Earlier this year, parental alienation proponents petitioned the Scottish Government to recognise Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS) as a severe form of psychological child abuse. The syndrome has been rejected several times in legislation and was swiftly rejected once again, as was its surreptitious sister, Parental Alienation (PA). PAS and PA are disliked terms in Scotland and during debates one minister spoke of parental alienation as a well-known weapon in the family courts in the context of domestic abuse. This is in stark contrast to the opinions on the terms in chambers; parental alienation is the hottest label in town. It is the family court industry’s golden goose and the syndrome theory is sneaked into the courtroom in guises in most contested custody disputes.
The syndrome was the creation of a disreputable American psychiatrist and court reporter, Richard Gardner. He invented a theory thirty years ago with the sole purpose to give child molesters a defence and portray their accuser as a hostile, vengeful, pathological liar. Gardener’s theory was discredited by world-leading experts who saw through the guise. Gardner later stabbed himself to death with a large knife in a frenzied attack, raising many questions about his mental health and sanity; he had alarming views on women and child sexual abuse and was clearly a very sick man.
Some may say Gardner got the last laugh. His junk science syndrome went on to catastrophically harm women for decades. Gardner’s disciples realised his creation presented a lucrative opportunity and an industry developed thereafter; the business model was rolled out overseas by the members of the Association of Family and Concilliation Courts (AFCC). Women who dared leave an abusive relationship would now become sitting ducks waiting for court papers to drop through their door, as parental alienation proponents encouraged domestic abusers to go for shared parenting or custody, using their services.
Today, in family courts across the world, women are still disbelieved and the deceitful process continues. Women get harmed and murdered as they are court-ordered to ‘co-parent’ with their abuser, and terrified children continue to get forced into the home of the dangerous perpetrator. A staggering number of children, collateral damage of Gardner’s cruel creation, have been abused and murdered, and have even committed suicide as a result. It is clear, Gardner’s interventions and treatments are focused on punishing the mother and rewarding the father, not providing the best solution for the child.
Over the years, attitudes in society on abuse have evolved. Once something considered to be a private family matter, domestic abuse and child abuse have now become significant concerns for governments. As attitudes have evolved, so have the marketing tactics of parental alienation proponents; all risk getting labelled as Gardner was; a paedophile sympathiser. Dropping the ‘S’, and giving parental alienation syndrome a new façade was a gamechanger; it gave its proponents another opportunity to try and get it into legislation further down the line and in other countries.
Fathers’ rights groups in Scotland changed name and presented a gender-neutral image and parental alienation ‘experts’ changed tack after academic research exposed their motives. Many lawyers and mental health professionals now portray parental alienation as a ‘relational phenomenon’. Society has been quick to warm to the idea; it’s relatable, we all know mothers and fathers who behave badly at times and abuse - what the proponents fail to mention to the women, celebrities and government ministers they try to entice into their army is the skulduggery linked to the label PAS and the fact that only the label has changed, nothing else.
The same proponents who benefit ideologically, politically and financially from the family court’s money-making racket, remain relentless in their determination to keep women under the control of abusive men and maintain a father’s rights over their child. Behind the scenes, the parental alienation lobby sneakily try to implement self-serving, harmful policies for domestic abuse victims and children and continue to encourage perpetrators of egregious abuse to fight for full custody. In the meantime, in the family courts, they still recommend and use Gardner’s harmful approaches, interventions and treatments.
If Gardner were alive today, he would be glaring in the mirror, enamoured with his own reflection and contemplating with glee, the overwhelming damage his masterpiece PAS has done. He would be high-fiving AFCC members and other like minded individuals for their admirable performance and achievements. For the label parental alienation is now not only used to deny sexual abuse but used to deny all forms of abuse in a courtroom. An abuser only needs to insinuate parental alienation and it will dominate the case above all else; the harmful cross-claim requires no evidence to support it. Courts don’t even need a mental health ‘expert’ to diagnose it; lawyers are influencing children’s views, judges deny children their participation rights and then they declare alienation as the reason for the brutal treatment and punishments that follow.
Government ministers are implementing progressive legislation, but the Government must remain on high alert if they wish to fix the failing family courts system. For Scotland cannot take violence against women seriously and become the best place in the world for a child to grow up while simultaneously allowing the judiciary to punish protective mothers and force contact with, or transfer custody to, known criminals.
Coercively controlling, narcissistic abusers win many battles over the years but they rarely have the last laugh. They cannot maintain their charade forever; they can become greedy and complacent and self-destruct. The family courts crisis in America has recently been compared to the catholic church abuse scandal, it is a volcano waiting to erupt. Shocking family court stories are emerging in every country where the disturbing ideology has insidiously swept in, taken root, and festered. Those harmed are joining forces, raising their voices and have the golden goose in their gun scope. They may not have had a voice during their family court proceedings, but they have a voice now, and they intend to use it.