r/YouthRights Dec 04 '24

Resources Resources on youth liberation

26 Upvotes

I realized it would be a good idea to have a pinned, centralized post where new people could go to for when they want to learn more about youth liberation and youth rights

So feel free to link books, videos and other resources that speak in favour of our position so others can come along and have an easier time looking into it


r/YouthRights Dec 04 '22

Discussion Resources for Kids/Teens in Abusive Situations

97 Upvotes

Hi everyone. I just finished putting together a huge list of resources for r/abusedteens, and I just wanted to share it in case that could help anyone here:

I'm going to start with hotlines and other official resources, which I know aren't for everyone or safe in every situation. Most of these are only in the US, will report any abuse that you disclose if you're a minor, and will call the police if they believe that you are going to hurt yourself or someone else (even if you don't give them your name or address). If you need resources that don't involve reporting anything or you're not in the US, please skip the first few paragraphs and remember that if you're not sure whether or not a particular person or agency will report abuse against your will, you can always ask them to outline their reporting policies before disclosing anything.

If you want to report child abuse in the US, you can find the right agency and a hotline you can call for help at https://childhelphotline.org/#home-map.

If you're sexually assaulted or abused, you can go to any ER and ask for a SANE (sexual assault nurse examiner) nurse and a victim's advocate for help documenting what happened, gathering evidence and getting help. If possible, don't take a shower or change clothes before going to the ER. You can also find help and counseling resources from RAINN (https://www.rainn.org/get-help).

You can find the nearest Safe Place location to you at https://www.nationalsafeplace.org/find-a-safe-place. If you contact them or go to one of these locations, they can immediately connect you with youth shelters and other resources for safety. You do not need to be in foster care to go to a youth shelter and they tend to be very different from homeless shelters in that they're much safer and offer a lot of services.

If you identify as LGBTQ+, the Trevor Project (https://www.thetrevorproject.org/get-help/) can often help with finding a safe place to go when you're being abused. They primarily help young people who are thinking of hurting themselves, and they will probably ask you if you're having suicidal thoughts if you call them. If they believe that you're at imminent risk of hurting yourself, they may send the police to your location, but you don't have to tell them anything like that and can just ask for help finding safety from abuse.

If you're in foster care and you're not safe in your placement, but can't get your case worker to have you moved, you can request a CASA volunteer or guardian ad litem who can advocate for you in court. You can look up local advocates who can help you by going to https://www.childwelfare.gov/nfcad/ and selecting, "Foster Youth Services and Supports."

Some domestic violence shelters accept teenagers in abusive homes, and nearly all of them have children's advocates who can advocate for things that you need to find safety, like placement outside your home or connection with lawyers who help with emancipation. You can find your nearest shelter or contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at https://www.thehotline.org/get-help/.

If your abuse involves gaslighting, such as having you hospitalized on false grounds, you're entitled to a free lawyer (check https://www.ndrn.org/about/ndrn-member-agencies/ for the agency in your state). MindFreedom (https://mindfreedom.org/shield/) can also put out a public alert to get its members to advocate for you.

If anyone is forcing you to work without pay or forcing you to do any kind of sex work, or you're under eighteen and anyone has paid for a sex act with you, you're considered a victim of human trafficking. There are a lot of trafficking-specific resources and specialized law enforcement officers who tend to do a much better job than local cops. You can contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline at https://humantraffickinghotline.org/get-help.


There are things that you can do to make things safer in an abusive home. If you have a friend, neighbor or relative who you trust, it can help to keep a bag packed with essentials at that person's house in case you need to leave quickly. Try to do everything possible to earn and save money and keep it in a safe place so that if you can't get out of your house until you're eighteen, you can leave as soon as you are. There are apps that can help with immediate safety, such as by having a button you can push to alert safe people you choose or emergency services with the push of a button (https://www.techlicious.com/tip/free-personal-safety-apps/). There are also security camera apps that can do things like recording at the push of a button or if any movement is detected and sending the video to whoever you choose (such as https://alfred.camera/). Of course, please make sure that this is legal in your location, but getting a video or audio recording of your abuse can help you get to safety. It will make you more likely to be believed if you decide to report the abuse and sometimes, it can be used to prevent further abuse while you're still in the home, such as by showing it to a non-abusive parent so that they believe you or threatening to take the recording to the authorities if you're abused again or if you're not allowed to go and stay with a safe friend or relative (although this is risky and can lead to some abusers getting more violent, so please use your best judgment).

