Stopping the shock will take all of us! We know it has been a long, hard fight, but there are crucial things happening that you can get involved with, including some crucial state-level advocacy that would seriously impact the Judge Rotenberg Center.

We submitted a letter to the FDA [[link removed]] alongside over 100+ partner organizations urging them to restart the rulemaking process. In 2021, the DC Circuit Court overturned the original rule because of a technicality that the FDA couldn’t ban the device for one purpose; however, this means the FDA can and must make a new rule banning the device completely. While we work to get them to restart that process, two important battles are going on at the state level.

In New York, the state legislature has reintroduced a bill that would stop the state from sending any more people to the JRC. More of the JRC’s residents come from New York than any other state. If the bill, called the Andre McCollins Bill or Andre’s Law, passes, more New York residents cannot be sent to the JRC, which is a huge and important step towards shutting down the JRC for good.

If you’re a New York resident, see our action alert for scripts and to make your voice heard! [[link removed]]

In Massachusetts, there is a new bill to ban aversive conditioning. “Aversive conditioning” means using pain to punish people for doing certain things. This would be an important step towards closing the JRC, as their use of electric shock devices for behavior modification on people with intellectual and developmental disabilities would be banned.

If you’re a Massachusetts resident, see our action alert for scripts and to make your voice heard! [[link removed]]

If you’re not a resident of New York or Massachusetts, you can also get involved! Here are some ideas:

Consider writing a letter to the editor or op-ed. A letter to the editor is a kind of written news story where everyday people write letters to the editors for newspapers, magazines, or websites. An op-ed gets written more like news articles. Both op-eds and letters to the editor can be a good chance to share your story and help more people learn about issues. We have a guide here to writing about #StopTheShock. [[link removed]]

Share the action alerts with anyone from New York or Massachusetts!

The JRC is tireless in their efforts to torture our community, but we won’t quit. We must and we will stop the shock and close the JRC.

Autistic Self Advocacy Network
PO Box 66122
Washington, DC 20035
United States
If you think you received this email in error,
unsubscribe: [link removed]