Although it may seem there are many more worthy causes than the ‘rights’ of a rich and famous pop star, the notoriously obsessive fans protesting outside the courthouse during Britney Spears’ conservatorship hearings may be on to something. For the last 13 years, Britney Spears has been legally bound in a conservatorship, a system defined by the Judicial Council of California as when “a judge appoints a responsible person or organization (called the ‘conservator’) to care for another adult (called the ‘conservatee’) who cannot care for himself or herself or manage his or her own finances.” The conservatorship began in 2008 because Britney had hit a rough patch, struggling through a divorce with her ex-husband Kevin Federline and her ensuing custody battle for her two sons. During this extremely stressful time, she struggled with her mental health, prompting her father, Jamie Spears, to step in and file for a temporary conservatorship. In early 2009, Jamie petitioned for the conservatorship to become permanent, showing the progress he had made by turning her estate from debt-ridden to profitable, which the court granted. Since then, according to Britney’s own testimony in June of 2021, she has been highly restricted in nearly all aspects of her life, despite proving repeatedly that she could work, manage a healthy relationship, parent her sons, and bring in the income then managed by her father. In 2020, Britney made it clear she wanted the conservatorship to end because her father was exploiting her and needlessly controlling her daily life. … More #FreeBritney! Why the spotlight on Britney’s plight under her conservatorship is worth the public’s time