via Wikimedia
Black kids aren’t safe, and these numbers explain why. Over the last few years, tens of thousands of kids under the age of ten have had an experience no child deserves. They’ve been arrested, and for our community, these numbers are especially worrisome.
The relationship between kids and the justice system is pretty disturbing.
From 2013 to 2018, at least 30,467 children under the age of 10 were arrested in the U.S. For kids between the ages of 10 and 12, it’s even worse, with 266,321 arrested.
ABC reports: “In the United States, 34 states have no minimum age for delinquency... while most of the rest have set the age at 10” and “24 states have no minimum age to transfer juvenile cases to adult criminal court.”
This is a major concern for us. A study carried out by the civil rights division of the U.S. Department of Education shows Black kids are much more likely to be suspended from school. Add that to the fact Black kids are less likely to be seen as innocent - or even as children!
We know what can happen. Tamir Rice, Aiyana Stanley Jones, and Trayvon Martin are just a few examples of the police’s willingness to criminalize Black youth. It’s an issue we have to face to make a needed change - and protect our children.