am sure you are aware of this already, Mr Reitemeier, and have been put up to this by The Guardian to give us someone to yell at) tell you what it does do:

* It checks all previous convictions, regardless of relevance: stigmatising people who have "served their time" for offences that have absolutely nothing to do with children.

* The enhanced check -- and it's almost always the enhanced check that is used, these days -- also considers any allegation made about you for whatever reason, regardless of whether it has been proved. Or even if it has been disproved. So, all someone has to do to stop your access to children is to make an unfounded allegation. (I could also mention the case of the head teacher suspended when he failed a CRB check because he had not renewed a fishing license.)

* The new checks can take into account the posts you make on Facebook, or indeed as far as I can tell anything else they decide is odd about you. In effect, they allow some faceless bureaucrat to judge your life as if he were weighing your soul in the balance.

* Furthermore, if the people that know more about these things than I are correct, it may be that in order to pass the new checks your will be required to have an ID card, which will tie you into a system where almost every aspect of your interaction with others will be stored for hundreds and thousands of people to see at will. (But lets not get sidetracked by ID cards.)

In short, even if the checks were objective well thought out and useful, it would still not be reasonable to them to people who are simply helping out other people -- the parents that agree to ferry other people's kids to a football match at the behest of the organiser; the girls that agree to keep the kids in order at a friend's wedding.

But the truth is these checks are a charter for bureaucracy to screw you if you fail to fit some impossible straight-jacket of conformity. And a badly-designed one at that.
(Source: Comment left by 'Shadowfirebird' in response to Vetting keeps our children safe by Bob Reitemeier)

Perhaps the most contentious element of the ISA's operation is its ability to reappraise the decisions of criminal courts, or even the fact that cases against defendants have been dropped, invariably because of a lack of evidence. The ISA claims supremacy over the criminal justice system.

This is performed through the use of a civil test of the issues that may (or may not) have appeared before a criminal court (magistrates or crown court);

1) Reappraising not-guilty verdicts in criminal courts, through the use of a civil court probability test (see below).

2. Taking into account cases that have been dropped or abandoned by the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) on the grounds that on probability, incidents like uncorroborated false allegations (say against a teacher) were indeed correct allegations.

3) Taking uncorroborated innuendo, rumour, suspicion, false malicious allegations, prejudice and misconstrued reporting as fact in determining the suitability of a candidate required to undergo vetting.

4. Operating as a "moral arbiter" in the suitability of candidates for roles caring for children and vulnerable adults.

Although many citizens would consider that a 'not-guilty' verdict in a criminal court means precisely that, the child-saver lobby has determined in the past that the very fact that an individual has been to Court should in itself condemn them. Of course the principal snag with criminal trials is they require a criminal court level of evidence. That 'test' sometimes can't be achieved, leaving police officers and other professions convinced that the suspect 'did it' but the rigours of a having to prove to a criminal standard was unachievable. In such cases the ISA inherits the 'enhanced' capability of the CRB check process. A Court and jury may have determined someone to be 'not guilty' but in such cases another standard of evidence can be applied, based on probability.

5.6 Acquittals
5.6.1. There could be any number of reasons why a person charged with an offence is acquitted: perhaps the victim decided not to testify and the CPS (Public Prosecution Service (PPS) in Northern Ireland) had to withdraw the case; perhaps the acquittal was based on a technicality; and even where a jury has found someone not guilty of having done something, you must always remember that, at most, this means is that the court did not find that someone did something “beyond a reasonable doubt” (the criminal standard of proof). The test applied by the ISA in relation to barring considerations is ‘on the balance of probability’ (the civil standard of proof). Therefore, even if there has been an acquittal, the ISA must still consider the case for itself on the basis of the balance of probabilities. A barring decision can, therefore, be made, having regard to all the circumstances, if the ISA is satisfied that the events concerned happened, on the balance of probabilities, notwithstanding an acquittal at court.
(Source: Guidance Notes for the Barring Decision Making Process)

It is significant that the ISA's definitions of reasons for acquittals don't include the possibility that the allegation made against an individual that resulted in them being in court, was the result of a false allegation. So for instance a "victim" who admits in the witness box that an allegation of sexual abuse made against a teacher, simply to ensure he or she lost their job, wouldn't be counted as relevant by the ISA barring decision process.

Indeed the Guidance Notes don't, bizarrely, include the words "false", "malicious" or "untrue" in the text - suggesting that the concept that people can make malicious false allegations against individuals - notably professionals like teachers or social workers, simply isn't regarded as a valid concept by the ISA.

The question as to whether the ISA should be able to reinterpret not-guilty findings has advocates - certainly there is an argument to say that children deserve the greatest degree of protection possible, and the sometimes chance nature of jury trials is such that guilty people can escape conviction. But the CRB makes huge leaps in determining if a not-guilty finding is relevant to whether a CRB certificate will be issued to an individual - and the ISA have inherited that very same capability;

This is an actual case and is typical. A lady who teaches history took a year off to take an MA. After the examinations she was arrested for alleged shoplifting in a local supermarket. It was a terrible business. She was charged and demanded a jury trial. Understandably, she insisted on getting the store security video, from which it was obvious she could not have been the guilty party. The store detective had bruised her arms her during the arrest outside the store, so significant amounts of compensation were paid to her. Plenty of documentation was available and the charges were dropped with profuse apologies.

It all appeared on her CRB form. When she challenged it she got the reply that she may have been guilty to the lower civil standard and that the information should remain. As a result she was turned down for a job as head of history at a state school, for that local authority refused to engage a person with any entry whatsoever on a CRB form. But thanks to the head teacher she was introduced to another school a few miles away and ended up being appointed head of history at that local private school, with more pay.
(Source: Internet forum entry by 'Barry Williams' discussing the Independent Safeguarding Authority' - July 14th 2009)

It isn't clear if the ISA is also or will claim supremacy over the civil justice courts - the District County Courts, High Court, Court of Appeal, House of Lords or even indeed the European Court of Human Rights. Already Sir Roger Singleton is perhaps the most powerful unelected official in the country, more powerful than the head of MI6, Sir John Scarlett, who together with the remainder of the security services are still answerable to the criminal and civil justice system. The ISA's facility to re-interpret a not-guilty verdict will probably see a challenge against it through the the use of the Human Rights Act - as an individual had been judged, but without the benefit of a court hearing - even one in a civil court, using a test of probability.

Even before its "go live" date, citizens had drawn attention to this ability to ignore the criminal justice system. An example is below, with a letter to Sir Singleton himself, from writer and media consultant Mark Pack ;

Dear Sir Roger,

I have seen that in the media today you have asked people to “calm down” and be “rational” about how the ISA will operate.

I hope therefore that you don’t mind me writing you this calm letter which, I hope, will give a clear rational reason for my concerns.

It is paragraph 5.6.1 of “Guidance Notes for Barring Decision Marking Process”, which states in part:

“even where a jury has found someone not guilty of having done something, you must always remember that, at most, this means is that the court did not find that someone did something “beyond a reasonable doubt” (the criminal standard of proof).”

My concern is simply this. When a jury acquits it may do so for all sorts of reasons. One may be that it thinks someone was probably guilty, but not “beyond a reasonable doubt”. But another is that it has decided that there is no credible evidence at all for the case.

Imagine the situation where you have been framed for a criminal act, but the truth comes out in court, the jury is completely convinced that you are innocent and you are acquitted. Can you really, hand on heart, say that in such circumstances you would be quite happy for someone to say that all your acquittal means is that “at most all the court has done is decide you didn’t do it beyond a reasonable doubt”.

Wouldn’t you feel that use of “at most” greatly underplays how you have in fact been fully acquitted, without any doubts?

Sometimes people are wrongly charged and fully, without doubt, acquitted. It is a shame that your guidance is so reluctant to admit that.

Yours sincerely,

Mark Pack
(Source: My letter to Sir Roger Singleton, Independent Safeguarding Authority By Mark Pack, 14th September 2009)

Whilst the ISA's facility for reinterpreting a not-guilty verdict is contentious, its documented ability to reinterpret a case that doesn't even get to court is easily its most controversial 'feature'.

5.7 Discontinuance
(explanatory notes skipped)
5.7.15. For example, if the CPS/PPS has determined that the case does not meet the first test because there is an insufficiency of evidence, then, without further or additional evidence, it is very unlikely that the evidence will be sufficient to conclude, on a balance of probability, the event occurred. Similarly, where a witness has retracted a critical statement, it will be doubtful whether the evidence would be sufficient to show that the event occurred. Nevertheless, there may be other facts that need to be considered but which do not form part of the consideration in respect of the offence being considered.
(Source: Guidance Notes for the Barring Decision Making Process) The Guidance Notes do not deal what constitutes "other facts", how these are determined, and how they are relevant to a Discontinuance issue. Perhaps more pertinently the term "it is doubtful" is hardly an instruction to say "on no account is such a case relevant."

Whether an individual has been accused and either been found guilty or his or her case didn't even get to Court, then the ISA still has one catchall to cover any occasion;

4.4 Discretionary Barring
(preliminary notes skipped)
4.4.3 Risk of Harm - If it appears that a person may harm a child or vulnerable adult; or may cause a child or vulnerable adult to be harmed; or put a child or vulnerable adult at risk of harm; or attempt to harm a child or vulnerable adult; or incite another to harm a child or vulnerable adult and it is proposed to include that person on the children’s and/or adults’ list(s), the person must be given the opportunity to make representations as to why they should not be included on the list(s). If, after considering the representations, it is determined that the person has fulfilled one of the above and it is appropriate to include the person on the list(s), the person will be placed on the list(s).


Even before the establishment of the ISA, the false allegation regime in England and Wales is well developed and embedded in society. The National Union of Teachers (NUT), having determined it was to provide little or no opposition to the regime when it started-up in the 1990s (ostensibly to remove male teachers, who feminists and religious fundamentalists saw as being in their roles only to pursue paedophile activity) the union found that the steamroller of false allegations against teachers couldn't be stopped. So it was that a generation of teachers, both male and female find themselves working in careers constantly vulnerable to the easy use of false allegations.

Pupils are threatening to accuse teachers of abusing them in order to avoid being punished for bad behaviour, MPs warn today.

The report from the Children, Schools and Families Select Committee says new guidelines should be published to help head teachers deal with false allegations against their staff.

It claims that teachers are often treated as guilty before they are proven innocent and demands that the Government justifies why unsubstantiated allegations are passed on to employers.

Teaching unions report increasing numbers of claims of physical abuse of pupils at the hands of their teachers, but a static number of convictions.
(Source: MPs say teachers need protection against false claims of pupil abuse, by Joanna Sugden, The Times , July 16th 2009

The false allegation regime has even been rendered into an "industry" according to some teachers;

The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) said that lawyers working on a “no win, no fee” basis were fuelling a rise in malicious allegations against teachers, made in the knowledge that local authorities would often pay complainants without even investigating their allegations.

Mick Brookes, the union’s general secretary, said that “a lottery mentality” prompted children and parents to try their luck by levelling spurious allegations to get a payout.

“If it is thought that by using a ‘no win, no fee’ solicitor some payout can be got from the local authority, parents at times don’t hesitate to go there,” he said at the union’s annual conference in Bournemouth.

Another head teacher said that she had been astonished to learn that a parent at her school had been paid compensation by the local authority after complaining that teachers had been negligent in caring for her daughter after an accident during a PE lesson.

The head, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals from the parent concerned, said that the local authority had handed over the money without informing the school or even bothering to find out whether it was true. The school’s own investigation later concluded that the accusation was unfounded.
(Source: Teachers say greedy lawyers promote false abuse claims by Alexandra Frean, The Times, May 5th 2007)

With the introduction of the ISA, the NUT attempted to make representations to the government, although to-date the promise of a review hasn't transpired;

“The NUT is pleased that the select committee has called on the Government to justify its position on passing unproven allegations to employers, although we remain convinced that the system should be changed. In setting up the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) the Government missed an opportunity to deal with this issue. Once a teacher is cleared by the ISA the record of a false allegation should not pursue them throughout their career.
(Source: NUT response to a report by the Children, Schools and Families Select Committee report into false allegations against teachers, made by Christine Blower, General Secretary - 16th July 2009)

Even non-teachers, i.e. ordinary members of the public, are vulnerable to the regime of false allegations that never get to Court;

I have spoken this evening to a desperate man from London, whose life is being blighted by CRB disclosures revealing false allegations made against him.

My (seemingly) one man campaign to alert people to this injustice has so far alerted a number of people harmed by it, but nobody willing to change anything! Maybe this will change that, as his story shows how the current law just can’t be right.

This man (from London) suffered a bitter break-up with a partner, who then reported him to the police with serious allegations. These, he maintains, were false, and although the police investigated them there was no conviction. He has no criminal record and has never been in trouble with the law.

And yet, due to the CRB system permitting the police to reveal allegations even if they were never proven, each time he applies for a job his CRB disclosure reveals them. Suspicion is cast on him again, and the embarrassment and shame of being a suspect in a serious crime returns. Remember, there was no conviction. He has no criminal record. And yet he is effectively treated as a criminal.

He was asked to leave two separate universities because of these allegations. And he has now been told by his employer that he is no longer required after his CRB was returned with these allegations on it.

How can this situation be permitted to exist? How can it be right, in a country governed by the rule of law, for the innocent to be criminalised? How can the allegations of an angry and aggrieved partner (or neighbour, or anyone who doesn’t like you) make their way onto official documents used to verify the character of someone else? How can unproven accusations be used to incriminate those against whom they’re made?

CRB checks are vital. They are a hugely important tool in tackling abuse and in protecting the vulnerable. But they must be used wisely because, quite rightly, they are powerful documents. We need to protect people. But we need to protect ALL people, including the innocent people against whom allegations are made and who are made to suffer because they’re repeated on CRB disclosures.

I can’t help but think that there is a big injustice going on here. It cannot be right for allegations made, denied and absolutely not proved true, to be used against people in this way.
(Source: Another heartbreaking story about false allegations on CRB disclosures - Surely there’s a big injustice here? By Richard Baum, Liberal Democrat Councillor for the St Mary’s ward of Bury Council)

It should though perhaps be appreciated that establishing a bureaucracy like ISA wasn't a manifesto commitment by the Labour Party. Although the party is more "sympathetic" to the feminists/christian fundamentalist vision of child protection, with its emphasis on suspicion of any adult who has any contact with a child - whether they be a teacher, policeman, or someone just running a few lads' around to a Saturday afternoon football match, it has to be emphasised that demand for the ISA, or some organisation to perform its functions, hasn't been widely discussed within the ranks of the Party in the past.

It would perhaps be more accurate to say that the ISA came about as the result of an unhappy series of co-incidences. Sir Bichards recommendations following the Soham Enquiry were hopelessly misjudged, in that they missed the key requirement - that police forces be given specific instructions on how to disseminate (and retain) crucial data that could conceivably be of interest to another constabulary in the event a 'person of interest moved location. That requirement was hopelessly missed. Instead Sir Bichard came up with a vague notion that anyone who had contact with children should be checked (something that to a significant degree already happens with the CRB check).

A combination of civil servants and the child-saver lobby then generated the plans for the ISA. The Labour Party, then in government were perhaps guilty of no more than simple gullibility; no other political party in the UK would have accepted such proposals-realising the enormous change to society that the ideas proposed, and fully aware (after the scandals with the CSA) that such an organisation would be a dead-certainty for scandal, abuse of power and future condemnation.

Who benefits from the ISA?

Many commentators and contributors to Internet blogs and forums have suggested that the primary beneficiary of the ISA will be pedophiles themselves;

So, with this regime in place, will not the effect be to increase the number of pedophiles working with kids, and not reduce it? Normal folk are more likely to be deterred by the state bureaucracy and snooping, not to mention any fees involved, leaving the way clear for determined pedophiles to fill any vacant positions.
(Source: Comment by 'Phil' in response o Craig Murrays essay We are all pedophiles now, published September 11th 2009)

The concern that the ISA will leave a 'clear run' for un-convicted pedophiles was magnified by the by the case of Vanessa George and other conspirators, who had engaged in a child paedophile ring centred on Little Ted's nursery in Plymouth, until their arrest in June 2009. In addition to reminding the child-saver lobby that women could indeed be pedophiles - when so much emphasis had been placed over decades on males being the sole perpetrators, the case also reiterated how useless the ISA and CRB were - George had been given a CRB check and issued with a confirming certificate; being un-convicted and unsuspected. (See Little Ted's nursery worker Vanessa George charged with child abuse by Simon de Bruxelles - The Times June 11th 2009)

The paedophile community though has much to gain from the ISA. The introduction of 'thought police' measures to be inflicted on what in the past wood be regarded as being good citizenship - such as assisting in children's pursuits like the boys brigade, girl guides, taking kids to swimming on a Saturday morning, have now been corrupted universally into a seeming excuse for child molesting. The virus of suspicion is likely to be the key negative contribution of the ISA in coming years - as contact between adults and children - even when children are at risk of injury or threat - is curtailed increasingly by the thought that no-one would be advised to have anything to do with a child.

In November 2009 Jenni Russell returned to the subject of how children are increasingly being placed at risk by the obsession with rules and procedures;

Last winter a father I know went to collect his 12-year-old son from an evening at a youth club in a neighbouring village. It was dark and it was raining. There was only one other child left at the club — another 12-year-old whose mother had rung to say that she was delayed at work and couldn’t pick him up. My friend, who knew the family, offered to take him home.

The female youth worker was adamant. That was not allowed. No written permission had been given, so regulations forbade it. Nor could she drive the boy home, even though she, too, lived in the village; she wasn’t permitted, under child protection rules, to have an unaccompanied minor in her car. That left the boy with one option. He walked 1Å miles home, in the dark, along an unlit country road. He might have been hit by a car, or even abducted by a stranger; he certainly arrived back wet, bewildered and a little scared. That didn’t matter. All the rules had been followed, and whether a child was more or less safe as a result was beside the point.
(Source: Crazy law leaves a child out in the cold - by Jenni Russell, November 1st 2009)

For pedophiles the ISA is a positive boon; rather than being seen as a targeted group, living at the edge of society, and thus easy to pursue, the ISA has promoted them into the common body. They can claim now that there view of children, and their tendencies, aren't so unusual, aren't so at odds with society - after all the government has determined that the ISA is needed - simply because there must be so many pedophiles about. In the 1970's, an attempt had been made by groups who advocated the legalising of sex with children. For a few years such groups had made inroads, gaining support from the Council for Civil Liberties (now the human rights charity Liberty) and from a number of its officers who would later become senior Labour Ministers (see the entry for Shami Chakrabarti.)

The other group to benefit from the establishment of the ISA is the child-saver lobby. The ISA, probably the final victory for those in the UK who had promoted the Satanic Ritual Abuse Myth of the late 1980s and early 1990s have at last made a lasting dent on British society. Their claim, initially that society was riddled with organised groups of satanists, had changed to the vision that Britain was chock-full of pedophiles. Speculation about what next step the child-saver lobby will inflict range from bans on children playing outside, to even lie-detector tests for adults who have any contact with children.

Who will lose?

Identifying those who will suffer from the establishment of the ISA aren't too difficult to find. Children will probably be the top category; as English and Welsh society convulses even more in the modern 'moral panic' - preventing children from having normal human contact with adults and encouraging those who would otherwise intercede on their behalf when they are in danger from abuse, neglect or injury instead turning away, fearful that they will be unjustly accused.

Worse, the discouraging of 'good citizens' from running children's clubs and out-of-school distractions for youngsters, due to the wholesale and well, distinctly distasteful process of being branded a paedophile unless able to prove otherwise with both a CRB and an ISA check being completed, will probably leave many children bereft of activities beyond the much-criticised one of staying in their rooms and connecting to others through chat-rooms on the Internet. As the chance of meeting a genuine paedophile through the World Wide Web appears higher than meeting one through a Boy Scouts/Girl Guides group, it appears that the ISA will increase, not decrease, the danger to children. In addition the Governments anti-obesity strategy appears shot-to-pieces, though only proper scientific research will indicate if this view is correct.

The ISA's creation also raises the question as to whether the organisation exists to inflict 'collective punishment' on the middle classes of England and Wales - the very group who are predominantly known for their interest in children's welfare and protection. The subject of 'collective punishment' is discussed at the entry for Adolf Hitler, who is also quoted at the end of this entry.

Of the professions, the vocation of Teaching is probably the obvious candidate for being the most impacted. If anything the ISA strengthens the oft-stated claim from the profession that the ease of use of false allegations is blighting careers and has introduced a climate of fear into the classroom, with teachers unable to both protect themselves and their charges from increasing bullying and violence in English and Welsh schools. The teaching unions, notably the NUT, who had frantically avoided confronting the Government when the false allegation regime had begun to develop - ostensibly to see male teachers removed from primary schools at the bequest of feminists and religious fundamentalists amongst senior union members - have finally started to show some backbone in the face of the issue. The response though is probably too late - the regime too-well established, and the ISA will doubtlessly strengthen the obsession with false allegations.

Another 'loser' defined by the enabling of the ISA is probably the Labour Party;

These voters want to feel loved when they are comfortable too. And as they see their taxes rise, as they battle with a schools system that puts equality above excellence, as they find themselves compared to pedophiles if they drive a group of children to a swimming class, they feel increasingly that Labour disapproves of them.

Somehow the Government has also managed to alienate the hard-working families it claims to represent, from the dinner lady fired for reporting bullies to the policewomen who cannot babysit for each other’s child unless they join a child-minders register.

If Labour returns to “class war” against David Cameron, as some are suggesting, that impression will be further reinforced.
(Source: Gordon Brown is finished. And the Labour Party might be too - Rachel Sylvester, The Times 29th September 2009 )

As eluded-to at the beginning of this entry, the enabling of the ISA in England and Wales, and its equivalents in Scotland and Northern Ireland, are likely to tax sociologists and other scholars for decades to come. British society will be changed drastically by its inception, perhaps permanently. The very reason for community and organised society, primarily existing for the safe and cohesive upbringing of future generations, will be challenged and rendered too dangerous. Jenni Russell again;

More profoundly, this insistence on the importance of distrust is eating away at our society. One in three men claim to have been deterred from volunteering, and the Brownies cannot find enough Brown Owls. A churchwarden in Hertfordshire told me all the spontaneous activities his church used to organise, such as picnics on a sunny Sunday, had had to stop because nothing could be done unless officially signed for far in advance. The summer play scheme on the green, with rounders and parachute games and art, went when the parents who manned it were asked to have Criminal Records Bureau checks. Even though everyone in the village knew everyone else, they weren’t allowed to act on that trust. He described parents and church workers as paralysed by the fear of doing something wrong. “We’re organising out the idea of community,” he said.

Dame Elisabeth Hoodless, the executive director of Community Service Volunteers, an organisation with almost 230,000 people a year taking part in it, says that nobody is counting the cost as people decide to withdraw altogether from the legal and bureaucratic nightmare that helping others has become. In Cornwall, volunteer flower arrangers at a hospital chapel were informed that they could not continue unless they took CRB checks. Instead they left. Football clubs in deprived areas are, Hoodless says, becoming impossible for disadvantaged children to join. They don’t have parents with cars to get them to training or fixtures, and already the better-off parents are refusing to give lifts in case they are accused of illegal behaviour or assault. The CSV’s own procedures for scrutinising volunteers have worked without any serious problems for almost 50 years, but that means nothing now.

Hoodless warns that, far from society being improved, millions of children are going to be even more neglected because of the spread of these checks.
(Source: Crazy law leaves a child out in the cold - by Jenni Russell, November 1st 2009)

Upon the announcement of the ISA's inception, the organisation and the New Labour government wobbled into the sights of an extraordinary number of individuals and organisations opposed to it. Included amongst those organisations are the Association of School and College Leaders, the National Association of Head Teachers and the Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference, who amongst others, contributed to a letter to Schools Secretary Ed Balls MP

Head teachers provided a list of activities that were being undermined by the regulations, which were introduced following the murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman by school caretaker Ian Huntley in Soham, Cambridgeshire.

It includes:

*A reduction in the number of parents volunteering in schools to help arrange school plays, trips and fundraising

*Difficulty in finding emergency plumbers and heating engineers

*A loss of opportunities for children to take part in volunteering for the Duke of Edinburgh programme

*A reduction in visiting speakers

*A rise in bureaucratic hurdles for senior school pupils attempting to help out with reading support in junior schools.

The barring scheme was launched in October and will affect most people by mid-2010. Currently, Sir Roger Singleton, head of the ISA, is reviewing the parameters of the guidelines.

He will redefine what is meant by “regular” and “frequent” access to children amid fears some people are being unfairly caught out by the regulations.

But the letter said schools were concerned the review would merely “tinker with the system because of the constraints of his remit”.

“We are urging a review of the whole strategy,” the letter said.
(Source: Paedophile checks 'ruining pupils' education' by Graeme Paton, The Daily telegraph, 11th December 2009

In response to the rising tide of anger and opposition allied against the ISA and New Labour, Ed Balls MP requested Sir Roger audit himself, to determine if he had too much power. Although a seemingly daft idea - asking a powerful public servant to effectively determine if he was too powerful, the government felt that this was enough of a response. Throughout the remaining days of 2009 though the opposition intensified, and the news-worthy nature of the ISA controversy can be best typified by a listing of stories just one newspaper ran in a matter of weeks, in this case, The Daily Telegraph;

Nine million face paedophile checks despite Ed Balls U-turn by John Bingham, 14th December 2009
Council bans parents from play areas by Tom Whitehead 28th October 2009
Criminal record checks gone too far by Tom Whitehead, 30th October 2009
Paedophile checks even for those not working with children by Martin Beckford, 26th October 2009
Do we need a complete re-think of all anti-paedophile vetting procedures? By Martin Beckford, 14th December 2009
Vetting rules climbdown after public backlash by Patrick Hennessay, 12th December 2009
CRB checks routinely carried out on 13 and 14-year-olds, 14th December 2009

A primary difficulty that the New Labour government had in finding a suitable compromise to address concerns about the ISA is that the Party is dominated by the 'child saver' lobby. Colluding religious fundamentalists and feminists, who perhaps recognise that a change of government, possibly in June 2010 or before, would see a new administration less easily prone to addressing their obsessions, were desperately trying to get their agenda through, even if it imposes an electoral cost on the Labour Party. With 'child saver' lobbyists finding willing and enthusiastic civil servants, Ministers and Under-Secretaries in government departments (this web site is aware of two former Labour Party government Ministers who held extremist religious fundamentalist views about women) it seems unlikely that the Right Honourable Ed Balls would be able to extricate the Labour Party from its association with the establishment of the ISA, which is a little unfair when, as mentioned before, other parties voted for it to be enabled.

Quite likely the existence of the ISA will prove the defining event of the New Labour governments from 1997 to 2010. The appointment of Margaret Hodge MP, most famously known for her attempt to suppress the investigation of a paedophile scandal, as the first Children's Minister in June 2003, allied to the granting of an OBE to SRA Myth advocate Bea Campbell (OBE) just a matter of months before the ISA went 'live' provided an insight into New Labour's attitude towards child protection and the degree of control the 'child saver' lobby of colluding religious fundamentalists and feminists have over the Party.

Political scientists worldwide will perhaps discuss, publish papers and speculate, perhaps for decades to come, the value an established political party in office has, just a matter of months before a general election, imposing a personal compliance regime on over 5 million citizens, many of whom would be likely voters for itself. It isn't clear if the regime - in effect determining them to be pedophiles unless they pay sixty-four pounds to obtain an affirmation from a government department to say they aren't - became a 'single issue' that changed some voters minds on Election Day. Nonetheless with over five million people impacted by the creation of the ISA to satisfy the 'child saver' lobby, even the shift of 100,000 voters away from Labour might have significantly impacted the Election result, which resulted in Labour being relgated to Her Majesty's Opposition.

The ISA staff will be employed by a private company - Capita Recruitment Vetting Service, a division of Capita PLC. Accordingly the staff will not be subject to the Civil Service Code of Conduct, and will not be regulated by Parliament. As a private concern, the ISA will not be subject to Parliamentary scrutiny. Its operating guidelines (see earlier) are written by the organisation itself, and it has been established to 'self-regulate' itself.

The final quote for this section is bizarrely enough, left to Adolf Hitler, who determined that any imposition on society would be accepted if it was seen as being for the benefit of the children. The difficulty is that the ISA, born from the twin obsessions of religious intolerance and gender hatred, hasn't gained the consensus that even Hitler perceived as necessary, and is unlikely to ever gain respect. Inexplicably Roger Singleton was knighted for his successful efforts to render the Barnado's charity into a secular organisation during his tenure there. He has now, perhaps unknowingly, become the head of a powerful organisation - perhaps the most powerful organisation in English and Welsh history, that can trace its history directly back to the desires of religious fanaticism.

In all likelihood the staff of the ISA will be unable to claim that they have enhanced the protection of children. For certain though it will be possible to attribute the abuse of, and deaths of children to its existence as more adults become more fearful of intervening and protecting children in danger;

The state must declare the child to be the most precious treasure of the people. As long as the government is perceived as working for the benefit of the children, the people will happily endure almost any curtailment of liberty and almost any deprivation.
(Source - Page 403 - Ralph Manheim translation (1943) Mein Kampf)
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


Roy Meadow (OBE) - MSBP & SIDS



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

Please note this entry, discussing the theories of Sir Roy Meadow, namely Münchausen by Proxy Syndrome and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, was originally located in the Surnames - M index page. The length of the entry has required it's move to a separate section.

