The 41-year-old hotel heiress met with policy staff on Tuesday in support of her backing the Federal Accountability for Congregate Care Act, a bill that seeks to form a joint commission on research to understand the scope of institutional abuse, create a ‘Youth in Congregate Care Bill of Rights’, and earmark funds to address systemic issues.
A White House official told CNN that Hilton “was at the White House with state and national advocates as part of her advocacy efforts to improve protections of youth in residential programs and facilities.”
During her meeting with policy staff, “she and other survivors shared their powerful stories and discussed issues pertinent to the protection of institutionalized youth in America.”
The bill was first mentioned last year by Reps. Ro Khanna (D-CA), Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), Adam Schiff (D-CA), and Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR).
Later in the day, Hilton met with Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) to discuss child abuse laws in the US.
“Met w Paris Hilton to discuss how we can stop abuse of children in residential care facilities,” tweeted the GOP lawmaker from Iowa.
Hilton has opened up in recent years about the alleged abuse she endured while attending Provo Canyon School in Utah.
Hotel heiress and reality star Paris Hilton, flanked by House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., left, and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., lends her celebrity to support legislation to establish a bill of rights for children placed in congregate care facilities, at the Capitol on Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2021. Hilton says she was traumatized as a teenager when she was sent by her family to abusive care facilities.
© AP Photo / J. Scott Applewhite
Following the initial revelation of her allegations in the 2020 documentary ‘This is Paris,’ the hotel heiress went before the Utah state legislature to testify in favor of a bill that sought to assign more government oversight to treatment centers that deal with so-called 'troubled' youth.
During her appearance, Hilton testified how she was “verbally, mentally, and physically abused on a daily basis” while attending the Utah school for approximately 11 months.
“Yet, while using the bathroom and while showering, staff would violate my rights. This is unconstitutional, degrading, and terrifying," Hilton testified.
"That small room covered in scratch marks and smeared blood with no bathroom is one of the most vivid and traumatizing memories I’ve ever experienced in my entire life.”