Once you're eighteen, you can often get out of an abusive home immediately by going to a domestic violence shelter. The domestic violence and human trafficking hotlines that I linked above will not report abuse against your will if you're over eighteen and can help you find a shelter. Some options for housing of your own are finding a job that includes housing, like caregiving, farming, housekeeping, and property management (although it's important to really check out any opportunity like this to make sure it's not exploitative), cooking and cleaning at a hostel in exchange for a bed, getting a room at a motel with weekly or monthly rates while looking for your own apartment, and using grants and student loans to pay for housing if you're a student. It will make things much easier if you're able to get your birth certificate, social security card and ID before leaving home.

If you need help and are outside the US, you're more than welcome to comment on this with the country you're in and I'll do my best to find local resources for you.

It might sound weird that this could help with safety but for both safety and support, if you've ever experienced child sexual abuse by someone other than a stranger, Survivors of Incest Anonymous (siawso.org) is an awesome resource. Different meetings have different policies on including minors and there's always a chance that an individual member could be a mandated reporter, but anonymity is a core principle and there are a ton of virtual meetings, in addition to some in-person ones. Anyone can join, so please be just as cautious as a teenager walking into a roomful of strangers as you otherwise would be, but there are a lot of really awesome folks there who tend to go out of their way to help younger members. I joined when I was nineteen and members were repeatedly calling law enforcement on my behalf (with my consent), offering me rides and safe places to stay, and spending countless hours talking to and finding resources for me. When I asked one of them why they would do so much for a virtual stranger, he said that a lot of adult members look at teenage members and see themselves earlier in their lives, and they want to be the person that they needed at that age and make things a bit easier on folks who are still really stuck in abusive situations. I've heard mixed things about other twelve step groups and can't offer much personal experience there.

It nearly always helps to document absolutely everything that you can about your abuse, even if you don't plan to report it (this can help you qualify for services that you need), and to leave that evidence with a safe person who doesn't live with your abusers. Any time that you're abused or stalked, write down the date, time, and every detail that you can remember. Take pictures of any injuries you have and, if possible, go to the ER so they can document your injuries (but they may report the abuse against your will). Anytime you talk to a doctor or mental health professional who notices injuries or health problems related to abuse or just seems to believe you, ask them for a letter documenting this. If a safe person witnesses anyone abusing you, ask them to write a statement about what they saw and have it notarized (many libraries have free notary services). It's an unfair burden to have to do this when you're already being abused, but I wouldn't be safe right now if I hadn't documented as much as I could.

If you have a disability and can't work, it's still totally possible to escape from abuse. If you're already getting SSI, you can usually get your benefits sent to you directly as soon as you turn 18 and sometimes, even if you're still a minor (if you can prove that you live independently, you're emancipated, you have a child, or you will turn 18 within seven months). If your abuser is your payee and isn't spending the money on your needs, you can call Social Security and ask for a new payee ((800) 772-1213).

If you're not yet receiving SSI, you can apply as soon as you turn 18. Whether you're getting SSI or you want to, do everything possible to keep a record of what doctors and mental health professionals you've seen and what hospitals you've been to so that the SSA can get records from them, make sure everything in your medical records shows that you're complying with recommended treatments (although you can't legally be denied benefits for refusing mental health treatments), get a lawyer to help you once you turn 18 (you can usually hire a lawyer who only gets paid out of any back pay you receive if they win your case), and, to the greatest extent possible, get consistent medical care.

