The Building Blocks For YouthInitiative
Overview
In response to current research on the overrepresentation in almost every state of African-American, Latino, and Native American youth in the juvenile justice system and recent trends in more than 40 states to increase prosecution of youths in adult court - the impact of which falls disproportionately on youth of color - the Building Blocks for Youth initiative's goals are to: 1) Reduce overrepresentation and disparate treatment of youth of color in the justice system; and 2) Promote fair, rational and effective juvenile justice policies.
The initiative's partners include the Youth Law Center, American Bar Association Juvenile Justice Center, Juvenile Law Center, Justice Policy Institute, Minorities in Law Enforcement, National Council on Crime and Delinquency, and Pretrial Services Resource Center.
The Building Blocks for Youth initiative is supported by grants from the Annie E. Casey, Ford, William T. Grant, Jeht, Walter Johnson, MacArthur, Mott, and Rockefeller foundations, and Open Society Institute.
Research
The Building Blocks for Youth initiative conducts new research on the disparate
impact of the justice system on youth of color, particularly with respect to transfer of
youth to adult criminal court and the over-incarceration of youth of color in secure
facilities, including those operated by for-profit corporations. To date, the initiative's
research includes the following reports on these topics:
Over-incarceration of youth of color:
And Justice For Some: Differential Treatment of Minority Youth in the Justice System, prepared by the National Council on Crime and Delinquency (NCCD), is the most complete and up-to-date collection of state and federal data on arrest, referral, detention, case processing, waiver to adult court, and incarceration, building a comprehensive view of the treatment of youth of color in the justice system. Among the key findings, the report shows that youth of color are overrepresented and receive disparate treatment at every stage of the juvenile justice system.
A Tale of Two Jurisdictions: Youth Crime and Detention Rates in Maryland and the District of Columbia finds that the District of Columbia had a much sharper drop in violent youth crime rates than the state of Maryland in the 1990's, even though Maryland's use of pretrial juvenile detention increased and the District's use of detention dropped substantially. The comparison of the District and Maryland suggests that cities and states can reduce locked detention without jeopardizing public safety. During the 1990's, the District sharply reduced its juvenile detention rate by 71 percent, while Maryland's detention rate rose 3 percent. During that same time, D.C.'s violent juvenile crime rate declined by 55 percent, more than three times Maryland's 15 percent decline in violent juvenile crime.
Criminalization of youth/Transfer of youth to the adult court:
The Color of Justice: An Analysis of Juvenile Adult Court Transfers in California, prepared by the Justice Policy Institute, is the first analysis of racial and ethnic disparity in the transfer of youths to adult court and sentencing to California Youth Authority facilities in California. This study reveals that youth of color are 8.3 times more likely than white youth to be sentenced by an adult court to imprisonment in a California
Youth Authority facility.
Youth Crime/Adult Time: Is Justice Served? reveals disturbing aspects in the transfer of youth, especially youth of color, to the adult criminal court. Prepared by the Pretrial Services Resource Center, the findings show over-representation and disparate treatment of youth of color, and raise serious questions about the fairness and appropriateness of prosecuting youth in the adult criminal system.
Drugs and Disparity, a report prepared by the Justice Policy Institute for the Building Blocks for Youth initiative, finds that of the 393 youth automatically transferred to adult court in Cook County, IL during 1999-2000, over 99% were African-American or Latino, and 99% of the youth imprisoned for a drug crime from Cook County were youth of color.
Latino youth in the justice system:
¿Dónde Está la Justicia? A Call to Action on behalf of Latino and Latina Youth in the U.S. Justice System A comprehensive new report reveals that Latino and Latina youth are over-represented in the U.S. justice system, and receive harsher treatment than White youth for the same types of offenses, while the lack of adequate data nationwide masks the severity of the problem. The report was commissioned by the Building Blocks for Youth initiative, a national campaign to reduce racial disparities in the justice system and promote fair and effective justice policies, and prepared by Francisco Villarruel and Nancy Walker of Michigan State University's Institute for Children, Youth, and Families.
Criminalization of youth in the media & public opinion:
Off Balance: Youth, Race, and Crime in the News finds that news media unduly connects youth to crime and violence and that youth of color are overrepresented as perpetrators and underrepresented as victims of crime. Prepared by the Justice Policy Institute and the Berkeley Media Studies Group for the Building Blocks for Youth initiative, the study is an examination of over 70 content analyses of newspaper and television crime coverage.
Zero Tolerance:
Unintended Consequences: The Impact of Zero Tolerance and other Exclusionary Policies on Kentucky Students found that African American youth are suspended two to seven times as frequently as white students for "board violations" such as "defiance of authority" or other class disturbances. The report found that there were 68,000 suspensions for school board violations in the 2000/01 school year alone. African- American students were also suspended two to 17 times as frequently as white students, depending on the school district, for "law violations" such as possession of drugs.
