(26) Excessive Suspension to Unlawful Detention: The Disproportionate Effect of Criminalized School Discipline on Black Girls

This research will examine the disproportionate rates of suspension of African American girls in schools across the United States. The lives of young African American girls are frequently misunderstood and largely criticized.... [ view full abstract ]

This research will examine the disproportionate rates of suspension of African American girls in schools across the United States. The lives of young African American girls are frequently misunderstood and largely criticized. It is no secret that these girls live in a society in which the majority clearly benefits at the expense of the minority; the institutions put in place to educate, encourage and support them are the very barriers that hold them back. The job descriptions of teachers, counselors, and administrators now promote judgement rather than compassion and punishment rather than encouragement. Our nation’s history of slavery and oppression is now just known by another name, criminalization. The continuous persecution of African American girls leaves them without an education, a support system, or hope for a bright future. It has been statistically shown that this hindrance of education leads to lives of lower socioeconomic class and possibly is a gateway to the prison pipeline. Several reports from the Office of Civil Rights in the United States Department of Education provide the empirical evidence of this pernicious cycle, yet there is no policy change or implementation. I hope to further shed a light on the cyclical effects of this archaic and oppressive system in order to challenge the cultural illiteracy that permeates our society.