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Creating youth protection through policy reform to prevent institutional abuse.

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Congratulations @alexdesignsanddrawings and thank you for your bravery! @cagovernor has signed SB 1190 and our bill is now a California law.

Contact @caroline.alex.cole if you are a troubled teen industry abuse survivor who is interested in joining our team next legislative session.

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A national oversight system for youth residential programs cannot rely on private organizations, scattered records, or voluntary reporting. Government and public funding are necessary to create a comprehensive, standardized, and permanent system that tracks abuse allegations, deaths, lawsuits, inspections, closures, and regulatory actions across states.

Without state sponsored oversight, critical data remains fragmented, inaccessible, and inconsistent. Families, survivors, researchers, and policymakers deserve transparent public access to information that directly impacts child safety and placement decisions.

Protecting children requires public accountability.

#troubledteenindustry #accountabilitymatters #transparencynow #EndInstitutionalChildAbuse #BreakingCodeSilence

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One of our California bills just passed its first committee today. This bill, SB 1190, was sponsored by @parishilton & @11.11media. Also known as the Safe Passage for Youth Act, this legislation pertains to abusive child transportation companies who are unlicensed, unregulated and use cruel methods which give PTSD to every kid they are entrusted with. The full committee hearing has been uploaded to my YouTube Channel, @AvitalAdvocacy - you can watch it now at the link in my bio!

This one is close to my heart as I personally experienced an abduction from my bedroom by one of these teen transport companies in California. The experience left me with lasting trauma, nightmares, and trust issues.

I want to take a moment to thank @shannongroveca for her unwavering dedication to women and children in our state. Senator Grove has authored 3 bills to protect youth from abuse in the Troubled Teen Industry. This is part of a larger legacy she will have as a champion for survivors of abuse, sexual violence and human trafficking. Though we are from different political parties, I have really cherished my time advocating alongside Senator Grove and her staff. She brings heart and genuine care to every interaction when dealing with this sensitive subject matter. Thank you, Senator!

📺 To learn more about the troubled teen industry WATCH:
- This Is Paris (YouTube)
- Teen Torture, Inc. (HBO)
- The Program (Netflix)

🛜 To learn more about our youth rights policy work with 1111 Media Impact, visit www.1111mediaimpact.com

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Taking it back to the first time I was invited to our State Capitol by @parishilton to change California law. Watch this video for a look inside the legislative process. After connecting in a private room, where I met Paris Hilton, Senator Grove and all the other advocates you see here for the first time, we visited the State Senate Floor with a warm welcome. Paris was so genuine, open, kind and friendly. Later, we went with Paris to the committee hearing where she testified about her personal experience being abused as a teenager in a Utah treatment program. There were many more supporters I had to cut out of the video. We all provided what's called a "Me Too" - seconding Paris Hilton's testimony and encouraging a yes vote on the bill from the senators. This was a totally life-changing day, and one of the most impactful of my life. 🫶

Thank you
@11.11media
@shannongroveca
@rebeccagrone
@zcbs710
@chelslay_allday
@nataliewillskinder
@icapanetwork

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@parishilton 💗💕✨ #LegislationIsHot

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Our featured nonprofit this week is Institutional Child Abuse Prevention and Advocacy Network (ICAPA), and the SWW team is excited to share their work with you.

This survivor- and advocate-led organization uses firsthand experience to protect youth from abuse in residential treatment centers, religious academies, wilderness programs, bootcamps, addiction rehabs, and specialized schools.

ICAPA focuses on exposing the systemic failures that allow abuse to persist in these programs, while pushing for real legislative change. (icapanetwork.org/about-us
)

Their mission is to abolish the fraudulent and abusive practices of “the troubled teen industry.” However, they believe in order to stop this abuse, we must first define it.

According to ICAPA, the term “institutional child abuse” is defined as:
(i) child abuse or neglect by a person who is an employee of a public or private institution; or
(ii) institutional practices, policies, or conditions that are reasonably likely to result in child abuse or neglect. (icapanetwork.org/about-us)

At the foundation, ICAPA exists to ensure no child suffers in silence within systems meant to protect them.

To volunteer or donate to ICAPA, please follow @icapanetwork or visit icapanetwork.org

To find a list of more nonprofit organizations, please visit: somethingwaswrong.com/resources

-The SWW Team

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Are you a survivor of the #TroubledTeenIndustry ⁉️ You can advocate for legislation to protect youth from Utah’s congregate care programs from anywhere in the country, without even leaving your home.

If you plan to testify in a hearing, keep it short. I recommend writing a speech the night before and practicing your speech with a timer. All testimony must be under 1 minute long.

You can also email written testimony to senators and members of the house, as well as discuss specific language changes in proposed policy with senators and members of the house via email.

