Juvenile Justice Not So Equal For Girls
...g with girls. He backs up this suggestion by quoting Sheila Peters, a national expert and consultant to the Justice Department’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Peters says, “Girls tend to stay in detention two to five times longer than boys do, and that’s due to a lack of appropriate agencies and services designed for them.” In the next paragraph, Marks provides the reader information to back Peters’ statement up by saying that while some detention centers have their walls painted pink, curtains are put up, and rules made for men are still dominant. As the audience reads on, Marks then returns to Michelle and the struggles she has faced. For example, he tells about St. Croix Girls Camp, one of the first correctional facilities dealing with young female offenders. This camp was started in 1980 and Michelle was sent there several years after it opened. He gives examples in the paragraph that follows about the things that Michelle was taught in order to build self-esteem and create a trusting relationship with peers and staff. For example, learning to rock-climb, camp solo in the woods, and talk about her feelings. Michelle credits the program with allowing her to take her first step towards a healthy life. In the third section of this article, entitled, “Equal Justice,” Marks reverts back to giving the reader quotes regarding the limited number of “gender specific” programs offered in the United States. He quotes Mary Scully Whitaker, Director of Planning for Female Offenders for the State of Minnesota when...