School To Prison Pipeline Essay

The school-to-prison pipeline is the idea that schools funnel students into the prison system. This theory is narrow-minded and ignores how the government benefits from the surveillance of African Americans. With the imagery of a pipe, this complex issue is reduced to the single-minded idea that schools force people of color, most notably African Americans, and does not discuss the evolution of the larger society. The way society has evolved to discriminate against African Americans at the institutional level is a key factor in the increased incarceration rates. The school-to-prison pipeline is an outdated and prejudiced model that does not fully explain the situation many African Americans face. Starting from the period of slavery, African

Various people would petition the government for money on the basis that is was to help an area with gang activity. Between the money going to the petitioner or funding surface level fixes to a deeply rooted problem, these areas did not see change. It is falsely believed that making cosmetic changes or providing more community involvement programs will help the African American community. The social programs are directed at the youths of the communities, with the intention of preventing the gangs from growing. Many of these social programs are then established in the school system. Schools are provided with more social workers which surveil the students instead of helping them. Through the children, the social workers then have access to the parents. By surveilling the students, movements that would emulate the Black Panther Party would be halted before they began. Keeping African Americans trapped and under surveillance continuously proliferates the status quo. This is to retain the social hierarchies that have long since been established. Therefore, it is more beneficial for the government to keep African Americans in the school system and not funnel them into the prison system as the school-to-prison pipeline