Roy Meadow (Royston, Sir Samuel, Professor)


Introduction

British paediatrician, now retired. Former President of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.

Sir Meadow is the "father" of Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy (MSBP) a theory initially postulated in his paper "Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy: The Hinterland of Child Abuse" published in the Lancet August 13th 1977. The theory, developed from endocrinologist and haematologist Richard Asher's 1951 theory of Munchausens Syndrome, determined that sufferers of the condition (normally women) would deliberately harm or fake symptoms of illness to gain the attention of medical personnel and doctors.

Sir Meadow's observations as a paediatrician working in Leeds had led him to the conviction that occasionally carers suffered from such a condition. It should be noted that Sir Meadow made it clear that the condition was rare, and wouldn't be expected to be seen routinely by a health professional. MSBP gave an alternate label to what was perceived to be a somewhat subtle form of (most often) child abuse whose recognition and diagnosis would prove to be a challenge for any physician. Sir Meadow (and others) direct observations - including two occasions when the author claimed to have witnessed a mother poisoning her toddler with excessive salt and another mother who had introduced her own blood into her baby's urine sample, provided the basis for his paper.

Sir Meadow's Lancet paper drew some mild criticism on publication, but little attention was paid to it and the theory it promoted for the remainder of the 1970's and early 1980's. Indeed the theory only received recognition from the Royal College Of Paediatrics and Child Health in 2002 when the term Fabricated or Induced Illness by Carers or simply FII was determined to be preferable. By then the use of the MSBP moniker was generally accepted as being too saddled with associations of false or poorly-determined allegations. US health professions use a number of other terms, but in essence FII and MSBP remain interchangeable terms. The theory came to proper public notice in the UK with the prosecution of nurse Beverley Allett for the murder of four children in 1993.

The expansion of MSBP

It was perhaps 1993 when MSBP allegations expanded in usage in the UK and US. The theory had now diffused, from paediatric health, down to social work. Perhaps simply by coincidence 1992-1993 happened to be the time that UK social workers were challenged in their use of SRA (Satanic Ritual Abuse) allegations as a means to forcibly remove children from parents. Unwittingly Dr Meadow's had provided a diagnosis that, in reaching the popular consciousness of both the public and child protection professionals, became, when alleged against a woman, a popular modus operandi for the forcible removal of a child or baby into care.

Sir Meadow's theory had by then undergone a substantial overhaul. In 1987 Dr. Diane Rosenberg re-defined MSBP in her paper Web of Deceit: a literature review of Munchausens syndrome by proxy . Using statistical analysis, Dr. Rosenberg determined using 117 identified cases of MSBP that when an allegation of MSBP was made of a parent or carer (normally a woman) who had attended a hospital with a child or baby, then 10 of those children released to their parents subsequently died and at least 8% of the 107 survivors suffered long-term morbidity. Thus she calculated that the death rate of children returned to their homes from hospital was 9%

To the credit of Sir Meadow he challenged the basis of the data in Dr Rosenberg's 1987 paper, arguing in a letter to the journal Dr Rosenberg's paper had appeared in Child Abuse & Neglect that the crucial numbers were over-egged. Seeing the huge enthusiasm that the diagnosis attracted in determining if children should be forcibly removed from women and parents he wrote another paper in 1995, warning his profession about rampant over-diagnosis.

Even with his intervention and entreaties, MSBP became a monster he could no longer control. From the mid-1990's onwards, all the way to present times, MSBP allegations magnified exponentially in use, crossing from the US and UK to Australia and New Zealand, Germany and Canada. A few other nations adopted the diagnosis, now substantially changed from that originally postulated by Sir Meadows, including Nigeria and India, where its use in harassing women has been enthusiastically adopted. In the UK and US alone tens of thousands of women saw their children forcibly removed on the basis of an MSBP allegation.

An essential element of "modern" MSBP allegations involved the use of profiling. Taken from elements of FBI criminal investigation work, profiles provided a check-list of behaviour through which social workers and paediatricians could identify behaviour indicative of a woman with MSBP. However no global profile for a woman suspected of MSBP existed, and so numerous profiles were created. It should be noted though that Sir Meadows had no part in the development of the concept of "profiling."

In England and Wales alone almost every Local Authority even today employ MSBP profiles, encouraged by the governments guidance in the Working Together documentation. Many profiles conflict with one another - so one or more profiles that identify a woman who displays an interest in the medical procedures being performed as being an MSBP "suspect" can be mirrored with one or more profiles that indicate a woman who shows no such interest as being equally likely to be an MSBP-prone suspect woman. In the original case that provoked the ECHR case of P,C & S (see Dr. Clive Baldwin), Rochdale Local Authority employed 4 different MSBP profiles in an attempt to prove the mother in the case suffered MSBP.

The use of profiling has been equated as a "ducking stool syndrome" (see Dr. Lynne Wrennall) inasmuch as it is virtually impossible for a woman to refute an allegation of MSBP; some profiles even use denial of MSBP as being a clear indicator the woman is a bearer of the condition.

The attraction of MSBP allegations to prosecuting authorities has proven in the intervening years to be hugely tempting;

Thus, in legal proceedings, the allegation of MSBP acts as a "boost" to prosecutors, a sort of evidentiary steroid to fill gaps in cases that often lack direct or even convincing circumstantial evidence. MSBP is the prosecutor's friend, the means by which suspicions of abuse and parental unfitness can be "confirmed" without having actually to show that any abuse occurred.
(Source: Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy (Msbp)/Factitious Disorder By Proxy (Fdbp):A Critical Assessment for Judges, Lawyers (July 2008) Author: William R. Long)

John Batt, a solicitor for Sally Clark recognised that some medical practitioners regard MSBP as a "sexy" diagnosis.

MSBP expands - again

In 2003 Dr Rosenberg presented a new definition of MSBP in her paper Munchausens Syndrome by Proxy: medical diagnostic criteria again published in Child Abuse & Neglect Perhaps in recognition that "the term MSBP has been used somewhat variably" Dr Rosenberg constructed a new definition for the allegation, with the resultant confusion that now three definitions of MSBP could be applied to a woman accused of it (the accusation is rarely used against a man) in concert with numerous "profiles" to suit it seems, near enough any occasion.

A regular criticism of the use of MSBP/FII allegations isn't that the diagnosis is non-existent (certainly carers and parents do abuse children in a plethora of ways that sometimes defy belief) but rather that the allegation is so easy for many professionals, sometimes with malicious intent, to make against a woman. One regular concern expressed is in making an MSBP allegation, paediatric staff are able to shift the focus of attention from lack of or misdiagnosis of a child's illness from a doctor or paediatrician, to the mother. Indeed separation of the child from the source of the interference would normally be expected to result in a marked improvement in the child's symptoms. Disturbingly this is no longer promoted as an indicator of the Syndrome;

if one thinks about this point for a moment, one would normally expect the child's symptoms to abate when give over to the medical professionals. Perhaps as a result of the flimsiness of this criterion, later papers and definitions of MSBP don't include it as a feature of MSBP.
(Source: Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy /Factitious Disorder By Proxy: A Critical Assessment for Judges, Lawyers (July 2008) Author: William R Long, Ph D, J.D)

Perhaps most disturbingly, on occasions when an allegation of MSBP has been made, it is sometimes difficult for medical staff to accept that the allegation is incorrect and the child is genuinely poorly. Thus the child does not receive the care that is required - in effect itself a form of MSBP committed by medical staff.

Such behaviour has been documented by Dr. Lynne Wrennall, notably in her paper Misdiagnosis of Child Abuse Related to Delay in Diagnosing a Paediatric Brain Tumour (2008) and by Dr. Helen Hayward-Brown in her in her paper False and highly questionable allegations of Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy presented to the 7th Australasian Child Abuse and Neglect Conference in Perth in 1999 when she relates the experience of a mother, initially accused of MSBP;



They do these endocrine tests and my daughter passed out and went unconscious, all her insulin and blood sugar levels and all of these things were grossly abnormal, and all of this was witnessed by the clinical nurse specialist, the registrar, the specialist etc. but in our child protection file all the results were normal, she didn't pass out, nobody witnessed anything.
The degree of conspiracy to ignore or generate false statements can extend beyond medical staff to social workers or even police officers engaged in child protection, who become engaged in a unconscious conspiracy to deny anything that conflicts with the unshakable belief that the mother is "Munchausens." Once again the same mothers experience;

It actually says in the notification (in the child protection file) that the child protection unit has been involved with my family for years. Now I have never met anybody from the child protection unit.
(Sources for above: http://www.pnc.com.au/~heleneli/paper.htm)

Although there are recorded instances of occasions when a false allegation of MSBP has resulted in the death of a child or baby not provided with proper medical care, of even greater concern is the potential tens of thousands of children removed from women and parents in instances when Family Courts have determined that an illness or condition was caused by MSBP. Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown has detailed how false allegations of MSBP have been made against the mother of children suffering from autism or Aspergers, leaving them bereft of suitable care for their childhoods after they are taken into care with their conditions persisting.

Of perhaps equal concern is the manner that the MSBP "industry" has expanded over recent years. Virtually every academic paper submitted on the subject determines that women are the primary perpetrators. David B, Allison and co-author Mark S Roberts academic work Disordered Mother or Disordered Diagnosis (1998) traced the linear progression of MSBP from it's origins in an almost "race memory" society keeps of Bronte "madwoman in the attic" (see also Wilkie Collins) reaching back through history to our vision of women prone to histrionic syndrome (still employed today) back to the 17th century allegations of witchcraft. Indeed the connotation with witchcraft allegations is easy to make - illustrated most notably by Dr. M. Somani and his peer-reviewed academic paper "Witchcraft's syndrome: Munchausens syndrome by proxy"(2002.)

As MSBP allegations are not easily employed in criminal proceedings, it has been relegated to almost exclusive use in Family Courts. In the US and UK these Courts sit in secrecy, using a non-criminal standard of evidence, leading to routine allegations of their resemblance to 17th Century Scottish Witchcraft hearings.

MSBP and witchcraft allegations

On January 23rd 2004 The London Evening Standard published an article about Sir Roy Meadow that confirmed for many such suspicions about MSBP and it's parallels with witchcraft allegations;



Sources recall an eerie coincidence in which Meadow starred in an amateur production of Arthur Miller's play, The Crucible, playing the role of the discredited Judge Danforth who is at the heart of the witch-hunt that is the story of the play.

Danforth becomes judge, jury and executioner of mothers charged with - an uncanny symmetry, this - "the unnatural murder of children" in which the only witnesses are "the witch and the victim". "We cannot hope that the witch will accuse herself," opines Danforth. "Therefore, we must rely upon her victims - and they do testify, the children certainly do testify."

Years later, like Danforth, Roy would find himself in courts up and down the land called to testify on behalf of dead children and accusing mothers of their "unnatural murder".

"Roy confided in me that he found it an uncomfortable part because he identified with this judge more than he was happy with," a source recalled.
The journalist Eileen Connolly detailed a family visited by Sir Meadow when he was acting in his "witch-finder role" in her article Taking the children - Good Weekend magazine, Sydney Morning Herald October 2003

Dr. Helen Hayward-Brown finished her False and highly questionable allegations of Munchausens Syndrome By Proxy paper with reference to the Victorian obsession with the "Mad Woman in the attic" vision of times past, referring to many of the papers and books on the subject;

The literature is patronising and misogynist, with commodification of women a key element in the quest for "sales" of texts. MSBP is "romanticised" and "sensationalised" with texts displaying visual features of women "screaming" or out of control, or languishing, neurotic and hysterical in "Victorian-style".
In recent years, allegations of MSBP and PAS (Parental Alienation Syndrome) an even more derided allegation made (notably) against women (see Dr. Richard Gardner) have increased in usage in the UK and US, principally because both allegations have made it to divorce hearings for custody of children, rather than simply child protection hearings instigated by the State.

The introduction of SIDS

Whilst Sir Meadow saw his theory of MSBP to some degree corrupted and then employed with mallet-like effectiveness against women, his involvement in the SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) scandal has come to a more definitive conclusion. In his book the ABC of Child Abuse (1997) Sir Meadow detailed "there is no evidence that cot deaths runs in families", "but there is plenty of evidence that child abuse does". 1997 had also seen the publication of The Death of Innocents: A True Story of Murder, Medicine and High-Stake Science by husband and wife writers Richard Firstman and Jamie Talen which postulated through it's exciting John Grisham-style narrative that the wave of SIDS deaths (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) documented from the 1970s to the 1990s may have been fuelled by parental murder of children rather than inexplicable crib deaths.

Throughout the 1990's around 250 women whose children had suffered cot deaths were convicted for murder on the basis of Sir Meadow's expert testimony. Although attributed to him, but not necessarily spoken by him, the concept of Meadow's law was routinely used - being unless proven otherwise, one cot death is tragic, two is suspicious and three is murder.

Concern about the nature of Sir Meadow's expert testimonies surfaced at the second Appeal of Sally Clark convicted for murder largely on his testimony. He had claimed at her trial that the odds of there being two unexplained infant deaths in one family were one in 73 million. His calculations were challenged by the Royal Statistical Society, who even took the time to write to the Lord Chancellor to complain. With the calculations argued at the Appeal hearing, it was subsequently shown that the true odds were higher. Before the 2nd appeal was launched it was disclosed that another expert witness had failed to disclose the results of medical tests which had suggested that at least one of the Clark babies had died from the bacterial infection Staphylococcus aureus, rather than being smothered by Mrs. Clark, providing an insight into the fashion that once a SIDS/MSBP allegation is made, nothing will be allowed (including truth and fact) to deflect the prosecuting authorities from that course.

Legal & peer challenges

A July 2005 General Medical Council hearing saw Sir Meadow struck off, though in a later High Court appeal Justice Collins described this as "irrational" and set it aside, determining that expert witnesses should not risk the threat of being referred to their professional bodies by legal defence teams, but rather the Court should determine this. The trial and jailing for murder of Angela Cannings depended entirely on Sir Meadow's testimony - after he had accused her of being an MSBP-mother. The trial of Trupti Patel in 2003, though lasting six weeks took the jury just 90 minutes to return a unanimous 'not guilty' verdict. This trial saw Meadow's expert testimony again.

At this point Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP stepped in and in her then role of Solicitor General, effectively barred Meadows' from giving testimony for the prosecution, decreeing that defence lawyers be informed of court criticisms of his past testimonies. However Mrs. Harman's intervention simply pushed MSBP from the criminal justice system wholly into the secretive family court environment, where it has continued to thrive and prosper since.

Unlike most child protection and family justice scandals of recent decades, MSBP remains a continuing controversy. The reasons for its continued popular use are subject to huge speculation; in the US and UK the combination of governments inclined towards anti-family policies and the influence of radical feminist anti-mother dogma may have contributed more than any other causes. No notable British or US feminist commentator, journalist, writer or politician has ever written or spoken out against the use of MSBP allegations, even in the face of evidence that false and vindictive allegations can and are made, almost as a matter of routine, against women. Nor has any leading feminist expressed concerns about the use of SIDS allegations used to jail women for murder. The false Satanic Ritual Abuse allegations of the late 1980's and early 1990's saw the spectre of women being routinely accused of being witches - both literally and figuratively by amongst others - fundamentalist Christian police officers and feminist social workers. MSBP may simply extend that tradition - and indeed the parallels between Medieval witchcraft allegations and the regime of MSBP allegations is, as mentioned previously, disturbingly similar. Together with the development of "Secret Courts" employed for family justice, a special combination of circumstances may have been met that accidentally enabled the MSBP diagnosis to be employed far beyond the imaginations or intentions of Sir Meadow.

MSBP expands - yet again

Rather than diminishing, the use of MSBP/FII allegations appears to be extending. In recent years a new tendency has been introduced; of attempting to predict if a woman will "develop" the condition, perhaps before a birth. The case of Fran Lyon made knowledge of such usage public, and it transpired that such a diagnosis can be made in the absence of the paediatrician or psychiatrist actually seeing and speaking to the woman in person. Once again Sir Roy Meadow never tried to identify likely "sufferers" of the condition, though later developers of his theory have attempted to identify the circumstances when a woman will "go Munchausens."

For the moment, MSBP remains an effective weapon in the arsenal of tools available to a working social worker. The mere suggestion of the condition is sufficient to trigger an investigation by child protection teams, and any effort to deny the condition made by the woman is routinely taken as being confirmation of its existence. It is unlikely that the professions who employ MSBP allegations will be easily willing to give it up, or enthusiastic about having its use audited or supervised.

Whatever opinion is made of Sir Roy Meadow, it is likely that he will be identified as being one of the most significant characters of late twentieth century/early twenty-first century social care history in Britain, the United States and much of the Western world.

Sir Meadow was knighted in the New Year honours list of 1997 for "services to paediatrics and to the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health" during a Conservative government and not during New Labour's tenure in office as is often erroneously determined.

(Note: Some sections in the above entry were adapted from the Wikipedia entry for Sir Roy Meadow.)

(See also Beverley Hughes MP, Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP, Dr. David Southall, Dr. Lisa Blakemore-Brown, Nick Land, Dr. Virginia T. Sherr, M.M. Drymon)
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


Shami Chakrabarti (CBE) & Liberty



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

Please note this entry, under the placeholder Shami Chakrabarti, discusses the subject of the British civil liberties group Liberty and it's response to the secret court system (sometimes called the 'Family Courts') in England and Wales. The entry was originally located in the Surnames C Index page. It's length has required it to be moved to its own page.

Shami Chakrabarti



Introduction

Director of Liberty (formally the National Council of Civil Liberties) since September 2003.

Despite the ever-rising tide of criticism publicly expressed through campaign groups against the current provision of family law and child protection in England & Wales, particularly in light of the wrongful convictions of Sally Clark and Angela Canning, Mrs. Chakrabarti and Liberty have never engaged in any support for radical change. By way of contrast Liberty's official view is that the Family Courts should be made more open, but with the exception of it's most contentious element - the forced adoption of children and babies without the mother/parents consent.

The forced adoption facility through a secretive judicial system in England and Wales is an almost unique establishment in Europe (only Scotland, Northern Ireland, Croatia and Portugal allow the same facility to exist for the State).

The use of the term 'secret court' is often seen as contentious. In this Entry, and indeed for all the uses of the term elsewhere on this Web site, it is not intended to provoke an emotional use (apologies to Hampton Fancher) but rather an accurate term that matches the use of secret courts throughout history, and exceeds to the popular definition of a secret court - that being one whose proceedings are not subject to public scrutiny, particularly through the denial of Press attendance. The secret court establishment in England and Wales extends the tradition of the secret court concept to include the presentation of evidence through anonymous witness reports from appointed experts, that are not subjected to professional peer review.

Other nations have secretive family court systems, but the combination of a secret judiciary AND a forced adoption capability contributes perhaps more than any other factors in the criticisms levelled against the family justice system in England and Wales. Much of the criticism stems from the lack of oversight and care taken in ensuring that the draconian action of forcibly removing a child from a mother is performed only when all other avenues have been pursued and when there is almost absolute certainty that the evidence supporting such a decision is unquestionable. As it is the evidence is invariably flawed. The P, C & S case (see Dr. Clive Baldwin) provided a perfect example of an instance when evidence was severely lacking - resulting in the presentation of a narrative to replace it, in a case when legal representation for a mother was denied. In every instance when the subjects of forced adoption have resulted in a scandal that has touched upon the national news or public interest, Liberty, and it's lawyers, many of whom work pro bono, have gone AWOL.

Forced adoption & the secret court establishment

This policy was expressed in a response to a Department of Constitutional Affairs consultation, prepared by Ruth Cabeza QC of Field Court Chambers, London, on the subject of the opening-up of the English and Welsh Family Courts;

Children who are adopted by non-family members without the consent of their parents are unlikely to ever benefit from a system which renders open their adoption proceedings.
...(later)
The exception to this rule (the proposal for reducing secrecy in the Family Courts) would be in adoption, for this is a very private matter and once a placement order has been made there can be no public interest in the adoption proceedings themselves particularly if the birth family have not given up the child for adoption themselves. There should be no presumption in favour of allowing the media or the public or any other category of persons into adoption hearings."
(Source: http://www.liberty-human-rights.org.uk/pdfs/policy06/transparency-in-the-family-courts.pdf)

The secret court system in England and Wales operates processes that go far beyond those that Liberty campaigns against in the criminal justice system, say towards, terrorist suspects. Indeed the regime that a secret court can impose on a woman extends any of the allegedly onerous 'Control Orders' that Liberty has fought against, into an entirely new sphere; one whereby even access to legal representation is denied to a woman. Here Robert Woffinden, writing for The New Statesman in 2000, discusses the disparity of how human rights in the secret courts compare with those in the criminal justice system;

Had the mother in this instance ever been charged with a criminal offence (which she never has been), she would have received legal representation, access to evidence and a public hearing. In her situation, she has been denied all of those basic rights. She has also been deprived of her freedom of speech, since, as the House of Lords has ruled, freedom of speech is a meaningful right only if it incorporates the right of access to the media. Yet the injunction in effect stifles journalistic inquiry, never mind publication (see text above).

Nor can the mother get appropriate legal representation. Every time the solicitor who has tried to act for her has applied for essential material, he has been fobbed off with a copy of the injunction. In theory, the injunction should not apply to legal representation; in practice, it does.

So the imposition of the injunction means that the authorities are not accountable for their actions. In fact, even the injunction itself illustrates their absolute arrogance. It is littered with mistakes. Whoever drew it up can't use apostrophes or even spell "solicitors" correctly. One court order binds the family to hand over material coming into their possession "after 25 November 19988". Freed from the possibility of public scrutiny of their actions, the authorities can behave with impunity.
(Source: The story I'm not allowed to tell you - Bob Woffinden, The New Statesman, 10th January 2000)

The existence and practises of the secret court system in England and Wales are discussed extensively on the Web, in the media, and throughout society. Through all of this, Liberty has steadfastly declined to take part in the debates, raise the issues as one it perhaps should be at least investigating thoroughly, or perhaps even reconsider it's stance on the continued running of a secret court establishment.

One of the most controversial elements of the secret courts practices is the use of secret evidence that isn't allowed to be seen by the parents, notably self-litigents, or even their defence lawyers. The existence of the so called 'Annex B' of a court bundle is difficult to prove, but is repeatedly referred-to by campaigners against the secret court establishment. This use of such bundles, apparently prepared by the Local Auhority engaged as 'prosecutor' in the case, and only rendered visible to the secret court judge and chosen expert witnesses, apparently contains 'evidence' in the form of opinion, interpretation and suspicion against a parent or carer (or indeed any person vaguely connected to them) that it is felt could not be revealed to the litigents for fear that it could be easily challenged. The existence of secret court bundles and secret evidence is difficult to prove or deny - but on a number of instances secret court judges have accidentially referred to 'evidence' that was not contained in the primary bundle or its official Annexes. This web site will continue to investigate the existence and use of secret court bundles employed by the secret court system.

Membership of Liberty is often thought of as a liberal elite tokenistic emblem. Young and enthusiastic lawyers and barristers will detail as such in email signatures, will pride themselves in attending Liberty public events, will pronounce their membership of Liberty to other guests in dinner parties and weekend adventures. Membership of Liberty is perhaps the ultimate in middle-class, liberal elite/leftist gesture politics.

A question though, is has that very liberal/leftist elite been responsible for the secret court system?

Liberty routinely issues Press Releases decrying the perceived threat to civil liberties from a new government initiative, and insisting that human rights in the UK are being demonstrably reduced. Yet there is an argument to suggest that the the secret court system is a 'testing ground' for the future initiatives to come in other arenas. The secret court system easily impacts on more citizens than the criminal justice system - simply due to the preponderance of divorces and separations in the UK. The secret court establishment is the institution that possesses to inflict the most draconian punishments upon women - in a nation that has removed the death sentence - through the forced removal of children from a woman or its parents. The secret courts view of evidence - often reliant on pseudo or 'crank' science, and hugely based around the use of non sequitur (the legal term "it does not follow") may provide a pointer to the likely future for criminal justice in the United Kingdom. Certainly a substantial number of precedents are set by the secret court's continued existence, most notably the concept of the removal or denial of legal representation - in its most extreme form demonstrated by the infamous P,C & S scandal of 2002, when the British Government was found in breach of numerous human rights abuses by the European Court of Human Rights (see the entry for Dr. Clive Baldwin). A lengthier discussion about the use of non sequitur as a key plank in the use of 'evidence' in the secret court establishment, is detailed under the entry for the journalist Christopher Booker.

In addition to the denial of legal representation, the reliance of the secret courts on a standard of evidence called "the balance of probability" is perhaps the judicial systems most obvious diversion from the definition of justice that most citizens would recognise. The use of the probability test is common in civil law world-wide, but when mixed with the denial of legal representation and a public voice, the use of science concepts not recognised in the world outside the secret court insular system, and the perceived built-in prejudice inflicted on women by both officials and judges, then the secret courts offer a vision of future justice that goes beyond any of the almost carefree current concerns of Liberty. In its most extreme form, the use of the "balance of probability" test allows the secret court to effectively accuse a woman or parent of being a murderer - often a multiple murderer or children, particularly those who died of cot death (SIDS) without the burden of having to examine evidence in a criminal justice sense. This facility, for the State to seek punishment (invariably with the removal of subsequent children, or a demand that a woman break off a relationship) in a secret court without a jury, the denial of a public voice and/or removal of legal representation, were all present in the P,C & S case, but have become de rigour in secret court proceedings.

Yet whilst the secret courts will be the arena in which a citizens human rights are most likely going to be abused by the State (often through the CAFCASS structure) and judiciary working in conjunction - whether in civil divorce proceedings or care proceedings, it is this arena that the Liberty have deliberately and pointedly refused to attend-to.

Paradoxically Liberty seems to recognise the risks that a secretive family law system brings with it;

Recent high-profile cases, like those of Angela Canning, Sally Clark and Trupti Patel have understandably raised public concern about the quality of expert evidence which has, on occasion, been relied on in our courts. In those criminal cases, Sir Roy Meadow's evidence was adduced in open court and subject to public scrutiny. Had the cases been heard in some parts of the family court, rather than the criminal courts, it is perhaps less likely that the resulting miscarriages of justice would have come to the public's attention. Greater transparency in our family courts could help to reduce this risk.
(Source: http://www.liberty-human-rights.org.uk/pdfs/policy06/transparency-in-the-family-courts.pdf)

It appears from the above extract that Liberty are either unaware or have deliberately declined to recognise that Sir Roy Meadow's theories, particularly that of MSBP are used principally in secretive Family Courts invariably in cases of forced adoption where a child or baby is removed without the consent by the State from a woman, and that that "risk" is actually very real and has been for over a decade. An example of Sir Meadows, in full 'witch-finder mode' was documented by Australian journalist Eileen Connolly, and her entry appears on this index page. Many thousands of cases, similar to that Ms. Connolly documented, were have been and are heard in the secret family courts in England and Wales, and Liberty's comment Had the cases been heard in some parts of the family court, rather than the criminal courts, it is perhaps less likely that the resulting miscarriages of justice would have come to the public's attention. Greater transparency in our family courts could help to reduce this risk indicates that Liberty are perfectly aware of the vulnerability to women from the secret courts, but, in the cases of forced adoption - with MSBP often the excuse employed to remove a child forcibly from a woman - have chosen deliberately to ignore campaigning against the issue.

In cases of forced adoption, the opinion of anonymous experts is often employed against a woman, and invariably the evidence presented is often under the category of 'crank' or 'pseudo' science; the expert having no fear of peer review or criticism from professional colleagues should he or she present evidence that is often at best unusual, and at worst, echoing medical opinion used against women in the 17th century. It is this regime that Liberty appears to be not necessarily in favour of, but certainly not concerned about to bother campaigning on the subject.

In June 2008 the Council of Europe announced that an investigation into the Family Division of the Royal Courts of Justice, and the Appeal Court would initially commence in September 2008 (see Paul Rowen MP) though it was delayed to take into account the other European nations that allow forced adoption. Liberty have not engaged with this process despite its perhaps obvious impact on the discussion about civil liberties in England and Wales.

Secret courts as a 'testing ground'

The policy of not contesting the structural failures of the English and Welsh Family Court system comes with a heavy price for Liberty. There are regular suggestions that the Family Court system is a "testing ground" for policies and processes that infringe on civil liberties that are then rolled-out by the Government into the wider public arena. An excellent example of this was an attempt by the Government to pass legislation to allow for secret inquests through the coroners courts of England and Wales (The Coroners and Justice Bill) in March 2009.

Although Liberty opposed the legislation its ability to contest it was limited to comments about how the families of dead soldiers from the Iraq war would not be best served if secret inquests were held. The government contended that the facility for secret inquests was to address national security concerns. Liberty's opposition was fatally flawed; it's lack of opposition for secret courts (in the interests of "child protection" rather than national security) hardly placed the charity in a position where it could protest about secret inquests.

The first attempt with The Coroners and Justice Bill was abandoned. The Bill resurfaced in October 2009 and was opposed by the 'Lords. The Government though continued to persist, leading to a bizarre statement being issued by Liberty;

Liberty's director of policy, Isabella Sankey, said: "It beggars belief that this rotten policy has been resurrected. It is thoroughly perverse for a Government that has spent over a decade lecturing the public about victims' rights to attempt to exclude bereaved families from open justice. When will New Labour's obsession with secret courts and parallel legal systems end? There is no accountability without transparency."
(Source: Outrage at government plan for secret inquests - by Robert Verkaik - The Independent, 22nd October 2009

It isn't certain if the reference to open justice and families was intended to be deliberately cruel. Does Liberty believe that families should open receive 'open justice' in the case of a bereavement? In addition the references to "New Labours's obsession with secret courts..." again drew attention to Liberty's unwillingness to argue or campaign against those already well established. The term 'no accountability without transparency' was again presumably deliberately cruel, as it sums-up the essence of the campaigns against the secret courts of the Family Division of the English and Welsh Royal Courts of Justice.

