The Crips Open My Sundance 2020 Season

...and when I say “crips,” I’m not talking about “Boyz n the Hood.” This raucous gang was a band of brothers and sisters who were on a mission to change the world. In the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York was Camp Jened, but it wasn’t the kind you’d envision from the Borscht Belt. Instead, it’s a retreat for disabled teens and young adults run by a bunch of hippies right next to Woodstock.

At Camp Jened, the youth learn to express themselves, and how to organize through group meetings where they get to discuss and decide on everything from meals to activities. For many, it is the first time they have experienced freedom and autonomy. When they go home, being a shut-in without a voice and without access to public transportation or education is no longer an acceptable option.

Camp Jened became the incubator for a group of revolutionaries who were able to instigate social and political change in America over a 30 year period both because of and in spite of their disabilities. Through protests, sit-ins, appearances speaking in front of Congress, hunger strikes, and community organizing, the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed and enforced, protecting the country’s largest minority class of individuals.

I really loved the first half of this movie. Camp Jened was revolutionary both in inception and practice. It was pretty freaking spartan without much access to medical supplies, doctors, or handicapped accessible anything. With a lot of severely disabled teens, I was in a constant state of angst for these kids who went swimming and boating and with barely a life-jacket. Most of the counselors were kids themselves without any kind of medical training. But by some miracle, every year, everyone survived and made forever friends and lasting memories, and was personally transformed and empowered. Camp Jened deserves its own documentary. But it is only the springboard for what is to come.

There are a lot of movies about the Civil Rights movement, and the history of some of the biggest leaders have been well-chronicled. But this is one chapter that I had never really heard much about, and it clearly showed that the historical discrimination against those with disabilities in this country is pretty dang appalling. And the fact that change was brought about, not by those acting on behalf of those with disabilities, but those WITH disabilities is pretty profound.