Neighbors of Ruby Franke, the woman behind the 8 Passengers family YouTube channel who was arrested this week on child abuse charges, said several people in the close-knit community were concerned when police officers arrived at Franke’s home in Springville, Utah on Wednesday.
Franke was sometimes criticized on social media for how she treated her children in YouTube videos. The two neighbors, who spoke to NBC News on the condition of anonymity citing concerns for their safety, said that they and others who lived near the family had long been worried for the safety of the children, and that neighbors in the community had previously alerted the Utah Division of Child and Family Services.
I’m gonna be the one person to defend CPS in this thread: They’re not some band of worthless fuck-offs. Their job is extremely hard. Your sister saw one case of abuse and was mortified: Try working in a job where you see it every fucking day with countless, countless children. Imagine what that does to you over time. Imagine how fucking horrible it feels when you have laws and processes you have to follow or you yourself will end up in jail and/or the abuser of that child gets away scot-free and become untouchable because you broke protocol. Blame the system, yes, but try not to blame the people trying to help kids as best they can (edit: I will caveat that there are always exceptions to this as with anything). But most of all, blame the fucking monsters doing these things to children in the first place.
/Rant.