According to the federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, from 1985 to 2007 the rate of serious crimes, such as murder, assault ,and robbery committed by girls has tripled from approximately 36,000 to over 121,000. This increase brings more young females into a system that was designed for males. Young female offenders are currently enrolled in correctional programs that do not recognize their special circumstances or needs. The Delaware Girls Initiative produced a video and training manual to educate social workers, judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, correctional counselors, juvenile justice reform advocates, and others about gender-specific issues that girls face in the system. Joni Silverstein, director of DGI, is offering the video and training manual to agencies and organizations involved in the criminal justice field.
The Delaware Girls Initiative started in 2005 as an advocacy group for at-risk girls. DGI operates under the Delaware Center for Justice, a non-profit organization that was involved in establishing the first half-way house in Delaware, as well as a separate correctional facility for women. Concerned that the voice of Delaware’s incarcerated girls was being ignored, DGI produced a video. You Can’t Just Paint It Pink. The title is taken from a comment by Denise Bray, who has been with the group since it first started. When speaking about gender-specific issues involving girls, Bray is known to state, “You can’t paint the walls pink and call it a girl’s program.” The video allows girls at a Delaware correctional to speak out about the issues they have, and what gender-specific changes can be made to best accommodate their needs. National juvenile justice consultant Paul Schaefer commended the program as a first. Schaefer contends that by going directly to the girls for their feedback, the girls become a part of transforming the system.
Recognizing that girls who suffer from abuse or trauma sometimes resort to criminal behavior, Bonnie Rose, of the National Council on Crime and Delinquency’s Center for Girls and Young Women, claims that girls are often victims. Referring to a 2006 Florida study of girls in the juvenile justice system, Rose reports that more than thirty percent of the girls had been pregnant or attempted suicide, and more than fifty percent had self-mutilated by burning, cutting or otherwise injuring themselves. According to Rose, girls are affected by trauma differently than boys, and thus need programs and treatment geared specifically to them.
The guiding principles of the Delaware Girls Initiative include, Challenge the status quo with passion and integrity. Positively impact public policy that sufficiently protects and provides for our daughters. By producing and distributing You Can’t Just Paint It Pink, and the accompanying training manual, DGI is doing just that.
Source: Mike Chalmers, USA Today
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