Advocating for Youth of Color
The Building Blocks for Youth initiative is providing direct advocacy on behalf of youth
of color, especially regarding conditions of confinement in juvenile and adult facilities
and access to counsel and adequacy of representation in juvenile court by:
- Protecting youth of color and other youth from dangerous and illegal conditions of confinement, particularly in adult jails and prisons and in juvenile facilities with very high percentages of youth of color;
- Improving access to counsel and quality of representation of youth in juvenile court, based in part on findings of the national report, A Call for Justice. The Youth Law Center is working with the American Bar Association Juvenile Justice Center, an initiative partner;
- Exploring other areas across the country in which there may be disparate impact on youth of color, such as curfew enforcement and suspensions and expulsions from school.
Building Constituencies for Change
The Building Blocks for Youth initiative is working with a variety of organizations at the national, state and local level to develop focused constituencies for justice system reform. The effort involves outreach to civic, neighborhood, civil rights, religious, business, legal, medical, mental health, social work, child welfare, law enforcement, judicial, victims, corrections, women's, and media organizations.
The Building Blocks for Youth initiative has worked with state and local juvenile justice advocates on a number of youth justice campaigns, including efforts in Maryland, Louisiana, Georgia, South Dakota, California, New York, Illinois, Kentucky, Massachusetts, and the District of Columbia to close down large juvenile institutions; redirect funding to communities; end zero tolerance policies; stop the transfer of youth to the adult criminal justice system; and to increase youth, parent and community involvement in all aspects of decision making on juvenile justice.
To connect with juvenile justice advocacy groups in your state, visit: http://www.buildingblocksforyouth.org/statebystate/
Communications
The Building Blocks for Youth initiative is developing communications strategies for
providing up-to-date, accurate and useful information to constituent organizations,
policymakers and the public. To develop the most effective organizing messages and
insure that constituencies are well-informed on the issues, the initiative commissioned
public opinion research and monitors new reports and information.
Products and Services
Reports
The Building Blocks for Youth initiative's reports are available at no cost on-line at: http://www.buildingblocksforyouth.org. Reports can be purchased by filling out a report order form available at: http://www.buildingblocksforyouth.org/orderform.html or by contacting 202/637-0377.
Summaries of Key Studies
The Building Blocks for Youth initiative has produced summaries of key studies on juvenile justice issues, such as the overrepresentation of youth of color in the juvenile justice system, the transfer of youth to the adult court, and mental health services for youth in the juvenile justice system. Summaries are available at no cost on-line at: http://www.buildingblocksforyouth.org/facts.html.
Fact Sheets
The Building Blocks for Youth initiative has produced a series of basic fact sheets on the juvenile justice system which are available at no charge on the initiative's website at: http://www.buildingblocksforyouth.org/facts.html:
- Latino Youth in the Juvenile Justice System
- Transfer of Youth to the Adult Criminal Justice System
- The Problem of Overrepresentation of Youth of Color in the Justice System
- The Trend to "Get Tough" on Young Offenders
- Facts and Myths about Juvenile Crime and Young Offenders
- The Federal Disproportionate Minority Confinement Mandate
- Punitive Policies Hit Youth of Color the Hardest
- Youth Are Often Held In Crowded And Dangerous Facilities
- Dangers of Incarcerating Youth with Adult Inmates
- Rehabilitation and Treatment Programs that Work
- Prevention Programs that Work
- The Privatization of Juvenile Corrections Facilities
- The Juvenile Court: One Hundred Years in the Making
Advocacy Materials
The Building Blocks for Youth initiative has produced a series of action packets and advocacy materials for national and local youth justice campaigns available at no cost by contacting the initiative, such as:
- Action Packet: ¿Dónde Está la Justicia? A Call to Action on Behalf of the Latino and Latina Youth in the U.S Justice System;
- Outreach Brochure & Poster: ¿Dónde Está la Justicia? A Call to Action on Behalf of the Latino and Latina Youth in the U.S Justice System (English and Spanish versions);
- Action Packet: No Justice: Native American Youth in the Juvenile Justice System;
- Outreach & Community Educational Film: 13 minute video "Out of Control" about conditions of confinement at the South Dakota State Training School;
- Media Kit: Public Opinion on Youth, Crime and Race: A Guide for Advocates provides public opinion research findings on youth and juvenile crime such as the public is less fearful about crime in the past but believes that juvenile crime is increasing.
Press releases, media coverage and opinion editorials
To obtain the latest Building Blocks for Youth press releases, media coverage of Building Blocks for Youth reports and initiative partners, and opinion editorials written by initiative partners, visit the Building Blocks for Youth website at: http://www.buildingblocksforyouth.org/newsroom.html.
Contact information
For additional information about the Building Blocks for Youth initiative, contact:
Building Blocks for Youth initiative
Youth Law Center
1010 Vermont Avenue, N.W., Suite 310
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: 202 637-0377
Fax: 202 379-1600
Email: info.bby@erols.com
Website: http://www.buildingblocksforyouth.org
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Building Blocks for Youth
For a fair and effective youth justice system
...a comprehensive effort to protect minority youth in the justice system
and to promote rational and effective juvenile justice policies...
