May 9, 2023
By Clare Malfetti
Staff Writer
Hulu’s true crime docuseries “Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence” explores a frightening situation that occurred beginning on 2010 at Sarah Lawrence College, a private liberal arts college located in Bronxville, New York. The three-part series was released on Feb. 9 and depicts the disturbing stories of the students affected by Larry Ray, who manipulated his daughter’s friends to join his cult-like group.
The docuseries features interviews with the victims, their families and law enforcement officials that were involved in the case. It illuminates how Ray put these young adults through physical, emotional and sexual abuse while also blackmailing the victims’ families for money. The series also explores how Ray controlled his victims and gaslighted them for years.
The best quality of “Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence” is its sensitivity to the victims’ stories while displaying the realities of the traumatic experiences they endured. The show does not rely on reenactments, but rather it showcases actual videos from interviews with the affected people. This is rare in true crime shows, and viewers will appreciate the research and patience of those who worked on the docuseries.
“Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence” also exposes the shortcomings of the justice system, which failed the victims and their families. The victims had filed many complaints against Ray, but the police did not take them seriously. The victims are still struggling to recover from the abuse they faced, and it is heartbreaking to know how much of it could have been prevented if the police had committed to investigating the case fully.
The best quality of “Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence” is its sensitivity to the victims’ stories while displaying the realities of the traumatic experiences they endured.
Although the series is a bit slow and repetitive at times, this is because some of Ray’s actions were repetitive, which emphasizes the impact of his abuse on his victims. Despite this shortcoming, “Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence” is worth watching because of its main messages, which are to be careful of whom you trust and remain wary of people in positions of authority because they are prone to abusing their power.
This is an especially important docuseries for high school students to watch, as many of us will soon be living on college campuses. It is both worrisome and eye-opening but will ultimately make us more vigilant when we are away from home and on our own.
