It may be hard to imagine, but upstate juvenile detention centers weren’t always a reality here in New York. There was a time prior to the opening of the first youth penitentiary when the state preferred to keep troubled youth in the care of their parents.
During the 18th century we seemed to understand how vital support from the community was for the rehabilitation process, how young people were best served in close proximity to their loved ones.
Somewhere along the line, we lost our way. And then, for decade after decade, we systematically failed New York City’s wayward youth, the vast majority of them black and Latino, by shipping them upstate — oftentimes for minor infractions. We may have convinced ourselves that we were fixing a problem, but we were only making it worse.
The kids never learned how to become responsible adults; they were often neglected or outright abused. The state and city wasted money by propping up large, underutilized facilities. Families were inconvenienced and disrespected. And communities would go on to be victimized by crime .
Finally, there may be reason to celebrate. Starting soon, thanks to Gov. Cuomo‘s initiative, we may finally start keeping misbehaving young people close to home, near the communities they grew up in and close to a structure that can truly reform them — rather than hardening them and preparing them for a life of crime.
It’s not often we have pure, nonpartisan public policy victories that both Albany and New York City agree to, but if we complete the long-awaited reform of our juvenile justice system, this is one of those times.
The governor’s proposed reform will at long last transfer primary responsibility for all but the most seriously delinquent youth from the state to the city. This move is one that both Mayor Bloomberg and I have been advocating for in our respective work.
In 2010, to shed light on the problem, we visited the Finger Lakes Residential Center in Tompkins County. As we indicated in a combined statement at the time, the current juvenile system is defined by an outrageous 81% recidivism rate and annual per-child costs that top $250,000.
Such stats are not only shocking, they are beyond reprehensible. If the purpose of housing troubled youth is to prevent them from committing future crime, how can anyone honestly profess that these centers served their purpose?
Over the past few years, New York City has been working to reduce the number of juveniles in upstate facilities, but the fact remains that far too many still find themselves housed miles away from family, school and everything familiar to them.
In addition to not helping these juveniles build better lives, upstate facilities failed to provide adequate education.
As a result, a child who spent a year or two in one of these places could return home and easily find themselves a year or two behind their classmates. It was failure upon failure that, thankfully, we can begin to rectify.
We can do better. Troubled youth must finally be able to stay close to home. With close contact from family and friends, these children can continue to maintain the significant, long-term relationships that are so integral to their productive development.
It is beyond comprehension to think that for year after year, 14-year-olds who may have sprayed graffiti or stolen a pair of sneakers would be sent far from his or her support base. We must never make that mistake again.
Sharpton is president of the National Action Network.