A similar state exists with the current governments obsession with databases, created to record details of citizens. The ContactPoint database, built to apparently help (once again) in "child protection" allows Government Ministers and civil servants to practice their arguments before pursuing an even bigger database, this time for ID Cards. By simply replacing the words "child protection" with "national security" virtually any measure that reduces civil liberties can be pursued - with Liberty unable by default to offer any meaningful opposition.

Liberty history

Liberty by default will not discuss or correspond with campaign groups or others about the subject of secrecy imposed in forced adoption cases. There is speculation that Liberty's stance is due to the presence of a large number of legal professionals in its subscriber ranks, who would lose financially if substantial changes to the current regime were made.

Another explanation, once again unconfirmed, is that Liberty is simply following the lead of it's US counterpart - the American Council For Civil Liberties (ACLU) who are enthusiastic backers of the secretive US Family Court system, also routinely accused of inflicting abuses both on children, women and fathers (see Stephen Baskerville).

More disturbing is the suggestion that Liberty has no desire to intervene in the debate over child protection and family law because the organizations history has been less than reputable in such fields in the past. As the National Campaign for Civil Liberties, in 1975, with Rt. Hon. Patricia Hewitt MP as General Secretary, the NCCL invited the Paedophile Information Exchange and Paedophile Action for Liberation groups, both who advocated sex with children, to become affiliated to the NCCL. In 1976 the paedophile Tom O'Carroll addressed the NCCL conference "which promptly voted to 'deplore' the use of chemical castration treatments for pedophiles."
(Source: http://www.christianvoice.org.uk/Press/press041.html)

As the campaigns against the current family law provision in England and Wales concern a desire to protect children from abuse and ensuring that proper treatment for conditions such as autism and Aspergers Syndrome is correctly given, it is conceivable that Liberty still retains within it's ranks those with a continuing sympathy with paedophile causes, creating a potential source for internal conflict within the organisation that Mrs. Chakrabarti has determined is best to avoid.

Another possible explanation for Liberty's unwillingness to challenge the secret court system is a little more esoteric. The 'modern' liberal and leftist elite in the Western world show indications of being increasingly influenced by Fascist dogma and thought, brought about principally through an obsession with decrying Western concepts of equal rights, democracy and justice. Perversely this sees the very people who would traditionally be seen to protect liberty and human rights now emphasising the 'goodness' of non-Western concepts such as Sharia Law and restrictions of Press freedoms.

The changing concepts of justice & evidence

The concepts of guilt and justice too are being challenged. Such concepts are routinely seen as 'patriarchal' and the Enlightenment concept of gender-neutral justice is at odds with feminist desires to insist that justice shouldn't be independent, concerned only with testing evidence. Instead justice should reflect feminist concerns about patriarchal society. In reality this has led to concepts such as Collective Punishment, being extended on gender grounds (see the extended entry about 'collective punishment' under the entry for Adolf Hitler). So for instance, a false allegation of rape against a male should be seen in its context; females have been abused for centuries by males and thus some justice, some balancing of the scales of historic gender abuse, is gained through even a false allegation. An example of these concepts in use was illustrated by Babette Francis;


Helen Garner relates a conversation she had with another feminist about the case: '"It's terrible to me,' I said, disconcerted, 'to see the effects of this on his life, on his family". 'Oh', (the feminist replied) 'I don't think he deserved what happened to him. He may be innocent - but he's paying for many, many other men who have not been caught. It's the irony of things, that sometimes the innocent or nearly-innocent pay for what the guilty have done'".
(Source: Feminist Legal Theory by Babette Francis

With the rise of 'identity politics' an enormous hierarchy of gender, race, class, age, religious belief and other factors comes into play, all of which should be used to determine guilt or innocence. Women with children, seen as being guilty of preserving and living within the patriarchal family structure (and being heterosexual) can therefore be deemed as being candidates for this new concept of justice; ripe for instinctive 'justice' to be applied to them collectively. This may explain why feminists have paid virtually no interest in the plight of women abused by the secret court establishment.

The SRA (satanic ritual abuse) Myth, often referred-to in this Index, also had a significant impact on liberal/leftist thought. In the US in particular district attorneys, judges and lawyers who would have described themselves as 'liberal', Democrat Party-voting enlightened advocates of justice, collectively abandoned their principles, adopted extreme right-wing religious fundamentalist dogma, allowed 'spectral evidence' to be reintroduced into American courts, routinely suppressed evidence and routinely ignored due process - leaving a later generation of human rights advocates, uninfluenced by fundamentalist views, to clear up many of the abuses committed on those accused, ensuring that with just a few exceptions, many of those hundreds accused and jailed are now free (see Gerard Armirault and Martha Coakley).

One consequence of the SRA Myth, and in particular the manner in which the US liberal elite adopted the routine abuse of defendants in court, was that it is conceivable that such people, progressing through their careers, changed the overall vision of American justice, eventually ensuring that the US Justice Department would give its assent to the establishing of Camp Delta, Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. That 'Gitmo' can trace its roots to the liberal elite in the US whose vision of justice was corrupted through the SRA Myth of the late 1980s and 1990s is perhaps a little 'left field' - but worthy of further investigation.

Whilst never being quite as bad as the US, the legal establishment in England and Wales, in recent decades the virtual preserve of the liberal and leftist elite, together with more traditional elements, had also become obsessed during the SRA Myth, though the professionalism of the Crown Prosecution Service and Crown Office in Scotland prevented most cases ever getting to court (for sheer lack of evidence).

Yet the SRA Myth years left their permanent mark. The idea of 'crime-less prosecutions' when someone is accused of a crime that never took place, was and remains routinely employed in the secret court system - whereby the court may evaluate a non-event as being evidence of guilt, or indeed a positive report from an expert as being confirmation that something isn't right and thus a woman is 'guilty'. In recent years there has been a perceived change in both the secret court and the criminal justice system that see greater emphasis placed on the allegation itself, rather than the nature of the accompanying evidence. Indeed during the SRA Myth years (that the National Council for Civil Liberties - the precursor name for Liberty, took no part in preventing, let alone investigating) the Allegation was key, and many feminists and religious fundamentalists decried the fact that defendants enjoyed the protection of both fellow alleged satanists and Satan himself, whilst prosecutors were hamstrung by the requirements to actually have evidence of guilt. In response the Protection of Children Act (POCA) was introduced by the Labour government in 1999, driven by the Christopher Lillie and Dawn Reed Scandal (that once again Liberty made not so much as a comment about) that had enraged the 'child saver' lobby who once again felt stymied by the continued requirement for evidence of guilt, when it was felt that an allegation of horrendous acts and crimes should be sufficient to secure convictions.

In recent years, anecdotal comments from those who have been engaged in secret court hearings, suggest that a sizeable minority of child protection experts, practitioners and associated judges and lawyers, both in the US and UK, feel that women and parents accused in the secret court should be automatically denied the right of legal representation, and by default jurisprudence should be suspended and denied them - on the grounds that the nature of family justice and child protection is such that the 'normal' concepts of justice cannot simply be allowed to be established and defended. It is uncertain how many of Liberty's members, disproportionately comprising individuals who work in the law industry in england and Wales, subscribe to such views.

Finally of course, the simple explanation for Liberty's unwillingness to engage in the debate over Family Justice in England and Wales is perhaps simple fear; Ms. Chakrabarti is the mother to a son, and whilst protesting against governments worldwide is traditionally a dangerous business, the fear of assassination is generally far-fetched in England and Wales. Coming into conflict though with the vested interests of the child protection "industry" in England and Wales is a dangerous strategy and the risk of having a child removed by force, using concocted evidence, only to find that any journalist approached can be silenced with a secretive family court "gagging" order, together with any colleagues or even politicians, is a sobering thought. Indeed such a threat is almost routinely made against campaigners for reform. Campaigning against terrorist detention periods is, it appears, much safer ground for modern civil libertarians.

The battle against secret courts is a strange one, with a degree of selectiveness that sometimes defies easy comprehension. In March 2010 a number of groups and newspapers challenged an attempt by the security services and HM Government prevent secret evidence being used in defence against a civil claim for damages made by six former Guantánamo Bay detainees from getting into the public domain;

Human rights groups Justice and Liberty, and a number of media organisations – The Guardian and Observer, The Times and Sunday Times and the BBC – are also intervening in the case, arguing that the Government's secrecy proposals breach the right to a fair and open trial, and are contrary to the right to freedom of expression and the public's right to know what the authorities are or have been doing on its behalf.

The case is the latest battle for secrecy in the courts which the Government has launched in relation to Guantánamo Bay detainees.
Mrs. Chakrabarti herself spoken about the nature of secret courts, whilst simultaneously she and the organisation she fronts, professes no problem with the very secret courts employed against women;

''Secret courts are a contradiction in terms, but the Government has allowed them to disease our legal system for nearly a decade. National security cannot be an excuse for illegality. Only the antiseptic light of day will expose past mistakes and allow the rebuilding of trust in vital agencies.''
(Source: both quotes from Court of Appeal to hear Government's battle to keep 'torture' evidence secret - The Telegraph, 7th March 2010)

The impression that Liberty was only interested in challenging secret courts only when they were dealing with terrorist suspects, rather than ordinary members of the public, was emphasised later, when the case was won against the Government near the eve of the 2010 General Election, by Liberty lawyer Corinna Ferguson;

"Fair and open justice belongs to people not governments. Whoever governs us from Friday would be wise to bear this in mind."
(Source: Guantanamo damages claimants win secrecy ruling, by Dominic Casciani, BBC News, 4th May 2010)

For a Government law officer, Liberty and the stance of other groups and individuals must be truly confusing; on one hand they protest against the establishment of secret courts, but on the other, some groups, such as Liberty, make it clear they have no substantive issue with the extensive structure of secret courts already in operation. At some point it can be guessed, in some future hearing, with the world and nations Press watching, legitimately from a Press box, a government barrister is going to point out this contradiction to a listening judge. In the meantime it may suffice to say that Liberty's attitude towards secret courts is 'flexible', and is determined by the nature of the people having to face the secret court in question.

Liberty though aren't complete strangers to the Family Courts in England and Wales; in 2006 the organisation, having presumably selected amongst the many opportunities to intervene in the many mis-carriages of justice that are seemingly routinely inflicted on women, children and families through the secret court system, decided it would take a stand. The intervention though was perhaps not quite up to what was required - with Liberty taking its campaigning zeal to the case of British same-sex couple, Celia Kitzinger and Sue Wilkinson, who had been denied legal recognition of their Canadian marriage. With huge enthusiasm, and ignoring the thousands of women jailed with the use of false MSBP allegations, thousands of women whose autistic spectrum children had been removed (once again with false MSBP allegations) and the routine use of "pseudo" science against women in a secretive court system, Liberty's lawyers were unleashed, promptly losing the case (see Liberty Press Releases).

Whilst Liberty consistently avoid the subject of the secret court system and the seeming institutionalised abuse of women through their operation, the organisation has deemed that other issues should take precedence, and are more vital in protecting civil liberties. As example is its support of former radio broadcaster John Gaunt who called a Conservative counsellor a 'Nazi' on-air;

Notes to Editors
1. In November 2008, Redbridge Council announced a policy prohibiting smokers (even those who smoked outside the home) from fostering or adopting children. Councillor Michael Stark defended the policy and was invited onto Jon Gaunt’s talkSPORT radio show on 7 November 2008. As a former foster child himself, Gaunt expressed the view that it was more important for children to have a good parent than a non-smoking parent. In the heated debate that followed, Gaunt referred to Councillor Stark as a “health Nazi”, a “Nazi” and an “ignorant pig”. Gaunt offered an apology for the comments; however a few days later the management at talkSPORT sacked him.
(Source: Liberty Press Release - Permission granted in Jon Gaunt's free speech challenge to Ofcom - 27th January 2010)

A cynic could be forgiven for suggesting that Liberty would prefer to seek protection for David Icke's 12-foot high reptilian overlords, before it got around to the systematic abuse of women;

Liberty has also chosen not to take part in the issues concerning the apparent punishing by child protection social workers of women who are victims of domestic violence, by means of the forced removal of their children. There is evidence that this is a genuine government policy, enacted by the Labour Party, and the subject is discussed at Angela Wileman.

Probably the most compelling result of Liberty's unwillingness to take part in the debate over the English and Welsh Family Court system is the increasingly apparent growth of a new generation of human rights and civil liberties activists, who have little or no time for the likes of Amnesty International and Liberty itself. The next generation of individuals and groups, mostly disparate, invariably unable to combine to form a truly powerful lobby, are still finding their feet, and still learning about how to employ the power of modern media to publicise their goals and aims. The relative cheapness of video editing software products though is making such campaigns relatively simple to attract attention. As more campaigners enter higher education, with the sole intention of gaining relevant skills with which to combat what many of them see as a institutionalised misogynist and racist child protection and family justice system, so too the assault on academia and the liberal elite that is perceived to have encouraged the 'secret courts' likely to intensify.




(See also Kate Allen, Roger Smith OBE, Rt. Hon. Harriett Harman MP, Margaret Hodge MP, Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP, Rt. Hon. Jack Straw MP)
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
index sitemap advanced
site search by freefind


Dr. Valerie Sinason - RAINS (Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support) Part Two



Click here to email additions/corrections/comments about this page. You can also use the Get In Contact form.

This extended Entry over five main pages is concerned with the establishment and history of the RAINS organisation, belief in the SRA Myth in the UK and its impact on Child Protection policies and practises in Great Britain since 1989.

This page is a sub-page for Page Two, and is part of four sub-pages under this section dedicated to a chapter-by-chapter analysis of the book Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (Routledge, now Informa PLC, 1994).

An Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Routledge, (now Informa PLC), 1994



Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse


Title Page contents for the Analysis of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse (the top page for this section)

  • The essay contributors - then & now




    • Sub-page One
    • Introduction - Valerie Sinason
    • Chapter 1 - Going through the fifth window - Valerie Sinason & Anders Svensson
    • Chapter 2 - The wish not to know - Patrick Casement
    • Chapter 3 - Rituals - Jane Pooley and David Wood
    • Chapter 4 - Sadistic Abuse - Jean M. Goodwin
    • Chapter 5 - The historical foundations of ritual abuse - Brett Kahr
    • Chapter 6 - Looking for Clues Gwen Adshead
    • Chapter 7 - The clinician's experience - Pamela S. Hudson
    • Chapter 8 - 'Daddy eats poo' - Catherine O'Driscoll
    • Chapter 9 - Psychotherapy with a ritually abused 3-year-old - Leslie Ironside
    • Chapter 10 - Fostering a ritually abused child - Mary Kelsall


    • Sub-page Two
    • The Evil, Satanic Poor Part Two - an analysis of Chapters 11 and 23

    • A brief respite - Chapters 12, 13 & 14

    • Chapter 15 - The impact of evil - by Phil Mollon


    • Sub-page Three
    • Chasing Witches - An analysis of Chapters 16, 17, 28, 29 and 18


    • Sub-page Four (this page)
    • Chapter 19 - 'You will only hear half of it and you won't believe it' - Steve Morris
    • Chapter 20 - A birthday to remember - Neil Charleson and Al Corbett
    • Chapter 21 - ChildLine, UK - Hereward Harrison
    • Chapter 22 - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse - Olave Snelling and Sara Scott
    • Chapter 24 - Questions survivors and professionals ask the police - author unknown
    • Chapter 25 - Ritual organised abuse Management issues - Judith Trowell
    • Chapter 26 - A Service Manager's perspective - Catherine Doran
    • Chapter 27 - Treating satanist abuse survivors The Leeds experience - Chris Hobbs and Jane Wynne
    • Chapter 30 - Trance-formations of abuse - Ashley Conway
    • Chapter 31 - A personal review of the literature - Su Burrell
    • Chapter 32 - Internal and external reality, Establishing parameters - Rob Hale and Valerie Sinason
    • Chapter 33 - Creating sanctuary - Sandra L. Bloom
    • Chapter 34 - Ritual Abuse: The personal and professional cost for workers - Sheila C. Youngson
    • The Appendix - Useful addresses
    • Author Index
    • The Critical Response to, and Endorsement for Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse


    • Chapter 19 - 'You will only hear half of it and you won't believe it' - Steve Morris

      Subtitled Counselling with a woman with a mild learning disability

      Steve Morris was a founder and then-Director of Respond - a leading British learning disability charity that works with children and adults with learning disabilities who have experienced abuse or trauma, as well as those who have abused others, through psychotherapy, advocacy, campaigning and other support (from its Web page). The charity has long-maintained a belief in the SRA Myth which has curtailed its ability to advocate for the rights of intellectually-disabled individuals and for changes in the law to ensure they are protected from genuine abusers. Although some effort has been made to clear away the SRA Myth-believing elements, the charities online shop still has books authored by or including contributions from known SRA Myth True Believers including Witnessing, Nurturing, Protesting (1996) by Stephen Morris himself, Tasmin Cottis (see below) and committed Irish SRA Myth advocate and IPD Trustee Alan Corbett (see The Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability).

      Respond was founded by Stephen Morris and Tasmin Cottis.

      Mr. Morris's essay follows a pattern already established in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse in that it describes therapy with an adult - this time a woman called 'Helen', then aged 24, who has a mild learning disorder, having apparently been abducted and raped by her uncle at an early age. During the therapy, Helen reveals memories of that abuse and rape having satanic elements, though there are no murders, cannibalism or other elements traditionally associated with SRA Myth allegations, and the incident recollected appears to be the one-off event that went back 19 years.

      As with Chapters 12, 13 and 14, it isn't immediately clear why Steve Morris decided to contribute his essay. The facts cannot be corroborated, they referred to memories of events 19 years old. Mr. Morris didn't feel compelled to report any of the account to the police.

      Chapter 20 - A birthday to remember - Neil Charleson and Al Corbett



      A birthday to remember is unusual in amongst the essays comprising treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse in that it has been co-written by Neil Charleson, who had a mild learning disability, who claimed to have been a victim of apparently homosexual Masonic ritual abuse in a residential school. The essay represents his memoirs of life at the school, assisted by Al Corbett, then listed with no qualifications, but who might be 'Alan Corbett', an Irishman whose history of belief in the SRA Myth is well documented (see The Paracelsus Trust) and has co-authored in the past with Steve Morris, who contributed Chapter 19.

      In the events remembered by Neil Charleson, the 'satanic' cult is group of homosexual Masons (a pairing not immediately obvious in the world of both Masonry or conspiracy theory). In a story that would have been a fantastic 'scoop' for a British Sunday newspaper (who would've dispatched a photographer and reporter to catch the group 'in-the-act') Neil Charleson relates his role in this group, though it is never made clear if this is supposed to have happened or is a fantasy.

      The school was a paedophile ring. Four of the school governors was in the ring. The headmaster did not have any knowledge of it, nor the principal. But nearly all the male staff was using the boys. There was a group of freemasons who used to use the boys in ceremonies. They used to workshop a boy God and they needed a boy to take on the role of the boy God in the ceremonies. I became the boy God.



      So I had no-one to tell, the governors had the last word on everything in the school. It was Steven who approached me to take part in the ceremonies. He came up to me and said he was leaving the school and they needed someone take his place. It was his job to find someone. I ended up participating in the ceremonies for three years. I was only used in the main ceremonies when a new member was coming in. This was at the same time as I was being abused by staff members, sometimes four of five times a day. That was pretty widespread. I was the only person they did it to who had enough speech to tell. It is amazing what people can get away with if they abuse people who can't communicate. When you grow up in special schools you learn that all these able-bodied people do what's best for you, so when it all breaks down it must be your fault.
      (Source: Pages 165-166 - A birthday to remember by Neil Charleson and Al Corbett, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      Chapter 21 - ChildLine, UK - Hereward Harrison

      Subtitled How children and young people communicate their experiences by telephone

      Hereward Harrison was at the time-of-writing Director of Counselling for ChildLine, UK, having co-founded the organisation with TV celebrity Ester Rantzen OBE.

      He is presently a psychotherapist at The Child and Family Practice in London, the current home for Dr. Arnon Bentovim and his wife Marianne Trantor, whose contribution to Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse was examined in The Evil, Satanic Poor Part Two - an analysis of Chapters 11 and 23".

      The ChildLine organisation was initially associated with the SRA Myth, principally because increased perception of child abuse occurred at the same time the 'Myth 'moral panic' took hold in the UK and the charity was established.

      Mr. Harrison's essay is just two-and-a-half pages long. At the time of the 'moral panic' over the SRA Myth, the organisation received an undetermined number of calls from adults and children saying they were being satanically or ritually abused. It isn't clear how children were able to ring ChildLine - presumably their satanic parents or carers would have restricted access to a phone line, or almost certainly have studied their itemised phone bills intently. Mr. Harrison was unable to provide any details of any police investigations that led from such ChildLine calls and the charity no longer reports such calls, and hasn't done so for nearly two decades.

      Chapter 22 - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse - Olave Snelling and Sara Scott

      Further titled 19th February 1992, and a helpline after the transmission of the program

      At the time-of-writing Olave Snelling was a TV Producer. Sara Scott was a Manager of Broadcasting Support Services in Manchester.

      Of the two, Sara Scott is still hugely associated with the promotion of the SRA Myth, and is notable in, as a leading British feminist, her collusion with extreme right-wing religious fundamentalists engaged in its promotion, typified the willingness of British feminism to engage with those it would have normally opposed with tooth-and-claw.

      The Dispatches broadcast came at a time when the Channel 4 documentary series had been infiltrated by supporters of extreme-right religious views. As the SRA Myth moral panic unfolded in the UK, following similar lines to the US experience - though with the added dimension of having a genuine witch-hunt attached to it. Instead of being able to broadcast balanced documentaries that examined the evidence (or rather lack of) in detail, the Dispatches production team fell into the maw of simply outputting extreme religious propaganda. To date, even nearly two decades on the current Dispatches commissioning editors have felt unwilling and unable to revisit the controversy of the SRA Myth.

      The collusion between British feminists and religious fundamentalists is discussed under the extensive entries for Beatrix Campbell (OBE). Sara Scott's collusion was by far the most brazen and it appears she was perfectly aware that the individual that she and Olave Snelling were dealing with was a key fundamentalist who would promote the SRA Myth without regard to truth or accuracy.

      Since her contribution for Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse she has been a senior worker at the Manchester Rape Crisis Centre, and provided therapy for for SRA Myth 'survivors', in the documenting of which she had included details of her introducing the idea of satanic ritual abuse to vulnerable women (see the entry for Dr. John Paley). Her book 2001 The Politics and Experience of Ritual Abuse remains a classic text in detailing feminist collusion in the SRA Myth with religious fundamentalists, though Ms. Scott's explanation for why it should be believed in the absence of any evidence, pushes feminist epistemology to the very limit and beyond. Sara Scott is presently an adviser to the British Government about child protection. Olave Snelling is now CEO of the Christian Broadcasting Council.

      At the beginning of the essay, seemingly written by Ms. Scott, some background is provided about how she came to be a True Believer in the 'Myth, after reading fundamentalist Andrew Boyd's book Blasphemous Rumours;

      I read what I could on the subject of ritual abuse and was appalled at the accounts of satanic abuse in Boyd's book. It included a brief history of satanism, an outline of the beliefs and practices of contemporary Satanism, an overview of self-confessed satanic groups and interviews with a number of ritual abuse survivors and therapists. The accounts from survivors and those who were helping them made it impossible to ignore the allegations. Though it was painful to come to terms with the nature of the abuse which was being described I felt, along with Hatcher and Boyd, that an attempt should be made to bring this issue further into the open.
      (Source: Page 175 - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse by Olave Snelling and Sara Scott, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      Sara Scott isn't the only one to wax lyrical about Boyd's Blasphemous Rumours. Conspiracy theorist and with Valerie Sinason, leading SRA Myth advocate David Icke is also impressed by it.

      10 Andrew Boyd, Blasphemous Rumours (Fount Paperbacks, an imprint of Harper Collins, London, 1991), p 142. This is a very balanced and first class investigation into the subject and I challenge anyone to read this and still deny that Satanic ritual abuse is a myth.
      (Source: 'Sources' (footnotes) for Chapter 15 - Satan's Children from The Biggest Secret (1999) by David Icke)

      Unfortunately Andrew Boyd was not a reliable source of information. A video supplied by him purporting to show a satanic ceremony was employed in the subsequent Dispatches documentary Beyond Belief. The video though was completely bogus. S.A.F.F - the Sub-culture Alternative Freedom Foundation - which dogged SRA Myth True Believers throughout the moral panic years and beyond didn't pull its punches;

      Boyd claimed to present a film showing actual satanic ritual abuse in a Channel 4 Dispatches programme The claims of the video's existence had believers in the myth rushing into print with 'told-you-so' articles and demands that the government act against Satanic Abuse - however they fell strangely silent when it was found that the 'satanic' video turned out to be a piece of performance art !

      Obscure though the video may have been, it had a film rating and anyone over 1 could walk into music shops in major cities and buy a copy.

      When the people who made the video turned up on Right to Reply to challenge Boyd he admitted that he DID know the true origins of the film, there were many people in the Establishment with egg on their faces, including Channel 4 TV who have still to this day not apologised for foisting what was essentially sectarian propaganda upon the British public.

      The Obscene Publications Squad carried out a raid on a South Coast address on the strength of Boyd's claims. That investigation simply proved the video was not what Boyd said and no prosecutions followed.

      Boyd also networked with the star fundamentalist christian agitators involved in the 1988/89 scare some of whom were publicly disgraced by media exposes when their true sectarian intentions became known.

      Boyd has written books attacking the occult which are published and distributed by Christian publishing outfits.

      He was/is a leading member of an American based fundamentalist Christian outreach called Prophetic World Ministries which has as its declaration of intent enforced acceptance of the bible as the word of god.

      The Prophetic World Ministries magazine has in the past carried what we see as clearly racist (anti-muslim) and anti-semitic articles.

      Boyd used to edit an off-the-wall pull-out supplement to PWM's magazine called God's Word Now which he also supplied in bulk to fundamentalist activists for distribution on the streets.

      At the time of writing the above article Boyd was the acting editor of The New Christian Herald. We do not doubt Mr Boyd's sincerity in his own beliefs, but there is absolutely no way that Mr Boyd can be described as anything other than a fundamentalist christian missionary agitator who spends the majority of his time promoting christianity at the expense of other beliefs.
      (Source: S.F.F - )

      Modern British feminists might wonder why, if Sara Scott genuinely believed in Satanic Ritual Abuse, why she didn't bother conducting independent research or commissioning it from anyone other than a known fanatical religious fundamentalist. The crazed fantasies of the time though prevented such rational thought; British feminism and fundamentalism were engaged in a seemingly desperate nationwide battle against witches and satanists, and rational thought or concern for accuracy (and truthfulness) was gone absent. Beatrix Campbell OBE had already led the way. Here Sara Scott and her co-author describe how the TV program was commissioned, with its broadcast timed to coincide with the publication of Andrew Boyd's book, also titled Beyond Belief.

      In effect a British feminist had conspired and colluded with a leading extreme religious fundamentalist in promoting his work to the world;

      ...a proposal was submitted to the Dispatches programme at Channel 4. The channel had previously accepted a programme on the subject of the Nottingham case in which the journalist Bea Campbell had investigated allegations made by children of physical abuse accompanied by what appeared to be satanic ritual. That Channel 4 had been willing to make such a stand was very courageous in the light of considerable press cynicism. Our proposal was accepted and production began in December 1991. Graham Addicott was director. Research material was provided by Eileen Fairweather and Paul Hatcher, in addition to the major source material of Andrew Boyd, who was employed as a consultant and subsequently invited to be the reporter. The programme , entitled 'Beyond Belief', was transmitted on 19 February 1992, coinciding with publication of Boyd's book.

      The programme aimed to deal with adult ritual abuse survivors rather than children. (The negative impact of the press vilifying professionals who believed the testimonies of children was acknowledged in the Report of the Inquiry into the Removal of Children from Orkney in February 1991 (HMSO, 1992))). It featured professionals working with survivors, such as psychiatrist Dr Vic Harris, clinical psychologists Sheila Youngson and Helga Hanks and psychotherapist Vera Diamond. Superintendent Michael Hames of the Obscene Publications Unit, Detective Inspector Kath Adams of West Yorkshire Police and ex-police surgeon Dr Stephen Hempling represented the extent of concern/belief from the law enforcement perspective.
      (Source: Page 175 - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse by Olave Snelling and Sara Scott, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      Sheila Youngson provided the final essay to Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse with Ritual Abuse: The personal and professional boost for workers. Psychologist Helga Hanks worked in Leeds, West Yorkshire, and was a committed SRA Myth True Believer, working and co-authoring with the co-'inventor' of the RAD (Reflex Anal Dilation) diagnosis mechanism, Dr. Christopher Hobbs, who also contributed an essay Treating satanist abuse survivors.

      Vera Diamond, now deceased, was a fanatical SRA Myth True Believer most notable for her treatment (sic) of vulnerable woman Carol Felstead (Carole Myers), who subsequently died in mysterious and still-unexplained circumstances in mid-2005 and remains the subject of intense media interest in the UK and awkward-to-answer queries for the Metropolitan Police (see The Carol Felstead scandal).

