We know school policing and harsh, exclusionary school discipline practices harm students, so we joined 90 civil rights and education organizations to call on Congress to advance critical legislation to provide safe, healthy, and inclusive school climates.
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Youth are still growing and learning at such a young age. They should not be subjected to such a harsh punishment because that affects them long-term. Placing them in juvenile detention centers does more damage especially when these centers are not equipped to truly help them on their educational journey.
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Too often, Black children are treated as adults and their normal adolescent behaviors treated as delinquent. The criminal justice system furthers this adultification by disregarding children’s age and pushing them—especially Black children and other children of color—into a punitive system that was not designed with their needs in mind. Children deserve trauma-informed and age-appropriate responses to their needs.
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The cradle-to-prison pipeline targets Black children and other children with marginalized identities. We must end school policing and exclusionary discipline and invest in student supports instead so students aren’t pushed out of school and into harmful systems.
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This school year, as concerns loom large for many families, children need protection from COVID-19, mental health supports, safe and supportive school climates, opportunities to finish learning, and certainty and reassurance about their futures.
Read MoreHarsh and exclusionary discipline practices have long-lasting, traumatizing, and potentially life-threatening consequences on students, disproportionately targeting and harming Black students and students with disabilities. As schools consider returning to in-person in the fall, we must ensure our students aren’t returning to a norm of criminalization and harm.
Read MoreAll children need access to high-quality and equitable educational opportunities without fear of discrimination or criminalization. CDF is proud to endorse these proposals to protect students from harmful policies and encourage schools to shift their priorities from criminalization to care for students.
Read MorePresident Biden recently released his Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Budget request to Congress to strengthen the economy, address longstanding racial disparities, and ensure a more equitable future for our children. After a year marked by such dramatic change and drastic negative impact on children’s lives, we need meaningful investments in supports for children and families. President Biden’s FY22 budget request starts to do just that.
Read MoreOn the eve of his 100th day in office, President Biden released the American Families Plan, outlining a bold proposal with $1.8 trillion in historic investments in our nation’s children and families including expanded tax credits, investments in child care, universal preschool, two years of tuition-free community college, a national paid leave program, and more.
Read MoreThe American Jobs Plan is the first of a two-part effort to invest in our children’s future and build towards a stronger and more equitable economy—with provisions to address long-standing racial disparities and funding designated specifically for underserved Black communities and other communities of color. Congress must now build on President Biden’s proposal and invest in our nation’s most precious resource—our children— ensuring we do not return to a fragile and inequitable status quo.
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