WHERE IS THE CRI DE COEUR OVER THIS INCIDENT ?

The term Cri de Coeur is defined as "an impassioned outcry, as of entreaty or protest." On March 19,2016 an email to DCF Plantation from Little Mother Jones brought to light an incident that is known, but not spoken about. Little Mother Jones reports that a certain DCF Plantation official has a "known sex offender living with them." Now to make matters even worse [ according to Little Mother Jones ] the DCF Plantation official "knows the person is a non compliant sex offender" yet chooses to still have them around children in the home. This same official has been involved in dubious activities  on the DCF plantation and off grounds with other employees after hours. Yet officials that administer the Department of Children and Families ignored the inappropriate behaviors of this person that is employed by them. Where is the Cri de Coeur over yet another incident concerning this well placed administrator that gets to ignore rules, not only on the plantation, and gets protection. It might be that the official mentioned as harboring a known sex offender is white, and ergo part of the apartheid regime.

You can rest assured that no preferential treatment was given to other ordinary employees who raised issues of racial discrimination or egalitarian rights for people of color. When Youth Service Officers engaged in suspect behaviors at Connecticut Juvenile Training School [ on property or when not at work ], the full policy weight of that facility fell on YSOs in order to discipline them. In the near future the incident mentioned above will come to light and once again embarrass DCF Plantation hierarchy.

SOME UNIONS HAVE FORGOTTEN THEIR BEGINNINGS AND NOW SEEK ACCOMMODATION WITH MORIBUND POLITICIANS

The activist talked about reaching out to Unions in different parts of Connecticut about social praxis around issues of egalitarian rights. After all if one reads the History of The Labor Movement by Philip S.Foner, then it is clear Unions were started and nurtured on protest. In one of Foner's three volume sets "From Colonial Times to the Founding of The American Federation of Labor" it is clear Unions and the people who believe in them also embrace praxis. However the activist who contacted this blog writer encountered another type of Union person, those that seek to avoid confrontation with oppressors. The activist said that recent attempts to organize labor forces into action this coming April met with push back. It seems as if other Unions outside of Hartford- led by organizers who either do not know labor history or don't care about it- are not willing to engage in street protests as part of a comprehensive strategy to attack oppression. At several meetings youthful labor organizers equated street protest with "hollering and screaming." Yes it is true that when the subject of peaceful demonstrations were broached the Union folks said "we do not want to be disorganized by hollering and screaming. We would rather talk to lawmakers. " Now it is clear that these neo-Union organizers not only have lost the dream and vision of Unions, but equate the mainstay of labor protest as "disorganized hollering and screaming."

Over the last few decades comments such as the people in Unions outside of Hartford made are part and parcel of a malaise known as accommodation with the oppressor. Just walking into buildings and talking to lawmakers is only one part of strategy. Talking is another form of praxis, both verbal discussion and direct action are necessary to impinge on the oppressor they must address needs of the unwashed masses. What the activist told this writer is how current Union leadership outside of Hartford is scared of street protests and getting arrested; lumping both with mindless activity on the part of the uneducated. The demise of once powerful labor Unions have happened due to tepid responses to oppression; powerful forces cut budgets and resources to the poor and needy but Union officials want to enter into endless disputations, verbal masturbation, with short term relief. Is it any wonder why the powerful no longer fear Labor Unions? I would not fear weak in the knee, vacillating people from these labor forces either, all they are going to do is sit down for "fruitful discussions" with oppressors who do not care about what is being said. Hell, they know you are scared and you prove it by wanting to avoid direct action.

In conclusion some of the great labor leaders of the past must be turning over in their graves about these tepid and spineless Union people outside of Hartford, and their refusal to hit the streets.

SILENCE OF WHITE PROFESSIONALS ON THE PLANTATION SEALED THE WORKER'S FATE

The Youth Service Officers at Connecticut Juvenile Training School have been betrayed by two groups. When the workers were trying to fight racial injustice on the plantation at CJTS the management -which is basically  all white - came out to thwart the aspirations of the unwashed masses. Key Stone Cops management singled out suspected agitators, used right wing YSOs to intimidate workers, and disciplined those fighting against injustice. From a historical point of view it is understood that those in power will do whatever is necessary to maintain their position. In the words of Shakespeare.... Macbeth reads "to be a king is nothing, unless one's position is safe." Well white management certainly tried to make sure no one threatened that lofty perch they sat on.

However the second betrayal at CJTS came at the hands of white professionals like clinical social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists, and teachers. The majority of these white professionals are women and watched in silence as the scene of rampant racism, nepotism, giving overtime to favored staff took place. In the mean time back at the ranch, these silent white professionals went about their task "of trying to get the minds right" with incarcerated residents. Now the CJTS plantation is about to lay off YSOs who are mostly people of color, because outside forces want to shut down the facility. While YSOs wait for their pink slips the white professionals have started to slither off to other places of employment, they see the reduction in residents from 150 to 40, and started deserting CJTS like rats off a sinking ship. The facility might not have been run into the ground by management, nor racial injustices taken place, if those white professionals spoke the truth to power. But the white folks collected pay checks, talked to the natives [ incarcerated residents ] in their natural habitat, and did not utter one damn word about what went on in terms of racial injustices. White professionals were drinking from the cup of white privilege.

