ARW – Project France

ShareMichael Brooks published on April 20, 2012 a blog post in the “New Statesman”, an English political affairs magazine, on the attitude of the French intellectuals toward science. Michael Brooks is a quite famous british rationalist and science writer with a PhD in Quantum Physics from the University of Sussex. For Michael Brook, French intellectuals know nothing about science and France has always struggled with evidence-based science. He argues that “being autistic, or the parents of autistic children in France [...]

ShareThe week of Feb. 6 to Feb. 12, 2012 was mostly a European-centered week for “Support The Wall – Autism” and its sister organization “Collectif Soutenons Le Mur”. The NGO Reporters Without Borders issued a statement supporting Sophie Robert and considered that the court ruling is threatening documentary filmmaking in France”. The French Prime Minister organized a meeting with the French autism organizations to launch officially the “Grande Cause Nationale” P.R. campaign. He expressed the desire to launch a new [...]

ShareThe blog “Desde el más allá”on the spanish leading newspaper “El Mundo” published a post on the scandal surrounding “The Wall” on Feb. 12, 2012. The blog described “The Wall” as “a superb documentary about autism banned in France” and calls the views of the psychoanalysts “pure babble” and “absurd”. Excerpt: “The funny thing is that the interviewees complained that, during the editing process, their speech became unclear. False, it is abundantly clear that they are pure babble.” Read the [...]

ShareRationally Speaking is a bi-weekly podcast of New York City Skeptics. Their blog published on Feb. 06th, 2012 a guest post from Maarten Boudry, a fellow of the Flemish Fund for Scientific Research at Ghent University (BE). Maarten Boudry offers his insight on the theoretical content of the documentary and the arguments of the psychoanalysts and the court. He concludes that “this ruling is a blatant violation of the right to free speech and free dissemination of information”. Excerpts: “In [...]

ShareYvonne Jessey, North Philadelphia Autism & Parenting Examiner for Examiner.com, published on Feb. 1st 2012 an article which analyzes the role of mothers from a religious and genetic perspective. This article follows the presentation of “The Wall” at the ABAI conference on Jan 27th. Excerpt: “The film, Le Mur (The Wall), brought to light that, although this theory was proven to be nonsense, many people in France, particularly psychiatrists, still believe it to be true. Ms. Robert wanted to bring [...]

ShareMichael Yudell, associate professor in Public Health at Drexel University and an autism specialist, published a thorough article on the Public Health blog of the Philadelphia Inquirer. The article explains puts the story of “The Wall” in an historical perspective. Michael Yudell also interviews Evelyne Friedel, vice-president of Autism-Europe. The Philadelphia Inquirer is a leading newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 330,000. The website Philly.com itself is ranked 594 in the United States by Alexa. Excerpt: [...]

ShareThe International Center for Autism Research and Education (ICare4Autism), based in New York City, published on Jan. 30th 2012 an article about the court decision in “The Wall” scandal. The short blog entry, titled “France Still in the Dark Ages of Autism Treatment”, summarizes well the questions of the film and the larger questions about Autism in France. “A court case against a French filmmaker has brought attention to the questionable treatment of people affected by autism in France”. Read [...]

ShareAdynaton, a blogger from Finland, shared his feelings after viewing the film “The Wall” of Sophie Robert. “This particular documentary called Le Mur: La psychanalyse à l’épreuve de l’autisme really got my goat. [...] Awful people. Anyway, the second disturbing thing about the film is that my sources tell me that the film has been banned in France because the psychoanalysts’ feelings were hurt. The filmmaker, Sophie Robert, is now in a bit of trouble, although the ban should bring [...]

ShareThe web-media “The French Connection” published a blog entry on “The Wall” on Jan. 28th 2012, following the press conference in New York City. The entry is entitled “Dark Ages and abuse of children in France: “The Wall”, a documentary denouncing the treatment of autism in France censored and banned in court”. Read the entry about “The Wall” on The French Connection

ShareStuart Schneiderman, life coach living in New York City and former psychoanalyst, wrote a follow-up story with the court decision. His previous blog entry had been published on Jan. 21st 2012. In this blog entry titled “An Army of Mothers”, Stuart Schneiderman reviews the court decision and attempts to explain to Americans the implications of the case and the culture of psychoanalysts in France. He also believes that the “army of mothers”, that support the movie, will not be defeated. [...]