Then came the topic of adultification of black girls by American society, where they are perceived as being older than their actual age. “Studies show that black girls are seen as adults at age five,” said Wadler. “They’re disciplined more harshly, and they’re seen as less innocent. They’re expected to act as adults, even though
Naomi Wadler is a leader, and the Center on Poverty and Inequality’s Initiative on Gendery Justice & Opportunity is proud to work with her. Below is an excerpt from this Teen Vogue op-ed, which covers Naomi Wadler’s reflection of her year since her viral March for Our Lives speech. “Did you know that black girls
Black girls are also ‘adultified’ in this manner. Recently, Rebecca Epstein and Jamilia J. Blake of the Center on Poverty and Inequality at Georgetown Law released a report describing how black girls as young as 5 are perceived as older and less innocent than white girls. Beliefs that black girls are older and less innocent
12-year-old activist Naomi Wadler came into the spotlight after speaking out for Black girls at the March for our Lives — her advocacy for young women like herself has only expanded in the months since. Read the Full Article at NowThis News
A report published by the Georgetown Law Center on Poverty and Inequality shows that adults view black girls as less innocent and less in need of nurturing and protection. “It’s disappointing. It definitely makes us feel like black women aren’t valued in our society, and we see it often,” student Tyra Hudson said. Hudson and
Scholars have consistently, insistently, and persistently demonstrated how the intersection of race and gender negatively affect black girls’ schooling experiences. Recently, researchers at Georgetown University’s law school found that adults view black girls as “less innocent” and “aggressively feminine” in comparison to white girls of the same age. Hence, this week’s blog begs the question,
During my legal career, I’ve served as a public defender and private defense lawyer. I’ve represented clients in criminal matters including murders, rapes, high volume drug cases, sex crimes, and federal offenses. What I’m going to lay out here may be disheartening, but one of the most important aspects in any trial is believability. The
For many who watched the six-part documentary “Surviving R. Kelly,” hearing directly from several women who described sexual abuse at the hands of the R&B star prompted a troubling question: Has Kelly remained popular and largely not faced criminal consequences because his accusers are black? Rebecca Epstein, a researcher at Georgetown University, thinks so. She
A 2017 study from Georgetown Law (Girlhood Interrupted: The Erasure of Black Girls’ Childhood) reports that adults view black girls as less innocent and more adult-like than their white peers, especially in the age range of 5–14 (see graph). “We thought we might see two parallel lines and then an increase for black girls in
Researchers built in part on a 2014 report that concluded black boys are wrongly perceived as older than their actual age and are more likely to be viewed as guilty when they are suspected of a crime. The Georgetown study sought to determine whether there’s a similar effect for black girls—whether adults identify them as