      The documentary did provide some opposing views, though the inclusion of bogus material probably made such a concession worthless;

      Professors Bill Thompson from Reading University and John Newson from Nottingham University expressed their scepticism about claims of satanic/ritual abuse. In particular, Bill Thompson cast doubts on the methods used by social workers to obtain testimony from children about ritual abuse.
      (Source: Page 175 - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse by Olave Snelling and Sara Scott, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      Of the two, Reading University sociologist Professor William Thompson was a surprisingly powerful choice. His 1987 PhD offered the first British account of Evangelical motivated political action (then attracting attention following Reagan's election) and since then he had provided major critiques on the nature of moral panics and the collusion of the Left with religious fundamentalism, 'his work on sexually explicit material and sexual minorities won Bill few friends amongst ideologically committed sociologists or theologically motivated college administrators' (from his Web Page). Reading University had hosted the first SRA Myth British conference on the 15-17th September, 1989, convened by fundamentalist and 'Walter Mitty'-style-professional Norma Howes and American SRA Myth advocate Pamela Klein. Working in an environment where collusion between formerly 'liberal' academics and fanatical religious fundamentalists was rife, Dr. Thompson was perfectly placed to observe and write about the moral panic that had engulfed Britain. Perhaps not surprisingly Sara Scott and Olave Snelling didn't quote from any of his work in their essay.

      With the duff research materials to-hand and with the full-on collusion of feminism and religious fundamentalism now in full swing, Beyond Belief was filmed, edited and transmitted to the British public on 19th February 1992. At this point the SRA Myth moral panic had been running for nearly four years, following the first scandal of Broxtowe. The craze had virtually expired in the US, as fundamentalists and colluding feminists and others ran-out-of-steam trying to keep the whole shaky edifice on its feet without any evidence whatsoever. Focus was now moving to the Multiple Personality Disorder and Recovered Memory Therapy movement amongst the female white middle-class and middle-aged population (see The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy) but the UK was still seen as rich pickings for SRA Myth religious fanatics and their feminists allies.

      In anticipation of numerous phone calls after the program, a temporary call centre was established. It isn't explained how this idea transpired, or from whom it came from;

      Fifteen lines were opened on the night of transmission and five the following day and the helpline dealt with the a total of 191 calls…Unfortunately it seems that the calls which were answered represented merely the tip of the iceberg in terms of demand. British Telecom recorded 595 attempted calls in the first 5 minutes after the helpline number appeared on screen and 4500 attempted calls in the helpline's first hour of operation.
      (Source: Page 176 - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse by Olave Snelling and Sara Scott, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      Rather than employ trained counsellors or those perhaps dispassionate to the subject, the producers decided the best thing to do was employ those already committed to belief in the SRA Myth;

      Counsellors were recruited through RAINS (Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support - see Chapter 29 by Joan Coleman). RAINS was originally set up to provide support to child protection workers involved in the Nottingham and Congleton ritual abuse cases. In order to ensure that calls were dealt with by people with relevant experience, counsellors were asked to travel from various cities. There was considerable anxiety from some members about coping with the helpline or about issues of confidentiality, safety and programme content. None considered themselves 'experts' in the field and feared raising caller' expectation that fell was at hand/. The staff who worked on the helpline included clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, Rape Crisis counsellors and social workers.
      (Source: Page 177 - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse by Olave Snelling and Sara Scott, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      The text (Ritual Abuse Information Network and Support - see Chapter 29 by Joan Coleman) is in the actual text on page 177, and wasn't added by the editors of this entry. It is significant as it indicates that Ms. Scott and Snelling had read the extraordinary Chapter 29 by Joan Coleman - Satanic cult practices. There is no record of Ms. Scott or Snelling having any objection or concerns to this incredible and bizarre text and the suspicion has to be that seeing as Joan Coleman was a co-founder of RAINS, this image of satanists and witches infesting Great Britain was shared by them. Sara Scott would be no stranger to referencing fanatical religious texts; in addition to Blasphemous Rumours that is actually listed in the 'REFERENCES' section for the essay, she would also promote Safe Passage to Healing - A Guide for Survivors of Ritual Abuse (1994) by Chrystine Oksana, whose bibliography included the famous book Michelle Remembers (see The importance of 'Michelle Remembers')

      Although Sara Scott and Olave Snelling haven't ever provided any indication objecting to the witch-hunt fantasies portrayed in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse nor the tendency to demonize the socially disadvantaged or just plain poor, they did try to enable 'victims' of then-perceived ongoing satanic ritual abuse to contact someone by phone. The remainder of their essay is concerned with the nature of those calls.

      For an unknown reason, despite the assistance of British Telecom, Great Britain's phone services provider, the incoming telephone numbers don't appear to have been collected or collated. Nor were any calls recorded, though in 1992 such technology was in widespread use.

      Approximately half of those calling about ritual abuse on their own behalf had not spoken to anyone before. The level of distress and fear of these callers was very high and is illustrated by the following quotes:

      'I'll have to die now. Silence is the first rule and I've broken it'
      'They'll kill me for sure now'
      'I've been out ten years and moved fourteen times.'
      'Who are you? Can you trace this call?'

      One little girl just cried 'The devil's got me', over and over.

      Despite their terror, many callers managed to speak of the things they had seen and done and suffered. Rape, torture, mutilations, sleep deprivation, hypnosis, ritual murder, abortion and cannibalism, all featured in calls. Specific experiences mentioned included:

      • being shut in a coffin for three days
      • being smeared with blood from a 'sacrificed' child and then being raped
      • being tied up and covered with maggots
      • having to kill her own kitten when 8 years old
      • being prostituted to men outside the 'coven'
      • child pornography being made
      • death of a sibling from abuse
      • extensive use of psychotropic drugs
      • having other 'selves' or 'entities' (multiple personality)
      • being deprived of food and water for long periods
      • being forced to eat faces and drink urine
      (Source: Pages 177-178 - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse by Olave Snelling and Sara Scott, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      Although no other 'counsellor' working that night has ever come forward to validate such claims of the calls, the nature of the accounts given by Ms. Scott and Snelling would certainly indicate that they and the fellow production staff would have ensured the Police were engaged. Ms. Scott and Snelling employed yet another reference to witches covens in the 'experiences mentioned' - reminding readers of the special Britishness tacked-onto the SRA Myth in the country.

      Rather than pursue the obvious path of having child protection police officers follow-up such fantastic 'leads', the producers had gone for an alternative route; they chose to engage a police department responsible for investigating illegal pornography, and the one least likely to provide any investigative support for allegations that included murder and cannibalism;

      Scotland Yard
      The Obscene Publications Squad at New Scotland Yard set up a 24-hour hotline to take calls referred on from the helpline. The hotline received about ten calls as a result of such referrals.
      (Source: Pages 179 - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse by Olave Snelling and Sara Scott, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      Such 'referrals' suggest that telephone numbers were being retained. With such detail, and with the testimonies of the 'counsellors', for sure Ms. Scott and others would have pursued the Police to follow-up with extensive enquiries, particularly with accounts of children apparently saying they would be killed.

      Perhaps inevitably and unsurprisingly, Scott and Snelling provide no indication that any de-briefing of the 'counsellors' took place, no statements were taken, and no follow-up occurred. No investigations, arrests, attempted prosecutions or convictions resulted from the call-centre accounts, from the Obscene Publications Squad or elsewhere. Indeed Ms. Scott and Snelling don't even suggest that they made any effort to follow-up on any of the calls whatsoever. Once again there is no record from a serving or retired police officer that such calls were actually received. Indeed there is no verification or independent confirmation that any such calls, in any such numbers, with any such events related, were ever actually received. As discussed earlier, truthfulness and proper research methodologies were not the prime concerns of Sara Scott, Olave Snelling and particularly, Andrew Boyd. If you are trying to promote the SRA Myth to 'all-and-sundry' would any of them have been willing to say 'we set-up a telephone hotline for the transmission, and everyone was bored witless for the entire night'?

      As had become the norm amongst such True Believers, the lack of interest in following-up the allegations remains a mystery. Sara Scott and Olave Snelling's accounts of callers ringing-in to say they would be killed, just for ringing the help-line would, if believed, have probably been pursued by any rational 'normal' person. Who would've been able to forget such a call? Who wouldn't have dedicated their life to finding the caller and perhaps saving him or her? Yet once again the authors (and alleged counsellors taking the calls) seem remarkably insulated from such concerns, and in nearly two decades, none, including Scott and Snelling, have ever mentioned those accounts, ever.

      A discussion about that remarkable lack of interest in actually finding the satanists (and, being Great Britain, the witches covens can be found at The burden on RAINS members.

      A obvious questions raised include; would satanists sit down with their child 'victims' to watch Dispatches Beyond Belief? And then would the child be in a position to phone immediately after the program (not days or weeks later)? Using a landline (this was before mobile phones took off)?

      It is of course, too easy to be glib about such matters. If the telephone calls had come in during the course of the following week, then perhaps the scenarios would be more easily believed. But no, the accounts that Scott and Snelling relate, were given on the very same night as the broadcast. Was Wednesday 19th February 1992 a 'night off' for satanists and witches? A night when they would go down to the pub, or play bingo and leave their young victims watching television and able to phone whoever they fancied? 1992 would see the movies Wayne's World, Batman Returns, Sister Act, Basic Instinct (and ominously) Bram Stoker's Dracula released to cinemas. Did the witches and satanists of the nation collectively go to see a movie on the 19th February 1992?

      Chapter 24 - Questions survivors and professionals ask the police - author unknown

      Chapter 23, Press, politics and paedophilia by Tim Tate was analysed in The Evil, Satanic Poor Part Two - an analysis of Chapters 11 and 23" earlier on this page.

      Employing a 'feature' of Routledge/Informa PLC books, Questions survivors and professionals ask the police is anonymously authored. It could be presumed that the editor Valerie Sinason wrote the chapter, but it would be unclear, if she did, why she declined authorship of it. The editor of the chapter writes in the first-person, such 'Where all shared similar views I have grouped their response together'. The contents of the chapter purport to have come from police officers, but no mention is made as to if the comments were made directly to the chapter editor, or are from third parties, or the time period that the comments were allegedly made. There is no detail about how the comments were delivered - whether through an interview, or written correspondence. The roles of the alleged police officers is unknown (for instance did any of them work in a Child Protection unit?)

      The respondents represent a tiny pool of just three police officers across all of England. These were presented anonymously as a police inspector from the north of England, a sergeant from London (presumably the Metropolitan Police of City of London Police, and a constable from the Midlands.

      As both the editor of the chapter and the contributors are anonymous, it is impossible to verify anything that was written, and it cannot be certain that the entire chapter isn't made up.

      One quote though detailed the willingness of police to pursue an investigation, even when evidence was being made up, suggesting that at least one contributor was genuine;

      The three main respondents were (1) an Inspector from the north of gland, (2) a Sergeant from London (both male) and (3) a woman Police Constable from the Midlands.

      Q: Are there particular problems with adult victims reporting ritual abuse rather than other abuse?
      A: Police officers want a victim who is rational, provides physical and forensic evidence in a fairly short space of time so that the investigation can begin. Ritual victims need much more time, patience and often give disjointed and incorrect information, sometimes deliberately and sometimes unconsciously.

      For example, police were in no doubt medically and forensically that one such victim had been tortured, even though they were unsure when she described symbols being daubed on her door and substances being pushed through her letterbox. On setting up a surveillance camera they found the victim daubing her own doors with paint. Nevertheless, they were still prepared to continue an investigation and understand the complexity of contradictory evidence.
      (Source: Pages 195 - Questions survivors and professionals ask the police by author/editor unknown, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      In the past and even in recent times, police officers have come forward to state their belief in the SRA Myth/DID. Retired officer Chris Healey struggled to find any evidence of SRA, but still believed in it (see RAINS consolidates.) The Metropolitan Police is unique in the Western world to be the only police force with a stated and documented commitment to the SRA Myth, as detailed in The Metropolitan Police & RAINS, The London Safeguarding Children Conference and Valerie Sinason and The Metropolitan Police and Valerie Sinason.

      Chapter 25 - Ritual organised abuse - Judith Trowell

      Subtitled Management issues

      At the time-of-writing, Dr. Judith Trowell was a Consultant Child Psychiatrist and Psychoanalyst at the Tavistock Clinic.

      Dr. Trowell's essay is concerned with the delivery of services to children alleged to have been victims of satanic ritual abuse.

      A primary concern of some critics of SRA Myth proponents is that the resources dedicated to fighting what was effectively a non-existent scourge, could have been better spent on combatting and investigating genuine child sexual abuse. Unfortunately SRA Myth advocates ensured that satanic ritual abuse was a major issue and all other, genuine cases of child sexual abuse were minor. Dr. Trowell confirms this belief in place in 1993/94.

      However senior, however experienced, professionals have to recognise that sexual abuse can enter their minds, their consciousness, their feeling and almost at times their bodies. The impact of ritual organised sexual abuse is much greater than the sum of sexual abuse of a number of children. The terror and the emotional abuse of the children is of a different order and this permeates the families and thence the professionals.

      The emotional impact is such that the mind cannot contain it all. This leads to what is known as splitting and projection, or denial or manic flight. Thus the children may become as zombies with most of their humanity, their personality, split off and closed down, or they may deny that anything has happened.
      (Source: Pages 200 - Ritual organised abuse Management Issues by Judith Trowell, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      Many SRA Myth proponents are convinced that the police and social services and other agencies have satanists amongst them, intent on ensuring that investigations founder. Dr. Trowell too succumbs to this paranoia, even mentioning the hopeless Orkney case, when some professionals believed that priests and police officers and local councillors were involved in the abuse (though with absolutely no evidence to support the claims). Dr. Trowell's call for satanic ritual abuse/ritual abuse cases to be handled in an alternate fashion to other child sexual abuse was an instance of what has now known to be defined as 'special pleading';

      A consensus seems to be emerging that if ritual abuse does crop up, then it shall be handled as any case of child sexual abuse. Good practice is important. This is certainly correct; however it denies the complexity of organised ritual abuse. It denies the potential awfulness, the impact on the children, families and workers and it denies the difficulties of the all-too-frequent ramifications of the many adults involved - some of the adults may be in the relevant agencies as professionals.

      In the Orkney incident there was enormous problems because professionals did not trust each other. There was suspicion of involvement in the abuse by certain key individuals in the community and there was no policy, no previous planning to help.
      (Source: Pages 202 - Ritual organised abuse Management Issues by Judith Trowell, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      Dr. Trowell also provides an indication that the Cleveland RAD scandal of 1987 was regarded by her and perhaps other professionals, as a satanic ritual abuse conspiracy.

      WORKING TOGETHER
      In most incidents of organised, ritual (satanic) abuse, there has been a breakdown of inter-agency working. In Cleveland there was a breakdown at middle and senior management level between police, various social services and health workers.
      (Source: Pages 203 - Ritual organised abuse Management Issues by Judith Trowell, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      Cleveland was the moment in British contemporary social history when child protection and family justice went distinctly off-track, diverting from other European nations significantly. The Broxtowe scandal is generally recognised as the first 'real' SRA Myth scandal to engulf the United Kingdom, but Cleveland may perhaps have to be considered by social historians as not the 'precursor' of the SRA Myth, but rather the first genuine case; certainly, with its idea of a Vast Conspiracy; anal rapes being inflicted leaving no injuries, the absence of any forensic evidence, no disclosures and the desire by those professionals engaged, such as Dr. Marietta Higgs, Dr. Geoffrey Wyatt and social worker Sue Richardson (now a confirmed SRA Myth/DID/Mind Control advocate) to press-on regardless, even in the face of a hopeless lack-of-evidence. Dr. Higgs and Dr. Wyatt's would later attend early SRA Myth conference. Cleveland is very similar to the later 'genuine' false SRA Myth scandals, and the question as to whether it should be treated as the first SRA Myth scandal in the UK is still open for debate. What was missing though was the obvious facet; no-one was mentioning 'satanic abuse'; apparently because Cleveland Police would have certainly figured rapidly they were being hoodwinked by dogmatic obsessions.

      On pages 207 and 208, Dr. Trowell provides a list of responsibilities for agencies engaged in investigating satanic ritual abuse. Strangely the assessment of child isn't performed by a combination of experts, such as child psychiatrists or trauma counsellors, but rather by Foster carers only. As such people are invariably untrained for such tasks and sometimes bring with them religious and/or political prejudices (see Chapter 10 - Fostering a ritually abused child by Mary Kelsall and The Evil, Satanic Poor - Part One and The Evil, Satanic Poor Part Two - an analysis of Chapters 11 and 23.) It isn't clear why Dr. Trowell identified the least skilled individuals to perform the most important task.

      Dr. Trowell's conviction that alleged victims of satanic abuse be assessed by foster parents, flies in the face of a specific recommendation by the Joint Enquiry Team (JET) - run to both reinvestigate the allegations into witchcraft and satanism made by social workers (and children) in the Broxtowe scandal, and also to figure-out why the relationship between police and social workers had broken-down so dramatically.

      In view of the experience with the children and one of the satellite cases (and perhaps Canada) foster parents should not be used to obtain evidence in cases with ritualistic overtones.
      (Source: The JET Report - Recommendations)

      Dr. Trowell inadvertently drew attention , in her near-final paragraphs, to the a basic problem that could be discerned from the SRA Myth 'moral panic' in Great Britain from the late 1980s to 2003; that women were invariably more willing to believe in incredible tales, such as the Cleveland RAD scandal, which required belief in the idea that a Vast Conspiracy of men were systematically sodomising and buggering their children, without leaving any forensic evidence, internal injuries or disclosures from the 'victims'. Males it seems are more tended to be pragmatic and suspicious of stories and accounts of impossible, magical events. It appears that in her essay, Dr. Trowell is suggesting that investigations into satanic ritual abuse be conducted by teams comprising most or all women, in effect weighting an investigation by assigning roles by gender to ensure that those who believe in SRA/witchcraft (women) are given responsibilities over those who might be a bit 'awkward' (men). She notes leading feminist/fundamentalist icon Beatrix Campbell (OBE), whose partner Judith Dawson led Team 4 during the Broxtowe investigation, remarks about gender in her book about the Cleveland RAD Scandal, a precursor to the SRA Myth fiasco's that she too was an enthusiastic promoter-of.

      Equal opportunities
      There are many equal opportunity issues that need to be considered. These apply to both staff and children and families. In any form of child sexual abuse there are inevitably conflicts and highly emotionally charged situations. This can be understood as a normal and inevitable sequelae of sexual abuse, which touches very primitive feelings and reactions in the child/children, the family and thence the professionals. Sexual abuse is frequently the abuse of girls by men. This can lead to complex reactions between men and women professionals. Beatrix Campbell has written an eloquent accounts of the events in Cleveland, highlighting the problem between the police (mainly men) and the Social Services Department (mainly women).

      In organised ritual abuse, the issue of gender must be taken seriously in the planning. Constant vigilance is needed to ensure that any emerging problems are recognised and discussed, so that professional conflicts do not reverse the distress and difficulties in decision-making and run the risk of involving the child/children and families.
      (Source: Pages 208 - Ritual organised abuse Management Issues by Judith Trowell, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      Dr. Trowell doesn't provide an example of any emerging problems are recognised and discussed but it might be safe to assume that this would include instances when a (male) police officer isn't willing to believe the fantastic tales of witchcraft, cannibalism and murder from (female) social workers, without at least some evidence.

      The JET Report once again gave an insight into the willingness of some females, ranging from religious fundamentalist child protection social worker Christine Johnston on the Broxtowe Team 4, to 'Marxist' British feminist agitator and colluder-with-fundamentalists Beatrix Campbell (OBE) to color the US-derived SRA Myth with a particular British fascination with witchcraft. Witches and witchcraft dominated the questioning of the children taken-into-care by the Nottinghamshire social workers and their appointed fundamentalist foster carers. In time the rhetoric referencing satanism and satanists was replaced entirely with an obsession with witches and witchcraft. In effect the Great European Witch-hunt had returned, in this case fully supported by Britain's feminist community, and endorsed in publications like The Guardian and The New Statesman.

      When the case was in full swing my social worker started interviewing me and asking me questions about parties involving witches. The first time I told her that the only parties of any kind I had been to were at the (family home)....I told her I didn't know anything about any other houses...she started asking me over and over again whether I'd been to any other big houses where witch parties had taken place. I kept saying I hadn't but in the end I just got fed up with being asked so I just said yes.

      She asked me to describe the houses. I told her I couldn't so she said she'd take me round to see them in the car...She pointed to the house and asked me if that was the house. I said yes. She asked me what had happened while I was there. I told her there were video cameras there and children being abused. I made it all up. I had never been to that before in my life. I made up a description of the inside of the house. She took me to another house near Wollaton Park...she asked me whether this was another house I'd been to. I just said yes. I agreed with whatever she said, I have been interviewed about 20 times by (my social worker) about these houses but all I do is just keep saying yes.

      I have seen [Mandy] many times over the past few months and she's told me she's been telling Social Services about witch parties. I know she's telling lies...[Mandy]'s told me that if I tell the Social Services about witch parties at big houses I might have a chance of getting my daughter back (child in care) (my social worker's) told me if I tell the truth I could get my daughter back...everything I have told (the social worker) is lies. I've told her the truth more than once but she wouldn't believe me so I just said anything...the only things I know about witchcraft and magic are the things I've seen on the telly
      (Source: The JET Report, Part 4, extract from Police interview with 'Jane' August 1988)

      That strange gender disparity, between those more willing to believe the incredible, even to the point of interrogating children in tears, repeatedly and abusively (see the video recording taken during the Rochdale fiasco) has been noted by Janice Haaken, in her ground-breaking book Pillar of Salt: Gender, Memory, and the Perils of Looking Back. Ms. Haaken identified the strange collusion in the US, of religious fundamentalists, whose belief in the SRA Myth never stepped beyond what was expected of them, and feminists, who would have been expected to oppose the fundamentalists, but instead enthusiastically allied themselves to their cause. The same collusion established itself in the UK and other Western countries, thanks to the substantial contribution of feminists like Beatrix Campbell OBE, Sarah Nelson, Sara Scott (who contributed an essay to Treating' and later Dr. Liz Kelly and, now deceased, Catherine Itzin all of whom openly allied themselves to the fundamentalist cause, and some of which continue to do so;

      A number of historians have described the recurring emergence of satanic conspiracies, which appear particularly during periods of social stress, and their deep roots in Christian demonology. Dominant or insider groups often accuse the outsider group of heretical practises that threaten the destruction of cherished societal values. When a dominant group is threatened by a competing worldview, such as those that beset the church during the late medieval period, accusations of demonic practises may reinvigorate institutional authority and revitalise the commitment and loyalty of followers.

      While it is not difficult to grasp the function of demonology in such contexts, there has been little attention in the literature to the varying and complex political uses of such subversion legends. In the contemporary historical context, the SRA legend finds a ready receptivity in conservative Christian groups, with their preoccupation with the Prince of Darkness, defence of majoritarian religious values, and the advancement of right-wing politics. Accounts of ritual abuse survivors became standard fare on Christian talk shows in the 1980s, circulated through the expanding cable network channels. These tales of sexual perversion merged as the Christian pornography of the 1980s, riveting audiences with descriptions of moral degradation.

      'Less understandable is the receptivity to SRA accounts that flourished in grassroots feminist organisations during this same period. In crisis clinics throughout the country, materials began to circulate on ritual abuse, including elaborate glossaries, checklists of signs and symptoms, and intervention strategies. By 1990, ritual abuse was a standard part of staff training in many feminist crisis facilities throughout the United States. Initially distributed by the Los Angeles County Commission for Women through its task force on ritual abuse, these materials elicited no discernible critical response or skepticism among feminist practitioners. Given the large percentage of suspected female perpetrators of SRA, particularly day-care workers, and the number of feminist "witchcraft" practices implicated in ritual abuse cases, the enthusiastic participation of feminist organisations in circulating news of the "epidemic"is startling."
      (Source: From: Pillar of Salt: Gender, Memory, and the Perils of Looking Back by Janice Haaken (2000) page 239, 2000)

      The documented US feminist collusion with religious fundamentalists is discussed in the entry for Myra Riddell, whilst the efforts of modern feminists to deny that they took part in the explosion of therapy that saw tens-of-thousands of American white, middle-class women diagnosed as being hosts to multiple personalities, survivors of incest/satanic abuse through recovered memories and/or Mind Controlled by the CIA during the 1990s is discussed in the lengthy entry for Gloria Steinem.

      Twenty-three contributors to Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse are female, only barely favouring women. A disparity though is found in the gender of those essays that reference witchcraft, with Anne McDonald (Chapter 16), Joan Bicknell (chapter 17), Mary Sue Moore (chapter 28) and of course Joan Coleman's (chapter 29) contributions only being vaguely matched by one male-authored essay; that of Professor Nigel Beail, suggesting that, by this criteria, belief in witchcraft was in 1994 more prevalent amongst female 'professionals' engaged in promoting the SRA Myth.

      Chapter 26 - A Service Manager's perspective - Catherine Doran

      At the time-of-publication, Ms. Doran was the Service Manager of Child Protection in the London Borough of Haringey, and was seconded to the London Region of the Social Services Inspectorate as a Child Protection Consultant.

      Child protection policies and the lack of intervention by London Borough of Haringey social workers and other professionals would of course lead to the two major scandals of British child protection social work after the SRA Myth fiascos had subsided; namely Victoria Climbié, who died less than six years after Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse was published and Peter Connelly (Baby P). A belief in witchcraft was identified amongst at least one member of staff involved in the scandal of Victoria's death. Just under seven years later, in August 2007, one-year-old Peter Connelly (Baby P) died after suffering more than fifty injuries over the course of an eight-month period, during which he was seen repeatedly by Haringey Children's Services staff and NHS professionals, including paediatricians.

      All this was to come though. Catherine Doran in the early 1990s was apparently involved in planning for investigations into ritual and satanic ritual abuse, and in her essay, she provides an insight into how much effort was being applied into this area;

      Many local authorities are currently developing their guidelines around organised and ritual abuse. When intervention of this nature are being considered we know that it is imperative that senior management at all levels, i.e. Director of Social Services, Senior Health Managers and Chief Superintendents, are involved in acknowledging and sanctioning the planned processes of investigation. It is my belief that it is imperative, even at this early stage, that we call upon experienced professionals in this area of work. Many professionals who are skilled in other areas of abuse - like Child Protection Co-Ordinators - can be inexperienced in these areas and yet be pressured to be seen as a specialist in this task.
      (Source: Pages 211 - A Service Manager's perspective by Catherine Doran, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      That key difference, between normal Child Protection Services (CPS) workers and those engaged in satanic ritual abuse investigations was emphasised in the previous chapter by Judith Trowell. Catherine Doran's call for SRA Myth investigations to be conducted by experienced professionals in this area of work is reflected in the manner by which SRA Myth interviews were conducted during the moral panic of the 1980s and 1990s in the US and UK. In the seminal work on the subject of interviewing children, the editors of Children as Victims, Witnesses, and Offenders (2009) included a study of the interviews with the children caught-up in the McMartin Daycare Center scandal and eventual travesty, comparing the nature of normal CPS child abuse interviews with victims, and those conducted with the McMartin alleged satanic ritual abuse 'victims'. The differences were enormous.

      Schreiber et al. compared interviews from the McMartin case and the Kelly Michaels case (which is described later in this chapter) with a sample of sexual abuse interviews from a CPS agency in the southwestern United States. The CPS interviews were chosen as a standard of comparison because, in an earlier study, they had been shown to be highly similar to CPS interviews collected in another part of the United States (Warren, Garven & Goodall, 2000) and could be assumed to be fairly typical of CPS interviews n general.

      Schreiber and her colleagues 92006) found that, compared with the CPS interviews, the Mcmartin interviews were characterised by use of four highly suggestive techniques. The first of these techniques-Positive Consequences-was defined as (1) giving or promising praise or other rewards to a child or (2) indicating that the child could demonstrate helpfulness, intelligence or other good qualities by making a statement to the interviewer. For instance, interviewers in the Mcmartin case used Positive Consequences by saying things like, "Oh, you're so smart, I knew you'd remember" and "So I bet if you guys put on your thinking caps, you can help remember it. Not let's make a test of your brain and see how good your memories are."

      As can be seen, Positive Consequences involves the use of positive reinforcement-praise, rewards, or the promise of praise and rewards-to shape children's behaviour. Schreiber and her colleagues (2006) found that this technique was substantially more common in the McMartin interviews than the CPS interviews. Specifically, the researchers divided each interview into numbered exchanges, with each exchange consisting of one turn by the interviewer and one turn by the child, and then countered the number of exchanges in which the interviewer used the suggestive technique. The results of this analysis showed that the Positive Consequences technique was used in 18% of the exchanges in the McMartin interviews but in only 7% of the exchanges in the CPS interviews (a statistically significant difference, considered n this chapter to be p < .005).

      These percentages can be put in context by realising that the McMartin interviews tended to be very long (usually more than 1 hour) with an average of 575 exchanges, whereas the typical CPS interview lasted only about 21 minutes with an average of 164 exchanges. Because of the difference n interview length, the Positive Consequences technique was used approximately 103 times (18% of 575 exchanges) in a typical McMartin interview but only 12 times (7% of 164 exchanges) in a CPS interview. Compared with the McMartin interviews, the CPS interviewers not only used Positive Consequences far less frequently, but they also tended to use the technique n a manner that relatively innocuous and non-suggestive, such as complimenting a child during the early rapport-building stage of an interview or thanking a child at the very end of an interview for the child's earlier cooperation.