Let me be as clear as I can be. The CJTS plantation is closing down because excesses occurred that diminished human beings who worked there; a culture of abuse took place for so long until even those that supported the white supremacy at CJTS could no longer ignore the facts. White management did everything possible to hide what was going on, and this includes putting blame for issues at the facility on YSOs like Dupree, former employee Cornell Lewis, current YSO Kevin Strachen, current supervisor Linette Gaunichaux. By the way all of those just mentioned are people of color, ergo, white management just followed in the old American tradition of "blame it on black folk.

In conclusion we must correctly state how the silence of white professionals contributed to years of dysfunctional activity on the CJTS plantation and abuse of workers of color. Desmond TuTu wrote  "to be neutral in a situation of injustice is to have chosen sides already. It is to support the status quo."

THEY SAID NO CHANGES FOR TWO YEARS THEN LIED; VISITING ROOM UNSAFE

The howls and anguish coming from Youth Service Officers at Connecticut Juvenile Training School can be heard throughout the state. When the Childs Advocate office released a scathing report about CJTS abuse of resident restraints, incompetence of management in running the facility, abuse of overtime it was like some sort of revelation from heaven. Suddenly people started investigations, lawmakers visited CJTS, used information from a right wing whistle blower and then proclaimed AMEN ! After all the employees got over their untold agonies from the sudden media attention management stepped in to calm the unwashed masses. It was widely reported how DCF Plantation management assured anxious employees "no significant changes at CJTS would come for two years." Now it has been reported the management lied to employees and are now preparing to layoff YSOs in a few weeks. This is just the latest example of bait and switch management foisted upon the unwashed masses [ employees ] under mordant leaders. YSOs are literally befuddled by being laid off ; why are employees mystified about the double speak? For years YSOs accepted the verbal swill doled out by management to employees, now it is clear that plantation leaders did not give a flying shit about them.

After this blog revealed how there are no longer staff present in CJTS visiting rooms, and monitoring is done from within a sealed off control booth- emails started coming in to DCF Plantation blog. The main complaint is this " there are residents and gang members that go to that visiting room. These groups often have 'beefs' and fight. How can you put unsupervised factions in one small area and hope to prevent problems? If fights occur how can someone in a control booth come into the visiting room in time if riot situations occur. They [ management ] are placing employees in dangerous positions." 

Well, "as the world turns."

TOUGH TIMES AT THE PLANTATION ; VISITS; LAYOFFS; DECREASED POPULATION

The Connecticut Juvenile Training School has indeed fallen on tough times due to incompetence and mismanagement by supervisors.  At one point there were over 150 residents at CJTS, Youth Service Officers worked overtime and took home outrageous paychecks. Alas, those halcyon days are but a distant memory. These days the DCF Plantation is but a mere shadow of what it once appeared to be ; under leadership of an ostrich [ ducking head in the ground to ignore troubles ]  like superintendent and dysfunctional supervisors CJTS hit rock bottom. It has been reported that last Saturday CJTS allowed outsiders to come for visits of residents but failed to provided staff to sit and monitor the visiting area. In light of the fact people try sneaking in contraband [ remember how someone tried sneaking in a loaded 380. automatic gun? ] this seemed odd. There are sources indicating that KeyStone Cops management had people in an enclosed control booth watching visitors. However monitoring from a booth is far different than YSOs inside the visiting area, rumor has it the idea is to cut down on overtime by not having anyone monitoring inside the visiting room 11am-3pm.

The DCF Commissioner sent out an email last week about laying off employees at CJTS  due to a reduction in residents at that facility. Now that facility is only going to house 40 residents. I wonder if some of those over paid supervisors that do not work will be on the laid off list. For years management milked the State of Connecticut for large salaries while running CJTS into the ground. In all fairness the first heads to roll should be management layoffs.

The Units where residents live are usually staffed with enough people to handle situations and effectively monitor residents. Now it is reported KeyStone Cops management is running these Units with only TWO staff while having ONE staff  float between both Units. All of this is being done o save money on overtime.
 Ah, how the mighty hath fallen from their lofty perch. It must be noted how mismanagement for years at CJTS caused this current dilemma to manifest itself ; years of not addressing racial injustice among employees, allowing overtime to be doled out to management favorite employees, sexual peccadilloes between male managers and a certain $80,000 per year female supervisor, right wing persecution by the so called whistle blower about wrong doing at CJTS, not to mention YSOs not speaking up about troubles at the plantation -led to this current situation.  For sometime this blog reported on CJTS and how the joint was a cesspool of racial injustice, nepotism, overpaid and under educated supervisors, but very few people listened to our clarion voice shouting from the mountain top. Then the Child Advocate investigated allegations of improper resident restraints, also lawmakers visited the facility plus held hearings about it. Now after all of this activity people started asking tough questions about what the hell was and still is going on at the CJTS Plantation.

And as one reporter use to say "now you have the rest of the story."