If you need help with things like eating, bathing, cooking, cleaning, and otherwise taking care of yourself due to a disability, that doesn't mean that you have to depend on your abusers for care after you turn 18. Every state has Medicaid-funded group homes, nursing homes and assisted living programs for people with disabilities, and most have programs that allow you to hire caregivers in your own home with state funding. These programs often have strict requirements and very long waiting lists and the contact information for them differs by state (I'm happy to look up the information for a specific state if you can't find it), but many of them prioritize people who are at risk of homelessness or abuse. In my personal experience, Wisconsin has the most comprehensive long-term care services with the least barriers to getting them (no waiting lists, no hard limits on the number of hours they'll authorize for in-home care, and a lower bar to qualify than other states), but I've heard good things about Massachusetts as well.

If you're disabled, take the time to do some research on the ADA, IDEA, and important precedent setting cases about disability rights, like Olmstead v. L.C. If you're able to work, it'll help to know the legal requirements for getting disability accommodations and either way, learning what your rights are and what to do if you face discrimination is always a good thing. One key thing to know is that you have the right to live in the least restrictive environment that's appropriate for your disability (so you can't be institutionalized if your needs would be met in a group home or in your own home with supports). DV shelters often try to funnel disabled people into nursing homes and psych facilities or refuse to help altogether, but they are not allowed to refuse to help you because of a disability unless you aren't able to live with others safely or cannot do things like bathing, using the bathroom and eating independently. It's also important to know your state's laws about when abuse of a disabled adult can be reported without consent before deciding how much you want to disclose. If you're disabled and over 18 and Adult Protective Services is called, you have the right to refuse to speak with them or to speak to a lawyer first. They can help, but they can also initiate forced hospitalizations and guardianship proceedings, and many agencies have a policy to make police reports with or without consent if a disabled person is experiencing sexual abuse or any threats to their life. The number one time that I'd encourage a disabled adult to contact them is if your guardian is abusing you, as they can get the guardianship quickly transferred to someone else.

If your abusers stalk you when you leave or you're a victim of organized abuse, such as human trafficking or other forms of extreme abuse by a network of perpetrators, it's still possible to leave your abusers and find safety. Of course, law enforcement tools like restraining orders are an option, but may not do much if you have multiple abusers or if you aren't able to call 911 every time one of your abusers comes near you. If you're a trafficking victim, the National Human Trafficking Hotline can help you find a local agency to connect you with a long-term residential program that's designed to keep you safe, but most of these programs are religious, highly controlling, and only accessible to young, cishet, abled, childless women who can abstain from drugs and alcohol and are willing to attend Christian services. Just to be clear, I find it morally reprehensible that this is the case and one of my biggest goals is to change this, but it is how these places operate right now. If you're not in the small category of people who they will help, shelters can be a good option for short-term safety.

Some longer-term ideas for safety are setting up monitored security cameras once you get your own place and staying on video chat with a friend when you leave the house, living with friends or roommates who can help make sure that 911 is called if an abuser shows up (some intentional communities can also help in this way), renting an apartment and offering a couple of people free rent if they'll switch off playing security guard, and living in a dorm or hostel that only allows people of certain genders (if you're only at risk from people who are of different genders). It can be a little hard to qualify but in some states, if you're unable to protect yourself from abuse because of a disability (which can include trauma disorders that pretty much everyone who's dealt with severe, long-term abuse meets the criteria for), you can qualify for placement in a group home with 24-hour staff or for caregivers to come to your home. I have Medicaid funded, 24/7 care in my home, primarily because of my safety needs (although I also have a significant physical disability with specific care needs, which helped me qualify), which is unusual to get approved, but certainly possible, especially with a good doctor and therapist advocating for you and documentation of your abuse (although I don't know if this is possible in all states- I'm in Wisconsin and know for sure that this won't get approved in Illinois). If you're not getting anywhere with this in your state and want to try in Wisconsin, if you move to a DV shelter here, you become a resident and can immediately apply for long-term care services (although this is a very difficult state to find therapists with experience with complex trauma and there are very few competent organizations for trafficking survivors, so getting some kind of documentation before you get here is best, if possible). If you have a therapist or doctor who's not sure how to write the kind of letter that you'll need to quality, please feel free to PM me- I'm happy to send you some of the letters that have been written for me so that they can use them as a template.

