Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'

Madness: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum by Antonia Hylton

9 reviews

amachonis's review

dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Slavery, Racism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Police brutality, Death, Sexual assault, Murder, and Suicide

carrie_wallace's review

dark informative reflective sad slow-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Medical trauma, Suicide, Confinement, and Forced institutionalization

ehmannky's review against another edition

dark informative

3.5

A comprehensive look at the history of Crownsville Hospital and, to a lesser degree, about the ways that the white-dominated fields of law and psychology have led to a direct line between enslavement to mental health institutionalization to mass incarceration that we see today. Hylton does an admirable job at making a comprehensive story around this place given that so many of the records of Crownsville were destroyed by negligence and an active desire to keep some of the Crownsville history secret. There were times that I did not love the way that the book was structured, but the content is important enough that that's easily overlooked. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism and Forced institutionalization

moonytoast's review against another edition

emotional informative sad medium-paced

4.5

a must read for those interested in psychology, the history of racialized treatment in the pyschology field and its impact on the current relationship of black people to the mental health system, the connection between mental institutions and the carceral system, and the impact of places like crownsville on everyone who moved through that place. EVERY psychology department at PWIs need to have this book on their curriculum for students to read!!!!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual assault, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Racism, and Suicide

megnut's review

dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Forced institutionalization, Racial slurs, Mental illness, Police brutality, Racism, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

caidyn's review

dark informative reflective sad medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, and Racism

evawondergem's review

challenging dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Police brutality, Murder, Mental illness, Suicide, Rape, Child death, War, Violence, Sexual violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Forced institutionalization, Fire/Fire injury, Addiction, Racial slurs, Confinement, and Death

shannonreads96's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Confinement, Racism, Ableism, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Mental illness

Moderate: Suicide and Police brutality

shereadytoread's review

dark emotional informative reflective sad

5.0

This was such an engrossing read. As someone with family a small drive from Crownville, MD, I've been aware of the existence of Crownville but not the history until now. Once I started reading this, I couldn't put it down. I finished this in less than 24 hours. We tend to think of the past in such a distant way. Crownsville State Hospital closed during my lifetime (probably the lifetime of anyone reading this as well). Interviews with family members of former patients and with former employees, along with historical archives saved at the last minute have culminated in this amazing work. 

It not only tells the history of the asylum but also discusses the history of mental health treatment, institutions and the continued failures of both asylums and community care. It discussed the criminalization of mental health policies and the increased carceral response to poor and mentally ill community members. Something that strikes me most was a portion in which someone interviewed discussed they were running out of time to tell this story as those who lived it were passing away. How much of our lives and history are loss because there is no one to carry the story? What stories are we carrying? I expect that this is a read I will revisit in the futures. 

Disclaimer: I received a free finished copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Racism, Violence, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Forced institutionalization, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Suicide attempt, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicide

Minor: Sexual assault