We Want to Do More Than Survive: Abolitionist Teaching and the Pursuit of Educational Freedom

by Bettina L. Love

Dark students being gritty, full of excitement and energy, reciting self-improvement statements, and displaying social and emotional intelligence does not stop them from being killed in the streets or spirit-murdered in the classroom; these are their odds. It does nothing for kids growing up poor, who experience the stresses and traumas of poverty. Research has shown that the stress of poverty and adversity alters brain functions. It is called “toxic stress.” Children who experience prolonged adversities—poverty, chronic neglect, the US government separating children from their parents, violence, physical or emotional abuse—suffer great impact on their ability to learn. Specifically, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, research has shown that children who experience high levels of toxic stress display impaired social and emotional understanding, along with learning disabilities and potential early death.13 Researchers believe that, because toxic stress creates neurobiological transformation in children, it should be seen and treated as a national health crisis.