Kids Need Accountability And Support Not Handcuffs
Many kids returning to school this year aren’t looking forward to reconnecting with teachers or students. Instead, they’re dreading new encounters with school resource officers, zero tolerance policies, and state laws that criminalize youthful misbehavior.
This punitive infrastructure, collectively known as retributive justice, turns routine school disciplinary issues into matters for the criminal justice system. It often leads to youth incarceration and shocking displays of violence against children.
Institutions need to look to alternatives. I got a glimpse of one potential brighter future for kids recently while watching a 2013 discussion between community members in Oakland.