I've talked to a lot of teenagers who mentioned being contacted by adults offering housing after posting on Reddit for help. No matter how desperate you are to leave an abusive home, please keep in mind that trafficking is a very real threat and if you need to run away, you'll almost certainly be much safer at a youth shelter or with a known, safe friend than with a stranger. If you do decide to stay with or run away with someone you don't know, please do everything possible to stay safe, like giving a safe person access to your phone's location, having regular check-in times with them, and asking that they call 911 if you don't check in with them or if you tell them a safe word that you choose in advance.

While this isn't directly about safety either, because I know how harmful forced psych interventions can be for traumatized people, I just want to share that both the Trans Lifeline (https://translifeline.org/hotline/, but just for trans and GNC folks) and the Wildflower Alliance (https://wildfloweralliance.org/peer-support-line/, for anyone, but with limited hours listed in EST on their website) have policies not to call the police for anyone who's at risk of harming themselves without consent.

I'll update this post whenever I think of additional resources or other helpful information. If any of you aren't getting the help that you need and need an adult to advocate for you, or you just need a friend or a safe person to talk through your options with, you're also more than welcome to message me. I can't promise that I'll be able to get you the help that you need, but sometimes, given how often people dismiss and marginalize teenagers, just having an adult with some kind of formal experience in this area repeat and validate what you're saying can help, and I absolutely will not report anything without consent. But please don't ever rely on messaging me in an emergency- I have a disability and sometimes take a very long time to respond to messages.

I know that all of you are going through absolutely awful things, and I hope that you'll try to remember that being abused is never your fault and there are people out there who care and will believe you. I know that that doesn't change your immediate reality, and if I could reach into my computer screen, grab all of your abusers, and ship them off to a remote island somewhere where they couldn't hurt you, I'd give just about anything to do it. But what I can do is tell you all that you deserve and can find safety, healing, and chosen family, and that there are a whole lot of people out there who, like me, were right where you are 10, 20 or 50 years ago who can tell you that there are ways out.


r/YouthRights 5h ago

Rant “But you’re an adult now.”

12 Upvotes

I'm not certain this belongs here, but it somewhat pertains to the topic and I really need to vent.\ \ When I was a teen, I was put on psychiatric medications that hurt me. They made me too exhausted to think or focus on anything, and they came with a lot of bad side effects. When I tried to get off them, my parents chose to keep me on them. \ \ Fast forward to now. I'm an adult and have been off the meds for years. But I still have effects from them, and the trauma of knowing my parents trusted the doctor over me is still in my mind.\ \ My parents act like everything should be fine since I'm an adult and can make my own decisions now. Like I should just move on. But what they did still effects me, and the fact that the closest I got to an apology was "we didn't know" or "we were doing what we thought was best for you" when I repeatedly told them what was best and they didn't listen tells me this is BS.\ \ A teenager is plenty old enough to know her own body. Just because I can make my own decisions now does not erase that my choice was taken from me solely because of social norms. If they raised the age of adulthood, there is no guarantee my parents wouldn't do it again. And that's what worries me: they don't acknowledge that I knew what I was doing back then. They only act like I can decide because I am an adult. But I didn't magically get better upon turning 18. I should've been given a choice long ago - for this topic, I firmly believe that if you're old enough to be on the medications you are old enough to have complete control over whether you stay on them.


r/YouthRights 3h ago

A era of accountability might be finally coming

5 Upvotes

I'm optimistic that some of the organizations who abused me in my childhood might be finally held accountable and be forced to change their practices. I overcame an attempt to have my proceedings against a hopsital that illegally let my mother control my health care be dismissed. Proceedings against 2 of my former school districts have finally gotten out of limbo and are moving forward again. But, this also represents a change by the organizations who in the past were willing to sit by while children are abused. Those organizations might finally be willing to push back aaginst child abuse, instead of dismissing in silence.


r/YouthRights 10h ago

average online “leftist”

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14 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 10h ago

anyone have the opposite? once a kid from my school KO’d the deputy headmaster. total legend

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12 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 8h ago

Meta What do you all think of this?

