I’m a Slave 4 U: #FreeBritney, Human Rights, and Capacity Assessments

[摘要] “Framing Britney Spears,” Episode 6 (75 minutes), and “Controlling Britney Spears,” Episode 9 (70 minutes), of The New York Times Presents, available streaming to New York Times and Hulu subscribers, February and September 2021, respectively. Produced and directed by Samantha Stark.Reviewed by Michelle T. Joy, MD, and Kenneth J. Weiss, MDguardianshiptraffickingdisabilityconservatorshipcapacityThe term “conservatorship” (also known as guardianship) has crept into public consciousness via pop singer Britney Spears’s high-visibility struggle to get out from under one. Ms. Spears, 40, mother of two, was declared incapacitated at age 26 but continued to perform and be financially productive. “Framing Britney Spears” shows her early attempts to end the conservatorship that has controlled her money, personal decisions, social life, medical treatment, and reproductive rights. “Controlling Britney Spears” documents the interactions between the conservatorship and the private security agency that monitored her. These dynamics have been accompanied by a growing social movement, #FreeBritney, whose stated mission is advocating for the end of Ms. Spears’s conservatorship. The movement accelerated in 2019, after she was put under an involuntary psychiatric hold, the details of which are unknown. The episodes track the movement and events behind Ms. Spears’s situation. We believe there are implications for how forensic professionals handle such assessments.

[学科分类] 儿科学

[关键词] guardianship;trafficking;disability;conservatorship;capacity