The Negative Side of The Foster Care Essay Example

Hundreds of thousands of children are without homes, and foster care has been a popular “solution” to this problem. The downside of this is how it negatively impacts its children. One example of this is the “foster care to prison pipeline” that puts foster children at an unfair advantage for becoming a part of the criminal justice system. While these individuals are responsible for their crimes, the unjust nature of the foster care system in addition to the qualities that put them there should bear a portion of the blame for the magnitude of former foster care children involved in the criminal justice system. 

When a child is unsafe within their home, child welfare agencies are involved. This typically leads to the child’s placement in the foster care system among over 400,000 other children (About the Children). The failure of this system to create a positive impact on the children in their care leads to the increased risk of poverty, homelessness, involvement in the criminal justice system, drug use, mental health crises, sex work, and others. Several groups within the foster care system are already at risk for these, based on uncontrollable qualities such as their race, gender/ sexual orientation, and mental state. 

An example of a group severely impacted by this is black youth. Not only are they twice as likely to be a part of the system than white youth, but they are already at a "disproportionate [rate] [for] school discipline and criminalization" (The Foster Care to Prison Pipeline: What it is and how it works, Teen Vogue). Despite making up 13.4% of the population in 2019 at about 41.99 million, African-Americans have the highest national percentage of poverty at 18.8% (United States Census Bureau). Despite this being the lowest recorded number for this group since 1959, poverty among Black Americans is a substantial problem. This has a heavy influence on the number of children within the foster care system. Due to their income, they are unable to provide for their families, which is considered abuse. Black youth are also over "four times as likely to be detained or committed in juvenile systems than their white peers" (Black Disparities in Youth Incarceration, Sentencing Project). Having already been at a lesser advantage concerning criminalization, the foster care system exacerbates this condition. The qualities that make black youth candidates for foster care, also make them more likely to be incarcerated.

 Foster youth, especially girls are affected by the system of sex trafficking. They are groomed and trafficked into joining prostitution rings. It is estimated that over 60% of victims of the commercial exploitation of children have a history within the foster care system (Foster Care and Human Trafficking, Speak up now). Being in a state of constant vulnerability makes it easier for them to be manipulated and taken advantage of. Children who are a part of the LGBTQ community are also at high risk for trafficking. As many of them are discriminated against within their foster homes, many turn to the streets for shelter. This vulnerability puts them at a higher risk and makes them more likely to turn to sex work as a solution. Their status makes them more likely to be taken advantage of, as well as being involved in criminalization, as prostitution, especially among minors is illegal. 

As well as being relevant among the foster care community, mental health conflicts are a source of incarceration. Over "80 percent of children in foster care have significant mental health issues, compared to approximately 18-22 percent of the general population" (Mental Health and Foster Care, National Conference of State Legislatures). As a significant amount of their trauma stems from the foster care system, their mental health is largely ignored. It is legal for them to be arrested during said mental health crises, like 23-year-old Arianna from Teen Vogue. She describes the several times that she experienced the juvenile hall including twice for mental health crises, as "terrifying" and how the system that was supposed to protect her "made things worse" (The Foster Care to Prison Pipeline: What it is and how it works, Teen Vogue). Mental health issues are also looked down upon outside of the foster care system. According to a study taken in 2011-12 of inmates in state and federal prison, 37% have been diagnosed with mental health problems, yet 66% did not receive mental health treatment while incarcerated. This general disregard for mental illness is carried over into several parts of society, which puts those who suffer from it, especially foster care children at an unfair advantage. 

Although one could say that people are choosing to make the wrong decision when committing crimes, the societal pressures put onto those within and outside of the foster care system outweigh that. You cannot choose how your race is affected by societal systems, nor your risk of manipulation, nor your mental health. How is it fair to tell a group of people who have been oppressed since the creation of this country, those in their time of need who are preyed upon by their elders, or those who are looked down upon for illnesses out of their control, that they are in the wrong? Rather than placing blame on them for reacting in the way their environment has conditioned them to behave, we should reflect on the systems that affect them. What can we do to improve such systems, and in turn lower the number of people, especially foster care children that are involved? 

We have to turn our focus away from those specifically committing crimes and focus on the bigger picture of why. Just as your mother has told you, not everyone is telling the same lie. At some point, we need to change our viewpoint and understand how our society affects others. With our country having the highest incarceration rate in the world, the problem has to come from within. We need to change the way our society negatively affects the margins of people, and focus on how we can change for the better.