Strange Country Ep.150: Synanon
Strange Country
English - July 09, 2020 10:00 - 1 hour - 70.4 MB - ★★★ - 173 ratingsComedy History cults truecrime unusual americanhistory comedy eccentrics ghosts history librarians library Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
If you're like us, you likely never heard of Synanon, but its tactics live on in "tough-love" drug rehabilitation programs. Synanon was founded in 1958 by Charles Dederich, and it was the first ever non-medical drug rehabilitation program. And then it became a cult. Join Beth and Kelly as they share the story of shaved heads, forced abortions and the origin story of one of Nancy Reagan's favorite programs.
Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands
Cite your sources:
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Etler, Cyndy. “I Spent 16 Months Of My Childhood Locked In A Warehouse.” HuffPost, HuffPost, 1 Mar. 2019, www.huffpost.com/entry/straight-inc_n_5c76a914e4b062b30eba021e.
Fang, Lee. “GOP Mogul Behind Drug Rehab 'Torture' Centers Is Bankrolling Opposition to Pot Legalization in Colorado.” The Nation, 29 June 2015, www.thenation.com/article/archive/gop-mogul-behind-drug-rehab-torture-centers-bankrolling-opposition-pot-legalization-colo/.
Gelder, Lawrence Van. “Charles Dederich, 83, Synanon Founder, Dies.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 4 Mar. 1997, www.nytimes.com/1997/03/04/us/charles-dederich-83-synanon-founder-dies.html?searchResultPosition=1.
Hillel Aron. “The Story of This Drug Rehab-Turned-Violent Cult Is Wild, Wild Country-Caliber Bizarre.” Los Angeles Magazine, 27 Feb. 2020, www.lamag.com/citythinkblog/synanon-cult/.
Jollett, Mikel. Hollywood Park: a Memoir. Celadon Books, 2020.
King, Wayne. “SYNANON MEMBERS ACCUSED IN BEATING.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 1 Mar. 1981, www.nytimes.com/1981/03/01/us/synanon-members-accused-in-beating.html?searchResultPosition=1.
Mitchell, Dave. “Light to Celebrate 25th Anniversary of Its Pulitzer.” Cult Education Institute, Point Reyes Light, 15 Aug. 2014, culteducation.com/group/1179-synanon/20123-light-to-celebrate-25th-anniversary-of-its-pulitzer.html.
Morantz, Paul. The History of Synanon and Charles Dederich, 2 Aug. 2008, culteducation.com/group/1179-synanon/20127-the-history-of-synanon-and-charles-dederich.html.
Morgan, Fiona. “One Big Dysfunctional.” Cult Education Institute, Salon Magazine, 29 Mar. 1999, culteducation.com/group/1179-synanon/20120-one-big-dysfunctional-family.html.
Novak, Matt. “The Man Who Fought the Synanon Cult and Won.” Paleofuture, 27 Sept. 2014, paleofuture.gizmodo.com/the-man-who-fought-cults-and-won-1634267961.
Novak, Matt. “Synanon's Sober Utopia: How a Drug Rehab Program Became a Violent Cult.” Paleofuture, 15 Apr. 2014, paleofuture.gizmodo.com/synanons-sober-utopia-how-a-drug-rehab-program-became-1562665776.
Pendle, George. “Shaved Heads, Snipped Tubes, Imperial Marines, and Dope Fiends: George Pendle.” CABINET , www.cabinetmagazine.org/issues/48/pendle.php.
Shenon, Philip. “9 LINKED TO SYNANON INDICTED BY U.S.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 2 Oct. 1985, www.nytimes.com/1985/10/02/us/9-linked-to-synanon-indicted-by-us.html.
“Synanon.” RationalWiki, rationalwiki.org/wiki/Synanon.
“Synanon Calls Sex Tapes ‘Liturgy’ - Group Claims Constitute Protects Wife-Swap Records.” Cult Education Institute, San Diego Union, 2 Nov. 1979, culteducation.com/group/1179-synanon/20119-synanon-calls-sex-tapes-liturgy-group-claims-constitute-protects-wife-swap-records.html.
“Synanon Foundation, Inc. v. Bernstein, District of Columbia Court of Appeals, State Courts, COURT CASE.” Court Case, www.ecases.us/case/dc/1995369/synanon-foundation-inc-v-bernstein.
Szalavitz, Maia. “The Cult That Spawned the Tough-Love Teen Industry.” Mother Jones, 20 Aug. 2007, www.motherjones.com/politics/2007/08/cult-spawned-tough-love-teen-industry/.
Szalavitz, Maia. "Breaking addicts in order to fix them: how Synanon revolutionized drug treatment and poisoned the politics of prohibition." Reason, vol. 49, no. 5, Oct. 2017, p. 72+. Gale OneFile: Popular Magazines, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A506607207/PPPM?u=nysl_sc_flls&sid=PPPM&xid=27bca0d6. Accessed 25 June 2020.
Szalavitz, Maia. "Tainted Love." Stanford Social Innovation Review, vol. 4, no. 2, Summer, 2006, pp. 66-67. ProQuest, https://search-proquest-cay.orc.scoolaid.net/docview/217168587?accountid=34664