Pushout: The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools

(Hardback, First Trade Paper Edition)

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NOW IN PAPERBACK The "powerful" (Michelle Alexander) explorationfeatured by the Atlantic, Essence, the Washington Post, New York magazine, NPR, the New Republic and the Tom Joyner Morning Showof the harsh and harmful experiences confronting black girls in schools

In a work that has rapidly become "imperative reading" (Lisa Delpit) on education, gender, and juvenile justice, Monique W. Morris (Black Stats, Too Beautiful for Words) chronicles the experiences of Black girls across the country whose intricate lives are misunderstood, highly judgedby teachers, administrators, and the justice systemand degraded by the very institutions charged with helping them flourish. Equally "compelling" and "thought-provoking" (Kirkus Reviews), Pushout exposes a world of confined potential and supports the rising movement to challenge the policies, practices, and cultural illiteracy that push countless students out of school and into unhealthy, unstable, and often unsafe futures.
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Reviews

Praise for Pushout:
"Pushout is for everyone who cares about children, especially teachers, school administrators and policymakers, whose decisions - big and small - shape how black girls learn and live."
Washington Post

The personal stories at the heart of the authors discussion create a compelling study that puts a human face on both suffering and statisticsMorris book offers both educators and those interested in social justice issues an excellent starting point for much-needed change. A powerful and thought-provoking book of social science.
Kirkus

Morriss work, buttressed by appalling statistics and scholarly studies, is supplemented by two useful appendicesand a list of community resources.
Publishers Weekly

A thoughtful appendix offers numerous questions and answers for girls and young women, parents, the community, and educators. Timely and important.
Booklist

"A powerful indictment of the cultural beliefs, policies, and practices that criminalize and dehumanize Black girls in America, coupled with thoughtful analysis and critique of the justice work that must be done at the intersection of race and gender."
Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow

"If you ever doubted that Supremacy Crimesthose devoted to maintaining hierarchyare rooted in both sex and race, read Pushout. Monique Morris tells us exactly how schools are crushing the spirit and talent that this country needs."
Gloria Steinem

"This book is imperative reading, not only for educators and those in the justice system butperhaps especiallyfor anyone who loves and sleeps down the hall from a young, developing African American woman."
Lisa Delpit, author of Multiplication Is for White People and Other Peoples Children

"A dynamic call to action. Black girls exposure to being pushed out of school and set on paths to incarceration, physical and economic insecurity, and social marginality is so movingly set forth by Morris that it can no longer be ignored. Pushout is essential reading for all who believe that Black lives matter."
Kimberl Crenshaw, co-editor of Critical Race Theory and co-author of the reports Say Her Name and Black Girls Matter

"At a moment when footage of institutional assaults on young Black men emerges with a horrifying regularity comes a timely and indispensable look at the often invisible oppression of girls of color. Pushout blazes with the voices of young women fighting for their dignity, safety, and the fundamental right to a future."
Nell Bernstein, author of Burning Down the House and All Alone in the World

"Despite increased attention to the mass and over-incarceration of Black men, the plight of criminalized Black women and girls is overlooked, underreported, and underanalyzed. Finally, a compelling narrative that tells us the heartrending story of how schools are culpable in re-victimizing some of our most vulnerable citizens. This is a must-read for educators, juvenile justice officials, parents, and the entire community."
Gloria Ladson-Billings, Kellner Family Distinguished Chair in Urban Education, University of WisconsinMadison

"Morriss sharp analysis and the compassionate way she contextualizes these stories will surely compel readers to take action against the injustices that Black girls experience in schools and beyond."
Beth E. Richie, author of Arrested Justice

Praise for Monique Morris:
"Monique Morris is a fearless and brilliant intellectual. Her groundbreaking work illuminates the pernicious challenges at the intersection of race and gender for African American girls in our education and criminal justice systems, and speaks directly and powerfully into the current moment."
Sherrilyn Ifill, President of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and author of On the Courthouse Lawn

Praise for Black Stats:
Thank you Monique Morris for this gift of knowledge.
Susan L. Taylor, editor in chief emeritus of Essence magazine

"Black Stats has become my go-to source"
Patrick Henry Bass, Essence Magazine

"Morris carries forward the best of the Du Boisian social science and progressive tradition."
Khalil Gibran Muhammad, from the introduction to Black Stats

"Black Stats disallows for lingering inequalities to be camouflaged"
Utne

Author Bio

Monique W. Morris is the co-founder of the National Black Womens Justice Institute and writes a monthly column on black women and girls for Ebony.com. She is the author of Black Stats (The New Press) and lives in Oakland, CA with her husband and two daughters.