Paris Hilton says she was ‘force-fed drugs and sexually abused’ as a teenager – The Irish Times

Paris Hilton, an American socialite and media personality, has told a US congressional committee focused on strengthening child protection that she was “forced to be drugged and sexually abused by staff” during her time in an institution as a teenager.

Hilton, a vocal advocate for better protection for children in juvenile facilities, told a House committee on Wednesday that she was “violently restrained and dragged through the hallways, stripped naked and placed in solitary confinement.”

The 43-year-old had previously described how she was subjected to “parentally sanctioned abduction” in four different youth facilities while her parents sought solutions to her rebellious behavior and “fell for the misleading marketing of the problem youth industry.”

She described the business of correcting teens through “tough love” as a $50 billion (€46.7 billion) industry that includes therapeutic boarding schools, military boot camps, juvenile detention centers and behavior change programs.

On Instagram, she posted about her speech: “In my Liam Neeson era. From the California capital in April to today in Washington, I will continue to fight until every child is safe and bring these abuses to light.”

On Wednesday, the reality TV star said she found her time in the institution “isolating and traumatic” and that she was unable to inform her parents about what was happening because phone calls were monitored.

“It’s really difficult to tell anyone in the outside world. Many of these children are not believed because these facilities tell parents that they are being lied to and manipulated because they want to go home,” Hilton told the panel.

Hilton also urged lawmakers to pass the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act, which would strengthen oversight of residential programs for youth. She also supports reauthorizing Title IV-B of the Social Security Act and is pushing for a Bill of Rights for children in juvenile facilities.

Provo Canyon School, one of the institutions attended by Hilton, had previously responded to Hilton’s allegations by saying that it was under different management and “therefore could not comment on the school’s operations or the experiences of students prior to this time.”

“What we can say is that the school provides a structured environment, teaches life skills, offers behavioral therapy and facilitates continuing education for young people who come to us with existing and complex emotional, behavioral and psychiatric needs,” the school said.

( Paris Hilton: “I’m not a dumb blonde. I’m just very good at pretending to be one.” )

At the hearings, Hilton said: “These programs promised healing, growth and support, but instead I was not allowed to speak, move freely or even look out of the window for two years,” and said her parents were “completely deceived” about the therapeutic treatment she received. – Guardian/PA