Ban Spanking in Public Schools

A school district in rural Missouri just decided to bring back spanking as a form of discipline for students. 

That’s despite overwhelming evidence that spanking does not work to improve behavior, and can be harmful to students both physically and mentally. 

Worse, according to academic research published in 2016, when spanking does happen in schools, Black children are disproportionately subjected to it.

Sign the petition if you agree: The United States must ban spanking in public schools.

Sadly, Missouri is far from the only state to allow spanking and corporal punishment in schools. Thanks to a 1977 Supreme Court decision leaving the issue up to states, 19 states – mostly in the south – currently allow spanking in schools.

As of the 2017-2018 school year, roughly 70,000 kids in U.S. schools were spanked or hit by a teacher at least once.

Senator Chris Murphy has introduced legislation that would ban the use of corporal punishment in all schools in the United States that receive federal funding, calling it a barbaric practice.