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"Pre-Prison Diaries" is a series from the Community Rights Campaign in which organizers, students, parents and teachers share stories and observations about truancy tickets, police in schools, zero tolerance, and other "pre-prison" conditions and experiences. We welcome your comments below!

If you want to submit your own "pre-prison diary" entry, click here.

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My name is Jazmin Garcia and I am a senior at Manual Arts High School. Last fall, I arrived late to school by 5 or 10 minutes and as a Manuel Arts policy we are directed to go to the auditorium. But something was different about this experience for me. The school administration and school security gathered all the students that were tardy and searched us. They went through our bags, forced students to remove their shoes and outer clothing, and patted us down for weapons or drugs. If we refused to be searched we were told that we would not be allowed to go to class.

I understand that drug usage is a real issue at our school and I do not condone that behavior but I can understand why some students turn to drugs. Beyond the economic hardship that so many of us are feeling, students today have many additional pressures that they have to grapple with and often times this pressure and lack of adequate support can lead to using drugs. But rather than treating us like prisoners we need support from mental health counselors, prevention programs that go beyond just telling us not to use, and services that can help students get through these difficult times. The current fear tactics used to scare youth out of using drugs with the threat of arrest or punishment does not work. We need programs that don't just tell us to "say no" but provide with us the facts, information and skills to make an informed choice.

As students we are told that this all part of keeping our school "safe"-but in no way did I feel safe during my search or that these forms of security measures contribute to my education in a positive way. In the name of safety they are making us go through searches, pat downs and removing us from our classes to be held in rooms without education. The experience is humiliating and makes you feel less than worthless. All of this makes me question, why should I even go to school?

That's why I support the Community Rights document Police in LAUSD Schools because it outlines alternatives to "zero tolerance" policies, some of which we already have, such as the Positive Behavior Support Policy (won by Community Asset Development Re-Defining Education in 2007), and others that ask for adequate support and services for students and their families. The LAUSD Board already has basic standards for school discipline-we need them to ensure that these policies are implemented at each one of our schools. We need the LAUSD Board to provide us with proper education and counseling that can prevent, treat and ultimately decriminalize drug abuse and other student behavior issues-that encompasses the whole student and their needs.

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Read more Pre-Prison Diaries :

Previous Entries: Breaking the Spirit of Our Students | California's future of cutting education & expanding prison | Next Entry: Submit your own! 

 

 

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