Play & Book Excerpts
False Memories: The Deception that Silenced Millions
(Independently Published)
© Lynn Crook
This passage recounts the first time the leading false memory expert was effectively challenged by the media. (2016)
Challenging an Expert
“I am a human trafficking survivor. My parents were my pimps," filmmaker Mary Knight tells audiences today. Like many children, Knight managed to repress her memories of the abuse. At thirty-seven, she remembered. At fifty-seven, she initiated a discussion. With a camera running, she interviewed both skeptics and believers of the ability of children to archive traumatic incidents until they reach adulthood. She concludes the incidents happened. Her parents trafficked her. She tells us, “It saves kids’ lives to listen to survivors.”
Knight (2016) [1] became the first interviewer to challenge the claims of memory researcher Elizabeth Loftus. Knight prepared for the interview by reviewing Marilyn Van Derbur Atler’s own account of her life in People magazine [2]. Knight’s gentle questioning demonstrated that Loftus appeared unwilling to concede any evidence that supported Atler’s claims.
Knight: In 1958, she became Miss America, and in 1964, she remembered the abuse.
Loftus: She went through a tremendous amount of all kinds of different therapy before, highly suggestive therapy before she told the story of abuse.
Knight: So, that’s not what was reported in People magazine. Is there some other way you have to, way you have to--
Loftus: I’ve watched lectures that she’s given.
Knight: And in lectures, she’s said what?
Loftus: She’s talked about the massive amount of therapy.
Knight: But that was not, that was after remembering.
Loftus: I’m not sure of that. No.
Knight: Uh-huh. And then her sister of course always remembered.
Loftus: Well, we don’t know exactly what the sister remembers. I’ve never read what the sister remembers. The sister supposedly remembers, felt there was some kind of abuse.[3]
Others Speak Out
After Mackenzie Phillips, an American actor and singer, reported sexual abuse by her father on Oprah in 2009, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) hotline reported a 26 percent increase in calls. Calls to the National Sexual Assault Online Hotline increased by 83 percent. Phillips received hundreds of letters telling her, “Now I know I’m not alone.” [4]
AnnaLynne McCord from 90210 actress tells survivors, "Don't let the polite lies of society silence you. Honestly, I would endure everything all over again—it has led me to my own revolution."[5] Celebrity disclosures continue—Lady Gaga, Ashley Judd, Carlos Santana, Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry, Queen Latifah, Teri Hatcher, Axl Rose, Sally Field . . .
Challenging an Expert
“I am a human trafficking survivor. My parents were my pimps," filmmaker Mary Knight tells audiences today. Like many children, Knight managed to repress her memories of the abuse. At thirty-seven, she remembered. At fifty-seven, she initiated a discussion. With a camera running, she interviewed both skeptics and believers of the ability of children to archive traumatic incidents until they reach adulthood. She concludes the incidents happened. Her parents trafficked her. She tells us, “It saves kids’ lives to listen to survivors.”
Knight (2016) [1] became the first interviewer to challenge the claims of memory researcher Elizabeth Loftus. Knight prepared for the interview by reviewing Marilyn Van Derbur Atler’s own account of her life in People magazine [2]. Knight’s gentle questioning demonstrated that Loftus appeared unwilling to concede any evidence that supported Atler’s claims.
Knight: In 1958, she became Miss America, and in 1964, she remembered the abuse.
Loftus: She went through a tremendous amount of all kinds of different therapy before, highly suggestive therapy before she told the story of abuse.
Knight: So, that’s not what was reported in People magazine. Is there some other way you have to, way you have to--
Loftus: I’ve watched lectures that she’s given.
Knight: And in lectures, she’s said what?
Loftus: She’s talked about the massive amount of therapy.
Knight: But that was not, that was after remembering.
Loftus: I’m not sure of that. No.
Knight: Uh-huh. And then her sister of course always remembered.
Loftus: Well, we don’t know exactly what the sister remembers. I’ve never read what the sister remembers. The sister supposedly remembers, felt there was some kind of abuse.[3]
Others Speak Out
After Mackenzie Phillips, an American actor and singer, reported sexual abuse by her father on Oprah in 2009, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) hotline reported a 26 percent increase in calls. Calls to the National Sexual Assault Online Hotline increased by 83 percent. Phillips received hundreds of letters telling her, “Now I know I’m not alone.” [4]
AnnaLynne McCord from 90210 actress tells survivors, "Don't let the polite lies of society silence you. Honestly, I would endure everything all over again—it has led me to my own revolution."[5] Celebrity disclosures continue—Lady Gaga, Ashley Judd, Carlos Santana, Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry, Queen Latifah, Teri Hatcher, Axl Rose, Sally Field . . .
[1] Mary Knight, Am I Crazy? My Journey to Determine If My Memories Are True, Mary Knight Productions, 2016.
[2] “Satanic Ritual Abuse Survivor Interviews Prof. Loftus,” REALWOMEN/REALSTORIES, YouTube, November 2022. You may also be interested in Loftus’s video: “Satanic Child Abuse Claims Are Based on False Memories,” REAL WOMEN/REAL STORIES, YouTube, October 2022.
[3] “Ritual Abuse Survivor” at REALWOMEN/REALSTORIES.
[4] “Hotline Usage Spikes Following Mackenzie Phillips’ Interview with Oprah,” Rainn, September 24, 2009.
[5] Kirthana Ramisetti, “AnnaLynne McCord Reveals She Was Suicidal After Childhood Abuse, Sexual Assault: ‘It’s Time to Talk About the Truth,’” Daily News, May 29.
[2] “Satanic Ritual Abuse Survivor Interviews Prof. Loftus,” REALWOMEN/REALSTORIES, YouTube, November 2022. You may also be interested in Loftus’s video: “Satanic Child Abuse Claims Are Based on False Memories,” REAL WOMEN/REAL STORIES, YouTube, October 2022.
[3] “Ritual Abuse Survivor” at REALWOMEN/REALSTORIES.
[4] “Hotline Usage Spikes Following Mackenzie Phillips’ Interview with Oprah,” Rainn, September 24, 2009.
[5] Kirthana Ramisetti, “AnnaLynne McCord Reveals She Was Suicidal After Childhood Abuse, Sexual Assault: ‘It’s Time to Talk About the Truth,’” Daily News, May 29.
|
Lynn Crook is the author of False Memories: The Deception That Silenced Millions. She earned a B.A. in French, and an M.Ed. in educational psychology at the University of Washington. She served as community educator and director for a sexual assault agency in southeastern Washington. In 1991, she sued her parents for damages after recovering memories of childhood sexual abuse by her father. Following a month-long trial in 1994, the judge ruled in her favor at a time when 85% of the popular press was telling us that adults’ accusations of childhood sexual abuse are false memories.
She has presented at more than a dozen professional conferences in the U.S., Canada, Great Britain and at the United Nations. She is the recipient of the Media Achievement Award from the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation. She hopes that her book will encourage the public to respond with compassion to adults who find the courage to disclose childhood trauma. |
Photo Courtesy: Lynn Crook
|
