We Treat Everybody the Same: Race Equity in Child Welfare

For several decades, child welfare researchers have explored the issue of disproportionality in child welfare. Top-level government reports have confirmed that African-American children are disproportionately represented in the child welfare system. This knowledge led to the concern that equity standards are not being implemented in child welfare systems partially due to implicit bias and insufficient data to track services to this population of children. The lack of data and recognition of the disparate entry of African Americans into care will continue unless systems move to having the child welfare system understand overrepresentation and the need for equity in the provision of services. This article shares findings of a research study and is focused on the use of data as a strategy to improve racial equity in child welfare. It uses critical race theory (CRT) to explain how racism can impact equity in the provision of child welfare services.