The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools is an impactful new documentary exploring the alarming numbers of African American girls facing unfair and inequitable treatment in schools across the country and initiatives to help them cope and heal. Black girls are six times more likely to be suspended than white female students, three times more likely to be restrained, and four times more likely to be arrested.
The PUSHOUT documentary is the catalyst for a larger initiative that launched last fall, which has already had an amazing impact on the narrative about why Black girls, and other girls of color, experience exclusionary discipline and what we can do to better support them. The film has screened in nearly 239 communities around the country and counting to spark discussion. In addition, policymakers at the federal, state, and local levels have responded favorably to the documentary as a much-needed tool to raise awareness about the criminalization of youth in schools—some district leaders are already actively pursuing and developing policies to shift outcomes.
