Press Release  DYS and JDAI Offers Solutions to Reduce Racial Disparities

Boston — Massachusetts Department of Youth Services and Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative Offers Solutions to Reduce Racial Disparities in the Juvenile Legal System

Policy brief introduces evidence-based best practices to address overrepresentation of Hispanic/Latinx youth in Juvenile Legal System

BOSTON – Today, the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services (DYS) and the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) announced the release of JDAI’s latest policy brief, "Overrepresentation of Hispanic/Latinx Youth in the Juvenile Legal System," which is part of an ongoing initiative to address disparities within the juvenile legal system and systems of care statewide. The brief is a collaboration between Massachusetts JDAI, its community partners, and agency stakeholders.

“We are committed to ensuring that our reform efforts have a meaningful and equitable impact on all youth, regardless of their racial or ethnic background,” said Commissioner Cecely Reardon. “This comprehensive brief offers innovative solutions to address the unique challenges faced by Hispanic/Latinx youth in our care and custody.”

The policy brief explains that a culturally driven, multi-system approach, and the continued use of promising practices are crucial to reducing disparities among Hispanic/Latinx youth. These practices include:

• Supporting youth to foster a positive connection with their ethnicity and learn about their culture’s history through Positive Youth Identity Development;
• Investing in community infrastructure, such as mental health counseling, violence reduction, and restorative justice programs; and
• Holding institutions and decision-makers accountable.

“The release of the ‘Overrepresentation of Hispanic/Latinx Youth in the Juvenile Legal System’ Policy Brief is an important step towards reducing the disparate treatment of Hispanic/Latinx youth in the juvenile legal system,” said JDAI Statewide Director Katherine Perry-Lorentz, Esq. “DYS and JDAI remain dedicated to fostering equity, promoting inclusivity, and implementing data-driven solutions to ensure that all youth receive fair and just treatment within our systems.”

In addition to publishing this policy brief, JDAI has also begun implementing several initiatives that aim to address the specific needs of Hispanic/Latinx and to reduce their overrepresentation in systems across the Commonwealth:

• Youth Racial Identity Development Curriculum: Through a partnership with Trinity Boston Connects, this project originated from emerging research that shows developing and strengthening an individual’s identity can be a valuable tool in combating racial trauma. The curriculum consists of a series of self-contained, round-table modules facilitated by specially trained staff with youth who volunteer to participate. The goal is for this curriculum to be available to all youth in DYS’ care and custody, with the hope that it will eventually be offered to youth in all systems of care across the Commonwealth.
• Trauma Response Specialists (TRS): TRS support DYS staff to address and combat racial and secondary trauma and to promote the message of race equity across external networks. TRS are trained as subject matter experts in race equity and trauma-informed care and are uniquely positioned to support the needs of DYS Hispanic/Latinx staff with an individualized and culturally informed approach.
• Statewide Race Equity and Inclusion Subcommittee: This subcommittee works collaboratively to identify strategies that will move youth-serving agencies and systems in Massachusetts from race equity and inclusion theory to practice. The subcommittee’s work is guided by the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s seven steps to advancing racial equity and inclusion and is informed by the most up-to-date data from the trial courts, Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Department of Children and Families, and DYS. Members of the subcommittee are particularly focused on the overrepresentation and increasing representation of Hispanic/Latinx youth across these data points.
• JDAI Data Dashboard: One of JDAI’s core strategies is rigorous data collection and analysis to guide decision making. To provide accurate, up-to-date data on detained youth, JDAI Massachusetts and DYS partnered with the Executive Office of Technology Services and Security to create an interactive JDAI Data Dashboard. This tool enables users to assess equity in the juvenile legal system, preventing disparities based on various factors. It highlights the overrepresentation of Hispanic/Latinx youth and emphasizes the need for tailored reform efforts.

Both DYS and JDAI aim to advance existing reform efforts and develop new initiatives to support Hispanic/Latinx youth, with the goal of reducing disparities within systems of care across the Commonwealth.

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