Gender, Justice, and Youth Development

Abstract

From the time the first US training school for girls was opened in 1856 to today, girls have been over-represented in the juvenile justice system for behaviors that stem from trauma, and the justice system has been used to promote a narrow and typical view of female gender-conforming behavior. This chapter examines the pathways girls and LGBTQ youth take into and through the juvenile justice system to show disparate impact on black girls, girls with child-welfare histories, girls who experience violence in their homes, girls with mental and behavioral health issues, and girls and LGBTQ youth who are victims of sex trafficking. In all these categories, best practices would reduce juvenile and criminal justice system involvement in favor of community-based, positive developmental solutions. Some of those more promising and evidence-based solutions are provided at the conclusion of the chapter.