CELEBRITIES
Paris Hilton advocates for bipartisan bill tackling the abuse of teenagers
The heiress entrepreneur uses the hurt from her past experiences to fuel the fire in political reform.
Paris Hilton is using her celebrity influence to push for bipartisan support in favor of a bill called the ‘Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act’, which aims to reform troubled teen facilities and halt the terrible abuse that often goes on in these “schools” behind closed doors.
The businesswoman released a documentary in 2020 exposing the tortured experience she suffered as a teenager at the hand of the boarding school for troubled teens her parents had enlisted her in more than 20 years ago.
Hilton goes to the Capitol
Hilton was backed by a bipartisan collection of lawmakers when she made her appearance at the Capitol on Thursday, as the ‘Stars Are Blind’ singer, as she introduced the new bill that was penned to target abuse and bring it to an end in the “troubled teen” industry.
Democrat senators Jeff Merkley, John Cornyn, and Tommy Tuberville and Republican senators Ro Khanna and Buddy Carte were all in attendance at the press conference for the bill.
“From the ages of 16 to 18, I was sent to four troubled teen industry facilities, each one more horrific than the last,” Hilton shared at the opening of the conference. “I witnessed and experienced sexual abuse from adult staff, as well as endured verbal and emotional abuse.”
“When I attempted to tell my parents about the abuse on the phone, the staff would immediately hang up the phone and punish me,” the heiress continued. “On top of this, we had no access to the outside doors, no sunlight, no fresh air.”
“What I went through will haunt me for the rest of my life.”
Hilton using her pain for the good of future generations
The 42-year-old new mother explained her intent with the initiative to end abuse in these institutions. On Thursday Hilton joined Fox & Friends to analyze the progress of the bill.
“I’m doing everything I can in my power to fight for these children because these are children who come from families that can’t help and support them and children from the juvenile justice system, foster care system. And they have no voice,” Hilton said.
“So I’m really just turning my pain into a purpose and using my platform to help make a difference and save children’s lives because hundreds of children have died in the name of treatment in these places.”
Paris Hilton’s painful past
Paris Hilton has spoken openly about the abuse she suffered as a teenager, but only in recent years. In addition to the 2020 groundbreaking documentary, Hilton has published a tell-all memoir which outlines the experience in great detail.
She has also appeared on many podcasts and talk shows where she has discussed her history and how it has driven her to pursue these political reforms.
When she released the documentary, Paris revealed she attended Provo Canyon School in Utah, where she was the unsuspecting victim of a “parent-approved kidnapping” at the age of 16 that involved two men coming into her room during the night and taking her away to this school, which turned out to allegedly be an institution of abuse.