MacArthur Fellow Dorothy Roberts Committed To Uncovering Racial Inequality In Child Welfare Services

Dorothy Roberts was named a 2024 MacArthur Fellow for her dedication to dismantling racial inequities within the child welfare system.

Meet Dorothy Roberts, a 2024 MacArthur Fellow, whose groundbreaking efforts to address racial inequities in the child welfare system have earned her the prestigious $800,000 “genius grant.”

According to her MacArthur Foundation profile, the Yale and Harvard alum is a legal scholar and public policy researcher devoted to uncovering racial inequities deeply rooted in health and social service systems. For nearly 30 years, Roberts has released deeply researched analyses encompassing reproductive health, bioethics, and child welfare.

The University of Pennsylvania law, sociology, and Africana Studies professor first published work on the subject in 1997 with the publication of “Killing the Black Body: Race, Reproduction, and the Meaning of Liberty.” In this book, Roberts examines historical and contemporary policies and practices that stripped away Black women’s ability to make their own decisions and sought to control their reproduction—from forced procreation during slavery to coercive sterilization and welfare reform—while advocating for a broader understanding of reproductive freedom.

This work inspired Roberts to investigate the treatment of Black children in the U.S. child welfare system. After nearly two decades of research and advocacy alongside parents, social workers, family defense lawyers, and organizations, Roberts determined that the current child welfare system is designed to police families, resulting in deeply unequal practices and outcomes.

In her 2001 book, “Shattered Bonds: The Color of Child Welfare,” Roberts explores the profound impact of race and class on state intervention in families and its consequences. She drew from interviews with Chicago mothers who had experiences with Child Protective Services (CPS) to reveal how institutions often punish the effects of poverty as neglect.

It was determined that CPS disproportionately targets Black and Indigenous families, making those with low incomes and children from these communities far more likely than white children to be removed from their families following a CPS referral.

In 2022, Roberts published “Torn Apart: How the Child Welfare System Destroys Black Families—and How Abolition Can Build a Safer World.” In the book, she examines the forces within history, culture, and politics that drive racial and class disparities in the child welfare system.

These include stereotypes portraying Black parents as negligent, the devaluation of Black family bonds, and the stigmatization of parenting practices that deviate from narrowly defined norms. Roberts also highlights how blaming marginalized individuals for systemic problems while overlooking the historical roots of economic and social inequality ultimately harms families and communities.

After nearly 30 years of research, Roberts argues that the deeply embedded oppressive features of the current system make it irreparable. She advocates for creating an entirely new approach centered on supporting families rather than punishing them, envisioning more equitable and effective ways to ensure the safety and well-being of children and families.