Girls in Trouble With the Law (Rutgers Series in Childhood Studies)

In Girls in Trouble with the Law , sociologist Laurie Schaffner takes us inside juvenile detention centers and explores the worlds of the young women incarcerated within. Across the nation, girls of color are disproportionately represented in detention facilities, and many report having experienced physical harm and sexual assaults. For girls, the meaning of these and other factors such as the violence they experience remain undertheorized and below the radar of mainstream sociolegal scholarship. When gender is considered as an analytic category, Schaffner shows how gender is often seen through an outmoded lens. Offering a critical assessment of what she describes as a gender-insensitive juvenile legal system, Schaffner makes a compelling argument that current policies do not go far enough to empower disadvantaged girls so that communities can assist them in overcoming the social limitations and gender, sexual, and racial/ethnic discrimination that continue to plague young women growing up in contemporary United States. "In Girls in Trouble with the Law, sociologist Laurie Schaffner takes us inside female detention centers and explores the worlds of those who are incarcerated. Across the country, she finds that an overwhelming majority of the young women are from ethnic or racial minority groups, and most have experienced some form of sexual or physical assault. Focusing on the girls' experience of violence and the inequities of the juvenile corrections system, Schaffner explores three central questions. How have changing social norms of sexuality and emotional expression influenced adolescent girls' transgressions? What do authority, consent, and choice mean to young urban women in trouble? How do they experience and understand violent episodes in their lives?" "Offering a critical assessment of what she describes as a gender-archaic juvenile legal system, Schaffner makes a compelling argument that current policies do not go far enough to empower disadvantaged girls so that they can overcome the social limitations and gender, sexual, and racial/ethnic discrimination that continue to plague young women growing up in the contemporary United States. Book jacket."--BOOK JACKET Juvenile arrest rates in the United States have declined over the past decade, yet the percentage of girls in trouble with the law increased. Girls now enter the juvenile legal system for violent offenses in addition to minor violations for which previous generations of young women have always been detained. In Girls in Trouble with the Law, sociologist Laurie Schaffner takes us inside female detention centers and explores the worlds of those who are incarcerated. Across the country, she finds t Introduction: Girls Trouble The Law -- New Troubles For Girls -- Injury, Gender, And Trouble -- Empty Families, Sexuality, And Trouble -- Gender, Violence, And Trouble -- Children, Gender, And Corrections -- Conclusion: Pathways, Policies, Programs, And Politics. Laurie Schaffner. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 217-242) And Index. Focuses on the girls' experiences of violence and the inequities of the criminal justice system. Offering a critical assessment of what she describes as a gender-insensitive juvenile justice system, the author takes us inside female detention centers and explores the worlds of those who are incarcerated. Introduction: Girls trouble the law New troubles for girls Injury, gender, and trouble Empty families, sexuality, and trouble Gender, violence, and trouble Children, gender, and corrections Pathways, politics, policies, and programs.