Imagine this: It’s three in the morning, and you’ve just woken from a deep sleep. Your squeaky bedroom door has cracked open, and you sit up to rub your eyes in confusion, waiting for your vision to come into focus. Your blood runs cold when you see multiple strange men standing around you. Before you can ask yourself if you’re dreaming, you feel yourself being pulled out of the safety of your bed and dragged down the hallway. You scream at the top of your lungs, calling out for your parents to save you. As the kidnappers drag you towards your front door, you feel a surge of relief as you see your parents standing in the way. The police must be on their way, you think to yourself. Instead of stopping the men from taking you, though, your parents step aside and open the front door, watching as the strangers drag you into the night.
This is a common experience for those who have been sent away to the Troubled Teen Industry.
The Troubled Teen Industry is a system of under-regulated treatment facilities, such as boarding schools or boot camps, that adolescents can be sent to for a wide range of reasons (anywhere from serious mental health symptoms to minor forms of misbehavior). Infamous for a multitude of abuse charges, these facilities constitute a multibillion-dollar industry that often utilizes fear tactics to manipulate parents into sending their children there. Teenagers are introduced to these programs often by being abducted in the middle of the night, which on its own is a traumatizing experience, and taken to a program that strips them of any autonomy. Some teenagers don’t make it back home.
Despite it being a deplorable industry, it isn’t an uncommon experience for young people. It’s estimated that over 50,000 teens are placed in these programs every year. Some celebrities have been victims of these programs as well, including Bhad Bhabie (catch me outside girl), Chet Hanks, and Paris Hilton. They have all come out to describe their experiences, but Hilton in particular has been an advocate for victims in these programs, which includes pushing for better legislation and supporting victims in person.
A Recent Case
You might recognize Matt Bevin as a former Kentucky governor, but you may not know about his family life. The conservative Republican decided to run for governor because of his passion to reform the “broken machine” of Kentucky’s adoption system. He and his ex-wife, Glenna, are adoptive parents themselves; with five kids already, they adopted four more from Ethiopia in the same year.
On the surface, this is fine, right? Well, if you ask one of his adoptive sons – referred to under the pseudonym “Noah” in a recent Sunday Times of London article – Bevin only adopted him for “public image” (indeed, the former governor frequently mentioned his adoption of four Ethiopian children during his 2015 campaign).
In February, Noah was removed from the Atlantis Leadership Academy (where the Bevins had sent him) in Jamaica. This institution was exposed for its horrific conditions, including cruel punishments, filthy conditions, lack of food, unsanitary conditions, and months of no contact with families. Later details came out that suggested the academy had waterboarded and held victims in solitary confinement. After authorities intervened, some parents came to collect their boys, but the Bevins were not one of them.
Paris Shows Support
Paris Hilton, upon hearing of the extreme abuse and violence, traveled to Jamaica to show support for the boys at an April court hearing. Families of three of the eight boys, including Noah, were not there to support them. A staff member of Hilton’s foundation, 11:11 Media, was able to arrange a custody agreement for one of the children. Bevin’s son is reported to no longer be in Jamaica, but additional information has not been provided.
Hilton’s work to expose these troubled teen industries has made it to the Capitol. In June, she testified before a Congressional committee, mentioning her trip to Jamaica to illustrate what happens when parents sent their teenagers to these facilities with no contact and limited information. In her testimony, she spoke about Noah and other adoptive kids, saying “their parents had adopted them when they were young, promised them a better life, and then shipped them off to an international facility to be warehoused there until they turned 18.”
Due to her own trauma from the troubled teen industry, Hilton’s continuous advocacy has exposed the abuse and horrific treatment in these programs. In her testimony, she supported federal legislation to provide resources that could keep children out of such institutions.
While her celebrity status has certainly helped Hilton’s cause, you don’t need to be a public figure to advocate against the for-profit abusive institutions that many parents are ignorantly sending their children to. The best thing we can do as a collective is to continue to raise awareness about the deplorable conditions of these programs. Maybe there’s a teen in your life that you can prevent from having more trauma inflicted upon them.
To the survivors of this horrific abuse: we stand with you, and your story matters.
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