Shades of discipline: how the intersection of skin tone and gender shape the school-to-prison pipeline for youth

This study examines how skin tone and gender intersect to shape adolescents’ exposure to school discipline and juvenile arrest within the school-to-prison pipeline. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) and a series of mediation models, we test competing pathways linking skin tone to justice system involvement. Darker-skinned adolescents face higher odds of suspension and arrest, net of individual and family characteristics. For boys, school suspension mediates the relationship between skin tone and arrest, indicating a school-based pathway into justice system contact. For girls, darker skin tone predicts higher risks of both outcomes, though mediation through suspension is not supported, highlighting gendered processes of colorism.