[ [link removed] ]Ayanna Pressley for Congress

Black girls
deserve to be themselves.

They deserve to laugh loudly and be bold, to shine their Black Girl Magic
on the playground. They deserve to wear their braids or locs with pride,
to dream big, and to be full of joy.

Instead, our babies are seen as adults and treated as such. They’re
disciplined like adults, receiving harsher punishments just for being who
they are. They’re internalizing oppression before they’ve learned to read
or write.

Since my time on the Boston City Council, I’ve sought to protect the
wellness of Black and brown girls in schools. I’ve heard many deeply
personal stories that all had an overall message: years of being
stereotyped, silenced, and shamed led to feelings of unworthiness.

I carried their stories with me from the Boston City Council to Congress.
One of the first bills I introduced early on was the Ending PUSHOUT ACT,
to disrupt the school-to-confinement pathway by investing in safe and
nurturing school environments for all students, especially girls of color.

A new report I requested from the Government Accountability Office
confirmed much of what we already knew — and the need for this legislation
— but the data was particularly damning. This groundbreaking report showed
that despite making up only 15% of all girls in public schools, Black
girls received nearly half of all suspensions and expulsions in the 2017
to 18 school year. Nationally, Black girls are disciplined more than three
times the rate of white girls, and the numbers are even worse for Black
girls with disabilities and Black girls who are members of the LGBTQ+
community.

[ [link removed] ]As Republicans in school districts nationwide promote policies that
target and further marginalize our most vulnerable students, my Ending
PUSHOUT Act is what we need in this moment, and Congress must act. This is
a systemic crisis. It is essential, and our Black girls deserve it. Please
add your name here to signal your support for this legislation.

Add your name

School should not be a place where children are criminalized or subjected
to this trauma. But instead of being in the classroom, too many children
are being denied an education, denied the chance to thrive. Instead of
learning, they’re disciplined and pushed out of school and onto a pathway
to confinement.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. The Ending PUSHOUT Act calls out the
harmful ways in which students are criminalized and overpoliced at school
and invests in safe and nurturing school environments for all students,
especially girls of color.

The policies and unfair practices that disproportionately push girls of
color out of schools stem from deeply entrenched biases. We need bold,
community-based solutions to correct this trend. Now is the time to
support relationship-building, mental health support, and restorative
interventions, as opposed to unfair and exclusionary discipline.

[ [link removed] ]Our girls deserve their childhood. We must take action and disrupt the
cycles of trauma that keep them from reaching their full potential. Add
your name today to help me fight for their right to learn and thrive.

Onward,
Ayanna





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