Georgetown Law’s Center on Poverty and Inequality released a study, Girlhood Interrupted: The Erasure of Black Girls’ Childhood, in 2017 about perceptions of innocence in black girls. The study found that black girls aged 5-19 are viewed by adults to need less protection, nurturing and support than white girls of the same age. It also
Black girls make up just 16% of the female student population in the country, but account for more than one-third of all school-based arrests. A 2007 report in the journal Youth and Society found that Black girls were penalized for deviating from social norms of female behavior, and in particular for being “loud, defiant, and
Teachers may misinterpret trauma-related behavior — struggles to focus in class, sleeping in class, being irritable — as being disrespectful. In addition, adults view black girls as less in need of nurture, protection, support and comfort than white girls of the same age, according to research by Jamilia Blake and colleagues from the Georgetown Law
As the co-author of a groundbreaking 2015 report on sexual trauma and juvenile justice, [Rebecca] Epstein’s one of the country’s leading experts on the issue. “In many ways, this case is an example of the system responding to a girl of color who has experienced trauma by punishing her,” Epstein said. “When we punish these
The Center on Poverty and Inequality commissioned painter Ashley Joi and photographer Sancha McBurnie to create original works to complement the report, pieces that were displayed at a reception following the presentation. Both artists shared their perspectives with the audience. Epstein stressed that the Center on Poverty seeks change at a system level, working to
When it comes to faulty assumptions adults levy against black girls, there is perhaps no study more elucidating than Georgetown Law Center on Poverty and Inequality’s 2017 report Girlhood Interrupted: The Erasure of Black Girls’ Childhood. …The phenomenon, called “adultification,” can have a profound effect on the way black girls are treated, especially by law
The rate of girls in the juvenile justice system is increasing, according to a 2015 report Vafa coauthored with researchers from the Georgetown Law Center on Poverty and Inequality and the Ms. Foundation for Women. They found that those girls also experience sexual violence at disproportionate rates. Read the Full Article at Nashville Public Radio
On the latest episode of @ToTheContrary, Dr. Jamilia Blake and and Rebecca Epstein of the Georgetown Law Center on Poverty and Inequality discuss their research findings that show adults view black girls as less innocent and more adult-like than their white peers, beginning as young as age 5. Watch the Full Video on PBS
“It’s really striking that in the context of childhood, which is the epitome of innocence, Black girls are not getting the benefits of being viewed as innocent,” Rebecca Epstein, the executive director of the Georgetown Law Center on Poverty and Inequality, told Vox. “Black women and girls really attributed the source of this to the
As recent as last week, a report was issued by Georgetown Law’s Center on Poverty and Inequality that details stunning statistics and first-hand accounts of how American society and our education system are stacking the odds against young girls of color. It starts early, says Rep. Karen Bass (CA-37). “It can actually start with pre-school,”