Remember that Utah is home to over 100 programs, 36% of Troubled Teen Industry programs in the nation. That’s because of all 50 states, Utah has some of the weakest protections for youth. Many of us were sent to Utah from other states as non-consenting minors. I hope to see you at a hearing!

Have you ever testified in a hearing about the troubled teen industry?

#lobbying #legislation #policyadvocate #advocacy #government #activist #leadership #activism #tti #ttisurvivor #iseeyousurvivor #breakingcodesilence #youthrights

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It is very emotionally taxing to do this, but rewarding to know I am making a difference. Last week, the Utah Senate finally heard my story of what happened to me in their state. Everybody who was there when I arrived at Alpine Academy remembers that I came with guns blazing, shouting for all who could hear about my constitutional rights that were being violated. I made a vow to take that place down the day I arrived, and I have never given up. It took 14 years for me to reach the Utah government, but they are listening to me now.

I attended 2 senate committee hearings in the state of Utah last week - virtually. 1 was for a bill survivors and advocates oppose and 1 for a bill we support. I didn’t even have to leave my home - It was that easy to show up for children in another state who are suffering now the way I once did. Harder was hearing the harrowing stories from parents whose children died in the care of a Troubled Teen Industry program. They brought tears to my eyes.

The TTI sent their slimiest snake-oil salesmen to represent them in front of the senate. Their dark energy, dishonesty, and cruel mischaracterizations of youth is still haunting me, but not going to scare me away. All the survivors who testified to support youth rights last week are so brave - @chelslay_allday @nataliewillskinder @megappelgate @caroline.alex.cole (and many more) thank you for being such a force. We will continue to fiercely advocate for change in Utah, a state that is infamous for its lack of protections for minors, and home to 36% of TTI facilities.

For all who are interested, full videos of both hearings can be found on my advocacy YouTube channel: @AvitalAdvocacy

#TroubledTeenIndustry #TTI #ISeeYouSurvivor #Lobbying #Lobbyist #Advocacy #Advocate #YouthRights

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Democrats and Republicans agree that child abuse is wrong and that children must be protected from trauma in the Troubled Teen Industry (TTI).

In April, I stood alongside survivors @parishilton, @nataliewillskinder, @chelslay_allday, and @zcbs710 to support bipartisan legislation written by CA state senators @shannongroveca (R-Bakersfield), Angelique Ashby (D-Sacramento) and Aisha Wahab (D-Hayward). I am thrilled to announce that today, @cagovernor Gavin Newsom signed our bill into law!

Today, we are one step closer to exposing the abusive practices in residential treatment centers, punitive boarding schools, and wilderness programs, where solitary confinement and restraints are commonly used as punishment by predatory adults who abuse their power over children.

I would like to thank @rebeccagrone, a million times over. She is the impact producer who worked with Paris Hilton to make this all possible. Their work has transformed a community of fearful whistleblowers which was once shrouded in secrecy into a legitimate lobbying group of empowered survivors. They have brought us out of the darkness and into the light. We have made progress I never dreamed was possible!

Thank you Paris Hilton for inviting me to the capitol to stand with you. You are the rock star leader we needed. You are so smart, so brave, so real, and my gratitude for you is endless.

All the survivors & advocates I met at the capitol are brave, inspiring leaders. I am looking forward to passing many more laws at the state and federal level with these incredible women to abolish the troubled teen industry for good.

Thank you @gavinnewsom for signing SB 1043! Your support will not be forgotten.

#TroubledTeenIndustry #Survivors #Advocates #Legislation #Sacramento #Lobbyist #Lobbying #Advocacy #PolicyChange #Democracy #SB1043

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My heart is heavy.

Please remain respectful to grieving loved ones and those who were impacted by Kelsey’s life.

May she rest in peace,
and please support survivors.

#troubledteenindustry
#breakingcodesilence
#september

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I will continue to share my experiences in these programs, including #SecondNature #WildernessTherapy

Survivors, I see you, and I support you in your journey to justice.
We are unsilenced.

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❣️🙌 🥹 The state legislation I advocated for passed another hurdle today and is on its way to becoming California law! I’m so proud of us!!

From @shannongroveca :
“I am proud to announce that my bill SB 1043, Accountability in Children’s Treatment, has passed the Assembly Appropriations Committee and is on the way to the floor for a full vote. When it comes to ensuring accountability and transparency in the care of our most vulnerable children, California must continue to lead the way. I am proud to stand alongside @parishilton, a survivor of the troubled teen industry, to advocate for and support children in treatment facilities throughout our state. @11.11media “

Thanks @rebeccagrone for the picture 😊
#ISeeYouSurvivor #BreakingCodeSilence

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