For the past four months, the Bay Area News Group has been documenting the alarming use of psychiatric medications in California’s foster care system — and the impact on thousands of vulnerable kids who suffer the consequences.
Here, in Part 5 of our investigative series “Drugging Our Kids,” we present a documentary video that gives voice to many of these young people, who say they were silenced during their youth by the powerful drugs.
From Los Angeles to the Bay Area to Humboldt County, reporter Karen de Sá and photographer Dai Sugano interviewed more than 175 people, including dozens of current and former foster youth who were frequently moved and heavily medicated by a system that struggled to manage their complicated childhoods.
Now, there’s a growing call for change among former foster youth, psychiatrists, public health nurses and youth advocates. The stories of lost childhoods and remarkable resilience provide compelling lessons on how California can better address their trauma and stop “Drugging Our Kids.”