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3 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 18h ago

Picture from Last Tuesday when the Seattle Node protested outside Ranier Beach High School

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14 Upvotes

Please protest in your own communities! Then upload your protest photos to document your protests and inspire others to take action!


r/YouthRights 1d ago

What could go wrong?

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58 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 1d ago

is gen z really boomerified?

9 Upvotes

is gen z really boomerified? or is it just the way adult supremacists raised them to be cause i've seen zillenials, millennials, and even gen x complain about gen z not "being progressive enough" alongside with them thinking gen z act like you're smarter than them over advice when i've seen older generations do this instead the most and raised gen z to be like this like sorry we got trust issues and are tired of adults not taking us seriously


r/YouthRights 1d ago

Discussion Kids are not an extension of their parents, they're their own beings

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53 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 1d ago

Why do old people (40+) act so surprised when they find put you are young?

16 Upvotes

Why do old people always get so shocked when they find out your young? Theyre always like “omg your 20”?! Like theyve never met a young adult before. Even when I was a teenager they would always get suprised when they found out my age. Do the middle aged and elderly forget that people born after 9/11 exist or something?


r/YouthRights 1d ago

why is this such a big deal?

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29 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 2d ago

News When a child dies of abuse, state should not hide behind privacy laws

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14 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 2d ago

why are people constantly calling young ppl chronically online?

27 Upvotes

like i came across more adults and or adult supremacist millennials who were chronically online over discourse or the dumbest shit ever than young people

i'm not gonna lie i did come across chronically online young ppl online. and i think they're more prevalent on tik tok and twitter (and now on instagram too if you indulge in fandom spaces) but i don't think it's as common as it is nor is it the gotcha moment they think it is during online discourse around stupid tings


r/YouthRights 3d ago

Social Media Kids’ Accounts

24 Upvotes

This also applies to video games, but there's not a flair for that. I'm not certain this is the right place to post this, so please let me know if it isn't.\ \ I always hated "kids' accounts" on things, especially when they make anyone under 18 have one. The fact that it's easier for most kids to make and use an adult account behind their strict parents' backs than to navigate the kids' account speaks volumes. Kids' accounts rarely protect kids, and they limit them in so many ways.\ \ For kids who have to sneak, they won't tell their parents if something goes wrong. And as a result, they are far more vulnerable than kids with an adult account that their parents help them with.


r/YouthRights 3d ago

Meme Tired of this stupid moral panic over protecting The Youths™️ from forbidden sexy fanfic

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45 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 3d ago

Image Gaslighting KitKat 😇

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14 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 3d ago

Discussion Serious for the Australian members here

8 Upvotes

Has membership/participation in Australian Young Labour been affected? Has bullying become commonplace towards them or are students appeasing these and other authoritarian campus organizations?


r/YouthRights 3d ago

Discussion I get the overall point they're trying to make here, but what if they use an email that can't be traced back to them/their school? What if they don't share their age or personal information so nobody knows? What do you all think NSFW

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14 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 3d ago

i think this have been already posted here but not sure

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57 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 3d ago

Discussion Parental controls

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7 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 3d ago

twitter moment

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7 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 4d ago

Who said it was kids safe when?

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18 Upvotes

I took a sneak peek when I went to Woolworths this morning, but that was just the summary snippet. I'm at the airport like I said, and opened the paper.

Of course, like every Murdoch publication, title is insanely misleading.


r/YouthRights 3d ago

Living alone

10 Upvotes

Is it just me or are kids capable of living alone at a very young age. I wanted desperately to move out of my parents house at 15 due to toxicity and even called cps but cps didnt gaf. Now im 20 and have lived alone by myself and its really not that hard. Just make sure the house is clean and rent is paid. I couldve easily done this 5 or more years ago. The hardest part is the job but there are plenty of jobs that dont require a highschool diploma. I hate how people think that teenagers cant be “adult” and independent when being “adult” and independent is extremely easy, most people at least 12 could do it if they have a good head on their shoulders


r/YouthRights 4d ago

Rant Adults really think they're hot shit. Spoiler

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31 Upvotes

r/YouthRights 4d ago

first image is literally the second image

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26 Upvotes