Separate but equal education has long been unconstitutional in the U.S. Since the landmark case 1954 Brown v. Board of Education, all students are guaranteed an equal chance to learn.

In reality, this is not the case.

Students of color and students with disabilities are disciplined far more often and with harsher disciplinary measures than their White peers for similar offenses.

The end result of this imbalanced discipline is higher rates of suspension and expulsion for children of color and those with disabilities.

Missouri ranks the eighth highest state in its expulsion of preschoolers.

Black students are 5 times more likely to be suspended than White students for the same infractions. Students with disabilities are more than twice as likely to receive an out-of-school suspension than their peers.

These are not just numbers—for many children they are real life.

The removal from an educational setting and lowering of self-esteem that follows raises the probability that these children will spend the rest of their lives in and out of the criminal justice system.

This is known as the “school-to-prison pipeline.”

Missouri is one of the school-to-prison pipeline’s worst contributors.