Reunification Camp: Maya and Sebastian Laing
Maya and Sebastian Laing
by Tina Swithin
While I have spent many years hearing the horror stories about reunification therapy and reunification camps, nothing could have prepared me for what unfolded on October 20, 2022.
I was contacted on the evening of October 20, 2022 by a brave, articulate 15-year old girl by the name of Maya Laing who resides in the Santa Cruz area with her father, step-mother and 11-year old brother, Sebastian. Maya began to communicate with me and tagged me on Instagram. She had recently gone public with disturbing allegations against her mother - whom she refers to as “her abuser.”
Their father, is being accused of “alienating“ them from their mother.
Maya has identified family court professionals who she claims, are failing her:
GAL (minor’s counsel) Brian K. Myers
Reunification therapist Regina Marshall
I was horrified as I watched Maya and Sebastian pleading for help - uploading multiple videos to Maya’s Instagram account and tagging me each time. They were hiding inside her grandmother’s home with police and transport agents (aka “transporters”) from Assisted Interventions Inc. who had court orders to transport the children to Lynn Steinberg’s reunification camp.
When children are removed by “transporters” and placed into these camps, contact with their preferred parent is cut off. They are told that the abuse they experienced did not happen. There is generally a black-out period of 90 days where they are prohibited from contacting their preferred parent. Some children are never reunited with their preferred parent, and forced to reside with the parent they allege abused them. I personally know parents who have not been reunited with their children despite several years passing.
I am in receipt of multiple videos showing the absolute horror and trauma that Maya and Sebastian were subjected to on October 20th. The transporters violently removed them and I am sad to report that their current whereabouts are unknown. Lynn Steinberg's reunification camp is a four-day program and there is a 90-day blackout period where their preferred parent is prohibited from contact with them.
Where are the children now? The Bodin Group was hired to “place” the children after the four-day reunification camp. The Bodin Group acts as “educational and therapeutic consultants.” Their website states:
“Whether your child is in crisis or you just sense something isn’t quite right, you know you need to take action. But with thousands of therapists, programs, support groups, special schools, wilderness programs and much more, designing the right plan for your family can feel daunting and overwhelming. That’s where we come in. For more than 40 years, Bodin has been the nationally recognized leader and pioneer in helping families find solutions for emotional problems, drug and alcohol issues, and complex learning challenges.”
Those who know and love Maya and Sebastian would beg to differ — these individuals state that they are healthy, happy, thriving children - not “troubled youth” who should be sent to group homes, boarding schools, institutional settings or wilderness camps.
I share these videos with you but they come with a trigger warning: these videos are extremely difficult to watch. Every professional involved in this case should be held accountable, including the Santa Cruz Police Department who stood by and watched felony child abuse taking place - yet did nothing. These “professionals” are inflicting lifelong trauma on children, but don’t take my word for it; I invite you to watch for yourself.
Warning: Graphic Content
“If any other adults (transport agents) would have been caught on tape, abusing children to this degree, they would be behind bars, facing charges of felony child abuse.”
Candlelight vigil in Santa Cruz on October 27 which was led by Maya's best friends (be sure to follow them at @Maya.and.Sebastian on Instagram):
Protest in Watsonville at the courthouse where Maya and Sebastian were failed:
Protest in Michigan for Family Court Awareness Month - and demanding #JusticeForMayaAndSebastian
Current Advocacy Efforts:
October 27 and 28th: Candlelight vigil in Santa Cruz and protest at the courthouse in Watsonville.
November 3: Press conference was held at Maya and Sebastian's grandmother's home.
November 5: Candlelight vigil and protest in Michigan.
November 17: Los Angeles protest at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse. Media inquiries or to RSVP: losangelesfcam@gmail.com.
Ongoing: Meetings with elected officials are currently being coordinated and scheduled.
Follow the Story: Follow the IG account created by Maya’s friends @maya.and.sebastian or @onemomsbattle.
Media Inquiries: Email justice.mayaandsebastian@gmail.com
News features on Maya and Sebastian Laing:
KSBW Action News (ABC): “Public outcry after 2 Santa Cruz teens were taken to reunification camp on viral video”
LookOut Santa Cruz: “After violent video goes viral, Coonerty, Brunner seek answers on court-ordered ‘reunification therapy’”
The Pajaronian: “Violent, court-ordered removal of children sparks community outcry”
Good Times: “Violent, Court-Ordered Removal of Children Sparks Outcry”
NewsBreak: "Santa Cruz children forcibly taken from father’s family and placed in reunification camp”
KABC-790AM “Call for Justice”: “Family Court Awareness Month and #JusticeForMayaAndSebastian”
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History of Parental Alienation: Disgraced psychologist, Richard Gardner coined, “parental alienation syndrome" (PAS) based on his own observations. Known to be "pedophile friendly" and said to be biased against women, none of his work has been peer reviewed. Gardner is known for quotes such as,
"Older children may be helped to appreciate that sexual encounters between an adult and a child are not universally considered to be reprehensible act. The child might be told about other societies in which such behavior was and is considered normal. The child might be helped to appreciate the wisdom of Shakespeare's Hamlet, who said, 'Nothing's either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.' In such discussions the child has to be helped to appreciate that we have in our society an exaggeratedly punitive and moralistic attitude about adult-child sexual encounters."
Click to read the history and present day movement by National Safe Parents Organization.
News features on “alienation” professionals and camps:
Although Widely Discredited, Parental Alienation Still a Weapon in Montana Custody Battles – Billings Gazette
Inquiry Urged Into “Parental Alienation” Court Experts- The Guardian
No Oversight for Programs Advertising They Reconnect Children with ‘Alienated' Parents – NBC News
Exposé: The Quiet Epidemic of 'Judicial Child Trafficking' in America
Washington Post feature can be viewed here.
NBC New York: Brother, Sister Rip ‘Alienating' Divorce Program That Tore Them From Father for Years
Upcoming protest in Los Angeles, California
This isn't about the conflict between the parents, this isn’t about who is right, and who is wrong: this is about the children.
This is about the debunked and denounced theory of "parental alienation" and the dangers of reunification camps.
What has taken place here is not the answer - regardless of the background or the circumstances.
Nothing about ‘this” is in the best interest of the children.
This is about family court failures.
We extend an invitation to link arms with us:
No more reunification camps.
No more forced reunification therapy.
No more “pro contact” to the detriment of children.
Kayden’s Law in every state.
#BreakingCodeSilence #JusticeForMayaAndSebastian
