Ruby Franke’s 11-year-old daughter is speaking out about the “trauma” she faced tied to her mother’s vlogging.
During a House Business, Labor and Commerce Committee hearing in Utah on Feb. 18, the preteen’s father, Kevin Franke, read a statement on her behalf, in which she spoke about the negative experiences she had being filmed for her mom’s family vlog, before Ruby was later convicted of aggravated child abuse and sentenced to 4 to 60 years in prison.
Stating that she initially “thought nothing was wrong” with taking part in her family’s YouTube videos, and how she thought she was “happy,” the child, whose identity has not been shared, explained that she “really wasn’t,” according to The Salt Lake Tribune.
“When I started getting older, I realized the YouTube channel had ruined my childhood,” she continued. “But at least I got some money, right? Oh, right, I actually didn’t, because my mom withdrew all of it in 2023.”
Added the child, “I worked hard for that money. I acted like someone I wasn’t in front of the camera, and I earned that money. But I feel like my mom used me for money.”
Ruby’s daughter then explained that she hoped Utah lawmakers would consider passing a bill that would require online creators who make more than $150,000 a year from content featuring children to set aside a portion of it into a trust fund for their little ones.
Noting that she understands “more than anyone … the horrible situation that a lot of kids are in right now,” the preteen continued, “I know I am stuck with the trauma of YouTube.”
“Even now, I can barely make friends, because my whole life I was the center of … attention,” she added. “But now, without even realizing it, I seek attention from others, or I feel like they don’t like me. Then those people think I’m mean.”
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
The child’s 16-year-old sister echoed similar sentiments in her own statement that was also read during the hearing, in which she said she hopes the potential new bill would “prevent other kids from having to go through the pain of realizing that the compensation for years worth of time and effort is suddenly gone.”
“As kids, you don’t realize what you’re subjected to, really.” the teen said. “You’re selling your life, your privacy, your body and stories to the entire world. And as a child, you’re involuntarily giving up all of that. You’re selling your childhood.”
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(768x361:770x363):format(webp)/Ruby-Franke-Arrest-090523-tout-20754d6e4a3e4ba68b72e1cbb96b9269.jpg)
“Though there is no amount of money that can make up for that loss, the least that can be done now is making sure the child is getting paid for her work and has the right to remove it and walk away if she wants to,” she added.
Later during the hearing, Kevin admitted his own feelings of “regret” for taking part in the family vlogging by filming his children and sharing the videos on social media. He said, per the Tribune, “Vlogging my family, putting my children into public social media, was wrong, and I regret it every day.”
Ruby and Kevin began documenting their life as parents to six children in 2015, uploading vlogs on their now-deleted 8 Passengers YouTube channel, which portrayed their strict parenting style that later raised eyebrows from skeptics in 2020, ultimately leading to an investigation.
In 2022, Ruby ceased posting on 8 Passengers and joined her ex-business partner and therapist Jodi Hildebrandt on her ConneXions podcast. Both Ruby and Hildebrandt were later convicted for crimes. Kevin, meanwhile, was not arrested or charged.
Ruby and Kevin’s oldest daughter, Shari Franke, chronicled her experiences with child vlogging in her new memoir The House of My Mother: A Daughter’s Quest for Freedom.
In January, she told PEOPLE she “witnessed the damage of what happens when your life is put online” and believes that “there’s no ethical way to do it.”
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.