Paris Hilton recalls sexual harassment by hospital staff and ‘forced drugging’ as she testifies before Congress about the child protection system

Paris Hilton

Paris Hilton recalls sexual harassment by hospital staff and ‘forced drugging’ as she testifies before Congress about the child protection system

Hotel heiress Paris Hilton recently spoke about the abuse she suffered as a child.

The 43-year-old campaigned for the creation of a law to modernize the American child protection system and reported on her own traumatic experience of being placed in a psychiatric hospital as a teenager.

Paris Hilton

Paris Hilton explained during the court hearing held today (Wednesday, June 26) that she was placed in psychiatric hospitals from the age of 16 due to her rebellious behavior. She claimed that several institutions that promised help to her parents were in reality a gateway for staff to sexually and medically abuse their young patients. Speaking about her own experience, Paris Hilton stated during the hearing:

“When I was 16 years old, I was ripped from my bed in the middle of the night and taken across the state line to the first of four residential facilities… For two years, I was forcibly drugged and sexually abused by staff. I was forcibly restrained… stripped naked and placed in solitary confinement.”

The former reality star further claimed that her parents, Hilton & Hyland co-founders Rick Hilton And The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Kathy Hiltonwere “completely deceived, lied to and manipulated by this profit-driven industry regarding the inhumane treatment I experienced.”

She added:

“Can you imagine what an experience it is for young people who are placed in state care with no one checking on them regularly?”

The celebrity further emphasized her belief that companies have been profiting from the “problem youth industry” for too long without really caring about the children affected.

She continued:

“This $23 billion annual industry views this population as a dollar sign and operates without meaningful oversight…What is more important: protecting corporate profits or protecting the lives of foster children?”

Paris Hilton

This is not the first time Hilton has appeared before legislatures to improve the rights and protections of children in the welfare system. In 2022, the celebrity went to Capitol Hill to lobby lawmakers who are pushing for the passage of the Institutional Child Abuse Act. The bill would strengthen oversight of residential programs for youth, support the reauthorization of Title IV-B of the Social Security Act, and advocate for a “Bill of Rights” for children in juvenile facilities.

Hilton first publicly revealed her abuse story in her 2020 YouTube documentary This is Paris. The mother of two continues to be one of Hollywood’s most vocal advocates for improving children’s rights.

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