Black youth are disproportionately criminalized in our current, modern juvenile justice system. They are five times as likely to be incarcerated compared to white youth, according to data collected by The Sentencing Project  from as recently as 2023. The reasons why are not a mystery: there is bias embedded deep in the foundations of the system. But, how did these patterns develop? How has this country’s history influenced the way Black youth are treated today? Where do we go