Black Transgender Women and the School-to-Prison Pipeline: Exploring the Relationship Between Anti-trans Experiences in School and Adverse Criminal-Legal System Outcomes

Abstract

The school-to-prison pipeline (STPP), a framework which describes mechanisms and pathways within the education system that drive students toward involvement in the criminal-legal system, has seen increasing attention from youth researchers, professionals, and advocates in recent years. However, the experiences of transgender individuals and trans-related policies in schools have largely been absent from explorations of the STPP. To begin addressing this gap, this study explores the relationship between anti-trans experiences in school and adverse criminal-legal system outcomes among a sample of 138 Black/African American transgender women (ages 18–65). Data were derived from a life course survey of transgender women in Atlanta and Chicago conducted between August 2014 and September 2017. Only participants who were Black/African American were included in the analytic sample (n = 138). Bivariate and logistic regression analyses were conducted to explore the relationship between education factors (high school/GED completion, anti-trans school victimization, anti-trans school expulsion/denial of enrollment, and denial of gender-appropriate facilities) and criminal-legal system factors (incarceration, anti-trans police mistreatment, and discomfort seeking police assistance). Analyses were conducted for both the full sample and youth subsample of 83 participants (age 30 or younger). Among the overall sample, logistic regression models revealed that anti-trans school expulsion/denial of enrollment was associated with a greater odds of anti-trans mistreatment by police (p = .026, OR = 5.091). Denial of gender-appropriate facilities in school was also associated with anti-trans mistreatment by police (p = .034, OR = 3.873). Among the youth subsample, anti-trans victimization in school was associated with a greater odds of incarceration (p = .021, OR = 3.717). Anti-trans school expulsion/denial of enrollment was also associated with a greater odds of incarceration (p = .046, OR = 9.460). These associations suggest that anti-trans school experiences warrant consideration as factors in the school-to-prison pipeline. Future research that traces the pathways between anti-trans school environments and outcomes in the criminal-legal system would be valuable. Policy interventions that combat anti-trans school victimization and institutional discrimination may be critical to disrupting the STPP for Black/African American transgender women.