Niayah Diggs

What is the one thing you wish people knew about the foster care system from your perspective?

First and foremost being apart of the system does not make me any less valuable than your biological child. I may be damaged, but I am human, and with time I will heal and become something great. I am more than just a monthly check, and love and hugging me will give you better results than having me sent to a psychiatrist so they could drug me with medications that make me feel numb to the world and those around me.

What was the key takeaway from your experience of Foster Youth Shadow Day last year?

Finding your voice. We were given the opportunity to state our experience in the foster system--both negative and positive. If something didn't work for us, we had the opportunity to speak out and come up with a better resolution. And people listened; not only were our voices heard, they were acknowledged, and because of that changes were processed.