On a sunny afternoon this past Saturday, on an expanse of grass behind the White House, a gathering of perhaps 20 people was barely noticeable, save for a passel of bright-pink posters and a spangly cardboard cutout of the âPrincess of Pop.â But their passion was palpable. Holding signs and banners blaring âFree Britney!â members and supporters of Free Britney America (FBA), a local grassroots group, were staging their third demonstration so far this year in Washington, DC. They were advocating for Britney Spearsâ right to be released from her 13-year conservatorship, as the singer requested in court testimony last summer.
The protesters carried other signs as well, speaking to issues beyond Britney: âWe want federal oversight.â âWe want a bipartisan bill.â Indeed, over the next two hours, their chants included âFree Peter! âFree Amanda!â âFree Lizzie!â and âFree Poochie!â They had assembled to call for federal oversight to protect the civil rights of individuals under guardianship and to speak on behalf of some of the estimated 1.3 million individuals they say are trapped in these arrangements.
In a guardianship (called a conservatorship in California), a court appoints a family member or even a stranger to oversee the affairs of a person deemed physically and/or mentally incompetent. This often leaves them with no choice about where they live, who they see, and how their money is spent.
A Role for Politics
An event organizer, FBA co-founder Cassandra Dumas, kicked off the rally.
Britney Spears, Dumas told rallygoers, âhas been stripped of all of her rights, but again, she is not the only one. We have an opportunity to instill a system of checks and balances at the probate courts and reform the state laws that are frankly not working today to ensure that people are not put into the system.â She urged them to support the FREE Act as a first step.
The Act, whose acronym stands for Freedom and Right to Emancipate from Exploitation, is a bipartisan bill introduced by Reps. Charlie Christ (D-FL) and Nancy Mace (R-SC) in July. It would give Americans the right to replace their guardian with a person of their choice and to be assigned an independent caseworker to monitor for signs of abuse or neglect. It would also require disclosure of financial conflicts of interest, and that states more closely monitor guardianships. FBA seeks to expand the bill to include criminal charges for offenders.
Dumas also read a letter from Libra Max, daughter of â60s pop artist Peter Max, 84, who has dementia but still lives in his own New York City apartment. He has been under guardianship since late 2016. Libra has been trying unsuccessfully to end the arrangement, accusing his guardians of isolating her father from his family and friends, draining his multimillion-dollar fortune via bills for services, and taking away his pets, among other charges.
âI am so grateful for what you guys have started,â wrote Max. âBefore the #freeBritney movement, no one could have believed that such a horrific constitutional and human rights violation could happen in America. Your voices have raised awareness and the truth can no longer be hidden.â
âSo much has happened in a few weeks,â said another speaker, disability rights lawyer Jonathan Martinis, âincluding the first congressional hearings in 40 years.â He was referring to a September 28 Judiciary Committee hearing on guardianship reform led by Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT). Martinis, Senior Director for Law and Policy at Syracuse Universityâs Burton Blatt Institute (and an attorney for Libra Max) told activists, âYouâre not doneâŠif you donât want to lose your rights or a loved oneâs, talk to your representativeâŠIf Britney Spears had committed murder with an ax 13 years ago, she could have chosen her own attorney.â He also advocated a Bill of Rights for people with disabilities and those under guardianship, adding, â#FreeThePeople!â
Other speakers echoed the calls not just for an expanded Bill of Rights but also for greater accountability within the judicial system. Elizabeth âLizzieâ Weinstein, who carried a sign reading âI am trafficked into guardianship by my domestic violence abuser,â said her constitutional rights were violated when a judge ruled her mentally incapacitated and a court took control of her finances after her husband allegedly seized her money. âThe judiciary has unchecked power,â she said, referring to both herself and Britney. âThe spotlight needs to be on the fact that we have judicial immunity in this country.â
Many Stories
Another speaker, Amira Saudi, urged onlookers to publicize another celebrity conservatorship case: that of former child actor Amanda Bynes. Bynesâ mother placed her under personal and financial conservatorship in 2014 amid Amanda’s mental health and substance-use struggles. Though Bynes has regained control of her money, she reportedly wants to end the arrangement altogether.
The protesters also heard from people whose parents were in other types of restrictive arrangements. Brenda Lefevre shared the story of her healthy 95-year-old mother, Poochie, who needs some assistance but can still âbeat us all at Scrabble.â She stated that siblings placed Poochie in an unsafe nursing home in Maryland and gave the womanâs power of attorney to strangers who wonât let her leave.
âWeâre just trying to give her the best life that she deserves, but are unable to do so,â Brendaâs husband, Doug Lefevre, told Mad in America.
Looking to the Future
Will Saturdayâs tiny rally propel a larger guardianship reform movement beyond the assembled group of already committed activists? Some of those in attendance seemed to think so.
Britney fan Corey Bailey, who also attended the July DC rally, told a reporter, âI really, really think [Britney’s] been in the conservatorship for way too long, sheâs made a lot of money for a lot of people, and has been abused throughout this process,â adding, âI think itâs been really awesome that Britney has put a spotlight on what is happening with so many other people in this country.â
Doctoral student and intersectional feminist Melanie Carlson, her hair colored a Britney-flag pink, carried a sign reading, âConservatorship abuse is a LGBTQ issue.â According to her Twitter profile, âThe #freeBritney movement directly relates to my dissertation research⊠to learn how to identify empowering practices over perpetuating paternalism!â
In any case, given that there were nearly as many reporters attending as participants that day, the issue is certainly seen as newsworthy.
Britneyâs Big Day
Spearsâ next court hearing is scheduled for November 12 in Los Angeles. Fans and advocates, including lawyer Martinis, believe there is a â95 percent chanceâ Judge Brenda Penny will âfreeâ her that day. According to an announcement from Disability Voices United, they and #FreeBritney LA organizers are lining up mental health and disability rights organizations to speak and distribute literature about systemic problems with conservatorships there.
Whatever happens, the current media spotlight on Spearsâ case offers âan opportunity to elevate the conversation,â Dumas, a lifelong Spears fan with a degree in criminal justice, told Mad in America. âAnd to ensure that this brings the biggest amount of change for the most amount of people.â
With the way things are, it looks like anybody that’s human could be legally kidnapped.
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Sadly, there’s some truth to that statement. It seems far too easy to have someone declared incompetent by a court and to assign their life decisions to someone else.
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I think they have gone too far for too long with Ms. S. Way too far. Way, way too long.
I think she endangered her family with risky, irresponsible, immature behavior frequently and she needed to grow up and get well before she could be in charge again.
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There are many recklesss, immature, irresponsible people out there. Should they all lose their civil rights because of something that happened under duress 13 years ago??
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