Over the last decade, successful reforms within the juvenile justice system have reduced the number of incarcerated youth by half. However, the incarceration of girls nationally is falling at a slower rate than that of boys because of a lack of systematic focus on reducing girls’ confinement. Today, girls in the juvenile justice system are still being swept into custody for low-level offenses that pose no risk to public safety.
The Getting to Zero: Shutting Down Girls’ Pathways into Incarceration speaker series will feature local and national experts discussing common paths that lead girls and transgender/ gender-nonconforming (GNC) youth into the juvenile justice system—including arrest while involved in the child welfare system, family conflict or violence, and school discipline. Each speaker series event will coincide with meetings of Vera’s multi-agency Task Force on Ending Girls’ Incarceration in New York City.
