Documentary
Norway 2001
43 minutes
Language: Norwegian
Subtitles: English
Director: Haakon Sandøy
Watch film on Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/399850363
Summary
This is the second film about Arnold Juklerød, the Norwegian man who in the 1970s, due to his political involvement in a school closure, was declared seriously mentally ill and confined to Gaustad Hospital in Oslo. In addition to him, we meet his family, political supporters, people he came into contact with during his hospitalization, and professionals who tried to help Juklerød.
Arnold showed no signs of mental illness, but his commitment and steadfastness over the years were seen as unusual and declared sick. First, he was confined for several years, before attempts were made to expel him from the hospital. However, Arnold refused to leave the area because he had discovered that what was claimed to be health care was in fact abuse and destruction of defenseless people. He saw it as his duty to warn about psychiatry’s abuse of power over a vulnerable patient group. Therefore, he lived in a tent outside the hospital all year round, constantly putting up posters he had made himself, and received a lot of attention from the media and authorities.
After 33 years of struggle, Juklerød finally won the support of the ministry; the school closure was part of an illegal practice that had been going on for more than a decade, during which hundreds of illegal school closures had been carried out. Nevertheless, the hospital refused to remove the diagnosis of “quarrelsome paranoia.” Juklerød therefore continued his rebellion and remained on the hospital grounds, despite his personal belongings, tent, and sleeping bag being confiscated and the police being called in countless times. Arnold eventually died of cardiac arrest, which can logically be linked to the living conditions he experienced at Gaustad Hospital.