      The second suggestive technique used by the McMartin interviewers-Other People (Schreiber et al, (2006)-involved telling the child that the interviewer had talked with other people regarding the topics of the interview or telling the child what other people had supposedly said. Here is an example from a McMartin interview:

      "You see all the kinds in this picture? Every single kid in this picture has come here and talked to us. Isn't that amazing?….These kids came to visit us and we found out they know a lot of yucky old secrets from that old school. And they all came and told us the secrets. And they're helping us figure out this whole puzzle of what used to go on in that place…"

      As can be seen, the Other People technique pressures a child to conform and go along with what other people have supposedly said. Scriber and her colleagues (2006) found that CPS interviewers virtually never used this technique (specifically it occurred in less than 1% of exchanges). In contrast, McMartin interviewers used this technique in 7% of exchanges, a statistically significant difference. Applying the sam arithmetic as previously, the average number of exchanges in which a McMartin interviewer told the child about what other people said was approximately 40 (7% of 575).

      The third suggestive technique - Inviting Speculation- involved asking the child to guess, speculate, pretend, or imagine what had happened. Here is an example from a McMartin interview;

      INTERVIEWER: Now, I think this is another one of those tricky games. What do you think, Rags?
      CHILD: Yep.
      INTERVIEWER: Yes. Do you think some of that yucky touching happened, Rags, when she was tied up and she couldn't get away? Do you think some of that touching that - Mr Ray might have done some of that touching? Do you think that's possible? Where do you think he would have touched her? Can you use your pointer and show us where he would have touched her?

      The technique of Inviting Speculation encourages children to guess, speculate, or pretend rather than simply report what they have observed. Schreiber and her colleagues (2006) found that the McMartin interviewers used the Inviting Speculation technique eight times more presently than the CPS interviewers did (8% of exchanges vs. 1%), a statistically significant difference. Using the same arithmetic as before, this means that McMartin children were invited to guess or pretend approximately 40 times per interview.

      The 4th suggestive technique- Introducing Information-involved introducing new negative, violent, or sexual information into an interview that was not previously mentioned by the child. Here is an example from a McMartin interview;

      INTERVIEWER: How about Naked Move Star? You guys remember that game?
      CHILD: No.
      INTERVIEWER: Everybody remembers that game. Let's see if we can figure it out.

      As can be seen, the technique of Introducing Information involves what layers call "leading" or "suggestive" questioning. Of course, if a child already feels pressured to make false allegations, Introducing Information indicates precisely what kind of allegations are expected. It should be noted that Introducing Information is very broadly defined and can overlap with other suggestive techniques. For instance, in the example just given, the interviewer also uses the Other People technique ("Everybody remembered that game") and Inviting Speculation ("Let's see if we can figure it out").

      Schreiber and her colleagues (2006) found that CPS interviewers used the Introducing Information technique in only about 3% of exchanges. Because the typical CPS interview contained only 164 exchanges, on average the number of exchanges involving Introducing Information was about five (3% of 164). In contrast, the McMartin interviewers used Introducing Information in 18% of exchanges, significantly different from the CPS interviews. Given the length of the McMartin interviews, this works out to more than 100 exchanges per interview. Clearly, the McMartin investigators were injecting many negative, violent, and sexual ideas into the interviews.
      (Source: pp 86-88 From Chapter Five, Child Sexual Abuse Investigations: Lessons Learned from the McMartin and Other Daycare Cases, by James M. Wood, Debbie Nathan, M. Teresa Nezworski and Elizabeth Uhl, from Children as Victims, Witnesses, and Offenders Edited by Bette L. Bottoms Cynthia J. Najdowski and Gail S. Goodman (2009), Copyright Guilford Press. Reprinted with permission of The Guilford Press)

      The risk that some modern British child protection police officers take their cue from SRA Myth advocates in their use of interview techniques with child sex abuse victims and witnesses was highlighted only recently, and is discussed on the page about serial 'Walter Mitty' character, Norma Howes, who originally introduced the SRA Myth to British shores at Norma Howes & British Police Forces.

      Ms. Doran's concern that Many professionals who are skilled in other areas of abuse - like Child Protection Co-Ordinators - can be inexperienced in these areas and yet be pressured to be seen as a specialist in this task echoed Dr. Judith Trowell's comments in the previous chapter Ritual organised abuse that although satanic ritual abuse should be considered child abuse, the staff who investigate it should be specially selected. Ms. Doran doesn't detail who precisely should be involved in investigating SRA claims, but it seems logical that she would at least expect them to be individuals who believed in the SRA Myth and witchcraft.

      Witchcraft once again features in this essay, and its inclusion is likely to leave the reader confused. In the below passage, no mention is made of any other suspects other than a grandfather suspected of raping his granddaughter. Ms. Doran initially emphasises that in a forensic interview, the most important issues should come first, whilst the ritual elements would have to be dealt-with through therapeutic sessions. In the next paragraph though she writes We would return to the witches and spiders later leaving the reader confused as to whether they should simply ignore the first instruction or not.

      I once interviewed an 8-year-old girl who was recounting her grandfather raping her. She also talked about witches, masks, eating spiders and drinking urine. keeping the child on track was difficult. The fine balance between hearing and acknowledging her abusive rituals and focusing on the crime was my clinical objective. The layers and layers of ritualistic abuse would have to be dealt with in therapeutic sessions.

      One key factor in interviewing these children is to create a sense of strength, knowingness and calm. The 8-year-old girl asked me, 'Do you know about witches and spiders?' I said 'I do. But I will need your help to understand it better. But first, I want to you to tell me all about your grandfather and you.' We would return to the witches and spiders later. My main focus win the forensic interview was to separate the sexual abuse from the abusive rituals. This, I feel is a daunting task for both the interviewer and the child.
      (Source: Pages 212 - A Service Manager's perspective by Catherine Doran, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      With the death and subsequent investigation of Victoria Climbié six years after Ms. Doran's words were published, it could be thought that belief in witchcraft would have diminished to zero in Haringey Children's Services Department. Unfortunately, belief in the magical and impossible still persists in the department, even infecting the local Metropolitan Police, and documented in increasing detail by Sunday Telegraph columnist Christopher Booker.

      Chapter 27 - Treating satanist abuse survivors - Chris Hobbs and Jane Wynne

      Subtitled The Leeds experience

      No SRA Myth scandals engulfed Leeds, in the north of England, during the crazy years of 1988-1994. Nonetheless Dr. Hobbs and Dr. Wynne's contribution indicated suspicion of widespread satanic cults operating in the and around the city.

      Both paediatricians worked as Consultant Community Paediatricians in the Department of Community Paediatrics and Child Health at St James University Hospital and Leeds General Infirmary. Dr. Hobbs still works in Leeds hospital, whilst his professional partner, Jane Wynne, is deceased.

      Both of course are most famous for the 'invention' of the RAD - Reflex Anal Dilation' diagnostic technique, which involved having a paediatrician have a child (normally naked) sit on all fours whilst a speculum or other medical instrument was placed over the child's rectum or on occasions, into his or her anus. The technique, first described the paper Buggery in childhood - a common syndrome of child abuse was published in The Lancet journal in 1986.

      That same year, Both Dr. Hobbs and Wynne were teaching the RAD technique to to newly qualified paediatricians in hospitals in Leeds. Amongst the trainees was Dr. Marietta Higgs.

      A year later Dr. Higgs, having passed the technique onto Dr. Geoffrey Wyatt third-hand, employed it as an exclusive means to determine child sex abuse in what became known as the Cleveland RAD Scandal of 1987. Proponents of the belief in RAD were convinced that vast numbers of males in the Cleveland area were systematically buggering and sodomising their children with or without the knowledge of spouses or partners, leaving no forensic evidence or disclosures from the 'victims'. As discussed in the previous chapter, although not officially regarded as the first proper case of Satanic Ritual Abuse, some SRA Myth advocates regard it as so, notably because the Cleveland RAD Scandal had many of the features of future SRA scandals; the idea of a Vast Conspiracy, the hopeless lack of forensic evidence, and that the police and other agencies they believed, had a part in covering-up the 'crimes'. Over one-hundred-and-twenty children were forcibly removed from their homes by Cleveland Police in response to Dr. Higgs and Wyatt's examinations of them. On occasions, having been placed in foster care, Dr. Higg's would re-examine the children and determine that the foster carers were also systematically sodomising/buggering them, and would have them arrested too.

      Although there were few if any signs of religious fundamentalist involvement in the Cleveland RAD Scandal, British feminists were often utterly convinced by the conspiracy theories attached to it, , and this is discussed in the lengthy entry for Professor Catherine Itzin. A year after Cleveland, the SRA Myth would engulf British child protection, seeing widespread and documented collusion between religious fundamentalist and British feminists in its promotion.

      The Cleveland RAD Scandal spawned the Butler-Sloss public enquiry. Doctors Higgs and Wyatt somehow managed to remain at work in the NHS, though they, and later Dr. Camille de San Lazaro OBE, who was also trained by Hobbs and Wynne, and of course Sir Roy Meadow would ensure that British child protection paediatrics was rendered-down to joke status amongst the rest of the world; a position it has yet to recover from.

      Whilst most thought that RAD had disappeared off the map, it was shown to have still been in active up to at least 2007, twenty years after the original Cleveland RAD scandal. In 2008 Dr Hobbs, together with other paediatricians, were "named and shamed" in a rare family court public judgment determining that a 10-year-old girl had not been repeatedly and chronically sexually abused. The girl was removed into foster care for 11 months and subjected to eight intimate examinations including the photographing of her in a naked state (apparently for evidential purposes). It transpired through the court judgment that RAD was being used at Leeds St James Hospital, a fact noted by the Family Court Judge, Justice Edward Holman. The judgement is available for free download and viewing from the BAILII database of judgments

      Dr. Hobbs seminal guide Child abuse and neglect: a clinician's handbook, co-written with Jane Wynne, also detailed their collective belief in the SRA Myth, though that Belief was criticised by one peer-review of the book. This subject is detailed under the entry for Dr. Christopher Hobbs himself.

      Without any actual cases of even false allegations of Satanic Ritual Abuse to pursue, Dr's Hobb's and Wynne's essay is somewhat hamstrung. They do though detail how they wasted some time and NHS resources hunting-down satanists, even employing a theologian to assist;

      In 1991 a group of professionals echo had experiences cases of child abuse that included ritualistic elements, started to meet. The group was multi-disciplinary and provided an opportunity for discussion. What was clear from the outset was that these professionals had experiences described by children which were bizarre and incompletely understood. In some cases, observations made about children in foster care or in residential homes provided more information. The group invited an academic theologian who had no experience of working clinically with children.
      (Source: Pages 215 - Treating satanist abuse survivors by Chris Hobbs and Jane Wynne, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Treating satanist abuse survivors is perhaps the very flimsiest of contributions; without any actual cases of SRA to detail it seems that Dr. Hobb's and Wynne's essay is there only to hint at the link between Cleveland and SRA, a link which Catherine Doran had already made in her previous chapter.

      Chapter 30 - Trance-formations of abuse - Ashley Conway

      Chapters 28 - Common characteristics in the drawings of ritually abused children and adults by Mary Sue Moore, and Chapter 29 Satanic cult practices by Dr. Joan Coleman were discussed in the section Chasing Witches - An analysis of Chapters 16, 17, 28, 29 and 18.

      Nearing the end of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, there is an opportunity for the editor, Valerie Sinason to perhaps try to introduce some degree of sanity, following the crazed-like ravings of Dr. Joan Coleman. A gentle return to more sensible essays might have assisted hugely in repairing some of the damage done.

      As it is, few readers it seems, other than perhaps the reviewers for Community Care (Reed Publishing), The Times Educational Supplement (TES) and the most enthusiastic of feminist or fundamentalist True Believers appear to make it through to the end of the volume. Reading Dr. Joan Bicknell's two-page diatribe against an invisible network of teenage-girl-recruiting witches covens, or Joan Coleman's 'show-stopper' summary of satanic practices are likely to leave all but the most enthusiastic SRA Myth advocates rather cold at best, and furious that Routledge could have foisted such a book on them under the guise of being a serious psychology volume.

      Pressing-on, for a researcher into British contemporary social history, is an absolute must. Chapter 30 would prove to be one of the most significant in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, although it would be hard-to-match Joan Coleman's extraordinary contribution. Trance-formations of abuse provides a roadmap as to how the 'Myth in Great Britain would be transformed (sic) to how it exists in modern times.

      With its then newly-acquired baggage of Multiple Personality Disorder, Recovered Memory Therapy (often with hypnosis) and a belief in Mind Control enthusiastically promoted by US psychologists and psychiatrists like Dr. Bennett Braun and Dr. Corydon. D. Hammond, and openly endorsed by colluding US religious fundamentalists and feminists alike, this new version of the SRA Myth would become a significant cash-cow for UK psychotherapists. Professional regulation would prevent most psychiatrists and psychologists, even if they were inclined, from engaging in this new festival of greed, but still there would be, in the coming decades, plenty of money sloshing about. The demographics of the 'survivors' of satanic ritual abuse too would change. Instead of being identified by middle-class social workers as being children, almost exclusively from poor or socially-deprived homes, the 'survivors' now would be invariably white, middle-class, middle aged women, often from privileged backgrounds, who would 'recover' memories of satanic ritual abuse, allegedly having occurred decades in the past, often following years of expensive therapy.

      At the time-of-publication, Dr. Ashley Conway was an Honorary Psychologist at Charing Cross NHS Hospital and was also maintaining a private practice.

      Dissociation, particularly multiple personality disorder (MPD) was increasingly dominating and obsessing US psychology and psychiatric practitioners, and the same was happening in the UK. The idea that trauma, particularly severe trauma, such as that alleged to be inflicted by satanic ritual abusers on children, would lead to an immediate loss of memory of the events, and a partitioning of the subjects personality had taken-off in the US. There were some obvious problems with such concepts; child sufferers of MPD are virtually non-existent, the 'diagnosis' only appears to be possible with white, middle-class and middle-aged English-speakers (predominantly female) whilst the rest-of-the-world are excluded (see the discussion at The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy. The idea that 'trauma causes memory loss of the event' seems to be a particularly stupid evolutionary capability - seeing as an ability to remember trauma and consequently avoid it or even take the opportunity to combat it (such as killing one's abuser) seems a more natural and useful evolutionary-driven skill to have. As it, few of those who believe in the SRA Myth and MPD/DID are likely to believe in evolution either.

      Dissociation may be an immediate defence, protecting the individual from the overwhelming pain and fear accompanying the trauma. Thus dissociation may be viewed as an adaptive response, where repression leading to amnesia is conceived of as a mechanism for protecting the individual from the emotional pain that has arisen from the disturbing events.
      (Source: Pages 256 - Trance-formations of abuse by Ashley Conway, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      'Trance state' was discussed in the entry for Nigel Beail's essay 'Fire, coffins and skeletons'. Trance states are a key and popular element in the SRA Myth/DID/RMT/Mind Control universe, but can trace their heritage directly back to the witchcraft trials of the 17th century. In the extract below, Dr. Conway refers to 'trance state' and makes it clear he has read Joan Coleman's incredible paign to paranoia - Satanic cult practices and presumably believed every word of it.

      The significance of these observations here is that at the time of the trauma a victim may go into a trance state. In most traumatic situations this phenomenon may occur spontaneously. In situations of ritual abuse it is possible that it may also be deliberately induced by another person (see Coleman, Ch 29 this volume).
      (Source: Pages 257 - Trance-formations of abuse by Ashley Conway, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      American therapists had devised a particularly means of dealing with patients they diagnosed as being multiple personalities and who were believed to be retaining hidden memories of satanic abuse. The same techniques could be applied to women believed to be harbouring memories of incest that they had completely forgotten about.

      In discussing dissociative amnesia, Nemiah (1985) recommends restoring lost memories to consciousness as soon as possible. He suggests using free association to fragments of memories, and also the possibility of using Pentothal or hypnosis. He goes on to state that once the memories are obtained the suggestion must be made to patients that they will retain them in consciousness after waking.
      (Source: Pages 258 - Trance-formations of abuse by Ashley Conway, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      'free association to fragments of memories' of course allowed the therapist, perhaps determined to prove to a client that they had been victims of forgotten satanic ritual abuse or incest, to expand upon such fragments and encourage the patient to speculate about their meaning. In Recovered memories, body memories and the pseudoscience of the future this use of free association is discussed, allowing therapist and client to wade into the region of ridiculous extremes that would provide satisfaction (and substantial financial reward) for the therapist, but which invariably left the client and their family distraught and often destroyed.

      And yet Dr. Conway was willing to recognise the distinct possibility that hypnosis and therapy could induce false memories. That the possibility of false memories being created was being raised in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse was remarkable itself. That also suggesting beforehand that hypnosis be used in the first place is doubly remarkable and seemingly sure to create problems both for clients, and those that they would subsequently accuse of being satanist and/or incestuous abusers.

      The idea of using hypnosis in therapy is logical because, as discussed above, patients who have dissociative problems are likely to be highly hypnotisable.

      ...

      However, using hypnosis to aid recall is not without difficulties in itself. Hypnosis increases the productivity of recall, but also increases the likelihood of confabulation. Additionally, it is likely to prove greater confidence that material recalled is accurate (Perry, 1992). Hypnosis can be deliberately use to create pseudo-memories, for therapeutic purposes, and it has also been demonstrated that the hypnotist can deliberately or unwittingly provoke pseudo-memories by asking leading questions under hypnosis (Perry et al, 1988). Inaccurate memories in hypnosis can be confident ones, and highly hypnotisable subjects are more prone to confuse real and imagined memories than are less hypnotisable subjects (Sheehan, 1988) and Lynn et al (1991) report that when target events of pseudo-memory suggestions are not publicly verifiable, the pseudo-memory rate is invariably higher. Orne (1986) states that typically, memories from different periods in a patient's life are combined, that phantasies, beliefs and fears may be mixed with actual recollections and that, although some 'memories' may represent a psychologically meaningful truth, they cannot be assumed to be historically accurate fact, even though patients may how a therapeutic improvement from working through such memories.
      (Source: Pages 259 and 260 - Trance-formations of abuse by Ashley Conway, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      What isn't certain is who Dr. Conway's target audience for his essay is. Having established that those patients presenting dissociative problems are likely to be highly hypnotisable we are then given clear and distinct indications as to how such people can be induced is hypnotherapy to produce false memories. At the same time Dr. Conway is actively promoting hypnotherapy. Trance-formations of abuse might be better read, not as an academic essay, but rather to be used by fellow therapists or those considering training to be hypnotherapists as a useful resource in assisting them in presenting a business case to a bank manager to help secure a loan for a new practice.

      Now demonstrably firmly behind the use of hypnotherapy, and ignoring the very risks he has identified, Dr. Conway provides a fascinating insight into the use of hypnosis, as practiced by himself.

      To maintain the client's sense of control I use a technique of hypnotically induced dreaming. Having first checked out with the client via ideomotor signalling that it is acceptable, two lines of approach may be used: (i) suggest that the client has a dream which provides some useful information about what took place and (ii) suggest that the dream be used to express and release a manageable piece of feeling. Clients can be given the suggestion that they will remember what is useful for them to remember at this time.
      (Source: Page 261 - Trance-formations of abuse by Ashley Conway, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Time and numerous court cases since the 1990s, both in the US and UK have demonstrated the catastrophes that Dr. Conway's and his peers beliefs and techniques would inflict on predominantly US white middle-class, middle-aged women. In his essay though, he is promoting those very techniques to a British audience. The results would be equally catastrophic, though to a smaller number of individuals. On at least one occasion, such women - particularly those already suffering from a mental illness, would have their lives sucked from them by the attention of unregulated therapists and other professionals operating in UK hospitals. Some would even take their own lives, abandoned by the very therapists who should have offered them treatment and comfort, but who instead only showed interest in them if they continued to assist in promoting their dogmatic views on the SRA Myth and DID. The tragedy of The Carol Felstead scandal perhaps proves a perfect illustration.

      The Entry for American feminist icon Gloria Steinem who is an enthusiastic advocate for the SRA Myth and MPD/DID/RMT and went so far as endorsing therapists who abused women on a grand scale, provides some indication as to how hypnotherapy, which in the US and UK included the use of sodium Amytal (truth serum) could be employed on a woman to extract the 'truth' from her diagnosed multiple personalities.

      Dr. Conway's REFERENCES section for his essay is primarily concerned with academic papers on dissociation and hypnotherapy. One particular reference though provided a clue as to how he saw patient treatment;

      Richard Kluft - Enhancing the hospital treatment of dissociative disorder patients by developing nursing expertise in the application of hypnotic techniques without formal trance induction - American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis (1992)

      Or in other words, having nurses apply hypnotic techniques without the supervision of qualified staff. Dr. Richard Kluft, a leading SRA Myth and MPD/DID/Mind Control advocate in the US, is also committed to the view that the US military are engaged in the satanic abuse of victims - fortunately a view that hadn't gone 'mainstream' at the moment Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse was published.

      Chapter 31 - A personal review of the literature - Su Burrell

      Su Burrell's chapter is perhaps gauged to be aimed at those readers who have made it through Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse up to these last remaining chapters, and might therefore be potential True Believers. The title suggested that the essay would be relatively free of the risk of looniness. Unfortunately the casual reader was going to be surprised.

      At the time-of-publication, Su Burrell was a Specialist Clinical Lecturer in Social Work/Child Protection in the Children and Families Department of the Tavistock Clinic. She was also a founder member of the Standing Committee on Sexually Abused Children (SCOSAC), described as a network and consultation resource for professionals working with sexually abused children. Su is an established child protection trainer.

      Perhaps the most obviously disturbing aspect of Su Burrell's essay was the indication it gave in suggesting the nature of the literature Su Burrell was both reading and promoting on her reading list to prospective child protection social workers.

      Once again the passage of time and the facility of hindsight have revealed that the vast majority of texts Ms. Burrell quoted were undisputed rubbish, driven often by religious fundamentalist and/or feminist dogma, poor research methodologies and often rank with prejudice. In 1994 though, Ms. Burrell was trying to convince her audience that she was on the straight-and-level. The chapter though does provide the only moments of unintended humour in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse.

      The aim of this chapter is to provide a brief review of the literature which promotes good professional interventions with children, families and the professional network, with particular focus on the child. For the sake of comprehension, literature relating to the historical background of Satanism, overview texts and definitions will also be included.
      (Source: Page 265 - A personal review of the literature by Su Burrell, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Even though the author presents a number of suggested texts that even in 1994 were being ridiculed, it seems there were some texts that she felt at the time just went a little too extreme;

      The majority of newspaper reporting of cases involving a component of 'ritualistic' abuse cannot be described as balanced, nor are they written to increase the understanding of practitioners. Caution is advised with articles by the Reachout Trust (Davies) and to a lesser extent by Childwatch (Core, 1991), as both agencies appear to present somewhat extreme views and, whilst the articles are written with the best intentions, they are not good starter texts.
      (Source: Page 265 - A personal review of the literature by Su Burrell, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Having a potential True Believer exposed to the work of investigative journalists Rosie Waterhouse or Fiona Barton wouldn't perhaps be a good idea, not least because writers ripped the SRA Myth apart in Britain in the early 1990s.

      Instead the reader is recommended to read the work of two leading religious fundamentalist writers; Andrew Boyd and Tim Tate. Mr. Boyd's efforts are discussed in the entry about leading British feminist Sara Scott's collusion with religious fundamentalism at The Evil, Satanic Poor Part Two - an analysis of Chapters 11 and 23.

      There is of course a multiplicity of newspaper articles, of which some are more useful than others, but none cover the subject in anything like the detail of the two British texts, both of which are recommended. Blasphemous Rumours (Boyd, 1991) and Children for the Devil (Tate, 1990) are both well researched, relatively easy to read and provide a comprehensive overview of the background, current problems debate and difficulties. The former is currently out of print, although available at British libraries.
      (Source: Page 268 - A personal review of the literature by Su Burrell, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Having been steered away from any dangerous works of normal investigative journalism and instead recommended to read the works of British religious fundamentalist writers (whilst as a 'starter' skipping the Reachout Trust's burn the witches! material), it might be thought that perhaps Ms. Burrell might have presented some 'serious' titles to be recommended. Nothing could be further from the truth;

      SINGLE CASE DESCRIPTIONS
      Perhaps the best-known single case description recounted by an adult is Michelle Remembers (Smith and Pazder, 1980). This is enormously credited by a numbers of writers as the first published account of satanic ritualistic abuse, and view by some as causal to all the cases that have since come to light.
      (Source: Page 268 - A personal review of the literature by Su Burrell, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Michelle Remembers


      The section The importance of 'Michelle Remembers' emphasised the value that both christian fundamentalists and feminists placed in this bestselling book, by Dr. Lawrence Pazder and his later wife, Michelle Smith. Su Burrell's recommendation did nothing more than echo similar endorsements from the feminist and fundamentalist community then-and-now. Michelle Remembers managed the feat of being a 'cross-over' book; that is, one that appealed equally to both feminists and religious fundamentalists, and with the exception of others like The Courage To Heal by Laura Davies and Ellen Bass (who recommended Michelle Remembers) few other titles have managed to achieve that distinction. As the origin of the SRA Myth, the Recovered Memory Therapy movement, and the Body Memories movement (see Recovered memories, body memories and the pseudoscience of the future) the importance of Michelle Remembers can't be understated.

      That the book is a complete and utter work-of-fiction is meaningless; the fundamentalist and feminist lobbies have appropriated it for themselves and it remains highly-regarded. For secularists though, Michelle Remembers was unlikely to encourage many to join the SRA Myth cause. In the passage below, Satan, having appeared on planet earth in corporal form (choosing the sleepy town of 1950s Victoria, British Columbia as his base-of-operations) entertains his satanic horde with his tail;

      The burning tail uncoiled from Michelle's legs and writhed freely. It was a snake again now, a tail, a snake, a tail again. And then Michelle saw that it was not one tail but two. One of the tails began to slither into the circles, weaving along the ground among the feet of the worshipers. The figures would break rank and approach the tail, engaging it in an obscene, ritualistic dance. The Beast stood by the fire, watching his own tail perform with the celebrants. Now the fire shot up toward the ceiling; the dancing became more frenzied. Satan laughed. The tails merged to one again, and the one tail slid back across the room, withdrawn by its master. And then it lunged for Michelle.

      I don't like his tail being around me! Ugh! It's wiggling. I don't want it to move. It's wrapped around my legs and starting to wiggle. I have to keep my legs really tight together. Oh dear!

      No! He thinks it's funny. I want to die. If that tail does anything, I'm going to die. I don't know what to do. I don't want his tail! I don't! I don't.
      (Source: Pages 257 and 258 of the UK edition of Michelle Remembers (1980) by Dr. Lawrence Pazder & Michelle Smith)

      Other 'single case descriptions' would follow Michelle Remembers. Dr. Joan Coleman recommended Laurel Rose Wilson's (writing as Lauren Stratford) Satan's Underground Satanic cult practices, once again a fantastic hoax, which Wilson would repeat with Stripped Naked before finally successfully presenting herself as a Holocaust survivor to the world. In the 1990s an entire publishing industry arm thrived on pushing lurid accounts of satanic ritual abuse to the feminist and religious fundamentalist markets, often containing extreme accounts of child pornography (for 'accuracy'). Some authors and publishers continue the practice, having found a willing audience for their work, eager to lap-up tales of torture and rape at the hands of satanic cults. In the 1990s and beyond these books have been the leading source for easily-accessible extreme child pornography literature for those inclined to read it.

      Ms Burrell's 'REFERENCES' section itself makes for an extraordinary read, not least because as mentioned before, as an established child protection trainer she was quite likely handing over a reading list to her student social workers that included many or all of these texts. For perhaps obvious reasons, most of the literature was sourced from the United States, and much stemmed from extreme right-wing religious fundamentalist or feminist sources. The list includes;

      • Andrew Boyd - Blasphemous Rumours (1991)
      • Diane Core with Fred Harrison - Chasing Satan: An investigation in Satanic Crimes Against Children (1991)
      • David Finkelhor and L William's and N Burns - Nursery Crimes: Sexual Abuse in Day Care (1988)
      • Catherine Gould - Satanic ritual abuse: child victims, adult survivors, system response (1987)
      • Pamela Hudson - Ritual Child Abuse: Discovery, Diagnosis and Treatment (1991)
      • Mark Ivory - Ritual Abuse - the blight on the path to partnership - Community Care 1990
      • Kee McFarlane - Scapegoating professionals: what does is mean for the field (1992)
      • Frank W. Putnam - Commentary: the satanic ritual abuse controversy (Child Abuse and Neglect journal) 1991
      • and again - Dissociative disorders in children: behavioural profiles and problems (1993)
      • Daniel Ryder - Breaking the circle of satanic ritual abuse: Recognising and Recovering from the Hidden Trauma (1992)
      • Roland Summit - Sexual abuse, what can be teach, what must we learn (1991)
      • Tim Tate - Children for the Devil (1991)
      (Source: Page 271 - A personal review of the literature by Su Burrell, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      The list includes many of the 'usual suspects'; religious fundamentalists Andrew Boyd, Tim Tate, Diane Core, Dr. Catherine Gould, Pamela Hudson and Daniel Ryder. Feminist Kee McFarlane, who featured heavily in the McMartin Daycare fiasco. Roland Summit was the psychiatrist who promoted the SRA Myth during the McMartin scandal (together with Michelle Remember's author Dr. Lawrence Pazder) and who would later claim that the McMartin Daycare Centre was a CIA Mind Control base-of-operations. Mark Ivory's, then Editor of the then paper-published Community Care magazine (Reed Publishing) inclusion reflected the support that Community Care had provided in promoting the SRA Myth to British social workers in the late 1980s and early 90s. The publication would continue to promote the SRA Myth, DID and another theory derived from the extreme far-right US fundamentalist lobby Attachment Theory even as late as 2011 (see the entry for Mark Ivory's and The Promotion of Attachment Therapy (Holding Therapy) in the UK). Frank W. Putnam is one of the most referenced promoters of the SRA Myth and MPD/DID in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse and remains active in his enthusiasm even in 2011. David Finkelhor's derided Nursery Crimes: Sexual Abuse in Day Care (1988) tried to encourage an image of satanic cults infesting American daycare centres, and even in 2011 he is regularly invited to speak to British child protection groups such as the British Association of Social Workers (BASW) ensuring that the SRA Myth is never far away from breaking-out again.


