Willowbrook State School was built on Staten Island, a borough of New York City, in the early 1940s. After World War II, when it was commandeered as a military hospital, Willowbrook became the largest mid-20th century institution for children with disabilities. The institution touted itself as a safe space for children to receive care, education, and rehabilitation. However, concerns about the actual conditions mounted. Senator Robert F. Kennedy and journalist Jane Kurtin reported on the horrific conditions at the institution; then, in 1972, an exposé by investigative journalist Geraldo Rivera exposed Willowbrook as horrifically abusive.

Kurtin and Rivera’s reporting revealed that after a series of budget cuts, Willowbrook was unable to keep sufficient staff to properly care for residents. One staff member to roughly 100 residents was common (“About Willowbrook Mile.” College of Staten Island). As a result, staff misused transportation carts designed for single residents with specific disabilities, piling multiple children into a single cart. The hygiene of the residents was so neglected that many children contracted hepatitis. In response, the school began clinical trials on hepatitis vaccines, using residents as experimental subjects despite their inability to consent.

In the 1970s, the families of Willowbrook sued the facility.