A coalition of organizations led by youth of color, including the Youth Justice Coalition and other members of the Dignity in Schools Campaign, have launched "You Can't Build Peace With a Piece" a national youth-led campaign to call for positive approaches in response to gun violence and address the impact of school safety policies on youth of color in the aftermath of the tragic shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT. The coalition has created a Facebook Group to spread the word, share content, and resources, to collaborate on a series of events throughout February, March, and April.

In the weeks following the tragic events in Newtown, Connecticut, a number of advocates, including members of Congress and the National Rifle Association, have called for armed guards and/or police officers in public schools. As Vice President Joe Biden’s task force on gun violence develops policy recommendations in response to the attack and gun violence more generally, a coalition of youth, parents, education advocates, civil rights organizations, and law enforcement are cautioning the White House against embracing proposals to put armed guards and police in schools.

In a recent opinion piece for the New York Times, op-ed columnist David Brooks made an assertion that was as controversial as it was interesting. Mr. Brooks maintained that if Shakespeare’s “rambunctious” character Henry V had attended a modern-day American school, he would most likely not have lived up to the school’s standards.  Mr. Brooks predicted that Henry would not only miss a lot of recess time as punishment for his misdeeds, but also most likely be suspended, and that teachers would probably suggest to the prince’s parent that Henry be put on ADHD meds.

Power U Center for Social Change, a Miami-based community organization and member of the Dignity in Schools Campaign, together with the Advancement Project produced and released this video documenting the school discipline crisis in the State of Florida. The video is intended to serve as a conversation starter in the effort to dismantle the School-to-Prison Pipeline, push for common sense discipline and ensure that every student receives a high quality education. Please take a few minutes to view it and share it!

By Youth Justice Coalition & Rise Up L.A. 12/13/2011

At 9:00 am on Tuesday December 13, 2011, Day 1 of the Freedom Factory, youth who have grown up in the communities of South Central Los Angeles, Watts, Inglewood and Compton liberated the L.A. City Library's Hyde Park branch on Crenshaw Blvd. and 66th Street. The action was sponsored by the Youth Justice Coalition and Rise Up L.A.

Located in the middle of one of L.A. County's poorest and least resourced areas, the library has been padlocked since 2004.  The goal for the action was to open the building for 4 days of community programming, and to demonstrate the benefit of youth and community centers.  (L.A. County invests less in youth development than any other large city in the nation.)  A planned schedule of activities included 3 meals a day, political education workshops, art and mural making, sports and theater classes, films and information on jobs and other community resources - all free for anyone in the community.   .

Since first committing to revise its policy in April, and after months of meetings with members of DSC-Los Angeles who worked for years to decriminalize student truancy, the Los Angeles School Police Department (LASPD) announced that it would actively work to reduce the frequency with which school police officers give out $250 "truancy tickets" to students who are late to school.  LASPD has also effectively put an end to “curfew sweeps” in which students are ticketed right outside, or even in some cases inside, school grounds.

In the past, I have written about attempts to criminalize youth of color by outlawing sagging pants and have connected this to the way that prison clothing is used as a marker of criminality.

A few weeks ago I wrote briefly about Victor Rios’ new book “Punished: Policing the Lives of Black and Latino Boys.” In the book, Rios coins the term “youth control complex” which is defined as “a system in which schools, police, probation officers, families, community centers, the media, businesses, and other institutions systemically treat young people’s everyday behaviors as criminal activity.” The “war on sagging pants” is a perfect illustration of this “youth control complex” in action.