“Young adults and teenagers, they get punished for not being heard…Instead of trying to understand us on an emotional and psychological level…we get punished by them telling us ‘you’re a bad kid.’” — Alexis J. 

Alexis’s experience of feeling misunderstood and overlooked is not unique among youth who are justice-involved. For many, the opportunity to feel they are being heard is critical for learning accountability, healing, receiving support, and ultimately figuring out for themselves what it means to thrive within their communities. 

For Alexis, this future might look like pursuing her interest in selling real estate—drawing from her experience selling tamales with her grandmother—and working to inform undocumented community members about their rights.   

Alexis’s grandmother played an essential role in her life, acting as a mother figure and inspiring her to succeed in school. As she describes it, “when my grandma passed, things really took a turn for me…The only person who showed me love is no longer here.” 

Alexis recounts when she began getting into altercations at school — “I was fighting like three times a week. Fighting became like an addiction, only because it made me feel better knowing that I could make someone else feel bad…Hurt people, hurt people.” 

Growing up, crying had been associated with weakness. Instead, her father had told her: “if someone makes you feel weird or bad about yourself, fight them.” Anger was one of the few ways Alexis’s knew how to express herself for a long time.  

After being arrested and meeting with a counselor, Alexis had a transformative conversation.  

“That conversation just hit me so different. Even to this age now that I’m 22, I still think about it all the time. It was literally the first time I was able to cry in front of somebody and that person listened to me and didn’t tell me that I was crazy or that I was wrong for feeling this way, or, like, tried to punish me,” she says. 

For many young people, it isn’t until an encounter with the court system that they receive the support and resources that may have prevented their incarceration, such as mental health counseling, mentorship, and educational support. Court involvement serves as a turning point for a young person’s future, and can provide basic needs—food, housing, clothing— that they may not currently have access to.  

Alexis notes that it was the fear of not being able to provide her three younger siblings with necessary food, clothes, and transportation that led to her involvement in illegal activity.  

“If I wasn’t bringing in the money, my brothers would not eat…it was on me to make sure they were okay. That’s when I started to steal.”  

While Alexis wishes she received more support from the adults in her life, she is making the most of the opportunities she has today to shape a life she is proud of.  

“It’s so easy to pick up the wrong things, because it’s always available. But picking up the correct things, you have to build that for yourself. So it’s a little harder, but I’m enjoying the journey.”  

OYCR works with young people to understand what they need to successfully heal, learn accountability, and reenter their communities. Young people often know best what support they need to thrive, with research demonstrating that interventions are most effective when built in collaboration with youth and their families. When given the opportunity to participate in the development of their treatment plans, young people experience higher levels of satisfaction with services, reduced rates of recidivism, and improved mental health outcomes. Youth-centered planning also encourages personal responsibility and a sense of ownership over their rehabilitation process, as well as helps build trust in the justice system.  

Check out Alexis’s full story told in her own words and learn more about how OYCR is working to give all California youth who are justice-involved the opportunities they need to succeed in adulthood in Please Don’t Give Up on Us: Stories From Children and Youth Incarcerated in California. The report explores youth justice through the perspectives of young people who were incarcerated, like Alexis, and outlines insights and recommendations that align with OYCR’s commitment to supporting communities in addressing gaps in care for youth involved in the justice system. By incorporating firsthand accounts, research, and system analysis, Don’t Give Up on Us showcases the transformative power of a healing-centered approach to youth justice.  

The report was commissioned by the California Health & Human Services Agency’s Office of Youth and Community Restoration (OYCR) and prepared by The Social Changery, with contributions by the OYCR Youth Advisory Board.