National Black Women's Justice Institute

In celebration of Women’s History Month, the National Black Women’s Justice Institute is spotlighting the contributions of our Sisters In Solidarity (SiS) Reentry Network members. Their organizations make gender- and culturally-affirming trauma-informed reentry services accessible and equitable for Black women and girls. To learn more about Stacey Borden and Dr. Donna Hylton and how to support their organizations, read our blog “Women’s History: Celebrating Black women-led re-entry organizations that promote healing for Black women and girls.” https://lnkd.in/gBMkpvT6 #WomensHistoryMonth #BlackWomen #BlackGirls #YouthJustice #Reentry #SurvivorJustice? #EndSchoolPushout #NBWJI?

Black women are incarcerated 1.6 times the rate as white women, yet the number of reentry programs and services targeting Black women and girls does not match the current need. The National Black Women’s Justice Institute is committed to uplifting the work and contributions of Black feminist leaders who hold the criminal legal system accountable for the harm it inflicts on Black women and girls. In celebration of Women’s History Month, we invite you to listen to the personal stories and experiences of the Black women at the forefront of advocating for increasing the availability of gender- and culturally-affirming trauma-informed reentry services. Listen as Dr. Donna Hylton, President and CEO of A Little Piece of Light (ALPOL), and Stacey Borden, Founder & Executive Director of New Beginnings Re-Entry Services, discuss the importance of positive support networks and how the criminal legal system can help system- and trauma-impacted Black women heal. Watch now: https://lnkd.in/gtFJXWkX #WomensHistoryMonth #BlackWomen #BlackGirls #YouthJustice #Reentry #SurvivorJustice? #EndSchoolPushout #NBWJI

We are looking for a Senior Capacity Building Associate to join our team!? ? The Senior Capacity Building Associate will play a critical role in advancing NBWJI’s mission by supporting curriculum and resource development, training and facilitation, and managing youth and community engagement efforts. This position will work across multiple projects, ensuring resources and training initiatives are effectively developed and implemented. ? ?SALARY RANGE: $60K - $70K? ? Apply here: https://lnkd.in/gW9iniJB

Current school-based mental health assessment tools often overlook the unique challenges Black girls face. We developed the Creating Affirming, Responsive, and Equitable Schools (CARES) Mental Health System Assessment Tool & Resource Workbook to help schools understand how the mental health policies, practices, and programs they have in place contribute to the emotional well-being of their students, particularly Black girls, and offer a roadmap for creating a school-based mental health system responsive to all students across social identities. The CARES Initiative is part of our strategy to end school pushout by transforming schools into environments where Black girls and gender-expansive youth can truly thrive. You can click the link in our bio to download the CARES Assessment Tool & Workbook or visit our website at https://lnkd.in/gW4WFTKT To learn more about our CARES Initiative and how we are equipping educators with the tools, training, and resources needed to build school cultures that affirm the identities, dignity, and well-being of Black girls and all students, watch our two-part series “Reimagining Educational Spaces for Black Girls: CARES Mental Health Assessment Tool launch”: https://lnkd.in/g_2e3uma #MentalHealth #BlackWomen #BlackGirls #YouthJustice #Reentry #EndSchoolPushout #NBWJI?

The unique experiences of Black women have often been overlooked in broader fights for equality, marginalizing their fight for gender equality. The criminalization of Black women, girls, trans, and gender nonconforming people is rooted in systemic injustices. To address the harm caused by these issues, it is essential that we dismantle pathways to criminalization and confinement for Black women and girls and implement gender- and culturally-affirming programs that promote healing. #WomensHistoryMonth #BlackWomen #BlackGirls #YouthJustice #Reentry #SurvivorJustice #EndSchoolPushout #NBWJI https://lnkd.in/gMwF-AH4

As we continue celebrating and uplifting the Black women leading movements and discussions addressing the systems that criminalize Black women and girls, we invite you to explore our ongoing book club series highlighting the real impact of incarceration on Black women and girls. This series featured conversations with Dr. Monique Couvson president & founder of the National Black Women's Justice Institute and author of Pushout: The Criminalization Of Black Girls In Schools, Donna Hylton author of A Little Piece of Light, Dr. Cheryl Hicks author of Talk With You Like A Woman, and more! Visit our website to explore our book club and view author discussions: https://lnkd.in/gHkAfVG2

Happy Women's History Month! At the National Black Women's Justice Institute, we envision a society that respects, values, and honors the humanity of Black women & girls, takes accountability for the harm it has inflicted, and recognizes that real justice is healing. Today, and every day, we celebrate the women who are the leaders and changemakers of Black feminist movements as their work continues to inspire us all! #WomensHistoryMonth #BlackFeministMovements? #BlackWomen #BlackGirls #YouthJustice #Reentry? #SurvivorJustice #EndSchoolPushout #NBWJI

As Black History Month comes to an end we are reflecting on the powerful words of our founder, Dr. Monique Couvson’s (formally known as Dr. Monique W. Morris), in her 2019 TED Talk: Education is Freedom Work. In the talk, Dr. Couvson explains why and how schools are key in ending school pushout for Black girls. For Black girls, education is a critical protective factor against involvement with the juvenile and criminal legal systems. Their educational pathways to confinement are varied and often connected to their histories of victimization and exploitation. Schools can interrupt (rather than facilitate) those pathways to criminalization for Black girls and become locations for empowerment and healing. This is the driving motivation of our work to end school pushout, such as the CARES Initiative and the Black Girls' Pushout & Criminalization in Schools Data Hub. Learn more about Dr. Monique Couvson’s TED Talk: Education is Freedom Work: https://lnkd.in/gQMTeQ8e #TedTalk #BlackHistoryMonth #BlackWomen #BlackGirls #YouthJustice #Reentry #EndSchoolPushout? #NBWJI

The People's Pulse Poll showed that over half of New Yorkers recognize and support investing in programs that enhance safety and acknowledge an individual’s humanity, such as mental health initiatives, community clinics, and supportive housing in New York City. These are key steps towards achieving healing-centered justice. To ensure the needs of everyone in the community are addressed, programs like these must be gender- and culturally-affirming to help eliminate pathways of criminalization and confinement for Black women, girls, trans, and gender nonconforming youth. https://lnkd.in/gGedgemc #BlackWomen #BlackGirls #BlackMentalHealth #Reentry #EndSchoolPushout? #YouthJustice #NBWJI?

Congratulations to Dr. Monique Couvson, founder of the National Black Women’s Justice Institute, for being named a 2025 Honoree in TIME’s list of “The Closers!” This list highlights 25 Black leaders working to end the racial equity gap. “It's about our young people being able to step into that leadership and in those capacities on their own, not in a tokenized way, not in a way that is exploitative or extractive, but in a way that honors their brilliance and leans into means to trust them and their wisdom in this very critical moment that impacts their lived experiences.” - Dr. Monique Couvson Read more about Dr. Monique Couvson’s work in TIME: https://lnkd.in/gCBtpJV4 #BlackHistory #EndSchoolPushOut #YouthJustice #SurvivorJustice #Reentry #TIME #NBWJI