Knott’s Berry Farm has closed one of their Halloween-themed attractions after outcry from activists that it was insensitive to individuals with mental illness. The attraction, which debuted earlier this month, created controversy when it was seen to perpetuate stereotypes about mental health and create fear about mental institutions. Despite cancelling the attraction, Knott’s claims that it never had anything to do with mental illness.
When it debuted, it was titled FearVR: 5150. Coincidence or not, 5150 is the California law enforcement code for the involuntary commitment of a mentally ill person. That was particularly poignant for Ron Thomas—the father of a schizophrenic man who was wrongly beaten to death by Fullerton police—who has been among local activists and the Orange County chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness who pushed back against Knott’s FearVR, as the L.A. Times reports.
In FearVR, a participant is strapped into a wheelchair and given a virtual reality headset. The storyline revolves around the fictional Meadowbrook Institute, with participants attempting to flee from a violent and demonic patient.
When the Times reviewed it, they described it explicitly in the terms of a psychiatric patient in a mental institution and mentioned the significance of the 5150 code. The paper writes that their journalist was not contacted to amend the review. Knott’s, however, maintains that any association with psychiatric facilities would be a misperception that they never anticipated.
“The virtual reality experience is actually built around paranormal, zombie-like activity in a medical hospital setting,” Knott’s stated in a letter to the NAMI.
As of Wednesday morning, the O.C. Register reports that the attraction has been indefinitely shut down at Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park as well as the company’s other properties in Santa Clara and Toronto. All of the other activities in the Knott's Halloween Haunt remain open.
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