Tafari Melisizwe 11/6/23 Tafari Melisizwe 11/6/23

DSC Week of Action Demands and End to Corporal Punishment Recap

This year’s Dignity in Schools (DSC) 14th Annual Week of Action during the week of October 14th to 22nd, took place in Jackson, Mississippi - home of the blues and key to Civil Rights pasts and now home of the state leading the way in corporal punishment cases in schools across the country. With the theme of “Educate, Liberate, Elevate” all eyes were on Mississippi on October 19th as DSC’s members, stakeholders, and allies gathered for the day of action which included attending the Mississippi State Board of Education meeting followed by a press conference and rally at the State Capitol. About 40 - 50 Black and brown people filled the 4th floor halls of the Mississippi Education building revved up and ready to make our voices known and heard. It was our time to remind Mississippi legislators that violence in our schools, corporal punishment and abuse, and over policing of Black and brown young people would not be stood for. We were ready to amplify our voices and the voices of young people but yet instead of being treated like people of the community who reserved a right to also be in that space, we were quickly rushed out and told there were no seats and room for us there. No public comment would be allowed. Not only did we have police called on us with absolutely no cause but we were also escorted out by the Black female and Black male officer sent to appease us.

We resisted this abuse of power for as long as we could and after making our presence known, we made our way over to the capitol - where we’d also be met with police presence. The irony here being that there was a group of white teens and young adults there carrying out a protest for environmental justice and there were no police present for their demonstration. The message was clear; white young adults don’t pose a threat – Black ones do. After being denied entry, young people channeled their power and voices while recording videos giving their public comments that were not accepted. This was our day and time to make it known that we were aware of the abuse and violence towards students in schools and to let them know they were being put on notice. Even though they thought they got rid of us and pushed us out, we made our presence known and it was clear that this would not be business as usual. Beating Black children in school is not business as usual. Continuing cycles of violence is not business as usual. Forcing Black and brown children to decide between getting paddled or suspended is not business as usual. You can not beat children into submission nor into behaving well.

The Mississippi Coalition To End Corporal Punishment, convened by organizer Ellen Reddy, is clear that we are the public, the State Board Education meeting is a public meeting, and it’s their duty to listen to our demands and concerns and then take action for us and we will continually show up in those spaces for our communities. During the press conference, The Mississippi Coalition to End Corporal Punishment, alongside DSC National staff and members, spoke to the mental health and behavioral impacts corporal punishment has on young people and also discussed how much it disproportionately harms Black girls with them being 73% more likely to be beat in schools than their white peers while only making up 16% of girls in the public school system. We called for and are still calling for legislators to ban violence in schools and outlaw corporal punishment and disrupt the school to prison pipeline by instead providing schools with equitable resources, peacekeepers, guidance counselors, and culturally responsive curriculum.

Corporal punishment is inextricably connected to the legacy of chattel slavery in America with specific connections to the South so it’s not a coincidence that the South remains the site for most states who have yet to outlaw corporal punishment in schools. During the enslavement of Black folks in America, corporal punishment was used to control, humiliate, and show dominance over them. Children do not need to be subjugated. Violence does not work. It does not heal people, it does not cause people to learn from misbehaviors. It damages children and increases aggression within them, tears away at their self esteem, and causes stark mental health issues like depression. Schools should be places of health, safety, equity, and transformative healing. There are so many other ways to redirect young people's behaviors other than harming their physical and mental beings.

We do this work so that Black and brown babies and young people get to experience a new world; a world where they are free from generational trauma caused by American chattel slavery, race and gender bias, and violence. We do this work because Black and brown babies and young people deserve schools that are sites of healing, transformative justice, and are supportive not punitive and rooted in shame and harm.

By: Toni A. Wilson, MSW

Tafari Melisizwe 5/28/19 Tafari Melisizwe 5/28/19

Blog Post Title One

It all begins with an idea.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.

Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.