The troubled teen industry and its impact on Latin@ survivors

The troubled teen industry includes various group homes, often called congregate care facilities, that claim to help youth with behavioral, emotional, or mental health challenges. This industry encompasses wilderness therapy programs, boot camps, therapeutic boarding schools, religious-based programs, drug rehabilitation centers, and residential treatment centers.

Each year, about 120,000-200,000 youth enter these facilities, which receive approximately $23 billion in taxpayer funds. Some programs can charge more than $800 per day per child. Despite marketing themselves as solutions, many facilities face serious allegations of abuse and lack consistent oversight across agencies and states. Multiple investigations, including Senate hearings dating back to 1974, have uncovered widespread abuse in these programs.