Freedom, and Then What?

Slate published Linda Rodriguez McRobbie's piece "The Real Victims of Satanic Ritual Abuse" on Jan 7. It's the story of Frances and Dan Keller's release from prison in Texas. They were convicted of child abuse in 1992 -- symbolically, there were jailed for taking part in Satanic ritual abuse.

Never share a seat on the bus again

They're free because the charges, the trial and most of the media coverage, were entirely lies. The endless pursuit of the truth from a local news reporter, and some patient lawyers, finally helped get the Kellers, now divorced, released from prison after a successful appeal.

The Typing Monkey recommends the book Satanic Panic: The Creation of a Contemporary Legend by Jeffrey S. Victor if you'd like to read about the religious fervor/group think nightmare in the United States that began in the 1970s and reached a fever pitch by the late '80s and early '90s.

As McRobbie says in her Slate article: The real victims were those accused. We'd add to that the poor kids that were coached, cajoled and probably psychologically damaged by being forced to repeat (and imagine) what adults wanted to believe was happening. And what they believed is, frankly, unbelievable.

We sincerely hope both of the Kellers can find some peace and a path to resuming something resembling a normal life.