      Chapter 32 - Internal and external reality - Rob Hale and Valerie Sinason

      Subtitled Establishing parameters

      Valerie Sinason and then professional partner, psychologist Rob Hale contributed their essay late in the volume. Although written in a fragmented, rambling fashion, the essay provided an insight into the workings of both SRA Myth believers at the time. For Dr. Hale and Dr. Sinason, the 1990s would prove to be a rich period of year n work, as the paranoid delusions created by the combination of religious fundamentalists and feminists working in concert with therapists, crossed the Atlantic from the US and arrived on British shores. Then, as now though, Dr. Sinason's work was hamstrung by the constant need to try to persuade the reader into believing in the SRA Myth, whilst at the same time trying hopelessly to avoid the difficult question as to where any verifiable evidence was.

      At one point, at a particularly difficult time of the year because of the satanist calendar, Malcolm missed several sessions as he was in need of hospitalisation. He made clear he needed two long intensive days to process his memories. We had found that until a memory was shared, painful though it was for a patient to go through it, no relief was possible.
      (Source: Page 278 - Internal and external reality by Rob Hale and Valerie Sinason, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Rob Hale and Valerie Sinason's essay is a vital historical piece of work. 'Rita' their first patient, has been identified as being Carol Felstead by her brother. Correlating what Dr. Hale and Sinason were saying about what was allegedly committed against 'Rita' in Internal and external reality with the medical notes that the Felstead family now have in their possession and have published on the Justice For Carol Website, the family has been able to identify their daughter and the manner of her treatment; though it appears her treatment wasn't treatment at all; rather it was the systematic abuse of a young woman with serious mental health problems who would have been better served by having access to 'real' professionals.

      Rita, our first shared patient, was in a trance state during her second session. She was staring at the wall with a look of abject terror on her face. One hand was rubbing her face violently, the other was tearing at a crucifix round her neck; 50 minutes had gone - the time offered - and the two us had clinical appointments to go to that could not be changed.

      Rita was describing or rather re-enacting a terrible birthday scene from her childhood. We were uncomfortably aware of the time and yet she showed no signs of being even remotely finished. Rather clumsily RS asked when that 'birthday' was. 'What does that matter?' snapped Rita angrily - torn out of her re-enactment.

      She then asked vulnerably 'Do you believe me?' - seeing the intervention as a sign of disbelief and dislike. VS apologised for asking a clumsy question about the date at that moment, but said it was not to do with belief or disbelief and clarified that she and Rob had arranged for 50 minutes and could not that time today, although it was clearly not the right time for Rita to leave. She added that Rita could stay in the waiting room downstairs until she was ready to leave. Rita kept her face turned away. 'You don't believe me', she whispered. RH said she was really angry with us about the time and interruption and it was the thing we did not believe her. After that session we allocated 2-hour slots'.
      (Source: Page 278 - Internal and external reality by Rob Hale and Valerie Sinason, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Under the 'care' of Valerie Sinason and Rob Hale, 'Rita' - Carol Felstead, didn't get better. She would in time be committed (illegally, without her family being informed) and spend time in a psychiatric ward. Yet even that would be of little value; she was handed-over to an SRA Myth-believing psychiatrist - Kingsley Norton, then Medical Director and psychiatrist at the Henderson Hospital, former Head of Psychotherapy at St. Bernard's Hospital in Southall, London, and now working as 'Clinical Personality Disorder Lead' at the Personality Disorder Service - Ealing, in the John Connolly Wing of St Bernard's, and now part of the West London Mental Health NHS Trust. It isn't known if Dr. Norton continues to diagnose his patients as having been members of a satanic cult, but he has never renounced his former beliefs and former written work, and so it would be safe to assume he, and his part of the NHS, continue to employ an SRA Myth diagnosis on selected patients.

      Dr. Kingsley Norton contributed his essay Chapter 12 - In-patient psychotherapy at the Henderson Hospital to Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse and also contributed two essays to fellow Treating' essayist, SRA Myth True Believer and in the future to be a member of the GMC's (General Medical Council) Fitness To Practise Committee, Gwen Adshead's Personality Disorder: The Definitive Reader (2008), who had also contributed a chapter to Treating' detailing her belief that false allegations of satanic abuse were rare.

      For the Felstead family, seeing the fantasies told by their daughter being believed as being the complete truth by both Dr. Rob Hale and Valerie Sinason has been extremely painful and harrowing. Neither of the psychotherapists has bothered to apologise to the family for their documented activities. That 'Rita' was their first patient is doubly worse; it seems both psychotherapists were set on a course to prove the existence of SRA, and instead of helping 'Rita' recover, they instead encouraged and abused her, leading to her eventual death in still-mysterious circumstances in the summer of 2005. In her death though, Carol Felstead had uncovered a rotten core within the British psychiatric profession, and one that extended into the GMC, British Medical Association (BMA) and beyond, including into the Metropolitan Police.

      In Carol's psychiatric notes, it states that her parents were the High Priest and High Priestess of a Satanic Cult. Our family are supposed to have dug up graves and performed ritual sacrifices, which include murder. Here is a letter written by Valerie Sinason to a Dr Frances Raphael on 9th July 1997. In the letter Valerie Sinason confirms that Carol was the first Satanic Ritual Abuse patient that she had treated. As Carol was not a victim of Satanic Ritual Abuse, as there was no ritual cult whatsoever, as Carol was never abused or injured in any way, shape or form, and as the events attributed to Carol's life did not happen and were incontrovertibly impossible, Dr Valerie Sinason's method for treating patients such as Carol was clearly invalid, irrational, and dangerous.
      (Source: Justice For Carol website, published by the Felstead family)

      The Felstead family have published Dr. Sinason's letter to Dr Frances Raphael online, as Part One and Part Two.

      In November and December 2011 the Carol Felstead Scandal was seeing British psychotherapy exposed before the eyes of the public. Two lengthy articles inside a month alone; one in the British investigative journalism/satirical fortnightly magazine Private Eye, and a huge six-page spread in The Observer magazine saw huge attention being focused on the activities of the therapists involved. The second article was unusual too in that The Observer is The Guardian 'for Sundays' and The Guardian had actively promoted the SRA Myth in the past. Will Storr, in an echo of investigative journalism at its best from time past, interviewed Dr. Valerie Sinason in person. Perhaps not surprisingly she almost immediately went off into the deep end, and continued travelling downwards to rock bottom (Carol Felstead had changed her name to Carole Myers);

      Sinason arrives, in her north London counselling room, tanned and relaxed in a loose smock, dark leggings and trainers. There's a chaise longue with a crowd of teddies resting in its crook. On the floor, shoved beneath a table, a large cloth boy gazes sadly into space. We're joined by her husband David, who takes notes throughout our talk.

      Sinason insists she doesn't use recovered-memory techniques. "I'm an analytic therapist," she says. "The idea of that is someone showing, through their behaviour, that all sorts of things might have happened to them." Signs that a patient has suffered satanically include flinching at green or purple objects, the colours of the high priest and priestess's robes. "And if someone shudders when they enter a room, you know it's not ordinary incest."

      Another warning, she says, is the patient saying: "I don't know." "What they really mean is: 'I can't bear to say.'" A patient who "overpraises" their family is also suspicious. "The more insecure you are, the more you praise. 'Oh my family was wonderful! I can't remember any of it!'"

      In the medical records, Sinason noted that Carole was her first chronic sadistic-abuse patient. Today, when I ask about her first patient, Sinason describes the arrival of two medical professionals – a nurse and a psychologist – one of whom was limping.

      "I just had that nasty feeling," she says. "It's her, and she's been hurt by them."

      "You could tell that from the limp?" I ask.

      "Yep."

      Soon, we get to the actual satanism. Sinason talks of a popular ritual in which a child is stitched inside the belly of a dying animal before being 'reborn to satan'. During other celebrations, "people eat faeces, menstrual blood, semen, urine. There's cannibalism." Some groups have doctors performing abortions. "They give the foetus to the mother and she's made to kill the baby."

      "And the cannibalism – that's foetuses?" I clarify.

      "Foetuses and bits of bodies."

      "Raw or cooked?"

      "The foetuses are raw."

      "Not even a bit of salt and pepper?" I ask.

      "Raw. And handed round like communion. On one major festival, the babies are barbecued. I can still remember one survivor saying how easy it is to pull apart the ribs on a baby. But adults are tougher to eat."

      She describes large gatherings in woodlands and castles, with huge cloths being laid out. "That's normally when there's a sacrifice," she notes, "and because the rapes are happening all over the place. There's a small amount of cannon fodder in terms of runaways, drug addicts, prostitutes and tramps that are used. There's sex with animals. Horses, dogs, goats. Being hanged upside down. In the woods, on a tree."

      "How do they get an animal to have sex with a human?" I wonder.

      Sinason's husband thinks for a moment. "Well," he says, "plenty of dogs have a go at people's legs." "True," says Sinason, adding poignantly: "However horrible it sounds, the dog, at least, is friendly afterwards."

      "Because at least the dog's had a good time," I say.

      "And the child loves the pet," Sinason nods. "The pet is made to have sex with the child – but the pet, at least, is still their friend."
      (Source: The Mystery of Carole Myers, by Will Storr, published in The Observer Magazine, Sunday 11th December 2011)

      What though of Dr. Sinason and Hales other patients? Whilst 'Rita' can be confirmed to have been Carol Felstead, who was 'Jane' and 'Malcolm'.

      Of 'Malcolm' we know nothing, and thus he might be trapped in the British mental health system, another victim of psychotherapists bent only on exploiting their patients to satisfy their own need to prove their irrational beliefs.

      'Jane' though is quite likely Kim Noble, now a 'celebrity multiple' who has appeared on SRA Myth-Believer Oprah Winfrey's show. During the 1990s Oprah Winfrey, like so many American's who professed to be liberals, had openly and actively colluded with extreme far-right religious fundamentalists in the promotion of the SRA Myth, MPD/DID and the Recovered Memory Therapy movement. Geraldo Rivera, who had occupied a similar position to Oprah Winfrey in the American TV-watchers consciousness, had done the same, endorsing the fundamentalist and feminist belief in the 'Myth, but he publicly renounced his part in the 'moral panic' and apologised to its victims (see Geraldo Rivera: Satanic Abuse and recovered memories - published by Religious tolerance.org - Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance.) Opray Winfrey though, all the way to her broadcasting retirement, has maintained her collusion with the fundamentalists, continuing to 'Believe'.

      For Kim Noble though, now a talk-show celebratory, author and artist (her 'multiple personalities' produce artwork that some galleries willingly display, despite a modern convention against the depiction of child pornography) treatment and cure have evaded her, but some measure of 'success' hasn't, as she is cured on-command to switch personalities for the cameras. Valerie Sinason though played a significant part in her life; she had encouraged her fantasies about being part of a satanic cult, to the point where her daughter - Aimee, had been removed from Kim on a care order at the bequest of Croydon Social Services. Valerie Sinason had contributed evidence to the Family Court to say that Ms. Noble was a cult survivor, but that her daughter was still vulnerable. When the Care Order expired, Aimee was reunited with her mother, whose treatment at the hands of Valerie Sinason and others had been paid-for, in part, by the taxpayers, through Croydon Social Services. A prime difficulty though for Dr. Sinason is that her belief that Kim's father is the head of a satanic cult isn't echoed by the opinion of her patient, Kim Noble. She has steadfastly stuck with her love of her father and has never made any accusations against him (source: private correspondence with an editor of this Web Site.)

      Where Jane and Rita described the most disgusting physical experiences they had been involved in - licking anuses and penises, eating faeces, being smeared with faeces, blood and semen, sucking and eating dismembered penises of animals, having spiders in their ears and mouths, snakes in their vagina - physical contact assured them that they were still human and capable of human contact; they were not in fact lumps of shit.
      (Source: Page 279 - Internal and external reality by Rob Hale and Valerie Sinason, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Yet, despite the horrors being related to them, neither Dr. Hale or Dr. Sinason had to fear the satanists all that much. One of their clients even predicated something for them, but it apparently didn't happen;

      Malcolm said everybody he had told about his abuse had been burgled.
      (Source: Page 280 - Internal and external reality by Rob Hale and Valerie Sinason, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Indeed it seems predictably odd that Dr. Sinason and Dr. Hale should have managed to survivor in the 'business' for so long, seeing as they were up against, if the reader had read Joan Coleman's chapter, the most most incredibly devious and secret conspiracy known (or rather unknown) in human history. Somehow though, without even a single recorded incident, the doctors worked diligently away, believing every single word their clients would tell them, without being concerned as to whether it actually happened or not.

      When Jane was given a budgerigar and grew attached to it she was forced to kill and eat it. Rita found her slaughtered pet dog in her bed. James was sexually abused by his mother with his father standing by laughing before being made to abuse his baby brother. Malcolm was made to lie on a female corpse.
      (Source: Page 281 - Internal and external reality by Rob Hale and Valerie Sinason, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Even at this late state of the book, Dr. Sinason - together with her writing partner Dr. Hale - was unable to contain her self from writing about witches. With a lurch we move from reading about satanic abuse to witches, for an unknown reason, other than perhaps the desire to mention them again, as she had in her Introduction. Here, adopting Winnicott's fictional child for her purposes;

      For example, imagine Winnicott's child waking up at night terrified of witches to see his mother, in ceremonial attire, laugh mockingly at his question, abuse him and then make no mention of what had happened next morning - all the ceremonial regalia being stowed away.
      (Source: Page 282 - Internal and external reality by Rob Hale and Valerie Sinason, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      The passage revealed a persistent problem with Dr. Sinason's writing that is seen from 1994 onwards; are these vignettes based upon accounts from clients, or from her own imaginations? With other accounts the authors precede the stanza with a name - but more often as not there is none. Does Dr. Sinason simply make up these vignettes in an effort to shock?

      Chapter 33 - Creating sanctuary - Sandra L. Bloom

      Subtitled Ritual disorder and complex post-traumatic stress disorder
      With few pages left, the opportunities for the reader of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse to be left with the idea that at least some of the the contributors are sane (the damage having been done almost certainly by Dr. Coleman's essay) are fast diminishing.

      Instead of taking that opportunity. Valerie Sinason instead offered a vision of what a public health system would look like if belief in the SRA Myth was widespread. At the same time the US-origin of the 'Myth was emphasised with the contribution of an American author to the penultimate essay for Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse.

      Dr.Sandra Bloom, then a Medical Director at The Sanctuary at the Northwestern Institute for Psychiatry in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania and President of The Alliance for Creating Development was chosen to provide a description of such a public health system with Belief in both the 'Myth and Recovered Memory Therapy would appear.

      Yet this is no look-back into far history. The Sanctuary Model survives to this modern day, ensuring that the SRA Myth and the damage caused to US society by the RMT obsessions of the 1990s remain in the public consciousness, together with the guilt of the US feminist lobby who contributed so much to the encouragement of the 'moral panic'.

      Dr. Bloom described the work of The Sanctuary, then one of the numerous specialised institutions that sprang up, often in prosperous areas of the United States during the 1990s, that took invariably white middle-class women in, who had either determined themselves, perhaps after reading a book like The Courage To Heal or Michelle Remembers or after some period of psychotherapy, that they had been abused in the past by a satanic cult.

      It can be presumed that Dr. Bloom's essay was selected in the hope that influential people would read it in the UK, and come to the conclusion that something like The Sanctuary was needed. It isn't clear though why, if this was the case, the editor, Valerie Sinason, put this essay in after the reader would have negotiated Dr. Joan Coleman's essay and numerous others - such as Dr. Joan Bicknell's. It can only be guessed that had the lay reader managed to get past these essays without binning the book, they would be willing to accept anything and everything.

      Dr. Bloom's description of the running of the The Sanctuary reflects many of the accounts of women who attended such institutions in the 1990s and found themselves abused by the staff and therapists who ran them, invariably from funds extracted from their medical insurance. Time -and-tide would catch-up with such institutions, rendering them closed-down as many patients sued their former carers, often for implanting false memories of satanic abuse into their minds at vulnerable moments in their lives. The scandal of the repressed memory, MPD/DID movement is discussed in detail at Dr. Corydon Hammond - the rise of the mind-controlled satanically-abused robot slave (and other ramblings) and Recovered memories, body memories and the pseudoscience of the future.

      In 1994 though, the year of publication for Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, the Recovered Memory Therapy movement was in full swing in the US, endorsed both by the feminist lobby, notably Gloria Steinem and the far-right religious fundamentalist community, who had long-determined that Satan was walking the streets of America and in particular, infesting its families. In this environment vulnerable middle-class white women succumbed to the then-popular view that they had been satanically abused in the past, and the trauma had been so bad they had forgotten about it altogether, sometimes developing multiple personalities to cope with the repressing of the memories.

      Injuries and forensic evidence would be non-existent, but during the moral panic of the 1990s an assumption that the complete lack-of-evidence was conclusive evidence in itself, took hold. The normal rules of evidence were temporarily suspended in many US Courts, as evidence of dreams and repressed memories became the primary source of evidence, in both civil and some criminal trials. In such an environment, with medical insurance willing to pay-out and keep on paying for clients who had been diagnosed as having been satanically-abused in childhood, the opportunities were almost endless. Fortunes could be made in treating those for which no treatment was needed, other than the need to to have their fantasies believed and added-to. The Sanctuary was one such institution, where the prying eyes of professional ethics committees could be kept away, whilst the patients were encouraged to generate their memories of childhood satanic abuse.

      Also noticeable is the preoccupation with 'triggers', once the cult abuse has been admitted. Virtually anything can serve as a trigger for flashbacks, including certain articles of jewellery, paintings on the walls, holiday decorations; in fact, almost anything that contains a highly charged symbol. This is particularly problematical since many of the triggering symbols are inherent in every single cultural context, such as triangles, circles, stars, moons, etc. Triggers for dissociation that are apparent in everyday surrounding are quite typical for all forms of childhood abuse victims.
      (Source: Page 289 - Creating sanctuary by Sandra L. Bloom, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      It isn't clear how triggers work; seeing as survivors of satanic ritual abuse are supposed to have had their memories wiped clean. Perhaps through the remarkable magic of being white, middle-class and female means that you are able to forget all traumatic abuse performed on you, or through Mind Control performed by the satanic cults. It isn't easily discerned how this process seems so easily broken-down by just the sight of a triangle, for instance. Then again it isn't clear how their are any survivors of satanic cults, let alone so many of them, seeing as the cults are supposed to go through sacrifices and murders at a fair rate-of-knots.

      Again, predictably, the author was unable to relate any instances where patients accounts led to convictions, let alone arrests, of any alleged satanic perpetrators.

      The Sanctuary continues in operation, and in an expanded form, through Drexel University's School of Public Health, where Sandra L. Bloom is now an Associate Professor in the Department of Health Management and Policy. From 1980 to 2001 she served as founder and Executive Director of The Sanctuary Model which is described on its Web site in the vaguest terms as 'The Sanctuary Model represents a theory-based, trauma-informed, evidence-supported, whole culture approach that has a clear and structured methodology for creating or changing an organisational culture.' As it is the web site and its associated company are infused by Sandra L. Bloom, whose work dominates the Publications page. For perhaps good reasons, principally the fear of litigation, The Sanctuary Model doesn't push the use Recovered Memory Therapy too much on the web site, nor acknowledges the organisations past and deep association with the SRA Myth.

      In 1997, Routledge, who had published Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse published Sandra L. Blooms Creating sanctuary: towards the evolution of sane societies. The book didn't mention satanic ritual abuse once - by 2001 only the most fantastical of feminists or religious fundamentalists and/or therapists were still trying to encourage Belief. The book though did push the line that abuse would cause total memory loss and dissociative identity disorder (multiple personality disorder) in its victims. As it is the RMT movement coincided with the change in American feminism, which no longer presents females as dynamic creatures who can stand on their own and challenge the worlds structures and injustices, but rather as weak and feeble creatures, always in need of therapy, rendered hopeless by their emotional states and easily bamboozled by wily and demonic males who seek only to rape them given the opportunity.

      In December 2011, Jeanette Bartha published an account of how she was abused by the staff at another of Pennsylvania's Recovered Memory Therapy/Trauma clinics;

      In 1986, I sought medical treatment in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, for depression. It was not disclosed that my new psychiatrist was a leading proponent of repressed memory therapy and associated himself with Colin Ross, Cornelia Wilber (Sybil’s psychiatrist), Bennett Braun, Richard Kluft and other prominent doctors studying the antecedents of multiple personalities, childhood sexual abuse, and satanic ritual abuse. Soon after therapy began, I was treated for multiple personalities and began to develop alter personalities and later thought I was raised in a satanic cult.

      I had 100% insurance coverage and was sequestered in a private hospital in North Philadelphia for 2 years. When insurance was revoked, discharge came within a week. After spending a month at Cooper Hospital in Camden, New Jersey, I returned to Philadelphia and was put on public assistance that covered hospitalisation every other 60 days. The in/out process of hospitalisation continued for 4 years. When an outpatient, I participated in daily therapy at the hospital as well as private, group, and art therapy sessions with other “multiples.”

      During the nearly 7 years of treatment I was addicted to narcotics and other psychotropics like Sodium Amytal, Valium, Haldol, Dalmane, Thorazine, and others. To facilitate memory recall, I endured over 15 intravenous Sodium Amytal (a truth serum) interviews that were audio recorded, and spent hundreds of hours restrained to a metal hospital bed in 4 point (all limbs) leather cuffs. Many days and weeks were spent locked in a small area of the unit where I was not permitted to leave – at times being court committed forcing me to be legally retained and treated against my will. Most of the time, I had no one to interact with except staff.

      I accepted that treatment for “multiple personalities” was lengthily and rearranged my life accordingly. In the process, I lost a lucrative job, quit graduate school, relinquished the lease on my house in beautiful Princeton, New Jersey, spent all my savings, and considered the hospital “home.”

      I was encouraged, rewarded with affection, offered passes off-grounds, given teddy bears and dolls after remembering horrific events of torture and rape. Memories of sexual events became increasingly gruesome and there was no bottom to the well from which they sprang, or to the psychiatrist’s need to know all the sexually explicit details.

      I was encouraged to break all ties with family – which I did for awhile. The psychiatrist repeatedly told me that healing from childhood sexual abuse and satanic ritual abuse would be hindered if I continued to subject myself to the “abusers.” Desperate to get well and live without relenting depression, I reluctantly followed his expert advise, but visited family periodically. I never told family members why I was in treatment, so their distress and heartache they experiences while helplessly watching my mental and physical deterioration over the years was more painful for them than I could have imagined.

      I developed many “personalities” ranging in age from a young girls to middle-aged women. Some personalities split further and told stories the others claimed not to know. I was convinced I had many alters inside me, but at times questioned the reality of what they reported. While under the influence of Sodium Amytal (a truth serum) I “remembered” more detailed information of sexual assault and satanic ritual abuse. The cognitive dissonance between what I never forgot and what I was remembering widened and caused mounting inner turmoil, constant stress, humiliation, fear, an inability to eat solid food, and an ache inside that would not abate. I desperately wanted my family, my friends, and my former life back and was willing to do whatever it took in therapy to reach that goal.

      One August when my psychiatrist went on vacation to Colorado, I decided to get physically healthy by exercising every day for a 1/2 hour. Within months, the amount of psychotropics consumed to soothe myself after long sessions decreased dramatically. Being restrained to a bed stopped, and my mind started to clear. I enrolled in a writing class and returned to the sport of fencing at a nearby studio.

      With a clearer mind and a healthier body, the following summer I told the psychiatrist that the uncle I accused of prostituting me was in the Air Force during that time and stationed outside the U.S. – obviously he couldn’t have abused me like the “alters” reported. My once benevolent doctor glared at me in silence. It was that moment I knew something had gone horribly wrong between us. Years of therapy under his direction had twisted me into a tight knot and was literally squeezing the life from me.

      Soon after, I fled Philadelphia and established residency 1800 miles away. I then filed a medical malpractice suit against the doctor, the hospital and its employees. The case settled 2 days before trial.
      (Source: My life: when lived as a 'Multiple' by Jeanette Bartha, reprinted with the kind permission of the author)

      Jeanette Bartha is seeking a publisher for her detailed and fascinating story of medical abuse, endorsed and actively supported by the likes of Gloria Steinem.

      Creating sanctuary: towards the evolution of sane societies was endorsed by Gloria Steinem, who wrote a blurb for the back cover;

      To save our families, nothing is more important than ending the spiral of violence. Here at last is a psychiatrist whose programs can help adults to uproot the original trauma, and stop repeating the violence that was done to them. Creating Sanctuary shows us how to save future children from abuse, empty our over-crowded jails and rescue this nation from leaders who see violence as normal.” Gloria Steinem
      (Source: Back-cover blurb for Creating sanctuary: towards the evolution of sane societies (1997) by Sandra L. Bloom, published by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Bessell van der Kolk MD, a leading light of the far-right and distinctly anti-US-military International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation provided another blurb;

      This beautifully written book…shows how the way to recovery consists of the creational of therapeutic environments in which people can regain a voice and acknowledge the reality of their past so they do not have to repeat the trauma, but instead create new ways of being members of a larger community” Bessel van der Kolk, M.D. Boston University School of Medicine.
      (Source: Back-cover blurb for Creating sanctuary: towards the evolution of sane societies (1997) by Sandra L. Bloom, published by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Sandra L. Bloom was listed as an adviser for Gloria Steinems 1993 documentary Multiple Personalities: The search for deadly Memories and was listed together with Dr. Bennett Braun (see Dr. Corydon Hammond - the rise of the mind-controlled satanically-abused robot slave (and other ramblings)) whose abuse of women in his care is well-documented, and Colin A. Ross (see Dr. Colin Ross - psychiatry falls off a precipice) who has managed the feat of getting the SRA Myth, RMT, DID/MPD, Mind Control and alien abduction, all together into one incoherent mess. Multiple Personalities: The search for deadly Memories featured film of a woman being strapped to a bed and given Penthotol (truth serum). Links and extracts from the documentary can be found under Gloria Steinem.

      Chapter 34 - Ritual Abuse: The personal and professional cost for workers - Sheila C. Youngson

      The final essay in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse is provided by Sheila C. Youngson, then Consultant Clinical Psychologist, Counselling and Therapy Services (Children and Adolescents), Wakefield and Pontefract Community Health NHS Trust, and now Senior Associate Lecturer and Deputy Clinical Director, Clinical Psychology Training Programme at the University of Leeds in North England.

      Why Valerie Sinason chose this essay to close with is unclear. One possible explanation is that she wanted the reader, if he or she had managed to get to this point, to view herself and her fellow contributors are heroic, valiantly fighting witches and satanists across Britain, in the face of continued risk. As it is 'danger' and 'risk' appeared to be somewhat missing.

      With Joan Coleman's vision of a vast conspiracy of satanic cults riddling Great Britain, in theory, counsellors and therapists and indeed anyone at all engaged in investigating them, or treating the 'survivors' should be exposed to extreme danger.

      The reality, perhaps predictably, is somewhat different. In the two decades plus since the SRA Myth was exported by far-right religious fundamentalists to British shores, no such dedicated professional has been killed, let alone slightly scratched by a satanist cult member. Indeed it seems that compared to those therapists and counsellors who work with say drug or alcohol dependency clients, working in the field of the SRA Myth and DID/MPD and Recovered memory Therapy is remarkably risk-free. Certainly a British social worker trying to support heroin addicts on a voluntary or court-imposed health programmes is exposed to far more known and real risk than any of the rigours that True Believers have to apparently endure.

      The subject of the impact Belief in the religious fundamentalist-inspired SRA Myth has on those chasing witches and satanists in Britain is discussed in detail in The burden on RAINS members. This section will address only Sheila C. Youngson's essay in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse.

      As a member of RAINS, Sheila C. Youngson first described the organisation, though skipping any reference to its founders essay, earlier in the book;

      I have been a member of a national support group for workers in the field of ritual abuse for over three years. The aims of this group, called RAINS (Ritual Abuse - Information Network and Support), are (a) to build up a body of knowledge about ritual abuse, the psychological consequences for victims, and the most appropriate and effacious therapeutic interventions; and (b) to provide a place and space for professionals to share and discuss their personal reactions to this work, as well as the professional problems and difficulties that result, and to receive informal support, understanding, supervision and encouragement from those similarly involved and affected.

