Rios himself experienced contact with this system of criminalization growing up in Oakland, California and drew on his personal experience as well as interviews with other youths of color in developing the theory.
[1] According to scholar Henry A. Giroux, the origins of the youth control complex in America begin with the shift to a neoliberal state in the mid-1970s.
Finally, the Bush administration's post-9/11 war on terror led to the creation of a racialized warfare state that relied heavily on the surveillance and criminalization of children of color.
[5] Scholars like Victor M. Rios and Paul Hirschfield have also proposed solutions to the school-to-prison pipeline, such as the youth support complex and restorative justice.
[1] Additionally, Rios notes that the intentions of this complex are ultimately enacted in order to trap youth of color through management, control, and incapacitation, all of which direct them towards incarceration, recidivism, subjugation, exploitation, and death.
Weisburd describes how some youth are expected to charge the device daily, remain in their homes unless attending school (otherwise activity would have to be approved 48 hours in advance), and call the electronic monitoring office 3 times per day.
[7] In educational institutions, scholar Henry A. Giroux states that Columbine (1999) contributed to the developed of policies and practices of social control in schools: "Rather than giving rise to a concern for young people, Columbine helped to put into place the development of a youth control complex in which crime has become the fundamental axis through which children's lives are both defined and monitored while the militarization of schools became the order of the day."
[7] Alex S. Vitale mentions that the complex also "undermines their life chances by driving them into economic and social failure and long-term criminality and incarceration.
He calls on lawmakers, law enforcement, educators, and community members to create a system that empowers young people to rectify their mistakes and engage in building their own futures.
Rios also calls for the end of zero-tolerance policies in schools that mandate strict, sweeping punishments for designated behaviors regardless of context.
[13] Senator Jennifer McClellan, who sponsored the bill, is also concerned with equipping school officials and law enforcement with proper information about adolescent psychology.