Pushout: The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools

by Monique W. Morris

While observing at Small Alternative High in California, I watched teachers skillfully engage girls who might have otherwise been dismissed as “throwing shade” or as having an “attitude problem” under other circumstances. In one instance, a girl let out a few sighs and then settled her head comfortably into her folded arms on the table, resting there for approximately five minutes. Finally a teacher walked past her and asked what was wrong. She lifted her head and shared details about being “tired and hungry.” The exchange between the student and her teacher was neither contentious nor judgmental.