Growing Numbers of Latino and Native Youth in Juvenile Detention Buck Trend

A survey by the Annie E. Casey Foundation of youth justice agencies in 34 states finds that after falling sharply in the early months of the pandemic, the number of young people held in detention centers remained constant between May and August 2020. Even more concerning, the survey finds that the number of Latino and Native American youth in detention centers increased from May to August, reversing some of the gains made in the first months of the pandemic and worsening racial and ethnic disparities. While the overall number of young people in detention on August 1, 2020, was 32% below its pre-pandemic level, the population has barely fluctuated since May. The stagnation is happening amid worsening virus indicators in youth detention facilities this summer, leaving thousands of confined young people without access to opportunities or connections and increasingly vulnerable to the virus. #racialequity #juvenilejustice