Journalist – Historian – Speaker
The Center for American Progress has put out an analysis of the role disability plays in suspensions. It confirms what we broadly know, but makes the data case strongly and usefully: Too many young children with disabilities and social or behavioral difficulties are currently living a version of Isaiah’s harrowing early learning experience. According to …
Finn Gardiner writes that “zero tolerance” policies disproportionately affect students of color, disabled students, and especially disabled students of color. Spurred by a violent altercation between a school resource officer and a Black student in 2015, South Carolina’s Department of Education introduced guidelines in the Safe Schools Taskforce Report in 2016 to reduce the likelihood …
I have a longform piece for Pacific Standard today. I’ve been working on it for about 6 weeks. Please read and share throughout your networks, if you are so inclined. TWs for abuse of children by authorities. “Why would a school cop in Florida throw a slender, autistic fourth-grade student to the ground? You might assume …
This will be used against students of color, disabled students, and especially disabled students of color. https://t.co/JcK9S3V1vv — David M. Perry (@Lollardfish) December 21, 2016 The State of Missouri has passed a new statute that will treat school fights as a felony. With credit to the journalist Sarah Kendzior (see the tweet above), here’s how …
Ryan Turk, then 14, gets free lunches at his Virginia school. One day, he forgot to grab milk, so went back to grab a 65 cent carton. The School Resource Officer assigned to the lunchroom accused of him of stealing and Turk, alas, did not instantly comply with the SROs orders. He might have talked …
The story of Kaylb Primm got a lot of attention last week. It’s yet another story of a non-white child being handcuffed (I’ve written about such cases regularly. See below for links) in school for behavioral reasons. The MO ACLU is suing. Rebecca Klein, from Huffington Post, wrote a widely shared story. Kaylb Wiley Primm …
Several stories around the same themes. A black child is abused by guards or police in schools. There’s almost always a disability context. 1. A lawsuit alleges a 6-year-old black child in Chicago with “special needs” was handcuffed under a stair for over an hour to “teach her a fucking lesson.” The security guard at …
Last week I was pleased to see the announcement of this new rule tracking ways in which racism and ableism intersect in our school system. From the National Council on Disability press release: The National Council on Disability (NCD) – an independent federal agency – applauds the new “Equity in IDEA” rule proposed by the …
Explosive new report of abuse from the Massachusetts Disability Law Center. UPDATE: You can see the whole report here. 1. The Cult of Compliance (from Boston Globe): The investigation uncovered a school culture in which aggressive discipline of students had become ingrained, Eichner said. Many students suffered injuries, including scratches and bruises, and one student was …
In Kentucky, from the NYT: The A.C.L.U. released what it called a “disturbing video” showing the boy, who it said weighs about 52 pounds, crying as the resource officer handcuffed his arms at the biceps behind his back. In the video, the officer tells the boy, “You don’t get to swing at me like that.”The …