Pushout: The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools

Documentary Film, 2019, Unrated; Book, 2016

Premise - A feature-length documentary, as well as a book, on the criminalization of black girls in schools, and how by pushing black girls out of the school system through punitive measures such as suspension or expulsion, they are being pushed into the streets, continuing cycles of violence and criminality. The documentary and book intersperses several personal anecdotes from young people alongside academic testimony.

Review - I was so lucky to be able to go to a free screening of this documentary! I went for a work event, and unfortunately I was the only one in my office able to go. Though, as it turns out, that may have been for the better because this screening was incredibly crowded. The ticket prioritization went to young girls of color, and I saw several in the audience. One particular teenage black girl was very adamant about wanting to leave, and the person accompanying her (Sister? Friend?) begged her to stay, saying "You need to see this. It'll be good for you." By the ending, the resistant teenager was giving her friend a huge hug and I was so glad she stayed. She was shouting "YES" at the screen throughout the whole thing. She felt seen. She felt understood. (Didn't mean to eavesdrop, she just happened to be sitting right in front of me).

Moreover, there was an excellent panel of local community black women and girls who answered questions and spoke of their own experiences. The purpose of the panel was really to show that the anecdotes chosen for the documentary were not extreme or rare - they represented young black girls everywhere, even in present day.

The anecdote that really struck me the most was of a young girl who, at age 7, was bullied so much by her white teacher that she considered attempting suicide. At freakin' seven. She was twelve at the time of the interview. What's also striking is that, when some adults found her and called the cops, the cops asked who she was and they said, "African American girl, around TWELVE." This relates to another theme of the documentary which was that Black girls are so often thought to be older than they actually are. Often times they enter puberty earlier, and are therefore sexualized at an earlier age or thought of as caregivers at an earlier age. And with that, they are treated and thereby punished as adults rather than children. Even though they may physically mature faster, developmentally they are the same age as their white peers and should still be treated as children.

Behind the whole documentary was the point that Black girls are not nearly as much a part of the conversations about racism or sexism alone and this worsens their marginalization. Special attention and recognition needs to be given to these children. Most of the ideas and themes in the documentary weren't new to me - I've done my fair bit of thinking about these issues. But there was so much value out of organizing, summarizing, and presenting these thoughts in a way that really drives the issues home. And there were points made that I had never even thought of. Moreover, the personal anecdotes were so far beyond my own experiences that they were incredible to listen to.

I thought the documentary was extraordinarily well done. Well-edited, well-paced, with catchy music and great statistics and quotes.

EDIT 2021: As a follow-up, I finally read the original text associated with the documentary, a book published in 2016. Though I had intended on reading it ever since I saw the film, what really prompted me to finally get around to it was an academic paper in my graduate coursework. We were asked to write a final social justice paper on any topic we wanted - anything under the sun. And I could not get this documentary out of my head, so I wrote my final paper on exclusionary discipline for Black girls in public schools. I could literally post my entire final paper here as my commentary, which I won't do, but clearly my impression was favorable. Essential reading for those working in schools. And it got me an A. (88/100)

Quote - "Why would a teacher be afraid of a child?"

What to watch for - I was really lucky to see that panel of women and girls afterwards. As much as I really loved hearing from the academics, I thought what was most emotional to watch were the anecdotes from the young people interviewed for the film.

If you liked this book/documentary, I'd recommend The Hate U Give!

Written by Monique Morris

Published by The New Press

Directed by Jacoba Atlas

Made by A Woman In the Room Productions