The Human Rights Campaign Foundation released their 2023 School Discipline and School to Prison Pipeline Report as part of Project THRIVE. This report focuses on data from a survey of LGBTQ+ youth in 2022. The report finds that in-school suspension and expulsion increases the likelihood of incarceration by 128%, and specifically targets and disproportionately impacts students of color, youth living with disabilities, youth living in poverty, and LGBTQ+ students. The survey results find that bias plays a significant role in school disciplinary action, and overall, LGBTQ+ students were twice as likely to have experienced violence and harassment in schools while simultaneously being punished at significantly higher rates. Suspension and expulsion are a factor in increased mental health issues, and makes students less likely to seek higher education, it puts LGBTQ+ children at a huge disadvantage and perpetuates harm.
By Pasha Ceniceros, Policy Intern
