Articles

The Washington Informer Hope for D.C. Public Schools By Tom Blagburn Thursday, 09 October 2008

Having spent considerable time in D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) grappling with administration, teacher, student and family problems very few people want to even remotely address, it seems somewhat strange that our city hasn't confronted the core issues so vital to D.C. Public School reform.

A BLACK DC MAN DOESN'T LIVE AS LONG AS A MAN IN INDIA

Time - On average, a black man living in Washington, D.C., does not live as long as a man in India, and he certainly doesn't live as long as a white man in his hometown. The reasons - just like the reasons that the Japanese and Swedes live longer than the Ukrainians, and why aborigines in Australia on average die 17 years earlier than non-aborigines - are almost entirely social, according to a new report from the World Health Organization.

DeMorning DeBonis: July 13, 2010

FEWER STICKS, MORE CARROTS -- At Poverty & Policy, Kathryn Baer rails against David Catania's proposal to punish parents for their children's truancy. "[T]he proposal is grounded in the notion that a large number of parents just shrug their shoulders when they're told their kids didn't show up for classes. If we wield a big enough stick, they'll act on the problem. What, I wonder, are poor parents supposed to do. Even if they've got the time and wherewithal for transportation to take their kids to school, what can they do to make sure they'll stay there? If they tell their kids how important it is to get an education, will those given to truancy listen? Catania's plan won't just punish parents for behavior they probably can't control. It will punish all the children in the family."

Legal Scholar Michelle Alexander on “The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness”
March 11, 2010

Legal Scholar Michelle Alexander on “The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness”
A new book by legal scholar and civil rights advocate Michelle Alexander argues that although Jim Crow laws have been eliminated, the racial caste system it set up was not eradicated. It’s simply been redesigned, and now racial control functions through the criminal justice system. [includes rush transcript]

Guest:

This issue should be of great concern to District residents.

07-27-10
Author(s): Justice Policy Institute
Topic(s): Adult Corrections, Public Safety, Racial Disparity, Washington D.C.

Communities of color and low-income communities disproportionately affected by the justice system in the nation’s capitol

New report says D.C. has greatest income inequality of any major city in the country, suffering from major economic and racial disparities that contribute to high rates of justice-involvement.