      Members of RAINS believe that they are working, directly or indirectly, with children and/or adults who are, or have been involved in ritual abuse, as defined by Finkelhor et al (1988): 'abuse that occurs in a context linked to some symbols or group activity that have a religious, magical, or supernatural connotation, and where the invocation of these symbols or activities, repeated over time, is used to frighten and intimidate the children'.

      The membership of RAINS, in July 1993, stood at over 140 professionals, including psychiatrists, paediatricians, general practitioners, nurses, clinical psychologists, social workers, foster carers, probation officers, independent counsellors and therapists, police officers, solicitors and clergy.
      (Source: Page 293-294 - Ritual Abuse: The personal and professional cost for workers by Sheila C. Youngson, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Sheila C. Youngson conducted an informal survey of the RAINS membership at the time, to discern the cost to them in their Belief and dealings with the 'survivors' of ritual abuse by witches and satanists.

      Eighty-six per cent of respondents said that they worried more about their own safety or that of their partners/families/friends because of their work in ritual abuse, and 66 per cent had taken some extra safety/security measures. Five respondents recorded that they had received threats and intimidation in connection with both previous work and current work in the ritual abuse field, and twenty-one respondents believed that they had received intimidation and threats only since beginning this work. The most common form was either silent phone calls (between respondents) or threatening/warning/abusive phone calls (thirteen respondents, ten of whom had ex-directory telephone numbers). It was noted that whilst some intimidation or threat was not open to question (i.e. calls that named the worker and client), others were open to interpretation, which had a differing emotional cost.
      (Source: Page 295-296 - Ritual Abuse: The personal and professional cost for workers by Sheila C. Youngson, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC.)

      Unfortunately, that was that. Just a few phone calls with. Perhaps predictably Sheila C. Youngson was unable to quote any investigation by the police, let alone news of any arrests. In the UK, even ex-directory phone calls can be traced with an arrangement with British Telecom, and in the early 1990s that facility was well-established. It appears that the satanists and witches are somewhat mild in their efforts to inflict suffering and revenge.

      As with many other essayists for Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse Sheila C Youngson detailed David Finkelhor's derided report, Nursery Crimes: Sexual Abuse in Day Care (1988) in her essays REFERENCES page (see Doris Sanford.

      The Appendix - Useful addresses

      Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, although purporting to be an academic text, doesn't include an Index. It does though offer an Author index, discussed later.

      The Appendix - Useful addresses, includes details of organisations tat were engaged in promoting the SRA Myth at-the-time, but who in the second decade of the 21st century would perhaps prefer not to included, such as the NSPCC. RAINS, naturally, is detailed, with the contacts Dr. Joan Coleman and a Dr. Geoff Hopkins of Keele University. A 'Geoff' Hopkins at Keele University isn't known of, but a Jeff Hopkins was a lecturer in social work at Keele University, teaching social casework theory on the CQSW course at Keele University. It isn't known if his lecturers and teachings to social worker students included a grounding in a belief in witchcraft and a satanic conspiracy, as held by his RAINS colleague Dr. Joan Coleman, but certainly any student who passed through his hands in the early 1990s will have been infected by RAINS philosophy and possibly a belief in the supernatural. Jeff Hopkins retired from Keele University and is now Chairman of Food Connection. He had also been Chair of the England Committee of the British Association of Social Workers.

      The first five lines of Useful addresses are a pointer to the primary influences on Valerie Sinason and her cohorts.

      Alphabetically the first address is for the Beacon Foundation (a) Christian organisation dedicated to helping men and women escape from satanic cults.

      The next line is for Calvacade Productions (video training re trauma, multiple personality and ritual abuse), of 7360 Potter Valley Road, Ukiah, California 95482.

      Calvacade still exist, now based in Nevada City. Their Web site still indicates they are engaged in promoting not just the DID and Recovered Memory Therapy add-ons to the SRA Myth, but also Attachment (Holding Therapy) - another corruption of John Bowlby's work, detailed in the entry for Candace Newmaker. As with the SRA Myth, Attachment Therapy has its legacy in extreme right-wing fundamentalist philosophy, and it and the 'Myth co-exist in numerous ways, notably in the labelling of adopted children by some 'Attachment Therapy' proponents as being demonically possessed (see an analysis of this 'feature' by long-standing critic of the use of Attachment/Holding Therapy, Dr. Jean Mercer, at Faith-Based Child Abuse, posted on her blog Child Myths on Friday, December 9, 2011.

      Detective Constable Charles Ennis, a Wiccan police officer (and thus therefore believed by many SRA Myth proponents and feminists to be a satanist) writes as Kerr Cuhulain. He has researched the SRA Myth in the US in far more detail than the editors of this web site could ever hope to achieve. Calvacade Productions received attention from his exploratory eye and he revealed its extreme-right fundamentalist core. In the extract below, a then-leading SRA Myth advocate - Detective Robert "Jerry" Simandl was the subject of an article about how he promoted the 'Myth to social workers and police officers;

      Simandl showed some films by Cavalcade Productions an outfit run by fundamentalist Christian Dale McCulley: "Ritual Crime: Guidelines for Identification" and "Identification of the Ritually Abused Child." Some of Simandl's therapist associates appear in these films.

      The latter 40 minute video advocates Catherine Gould's use of a sand tray, which is a sand box filled with toys and articles which the child victim can use to demonstrate a story which the child may have difficulty verbalising. This sand tray method has its merits, but it appeared to me that Gould's sand box contained a large number of demons, monsters, and devils in amongst the children's toys. It seemed to me that the selection of articles in the box lent itself to Satanic interpretations but little else. Combined with leading questioning techniques such sand boxes would make it very easy to get children to make up disclosures about Satanic activity.

      Dr Catherine Gould, who is best known for her lists of "Symptoms of Ritualistic and Sexual Abuse" which commonly appear in Satanic conspiracy literature, is one of the main characters of this film. Indeed, it is merely a video version of these lists. Gould showed some children's drawings of fairly innocuous scenes of clouds and people which she interpreted as scenes of witches and Satanists involved in evil. Gould and her associates obviously have no knowledge of Wiccan religion and seem to consider Witchcraft to be synonymous with Satanism.
      (Source; Police Who Believe [8] by Kerr Cuhulain, published on the Witchvox website, December 30th. 2002)

      Who else saw the Calvacade Productions videos? Well the Scottish feminist lobby in the late 1980s and early 1990s had chosen, like their English and American counterparts, to brazenly collude with the religious fundamentalists. In Woman to Woman - An Oral History of rape Crisis in Scotland 1976-1991 edited by Eileen Maitland, the then developing rape crisis network, now partly funded by the Scottish Big Lottery and the Scottish Government itself, had no hesitation in inviting religious fundamentalists to lecture them on how to pursue witches and satanists;

      In September 1989, Sue Hunt and Liz Hall helped organise a one-day conference on ritual abuse, which took place at Dundee University. This was a remarkable undertaking, at a time when even less was known about this subject than it is now:

      “Amazingly…I just don’t think it could happen now, but we actually got a conference set up… we heard about an American woman and an American policeman… there was a conference down near Reading, ‘cause there was a woman down near Reading, I think she brought them over, and we heard about this, and they were willing to come up, which was amazing. And we got money from the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, and also, the Social Work Department…my then boss, my line manager, became quite involved in the arrangements, and it just seems incredible, now…we limited the numbers, I think, to about forty, because we didn’t want it huge, and I think it just blew everybody’s minds away. I mean… Liz and I were familiar with the material, and Brenda, because we were working with it, but…it was completely new.” [Sue Hunt]

      Speakers included Pamela Klein, a psychologist from Chicago with long experience of working with children who had been sexually abused, who had also helped children and adults who had experienced ritual abuse, and Jerry Simandl, an investigator working with the Gang Crimes Commission whose focus was on the difficulties associated with presenting forensic evidence on ritual abuse for prosecution.

      The police were also involved:
      “There was a woman in... a Women and Children’s unit through the police in Grampian… I know Liz was liaising with her about one of her clients because this woman was coming into contact with the police, and so we also had a sort of link…with the police as well, and they attended…The woman, and I can’t remember her name – she was very professional, and I think she was very careful… she remained very much in a professional role, but she would listen, and you got a sense that she believed and gave us credibility…anything that we took to her…which is quite interesting… And we got some press coverage as well.” [Sue Hunt]

      “We got quite a good reception because the people that were there were all interested… they were coming with open minds. And a lot of them…were there because somewhere along the line they had come across it as part of their work. Or things that sounded very like it, you know so it wasn’t a sceptical audience as I recall. But I think the unfortunate thing was that we didn’t really ever go anywhere else with it…had that one conference and then that was it. And of course there was so much like Nottingham and Orkney and that that just really dented the credibility of anything that could have been done.”
      (Source: Page 159Woman to Woman - An Oral History of rape Crisis in Scotland 1976-1991 edited by Eileen Maitland)

      Woman to Woman - An Oral History of rape Crisis in Scotland 1976-1991
      Woman to Woman - An Oral History of rape Crisis in Scotland 1976-1991 edited by Eileen Maitland


      The Liz Hall mentioned, a clinical psychologist, would go on to promote DID/MPD, contributing amongst other work Dissociative Disorders to the feminist 'academic' book Good practice in counselling people who have been abused (1998) edited by Zetta Bear. The 'guide' also included an essay by feminist and colluder-with-religious fundamentalists, the English feminist and contributor to Treating' Sara Scott ('Counselling Survivors of Ritual Abuse') who also included fundamentalist Chrystine Oksana's Safe Passage to Healing: A Guide for Survivors of Ritual Abuse (1992) amongst her recommended reading list on page 92. By 1998, as in present times, and the year of the books publication, the SRA Myth in Britain was almost entirely destroyed in the public's perception, surviving now only amongst therapists, and some in the feminist lobby only too willing to maintain their collusion with the extreme-right religious fundamentalist True Believers. Woman to Woman - An Oral History of rape Crisis in Scotland 1976-1991 would also give space for Edinburgh professor Sarah Nelson, whose promotion of the 'Myth in Scotland is maintained to the present-day. For many she is a confusing subject; is she a feminist posing as a religious fundamentalist, or a fundamentalist posing as a feminist?

      For both groups, there was a synergy of conspiracy thought; that the British nation was riddled with satanic cults and witches covens.

      Satanic explanations have been encouraged among teachers and social workers by evangelical Christian networks which practice exorcism and generally favour a diabolical interpretation of human malevolence and misfortune. A British psychiatrist with a clinical interest in child sexual abuse has recently stated that 10 per cent of our adult population are practising Satanists.
      (Source: Page 167 Multiple Personality Returns by Roland Littlewood, from Pathologies of the West, An Anthropology of Mental Illness in Europe and America (2002))

      The 'British psychiatrist with a clinical interest in child sexual abuse' was Valerie Sinason.

      The driver for the collusion between feminists and religious fundamentalists appears to be a shared belief that satanists and witches were engaged in a huge conspiracy to abuse children across the nation. For religious fundamentalists, the rhetoric of demonic intrigue had long appealed, and in the UK had its roots extending back to at least the early 1970s. For the feminist community in Britain, the satanic/witchcraft conspiracy theories appealed due to the desire to brand (all) males as satanic/demonic rapists and pedophiles, and to identity the family unit as a haven for such satanists and witches to thrive.

      A Calvacade Production video entitled Ritual Child Abuse: A Professional Overview (1989) saw the widest selection of American 'shit-house-rat-crazy' SRA Myth, DID/MPD, Recovered Memory Therapy and 'Mind Control' proponents gathered together discussing their collective (though financially lucrative) paranoias. The video featured the disgraced, though endorsed by feminist icon Gloria Steinem, Bennett G. Braun, M.D, whose abuse of his female patients is well documented (see Dr. Corydon Hammond - the rise of the mind-controlled satanically-abused robot slave (and other ramblings)); fundamentalist Catherine Gould Ph.d, whose Satanic Ritual Abuse indicators infected fundamentalists and feminists equally on each side of the Atlantic; D. Corydon Hammond, whose famous crazed 'Greenbaum' speech is discussed at (again) Dr. Corydon Hammond - the rise of the mind-controlled satanically-abused robot slave (and other ramblings); Richard P. Kluft M.D, who remains a leading light in the DID/MPD 'industry' and was recorded on tape as recently as 2011 claiming the US military are engaged in satanic Mind Control; Roberta Sachs Ph.D; the famous Roland Summit, the psychiatrist who helped promote the satanic ritual abuse elements of the infamous McMartin daycare case, and also one of the first to speculate (crazily) that the CIA was using the daycare centre as a base for Mind Control; fundamentalist Jean M. Goodwin, who contributed an essay to Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse and Walter C. Young Ph.D. The core of the contributors formed much of the membership then-and-now of the ISSTD (International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation) discussed at Psychiatry and Psychology in the US and the SRA Myth which continues to promote the SRA Myth, together with DID/MPD, RMT and Mind Control.

      The False Memory Society (who SRA Myth advocates claim comprises satanists and/or pedophiles and/or CIA operatives and/or aliens) provides a transcript of the subsequent statements from the video;

      GOULD: [The reports] include lots of sexual abuse, drugging of the children, pornographic pictures being taken, threats to the child and to the child's family, animal killings and blood rituals and even human sacrifice including the child being forced to perpetrate in that sacrifice which of course is probably the most damaging aspect of the abuse itself. But I think that one of the most difficult aspects of abuse in out-of-home day-care to cope with is that the fact that we're finding that you can abuse a hundred children ritualistically with all the overlay of terror and brainwashing that's been discussed and pretty much a hundred children will keep the secret of their abuse until there's some kind of intervention.

      HAMMOND: Some of the children may retract a story at some point because, for example, they've seen people killed...After all the senses have been broken down in every conceivable way with electric shocks, with drugs, with fatigue, with lack of food they can be conditioned to do things on cue. And very strongly brainwashed. We've seen people in Korea who were brainwashed but these are children who are completely controlled by the cult that they're in.

      KLUFT: You hear a kid who's obviously hurting saying something that probably just couldn't be, and you say well, I guess it couldn't be. Actually, that account that couldn't be is a tell-tale sign of something that was so overwhelming that the child could not retain it and could not process it in the normal sequential way.

      YOUNG: Oftentimes in adults who are describing their own abuse one can then also find the old wounds of things they have described in the reports of their own abuse. I guess what we keep asking, why don't we find more evidence of it? I don't think there'd be anyone trying to advertise satanic activity of this sort publicly. Obviously it would be a secret activity.

      GOULD: The cases in my own practice represent approximately fifteen different preschools in the Los Angeles area none of which have been closed down since these disclosures have been made, all of which continue to operate and presumably to perpetrate.

      YOUNG: It's not uncommon for an adult to suddenly recollect events which were occurring when they were small that had been completely held in a state of amnesia. During the course of treatment they began to recover and report events of a satanic type and these can be such things as having adults participate in human and animal sacrifice even as young as three years of age.

      SACHS: Patients that I have dealt with who remained in the cult and became active perpetrators and became leaders of the cult, when they began to discover what they have done at an adult level there is really very little desire to live. They lose all reason for going on. It's a very difficult treatment issue to work with because it's a reality. Whether they've been programmed or brainwashed or whatever, the truth is they have participated in blatant murder.

      YOUNG: Two examples I might just make. One was a young girl who described a fire at a ceremony being chosen to be thrown in and burned in the fire but they said that she could save herself if she picked another child to be burned which she claimed is what happened and she has to try to live with that experience. A second was a young girl who to show complete obedience...brought her best friend into a ceremony knowing that child would be sacrificed.

      HAMMOND: What we're talking about here goes beyond child-abuse or beyond the brainwashing of Patty Hearst or Korean-War veterans. We're talking about people -- in some cases who are coming to us as patients -- who were raised in satanic cults from the time they were born. Often cults that have come over from Europe, that have roots in the SS, in death-camp squads in some cases. These are children who tell us stories about being deprived of sleep all night, of then being required to work at manual labor exhaustingly all day long without any food or water. When they reach a point of utter fatigue they may then watch other people tortured. Perhaps a finger might be cut off and hung around their neck on a chain or a string as a symbol to them that they had better be obedient. They may be given drugs.

      BRAUN: What you're trained to do is to self destruct if you should remember too much.

      GOODWIN: Historical accounts of satanic cults: there was a monk who lived from about 300 AD to about 400 AD who in his youth before he became a monk, he later ended up as a bishop, entered briefly one of these cults, the Sybionite Cult it was called at the time and described and this was back now over 1500 years ago he was describing nocturnal feasts, chants, infant sacrifice, cannibalism, ritual use of excrement and various body excretions in a way that's very similar to some of the fragments and material I've heard from patients.

      SUMMIT: Around the country there are great numbers of centers that have been identified, most of them investigated, most of them confirmed by at least one agency, some fifty centers in my experience where this kind of complaint has been made by dozens to hundreds of children in each case.
      (Source: Drs. Braun, Sachs, Hammond et al. on Ritual Child Abuse, transcript from Calvacade Productions, Inc video Ritual Child Abuse, A Professional Overview (1989). Transcript published by the False Memory Society Foundation)

      Moving on down the list of 'Useful addresses', there is the Centre for Abuse Recovery and Empowerment which had resided at The Psychiatric Institute of Washington DC. The famous 'Greenbaum" speech by Corydon D. Hammond (Cory Hammond) in 1992, detailed in Dr. Corydon Hammond - the rise of the mind-controlled satanically-abused robot slave (and other ramblings) was delivered at a conference sponsored by the 'Centre. In 2011 though the Psychiatric Institute of Washington, in the face of litigation from women suing after being implanted with false memories of satanic abuse, had dropped the Centre for Abuse Recovery and Empowerment and no longer even refer to it in its online official history.

      Next down, and the fourth entry from-the-top, was The Cornelian Trust based in Harley Street, London, the centre for expensive psychotherapy and psychiatry in Great Britain. The Trust doesn't appear to be trading in 2012.

      And the fifth entry is for Dianne Core, Childwatch, author of Chasing Satan together with her home address and telephone number at-the-time. Fundamentalist Mrs. Core was known for her often outrageous claims about Great Britain being infested with witches and satanists;

      Diane Core stated that "I am convinced that Satanic abuse not only exists but is a real danger to modern family life. About four thousand babies a year are born into covens to be used for sacrifices and cannibalism. This is only the tip of the iceberg".

      She expanded on this in a 1988 interview with the American New Federalist, in which she provided a broad theological context for ritual abuse:

      We're in the middle of the most massive spiritual warfare. The whole satanic movement has decided to initiate as many young people as it can. We are at war. At this moment, in this country, Satan is winning, he's in the lead. Awareness has been raised. We're doing everything we can, causing reactions, receiving information, letters. If we can present a united front, and if the police support us more, I think we'd win. But often the police deny it is really going on.
      (Source: The New Witch-Hunt: Evangelical Christians and the Invention of the Satanic Threat - Prof. Dr. Philip Jenkins. Pennsylvania State University)

      Author Index

      The final pages of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse provide another indication of the influences both on the book, its editor, and the essayists who contributed.

      Based simply on the number of instances quoted, Pamela Sue Hudson, who contributed a chapter is easily the 'winner', and indeed her sometimes-crazed beliefs in the existence of a nationwide conspiracy of satanic cults across America appeared to have spread to many of the authors in Treating'.

      After Ms. Hudson, David Finkelhor is the next most-referenced, particularly his famous, though long-derided and horribly inaccurate study Nursery Crimes: Sexual Abuse in Day Care (1988).

      Following Hudson and Finkelhor, fundamentalist and contributor Tim Tate is featured heavily, followed by fundamentalists Dr. Catherine Gould, Jean M. Goodwin (who also contributed) and Andrew Boyd. Next is leading DID/MPD and SRA Myth advocate Frank W. Putnam. Leading feminist Beatrix Campbell (OBE) who did so much in promoting the SRA Myth in Britain in her collusion with religious fundamentalists, and her partner Judith (Dawson) Jones warrant only three individual references each, as does leading fundamentalist Dianne Core.

      The actual page references, representative of what was then unique in a published British mental health academic book (though now repeated in subsequent Informa PLC/Karnac Books volumes advocating for the SRA Myth) are reprinted below.

      Andrew Boyd, pages 45, 174, 175, 267, 268
      Bea Campbell - 175, 176, 208
      Dianne Core - 242, 270, 303
      Judith Dawson - 189, 190, 243
      David Finkelhor - 3, 30, 57, 58, 60, 71, 266, 294 et al 226, 267, 269, 293
      Jean M. Goodwin - 3, 4, 33-43, 45, 52, 58, 226, 267
      Catherine Gould - 45, 222, 231, 246, 248, 249, 267
      Pamela Sue Hudson - 5, 6, 45, 71-80, 222, 231, 232, 233, 234, 235, 237, 238, 244, 246, 247, 248, 249, 250, 267, 270
      Frank W. Putnam - 60, 140, 236, 238, 250
      Tim Tate - 4, 6, 45, 52, 53, 128, 182-194, 245, 267, 268
      (Source: Author Index, pages 306-311, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC (first names shown first.))

      The Critical Response to, and Endorsement for Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse

      Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse was published in February 1994. The launch party, hosted by Valerie Sinason and paid-for by Routledge (now Informa PLC) was performed at the House of Lords, Westminster, London. The launch party was attended by a number of peers, the Member of Parliament Geoffrey Dickinson (a lay preacher) a small number of contributors, religious fundamentalists and feminists. The launch and promotion of the book, which was issued in hardback and paperback and continues to be marked and sold by Informa PLC, was intended to preempt the release of Professor Jean La Fontaine's report on ritual abuse to the British government. As detailed on Page 1 of this chapter-by-chapter analysis, had Valerie Sinason been aware of the contents of Professor La Fontaine's report, she may have altered the contents of the book - certainly by removing Chapter 11 - A systemic approach, by Dr. Arnon Bentovim and Marianne Tranter which would go on to confirm Professor La Fontaine's findings that some professionals had been engaged in simply trying to demonise the poor and/or socially excluded with their allegations of satanic abuse. Nonetheless, it seems unlikely that Valerie Sinason would have consented to having other essays removed - particularly those in support of the pursuit of witches and witches covens, principally because such views appear to echo those of her own.

      Routledge (now Informa PLC) market the book under the Routledge Mental Health banner. The rear of the book categorises it as;

      Psychotherapy/Psychiatry/Social Work

      Because of its academic pretensions, the book received few reviews. Nonetheless it has remained, though not in print, still in stock at Informa PLC's warehouses. It isn't known how large the initial print run was, and the book, unlike other Valerie Sinason books has not received a reprint. It would be safe to assume that the views expressed in the book are held by at least a small number of Informa PLC staff and management, as it seems unlikely that, bearing-in-mind many of the extreme views expressed in its essays most 'normal' publishing houses would be willing to continue to market the title. Indeed, although her essays have appeared in books published by others, Valerie Sinason's book have only been published by Informa PLC, or, in one exception (Memory In Dispute 1998) by Karnac Books, another leading conspiracy theory publisher.

      Positive Reviews & Endorsements for Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse

      Three publications provided positive reviews of Treating'; the social worker magazine Community Care which had actively endorsed the SRA Myth 'moral panic' in Great Britain from 1988-1991, although the scandals rendered British child protection social work a joke it has yet to fully recover-from in 2012, and then later, as recently as 2011 (see the entry for Mark Ivory which discusses Community Care's long-term endorsement for the SRA Myth, and Sara Scott). Only a fragment of Community Care's review is to be found, and perhaps for good reason the online version of Community Care (Reed Publishing) - the paper-published magazine having now ceased operation in late-2011 - isn't enthusiastic about keeping the review listed. The author of the review is unknown;

      It is almost as if 38 windows have opened up and shed light on a very dark subject...Every child protection worker should read this book...
      (Source: Review of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse published by Community Care)

      As published, Treating' had thirty-four chapters, an Author Index, an Appendix (useful addresses) and a Forward by Valerie Sinason, so accounting for 37 'chapters'. If there was an additional chapter then it may have been included in a prepublication copy sent to Community Care. Even in 19945 the publication was still regarded as an enthusiastic SRA Myth-advocate, and it never actually ever retracted its support, and continues to sporadically reiterate support for the 'Myth even as recently as 2011.

      The TES - Times Educational Supplement also positively reviewed the book, though once again only an extract from the unknown reviewer can be found. Again the online web site doesn't maintain an archive of the review, though as in the case of Community Care's endorsement of the book, the Editors of this site are anticipating being able to reprint the original texts in full using microfiched archive. All that can be found of the review is;

      ...an enormously courageous book...many excellent contributions
      (Source: Review of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse published by the Times Educational Supplement)

      The TES review has to balanced though against a negative review by The Times newspaper itself, discussed further below on this page.

      Easily the most positively endorsement for Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse came from psychotherapist and fellow poet, David M. Black (writing as D.M. Black.) It was printed in the British Journal of Psychology (Wiley) in the Volume 12, Issue 1 September 1995 publication. Although somewhat short, the review was gushing in its praise, though David M. Black forgot to mention that the editor - Valerie Sinason - and he were kindred spirits, both being psychotherapists and published poets.

      Most of the book is written by therapists who have lived through a very real trauma themselves: that of slowly coming to believe that the appalling stories they are hearing may be literally true. Some therapists have further paralleled their patients' experience by meeting disbelief or dismissiveness in their professional colleagues. Far from an overeagerness to accept these stories, virtually every contributor describes initial extreme reluctance to believe them, only gradually overborne by the weight of the evidence. We also meet the courage and devotion of many impressive therapists, who have persevered and very often won through, and we are also, very practically, given a great deal of helpful and directly useful information: what to do and who to turn-to if we think we may be faced with these issues. This book is not fun, but it is admirable and necessary."
      (Source: David M. Black (writing as D.M. Black) review of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse published in the British Journal of Psychology, Issue 1, Volume 12 - 1995)

      A notable absence from any of the positive reviews is the apparent lack of concern about any of the extreme views expressed in many of the essays in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse. For instance neither Community Care, TES or in particular David M. Black (whose review is available in full as above) had any issue with say Professor Joan Bicknell's contribution - Learning disability and ritualistic child abuse that claimed (without a shred of evidence let alone a footnote) that witches covens in Britain were recruiting teenage girls, or children with special needs taken out-of-school for a day, weren't ill or being taken for appointments with specialists, but were rather being abused by witches. Or Mary Sue Moore's copied, second hand drawings reprinted n , or Dr. Arnon Bentovim and Marianne Tranter middle-class upturned-nose prejudices expressed in A systemic approach and of course, Professor Joan Coleman's incredible, fantasy-fuelled diatribe against seemingly magic-wielding satanists and witches in Satanic cult practices.

      The reviews listed above could be found (though just an extract for David M. Black's review) referenced on the Informa PLC (Taylor & Francis division) official web site for Treating' but have been removed as recently as late 2011. They have though been reprinted by Amazon where in early 2012 the book rated 10,417,920 in the Best Sellers Rank.

      Feminist endorsements for Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse

      Whilst not publishing a complete review of the book, other professionals have made it clear that Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse has been read and subsequently appreciated. The feminist and fellow psychotherapist Susie Orbach was one of those, also apparently unpeturbed by the extremist and often far-right religious fundamentalist views expressed in the book, and described it as a;

      brave and deeply disturbing collection
      (Source: Page 65 False Memory Syndrome by Susie Orbach, from Memory in Dispute edited by Valerie Sinason, Karnac Books, 1994)

      Albeit those words were written in another Valerie Sinason-edited book, four years after the publication of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse.

      The most enthusiasm for Treating emanates from British feminism. In this section that enthusiasm is discussed, with particular emphasis on one book - Child Sexual Assault - Feminist Perspectives (2001).

      It might be expected that the class and witch-obsessed essays in the book would provoke a vicious and easy-to-comprehend backlash by Britain's feminist community against both Valerie Sinason and some of the other essayists, at least in an effort to try to prove to the world that the collusion British feminists had engaged-in with religious fundamentalists was truly over. Unfortunately, the very opposite occurred. Even British feminist Sara Scott's essay - Report on the Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Satanic Ritual Abuse - when she detailed that a long-condemned and grossly inaccurate TV essay she had produced had had its broadcast timed to promote a similarly-titled book by a religious fundamentalist - never saw a 'peep' of protest from a single British feminist. Of the class-prejudice-riddled A systemic approach, and Professor Bicknell's fantastic fantasies about witches covens (Learning disability and ritualistic child abuse) which would have been expected to touch a nerve in its effort to portray the mothers of special needs children as witches, there wasn't a single murmur of protest.

      The lack of a single instance of condemnation for Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse was doubly mystifying inasmuch as feminists, going back to Matilda Joslyn Gage in 1893 have effectively tried to adopt 'ownership' of the interpretation and study of 13th-17th century witch-hunts as a feminist issue. In 1973 American feminists Barbara Ehrenreich and Deidre English published a pamphlet Witches, Midwives & Nurses: A History of Women Healers which tried to promote the idea that the female victims of the witch-hunts had been traditional healers and midwives in their communities.

