Starting as early as preschool, students of color have a greater likelihood of being punished harsher and more frequently than their white peers. This has an immediate effect on a child's learning, confidence and self-esteem.
ACLU of Missouri's statewide report, From School to Prison: Missouri's Pipeline of Injustice, highlights the many disturbing trends of discipline in Missouri schools. Racial disparities in school discipline pervade nearly every punishment category in Missouri. Black students are five times more likely to be suspended than White students. This is greater than the already too-high national rate of 3.9 times more likely.
The filmmakers of "For Ahkeem" put a face to these troubling statistics, documenting the life of Daje Shelton, a young woman of color from North St. Louis, who fights for her future in an alternative school after being expelled from her high school. Throughout the film, we see firsthand the conditions that set our youth up to fail.
That's why the filmmakers of "For Ahkeem" and ACLU of Missouri are partnering up to elevate Daje's story to drive policy change. Across Missouri school districts and communities, screenings of "For Ahkeem" are being paired with discussions to educate people about Missouri's school-to-prison pipeline and help them make the future brighter for Missouri's children.
Too many of our children are being forced out of public schools and into the criminal justice system.