Reply #11: Only partially true [View All]

[proud2BlibKansan]

The idea of shutting down mental institutions actually came about in the 60s. Then it gathered steam in the 70s. Geraldo did an expose report (I believe he won an emmy for it) on deplorable institutions for the mentally retarded in NY in the late 70s. So the idea of shutting down these institutions was not Reagan's.

You need to remember that prior to about 30 years ago, it was common for families who could afford it to institutionize their family members with retardation or mental illnesses. There were also no laws mandating special education for kids with these disabilities. So often the best place for the mentally disabled was in an institution. Then in 1974, special ed programs were mandated by federal law. That is when (to my recollection) we began to 'mainstream' persons with mental disabilities into our society.

So state mental institutions were cut during Reagan's term but we can't really credit him with the idea. Another thing that is often forgotten in this argument is that the funding for these institutions was redirected back to local communities. The county where I live added funding and we have superior services for persons with mental disabilities. There are no homeless persons on the streets in my county. So I think it is more fair to blame your local city and county govts for dropping the ball in meeting the needs of the mentally ill than to blame Reagan.

And I am not a Reagan fan at all. There are still plenty of evils to blame him for.