      In more recent times feminists have portrayed the witch-hunts as a definitive 'patriarchal' effort to ensure women remained down-trodden. Although some huge numbers of victims are bandied about (the figure of 9 million hung and burnt-at-the-stake is often quoted) such figures have been easily proven to be in error. Nonetheless, feminists have persisted in assuming that the witch-hunts were exclusively an affront and attack on women alone (avoiding the awkward fact that the gender split was nearer to 50/50 rather 100/0.) Kings College University, Pennsylvania maintains a Women's History Witch Hunt Annotated Bibliography featuring numerous books investigating and discussing the events from a feminist perspective. Jone Johnson Lewis maintains a Salem Witch Trials-specific bibliography once again featuring feminist perspectives on the trials of 1692. An example of how the feminist lobby has tried to assume 'ownership' of the study of witchcraft trials is typified by The Devil in the Shape of a woman (1998) by Carol F. Karlsen, which attempted genderise the entire subject with respect to the pursuit of witches in the American Colonies. However such efforts have been largely unsuccessful, not least because feminist research, particularly into history, is hobbled by its own faulty and often lazy epistemology, which tries often to desperately avoid data that doesn't match the often pre-supposed and prejudiced theories used even before a project has begun.

      The feminist efforts to 'own' the study and research into the witch-hunts is perhaps one subject to study itself. In the extended entry for Beatrix Campbell (OBE) the easy willingness of British and American feminists to collude with religious fundamentalists is analysed and discussed. Even on this page, in the analysis of The Appendix - Useful addresses the enthusiasm the Scottish feminist anti-rape lobby had for inviting the most loopy of America's far-right fundamentalists - Detective Jerry Simandl and Pamela Klein to lecture them about satanic ritual abuse (and witchcraft) using videos produced by a religious propaganda source - is apparent. Furthermore, in the case of Scotland, the feminists were even willing to document their collusion and triumph it in their own recorded history. How does this apparent willingness to happily take part in what is now perceived in these pages if not elsewhere, as a genuine witch-hunt - particularly in Great Britain, equate with feminisms apparent portrayal of the original European and American Colony witch-hunts as being part of an early patriarchal attack against women?

      And to be specific, how did a self-declared feminist like Sara Scott, feel about being published in a book that featured paragraphs like;

      However, abuse may not only be the province of childhood. We know that unemployed, rootless and unsupported girls are particularly likely to be drawn to covens with the promise of good, a roof and companionship. With the sudden acceleration of care in the community but with inadequate provision and a society that remains uncommitted, teenagers with learning difficulties, no longer in the shelter of their own homes or in an institution, may become seduced into believing that witchcraft has much to offer in material things, companionship and a purpose in life, only to find out too late that they cannot escape except by risking capture and death. Once in a coven, they may have pregnancy forced upon them to provide foetuses to further the activities of the coven.
      (Source: Page 152 - Learning disability and ritualistic child abuse, Introductory Issues by Joan Bicknell, from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, edited by Valerie Sinason, first published in 1994 by Routledge - now an imprint of Taylor & Francis, a division of Informa PLC)

      The answer isn't easily known. Even after 1994, whilst her co-author Olave Snelling, went onto into the British Evangelical movement, Sara Scott continued her promotion of the SRA Myth, attending conferences and writing essays. Her career in collusion with fundamentalists would mirror that of other British feminists, such as, of course, Beatrix Campbell (OBE) together with Dr. Liz Kelly, Catherine Itzin and Scotland's Sarah Nelson (discussed in the entry for Prof. Itzin.)

      Yet whilst no specific reference to Professor Joan Bicknell's essay has been made, in favour or against by British feminists, incredibly another essay, Joan Coleman's crazed Satanic cult practices, has, like Pazder and Smith Michelle Remembers been taken to the hearts of British feminism.

      By 2001, the SRA Myth in its initial form, which in the UK had a campaign comprising both a genuine witch-hunt associated with efforts to demonize the socially excluded and poor, could be said to be dead-in-the-water. In the US it had been replaced with the obsessions of the white middle class, through Recovered Memory Therapy, which tacked on DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) and invariably SRA, in an effort to explain how thousands of American white, middle-class and middle aged women would go to therapists, only to be diagnosed as having been satanically-abused in their childhoods and having forgotten about it entirely.

      In the US the RMT craze was initially promoted by psychiatrists and psychotherapists, who recognised the opportunities for making vast sums of money from clients insurance cover. Religious fundamentalists and again colluding feminists also happily endorsed this new use of the SRA Myth, promoted largely through books like The Courage To Heal which also advocated for the 'Myth and encouraged readers to devour Michelle Remembers. In the US the conjoining of anti-family sentiments by elements in the US Evangelical movement found an enthusiastic ally amongst feminism, who wished for nothing more than to see all men (fathers particularly) labelled as demonic pedophiles and for the family structure to be defined as the haven for such demons and their 'witch' mothers/wives. The Recovered Movement Therapy, comprising the therapy professionals, fundamentalists and feminists - particularly the likes of Gloria Steinem in the US, again Beatrix Campbell (OBE) in the UK and Dr. Liz Kelly - would scythe through two generations of American white middle-class and middle-aged women and still claims its victims even now. The subject is discussed in The Western Middle Class White Woman's Burden - the racial aspect of Dissociation/MPD & Recovered Memory Therapy

      However this new 'fad' wasn't a repeat of the SRA Myth in its first form. Everything occurred in 'the past' though some therapists, notably Valerie Sinason herself, and Joan Coleman would claim to have clients who were still being satanically-abused (though the therapists were unwilling to have the Police investigate such issues or even monitor the 'victims'.)

      The switch from an SRA Myth that was primarily concerned with efforts to demonise the poor to one that pandered to white middle-class sensibilities and paranoias took place in the UK in the early 1990s, notably when belief in the SRA Myth amongst British social workers diminished substantially, remaining sustained only through the efforts of Community Care) (Reed Publishing.) Even that enthusiasm wasn't enough, and until the final embarrassments of the Christopher Lillie and Dawn Reed Shieldfield Report scandal and the 2002-2003 Island of Lewis SRA Myth fiasco, belief in the 'Myth was seen to be largely confined to therapists such as Valerie Sinason and her cohorts.

      That picture though wasn't actually accurate. In the US some feminists had striven to try try to divert their guilt in the SRA Myth and Recovered Memory Therapy Movement exclusively onto the therapist community (see the first page in the Extended entry for Beatrix Campbell (OBE).) Feminists guilt is taking part in the association in the US of gay=pedophile using the SRA Myth is only now being recognised, typified by the contribution of a leading US feminist to the entry discussing the subject under Myra Riddell. Yet whilst some feminists have attempted (largely unsuccessfully) to try to distance modern feminism from the SRA Myth in its original form, and later in its middle-class white woman derivative form through the Recovered Memory Therapy Movement, others, particularly amongst British feminists, have done their best to ensure that their guilt is there for all to see.

      Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives was published in 2001, seven years after Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse was issued, and seven years after Professor La Fontaine's report to the British government was handed-over. The SRA Myth, which had commenced in Britain in 1988 (though 1987 might be a better estimate if The Cleveland RAD Scandal is to be taken as being the first instance of SRA Myth false allegations in the country) had 'been-and-gone' as a historical event - a 'moral panic'. Sociologists and historians had started to revisit the subject, now with the benefit of hindsight, although recognition of the witch-hunt element being espoused by fundamentalist and feminist advocates for the 'Myth have perhaps yet to be recognised beyond these pages.

      Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives


      Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives is a valuable book for those studying contemporary British social history. It does exactly as the title suggested; providing an insight into feminist perspectives on child sexual abuse in the early 21st century. The contents of the book provide clear-cut pointers to how British feminism regards the subject, what prejudices were still in play, and how well British feminists had managed, if at all, to rid themselves of the collusion with religious fundamentalists commenced during the 'Myth 'crazy years', and how well they had performed in escaping obsessions about conspiracy theories, many now promoted by the likes of David Icke.

      In particular, Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives has proven to be a useful guide in assessing if British feminists had managed to lose their obsession in labelling all British males as pedophiles - a 'feature' of British feminism since the 1980s, largely promoted by those who would go on to willingly and enthusiastically collude with religious fundamentalists during the 'Myth 'crazy years', such as Sarah Nelson from Edinburgh University. A snapshot of pre-SRA Myth British feminist perspectives on child sex abuse is discussed in the entry for Catherine Itzin

      Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives is split into three sections. Section One 'focuses on contemporary issues and debates such as the protection of children, satanic ritual abuse and prostitution' emphasising how important the 'contemporary' issue of the SRA Myth was to British feminists.

      It wouldn't though be correct or fair to identify just one book as being indicative of British feminist perspectives on child sex abuse, even if the book was titled Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives to suggest it was the authoritative source on the subject. As it is, it would be safe to assume that if the book contents diverted substantially from the opinions of at least a sizeable minority of British feminists, let alone a majority, then some heated debate with the contentious issues would be discernible. As it is no such debate or disagreement can be found, in feminist journals, feminist Web forums, or even in feminist blogs. It would therefore be reasonable to say that Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives is representative of British feminist perspectives on child sex abuse for the earliest years of the 21st century.

      Belief in the SRA Myth dominates Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives. The Forward was written by leading SRA advocate and True Believer Dr. Liz Kelly (discussed later) and the single back-cover blurb was authored by Jill Radford, now retired as Professor of Women’s Studies and Criminology and Director of the Section for the Study of Gender Violence at the University of Teesside and (strangely-enough) the co-author of Demons, devils and denial: towards a feminist understanding of ritual/satanic abuse published in Trouble & Strife, volume 22. Her co-author was...Dr. Liz Kelly.

      The book was edited by;

    • Pat Cox, then a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Health at the University of Central Lancashire and now Senior Lecturer and School Lead for Research-Informed Teaching
    • Sheila Kershaw - Senior Lecturer at the School of Health and Community at Leeds Metropolitan University and now Senior Lecturer in Social Work, School of Law and Applied Social Studies, Liverpool John Moores University
    • Joy Trotter - then Senior Lecturer at the School of Health, University of Teeside and now Reader in Social Work, School of Health & Social Care at the University of Teeside

    • With such backgrounds and roles, although sharing much with conspiracy theory books produced by the likes of David Icke, Alex Jones and those published by Informa PLC and Karnac Books in the UK, Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives can be said to be an 'academic' volume.

      One of the co-Editors of Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives - Pat Cox, is also a member of the Editorial Board for the British Journal of Social Work (BJSW.) The journal is discussed with reference to its endorsement of Attachment Therapy/Holding Therapy - a violence-based minority psychotherapy technique derived from American far-right parenting theory. The subject of AT/Holding Therapy and its promotion in the BJSW is discussed in the extended index entry for Candace Newmaker.

      Unfortunately, and perhaps a little predictably, Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives displayed, in clear detail, that British feminism hadn't moved forward one bit. The collusion with fundamentalism, if anything, had magnified in proportion - the belief in the SRA Myth, with its fantasies of huge conspiracies of satanists and witches still present, set-in-concrete. New obsessions, paranoias and even the white, middle-class 'fads' for recovered memory therapy and DID had taken-hold. If anything Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives is a gold-mine for MRA's (Men's Right's Advocates) in their largely successful efforts to portray feminists are paranoid, conspiracy-theory-believing misandrist's.

      The key chapter that promotes the extreme-right religious cause in Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives is Sarah Nelson's Satanist Ritual Abuse - the Challenge for Feminists. Reading like a cross between David Icke, Dr. Ellen P. Lacter (see Dr. Ellen P. Lacter - American witch-hunter) and Valerie Sinason at her most paranoid (see the extract from her Observer Magazine interview in late 2011 in the section discussing her co-authored chapter in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse - Internal and external reality, Establishing parameters), Satanist Ritual Abuse - the Challenge for Feminists drips with paranoid conspiracy theories and the influences of the far-right American-derived obsessions, pointing the way to how British feminists now employ the term 'patriarchy' in the same manner David Icke uses the phrase The Illuminati. As this Index entry is primarily concerned with Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse a thorough analysis of Satanist Ritual Abuse - the Challenge for Feminists will be incorporated into a chapter-by-chapter analysis of Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives being contributed to this Web site by a British female scientist, in 2012.

      Belief in paranoid conspiracy-theories, mostly derived from the US extreme far-right religious fundamentalist community infests most of Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives beyond just Sarah Nelson's essay. An overview of just how much influence such beliefs exerted by such people have had on British feminists can be seen by a close study and analysis of the Bibliography, which includes references to a number of long-derided works, including; .

      • Roland Summit - The sexual abuse accommodation syndrome. Psychiatrist Dr. Summit was a key player in the McMartin Daycare fiasco which started the SRA Myth in the US. Together with the co-author of Michelle Remembers - Dr. Lawrence Pazder (see The importance of 'Michelle Remembers', it was Summit who introduced the 'satanic' elements into the investigation. later he would go on to suggest that the daycare centre was a CIA Mind Control centre, established on a highway with 70,000 cars passing by each day.
      • The The sexual abuse accommodation syndrome long identified to be a corrupted theory lacking empirical evidence is identified as a key driver for the abuse of children interrogated/interviewed during the SRA Myth in an effort to provoke 'disclosures'. A discussion about the nature of those interrogations/interviews can be found in the chapter analysing Catherine Doran's essay in Treating Survivors of Satanist AbuseA Service Manager's perspective.

      • David Finkelhor, referenced by a number of essayists in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse has a number of entries in the Bibliography, including for his co-authored Nursery Crimes: Sexual Abuse in Day Care (1988) which attempted to determine that a nationwide network of satanists was infesting US daycare centres.


      • Both editions of Beatrix Campbell OBE's Official Secrets - Child Sexual Abuse - The Cleveland Scandal are listed. Beatrix Campbell, after promoting the RAD diagnosis, would go on to collude with religious fundamentalists in the promotion of the SRA Myth in Great Britain, and then later continue the collusion as the SRA Myth was incorporated into the white middle-class, middle-aged-specific Recovered Memory Therapy Movement.

      • Joan Coleman, as discussed, has her incredibly paranoid-driven essay Satanic cult practices listed as from 'V. Sinason, Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse' selected as a valid resource.


      • Kate Cook, another UK feminist who is enthusiastic about promoting the SRA Myth is listed with her The A Team' (1995-1996) 'Survivors and supporters: working on ritual abuse from the British feminist journal Trouble & Strife issue 32 which routinely prints articles (now online) by British feminists who collude with religious fundamentalists in the continued promotion of the 'Myth.


      • Incredibly, American fundamentalist Jean M. Goodwin makes it into the list, with Sadistic Abuse: definition, recognition and treatment - her essay in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse. An extraordinary interview featuring Jean Goodwin was reprinted earlier on this page.


      • Equally incredibly, fellow American fundamentalist and paranoid conspiracy theorist Pamela Sue Hudson has her book Ritual Child Abuse: Discovery Diagnosis and Treatment listed. Extracts from this publication, which includes her belief that satanists employ magic to carry-out their nefarious plans can be read in the entry for her essay in Treating', The clinician's experience.


      • An essay from fundamentalists Martin Katcher (now a 'Background Actor' for a Hollywood extras company and 'independent scholar for the S.M.A.R.T ritual Abuse Newsletters and Conferences - see the entry for Neil Brick) and David Sakheim, is listed, from Satanic beliefs and practices from Sakheim and Susan E. Devines Out of Darness: Exploring Satanism and Ritual Abuse


      • Phil Mollon, who has been a long-term SRA Myth advocate since the early 1990s is listed with his volume promoting the 'Myth and DID Multiple Voices: Working with Trauma, Violence and Dissociation and his actual essay from Treating', the paranoid, psychic-laced The impact of evil.


      • Sarah Nelson has numerous listings, including her Satanic Ritual Abuse: challenges to the mental health system presented at the RAINS conference 'Better the devil you know' at the University of Warwick, 1996

      • The astrologer and psychotherapist Marjorie Orr, who has railed against the False memory Syndrome Foundation and the concept of false memory, notably in Memory in Dispute edited by Valerie Sinason (1998) whilst at the same time promoting the SRA Myth, is listed under her 1997 paper Response to the Royal College of Psychiatrists' report on recovered memory in Action Against Child Sexual Abuse.


      • Sue Richardson, the social worker who assisted Dr. Marietta Higgs and Dr. Geoffrey Wyatt in the removal of 120+ children from their homes in the 1987 Cleveland RAD Scandal, and is now a confirmed Mind Control/DID advocate zealot, has two listings; for her book Child Sexual Abuse: Whose Problem? and Maintaining Awareness of Unspeakable Truths: Response to Child Abuse in the Longer-Term


      • The SAFE organisation (see The Appendix - Useful addresses from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse) is listed.


      • Caryn Stardancer - known principally for her production of pornographic artwork in her promotion of the SRA Myth (see the entry for Doris Sanford and who is also listed in another essay in Child Sexual Assault: Feminist Perspectives) and in particular Stardancers Turtle-boy and Jet the Wonderpup : a therapeutic comic for ritual abuse survivors) is, incredibly, listed with her paper Ritual Abuse: The Exploitation of Myth presented to the RAINS conference, 'Better the Devil You Know?' at the University of Warwick, 13-14 September 1996.


      • The British fundamentalist Tim Tate, who contributed Chapter 23 - Press, politics and paedophilia to Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse is listed under his book Children for the Devil (1991)


      • Equally incredibly, the infamous Dr. Bennet Braun, now struck off following his serial abuse of women-in-therapy is listed together with W. Young and R. Watkins in Patients reporting ritual abuse in childhood: a clinical syndrome: Report of 37 cases from Child Abuse and Neglect (1991)


      • Sheila Youngson's essay, the final one in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, Ritual Abuse: The personal and professional cost for workers is listed as the final line in the Bibliography.


      In all four essays from Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse are listed in the Bibliography, whilst another two essayists, fundamentalists Tim Tate and Pamela Sue Hudson have other SRA Myth-advocating works detailed.

      The collusion between British feminists and religious fundamentalists, both from the US and native to Britain itself was, and continues to be so rife, and is so unfortunately and comprehensively documented, invariably in the protagonists own words, that it defies belief. Whilst, fleetingly, a Belief in satanic ritual abuse might just be envisioned - particularly by feminists who generally have a easy vulnerability to conspiracy theories (as mentioned, the 'patriarchy' discourse in modern times now rapidly equating with David Icke's The Illuminati fantasies) the desire to endorse a hunt against witches - typified not just by the like of Sara Scott's appearance in a book promoting such ideas, but in the real world having the likes of feminist icon Beatrix Campbell (OBE) actually questioning a Broxtowe-accused as to whether she is a witch (see The Broxtowe SRA Myth Scandal questions every single aspect of modern feminism most people would think they know.

      Belief in the SRA Myth, Mind Control, DID and repressed memories shared between feminists colluding with far-right religious fundamentalist conspiracy-theory advocates is not restricted to just the UK in recent times. In the US the publication of The Encyclopedia of Domestic Violence once again from leading conspiracy-theory publisher Routledge/Informa PLC in 2008 (edited by Nicky Ali Jackson) provided a sounding-board for feminists committed to recycling conspiracy theories normally attributed to David Icke. The Encyclopedia, and in particular its SRA Myth and Mind Control entries are discussed at length in the entry for Myra Riddell - itself focusing on the betrayal of the American gay community by US feminists /lesbians in the 1980s onwards.

      As a subject, the continued incorporation of extreme far-right religious fundamentalist conspiracy theories into feminist discourses, which in-turn are exported to leftist or liberal political thought in their respective countries, ensures that the study of the SRA Myth in Great Britain and the US remains one of the most fascinating and rewarding (though somewhat disturbing) aspects in the analysis of contemporary social history for the two countries.

      In the Extended Entry for Beatrix Campbell (OBE) the question is discussed as to whether the SRA Myth could ever re-ignite in Great Britain again. Because of the Web, it seems unlikely; too much knowledge about the last incarnation of the Great European Witch-hunt - supported by feminists, is now disseminated amongst the general populace. Yet, in their continuing collusion with the extreme far-right, British feminism seems set to eagerly take part, should a receptive government (such as a future Labour Party one) find a dogmatic excuse to pursue the moral craze yet again.

      British Christian Fundamentalist endorsement for Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse

      Whilst the British feminist community was and is still apparently firmly in support of the SRA Myth and its associated baggage, it might come as a surprise to find that Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse made little impact on the British extreme Evangelical movement. With the exception of the periodical magazine Third Way (see the entry for Stephen Colver's essay in Treating' - Cutting the cord the book remains unreviewed and unendorsed.

      One possible reason for this was that with the exception of Stephen Colver himself and Tim Tate, whose TV production career would go on to feature a program with full-frontal nudity before the watershed time of 9pm (the infamous Pleasure Island from ITV) the book didn't include any recognised Christian authorities from Britain. It certainly did feature American fundamentalists - typified by the inclusion of Jean M. Goodwin, Pamela S. Hudson and Mary Sue Moore, but it cannot be taken as a 'given' that modern British extremist Christians are always willing to follow the American line in a belief in witches and satanists infesting the country - using anecdotes that were primarily from the US.

      In the UK a small sub-set of Evangelical Christians continue to persist with a firm belief in the SRA Myth and DID, typified by Carolyn Bramhall, the author of Am I a Good Girl Yet?. Having 'suffered' a fun and fantastic childhood, Mrs. Bramhall later developed a suspicion that something had been awry, travelled to the US and (perhaps not unsurprisingly) after extensive therapy, 'recovered' memories of having been satanically abused by her Christian family who were members of a satanic cult, and having forgotten about it entirely (and not having any injuries as a result.) After the creation of 109 multiple personalities, Mrs. Bramhall, from the leafy county of Berkshire, returned to England and founded her own Christian group promoting therapy, DID and the 'Myth. Again, in a remarkable series of co-incidences, all but one of the 'satanic cult' had died in the intervening years, apparently having forgot to ensure their cult survived for the next generation - the last member presumably having been arrested by Thames Valley Police, wasn't subject to a single charge or court appearance. by

      Even with the likes of Mrs. Bramhall, with the exception of Stephen Colver's effort in the July 1994 edition of Third Way (he forgot to mention that he had actually contributed one of the essays, though it was mentioned later on page 32 in the editions Who's Who) Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse was largely ignored by British fundamentalists. In the past, allied to colluding British feminists, they had heartily backed and encouraged the original SRA Myth during the 'crazy years', but that enthusiasm has waned for over a decade, and is now centred chiefly on middle-class, middle-aged white female pockets of True Believers convinced they were traumatised by satanists in their childhood and having completely forgotten about it. The Third Way which would go on to feature a front cover photograph and interview of Beatrix Campbell (OBE) - adored by fundamentalists for her willingness to promote the SRA Myth for them, still publishes in 2012, but has long dropped its support for promoting the SRA Myth.

      Negative Reviews for Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse

      Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse has been recognised by others as an important book in the study of British contemporary social history, long before this Web Site's chapter-by-chapter analysis. A Wiki Page has been maintained for it, listing the book amongst other vital works in the study of the SRA Myth, such as Michelle Remembers (see The importance of 'Michelle Remembers'), and The Courage to Heal (see Recovered memories, body memories and the pseudoscience of the future.)

      The page lists an unfavourable review of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse by Janet Daley, printed in The Times on 3rd June 1994 (the book was published in February 1994.) This though was more an overview of the entire SRA Myth in Great Britain during the 'crazy years', rather than a review of Valerie Sinason's book.

      Will social workers fall for anything? Strange how easily the Marxist demonology on which most of them were trained could be translated into a more primeval one.

      Then again, perhaps it is not strange at all. To have been converted from a world view which divides society simplistically into economic exploiters and victims to one based on religious paranoia could be a fairly short leap. This might be a key to understanding the mass hysteria by which social services departments all over the country seem to have been gripped in the great satanic abuse scare. What was required was widespread ignorance among social workers about children.
      (Source: Extract from The Devil's work, by Janet Daley, The Times, 3rd June 1994, reprinted on the Satanic Media Watch and news Exchange)

      The most comprehensive review of Valerie Sinason's book, favourable or otherwise, emanated from Ralph Underwager, now deceased, and can be found on the still-maintained Web site for the Institute of Psychological Therapies journal. Underwager was a founder member of the American False memory Syndrome Foundation and was hated by those who both advocated for the SRA Myth and the white middle-class, middle-aged-dominant RMT Movement. Feminists and religious fundamentalists and conspiracy theorists have determined that Underwager was pedophile/satanist/CIA agent, and the FMSF a 'front' for the CIA/ satanists/pedophiles. Even in 2012 Dr. Liz Kelly's CWASU False Memory Syndrome was promoting this view, including the specific lie There has been no malpractice suit in which a case against a practitioner on this issue has been upheld'.

      Sandra L. Bloom, who contributed Creating sanctuary to Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse and remains deeply implicated in the abuse of women through the use of Recovered memory Therapy, has also railed against the FMSF and Ralph Underwager specifically.

      Nonetheless, Ralph Underwager review must have stung, and ends with;

      This is, however, the best of this genre of books advanced as descriptions of satanic, ritualistic abuse. It has the appearance of reasoned scholarly discourse and follows the forms of sober, serious presentations of reasoned concepts. It could well take in a person who lacks adequate understanding of rational thought and logical progressions. As such it brings together in one volume every myth, sophistry, illogical leap, and unfounded speculation that is put out by those who seek to find a devil worshipper hidden in every corporate office, suburban club, and middle-class church.

      I can only hope at some time in the future this book may serve as a humorous reminder of the period of time at the end of this era when the credulity of human beings reached such an extreme of irrationality that we learned never to tolerate it again
      (Source: Book review by Ralph Underwager, of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, IPT Journal, Volume 7, Issue 1, Winter 1995).

      In the same issue of the IPT Journal, Ralph Underwager reviewed Lauren Stratford's (Laurel Rose Wilson) Stripped Naked and Satan's Underground. Wilson would later go on to present herself as a Holocaust Survivor, after running-out-of-steam trying to convince the world she had been an SRA 'survivor'.

      Other negative reviews of Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse came in the form of Still Seeking Satan, Part 2, by Roger Sandell, Magonia 51, 1995 which noted the effort by SRA Myth advocates to demonise the poor and socially-excluded (discussed in The Evil, Satanic Poor Part Two - an analysis of Chapters 11 and 23, next to the belief that witches and witches covens infested Great Britain, the other main theme in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse.

      But perhaps the most damaging and embarrassing negative reaction to the book came not in the form of a review, but rather by British psychiatrists, who, having been voted by 150 of Valerie Sinason's peers, determined it to be the second worst psychiatry publication of the last Millennium. It was beaten into second place only by;

      1. Ralph Rossen: Acute arrest of cerebral circulation in man, 1943. Here, "scientists" stopped the blood flow to the brain in 100 prisoners and 11 chronic schizophrenics by pressing the carotid artery in their necks, reporting the not surprising discovery that "no significant improvement in the psychiatric status of the schizophrenia patients was noted after repeated and relatively prolonged periods of arrest of cerebral circulation."

      The full list can be viewed at The Ten Worst Publications in the History of Psychiatry.

      Ralph Underwager wrote 'I can only hope at some time in the future this book may serve as a humorous reminder...' in his discourse about Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse. In 2006 one writer was able to find that humour, and the result was devastatingly funny, though probably not for Joan Coleman and Valerie Sinason and some of their peers.

      Postmodern Pooh


      Frederick Crews Postmodern Pooh (Rethinking Theory) (2006) was a follow-up, with a gap of over thirty years, to his The Pooh Perplex (1964). Both books rip apart the pretentious interpretations of faux academics and scholars, both from the 1950s and more 'post-modern' times in fantastically cutting and funny examples of written satire.

      In Chapter Ten The Courage To Squeal by the female pacific Northwest older children's writer 'Dolores Malatesa', author of Tiffany the Apprentice Tree Spiker' and Bigfoot's Daughter Builds a Boeing and the trilogy Vanessa Verson, Teenage Healer the SRA Myth and Recovered Memory Therapy industry are 'examined' through the theory that A.A Milne was actually trying to confess his penchant for engaging in satanic ritual abuse (metered-out to his son, who is a template for Christopher Robin) in his Pooh tales.

      Whether you intellectuals believe it or not, there is a clandestine worldwide network of Satanists out there who like to molest, torture and kill children as a sacrifice to the Evil One. Needless to say, they hide all signs of their doings, even the very existence of the babies that they chop up and barbecue. In fact, they're so good at evading detection that when the FBI, some years ago, tried to authenticate reports of the conspiratorial activities, not a single trace of evidence could be found! And it's suggestive, to say the least, that the record of satanic cult activity in Milne's England of the twenties appears to have been carefully and completely effaced.

      Certain elements in Pooh and Pooh Corner do lend support to the cult connection. We know, for instance, that Satanists like to dress up in animal costumes and that their still-alive children are "trained with dolls so that the techniques of sacrifice and dismemberment become increasingly familiar."12 There you would have a neat explanation for Eeyore's grotesquely severed tail. Or again, Satanists emphasise birthday parties with grisly surprise gifts, such as "a pyjama case with a teddy bear on the front," but inside, "the rotting flesh of a dead animal." 13 Maybe that was close enough to Eeyore's strange birthday gifts for the real Christopher Robin to have unconsciously noticed the resemblance and feared for his life
      ...
      It's clear to me, then, that Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner sprang from a guilty conscience. Milne shows that he understands perfectly well the terrible damage he has wrought on his son's psyche, and he longs to confess the truth. But since he fears the wrath of the public and the vengeance of the judicial system, he can't speak out, and the net effect is furtive, inconclusive, and unclean.
      (Source: The Courage To Squeal by 'Dolores Malatesa' from Postmodern Pooh (2006) by Frank Crews, pages 129-130)

      The footnote 12 is for 'Joan Coleman, "Satanic Cult Practices," in Treating Survivors of Satanist Abuse, ed. Valerie Sinason (London and New York: Routledge, 1994), pp. 245-246.' and footnote 13 is 'Coleman, "Satanic Cult Practices," pp. 247-48.