In the United States, Black women have long experienced disparities in health and healthcare that continue to persist today. Black women not only generally have shorter life expectancies, higher maternal mortality rates, and higher prevalence of health conditions such as heart disease, stroke, obesity, diabetes, anemia, and stress compared to non-Hispanic white and Latinx women, but they are also disproportionately incarcerated. Incarceration has been shown to be a social determinant of health and an underlying cause of the persistent inequities in overall health, reproductive health, and men ..read more

California annually releases more women from prisons and jails than any other state. Women represent 20% of the total share of annual releases from the state’s prisons and local jails, and from 2009 to 2019, 1 in 4 people released from California prisons were Black. When people are released from incarceration, community reentry centers or reentry programs are meant to help people successfully “reenter” society and reduce the risk of returning to jail or prison through support services such as assistance in finding and maintaining employment and housing. However, most of these reentry services ..read more

The National Black Women’s Justice Institute released the following statement from Executive Director Dr. Sydney McKinney responding to Blendon Township (Ohio) police shooting and killing 21-year-old Black woman Ta’Kiya Young: The police shooting and killing of 21-year-old Ta’Kiya Young is appalling. We are once again faced with the consequences of overzealous policing and unnecessary police violence that all too frequently take the life of Black women. This should have never happened, and Ta’Kiya should be with us today. Instead, children lost their mother, a family lost a daughter and grandd ..read more

Eight years ago this month, Sandra Bland was pulled over by state police for failing to signal a lane change. After a few exchanges between Bland and state trooper Brian T. Encinia, which Bland herself recorded on her phone, the encounter escalated, and Encinia ultimately arrested Bland. Three days later, Bland was found dead in her Texas jail cell. What happened? How do we go from a simple traffic stop for failing to signal a lane change to the loss of someone's life? The consequences of “simple” police stops are anything but simple. We know that what many consider “routine, everyday” traffi ..read more

Every June, we celebrate Pride month alongside our LGBTQ family, friends, and allies. But as more bans and anti-LGBTQ laws and policies are passed, we are also reminded of the disproportionate impact that many government systems—including the foster care, juvenile legal, and criminal legal systems—have had on lesbian, bisexual, trans, and queer (LBTQ) girls and women of color, especially Black women and girls, for years. Black LBTQ women and girls are at greater risk for victimization, criminalization, & punishment. Black LBTQ Women, Girls, & Gender Nonconforming People Disproportiona ..read more

Today the National Black Women’s Justice Institute celebrates the emancipation of Black people in the United States. Without a doubt, we are our ancestors’ wildest dreams. But the work is not done. We must continue our struggle for liberation by dismantling the social, political, and economic constraints that deny us access to safety and wellbeing. NBWJI is steadfast in our commitment to the liberation of Black people in the United States, especially Black women and girls who are directly impacted by the criminal and juvenile legal systems. The systemic criminalization and punishment of Black ..read more

,Marissa Alexander. ,Erica Sheppard. Bresha Meadows. ,Tondalao Hall. ,Kerry King. Tracy McCarter. The list of Black women and girls who have been victimized by gender-based violence and then criminalized is far too long. Gender-based violence—including domestic violence—impacts an astonishing number of Black women. More than ,2 in 5 Black women have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime. Approximately ,1 in 5 Black women have experienced rape at some point in their lives. Black women are ,2 times more likely to be fatally shot by an in ..read more

With school now back in full swing, it’s important to remember that, although schools should be safe and protective places for all students, schools are often hostile and harmful spaces for Black girls. School is where Black girls experience gender-based violence: 8 in 10 students report having been sexually harassed at school at least once. And in school and out of school, Black girls are more likely to report experiencing sexual harassment than any other group: 67% of Black girls report having been “touched, grabbed, or pinched in a sexual way” by someone in school. 50% of Black girls repo ..read more

Today's Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade is upsetting, infuriating, dangerous, and wrong. We adamantly disagree with this decision that effectively eliminates women’s and girls’ control over their own bodies and increases the risk of women—especially Black women—being criminalized. Even before this decision, women have been criminalized for ,miscarrying and ,self-inducing abortions. Since 1973, more than ,1,200 women have been arrested based on pregnancy outcomes. Without Roe, it’s estimated that ,half of U.S. women are losing access to abortion. ,Twenty states have “trigger” law ..read more

For Black girls, schools are often places where their physical, psychological, and emotional safety and wellbeing are under assault. Compared to white students, Black girls are more likely to be punished in school for subjective behaviors, including hairstyles and dress. Black girls are ,more likely to report their schools are less caring and more unequal than their white peers. Black girls of all ages, from pre-K to high school, are ,more likely to experience informal and formal ,discipline in schools, including suspensions, expulsions, and arrests on campus. This type of school treatment ..read more