“Today I Am Going to Kill Myself But First I Am Going to Dance” — a film about the legacy of the Fergus Falls State Hospital.
If you have half an hour spare, please watch this film. In a world that is growing aware of its own history a number of films are being made to help us know what happened in our past, the people that were locked away, separated and the staff that were employed to care. There are now Academic Streams for Disability History Studies at Universities and subsequent release of papers at national and international conferences. Without a complete understanding of the our history new students and whole communities can easily fall into the same mistakes of our past.
The opportunity to tell our story, the Willow Court Tasmania story, is still here in bricks and mortar, the buildings are here and the memories are here. With the “For Sale” sign threatening this Nationally important historic site we will have to be prepared to fight for the right partner in any development of our site.
Our site, our history, managed by our representatives.
J Gregory Pirmann who has a long history with the Pennhurst State Hospital in the USA and the Pennhurst Memorial & Preservation Alliance has given us a wonderful introduction to the film. As it’s only one month past our 75th year of celebrations and reflections on the Declaration of Human Rights, it is a great time to remember why Human Rights are important to all people.
“Another compelling video that illustrates the importance of establishing a national site of memory to tell the stories of the people who were sent to worlds apart from us and then forgotten. The thousands of people who lived in places like Fergus Falls State Hospital (and Pennhurst) must never be forgotten and the story of their (ongoing) fight to regain their rights must be told.” J Gregory Pirmann