Earlier this past week, Ahmed Mohamed, a ninth grader from Ivine, TX, was arrested at school for possessing what school officials called a "hoax bomb in a case." In reality, the device was a clock, brought by Ahmed to show his teachers, inside his pencil case, much like this one. The outcry over this case of racial profiling (a fact that became especially apparent when an officer Ahmed had never seen before remarked "Yup. That's who I thought it was.") was swift and enormous, with responses from President Obama to Grant Imahara. Thankfully, the case against Ahmed was eventually dropped.

This event seemed to follow the pattern of other similar cases: A child of color does science, then gets arrested. Ahmed's case was lucky in the end result: Kiera Wilmot, a teenager from Florida, was not. The 16-year-old was arrested and expelled from school for a science experiment: The mixing of a chemical, in the chemistry lab, that caused a minor "pop" sound and some smoke. Both of these cases were the result of a child's scientific curiosity, and both cases ended up with them in handcuffs.

Ahmed Mohamed's case has brought science's racial disparity into the spotlight. Source: NYTimes

While many people have rallied behind Ahmed, many people have done just the opposite: They claim the teachers acted in the interest of safety, that it really did look like a bomb, that this isn't about racism or Islamophobia. The problem is, many times kids have brought clocks and far more dangerous things to school (look at that last link and you will see a white kid brought an actual inert bomb to the science fair) and have not faced arrest or school discipline. One kid in Arkansas even built a nuclear reactor in his garage and received only praise, including offers from the departments of Energy and Homeland Security. White children receive praise for their curiosity and drive, while children of color end up thrown out of the STEM pipeline and into the School-to-Prison pipeline.

This is where the story goes beyond Ahmed Mohamed. STEM fields are overwhelmingly white and male and the problem isn't only pervasive, but growing. While many young children take interest in science and math, by the time they reach college graduation the numbers of young people entering STEM fields is very small. This "leaky STEM pipeline," while universally true, is far more dire for girls and children of color. The common excuse heard from STEM organizations is "there are no qualified female/minority workers: If there were, we'd hire them!" While there are talented female and minority scientists coming out of education every day, their numbers are small, and this is more than just loss: This is a separate set of pipelines.

The leaks in the pipeline show "losses" of students in school, and students in STEM majors. Source: NCES Digest of Education Statistics.

The school-to-prison pipeline is reality for children of color in our society. Source: PBS

The school-to-prison pipeline represents the reality of children of color: They are more likely to be suspended, expelled and arrested from school than white children. These aren't even major infractions; being late and dress code violations have all been reasons for severe punitive action against students of color. With systems like "zero tolerance rules" in place, children are taken from their places of learning and placed into the prison system. Once in the system, they are unlikely to get out again because of the immense difficulties of people with criminal records face in getting jobs or going to college. Where children slipped out of the STEM pipeline, children of color are being diverted away entirely.

Some children of color don't even make it to the mouth of the STEM pipeline. Being able to become a skilled student in science and technology requires access to good science teachers, modern equipment and ability to create. These tools do not come cheap and schools in lower-income areas can struggle with teacher retention, infrastructure and access to things like modern textbooks and lab equipment. This puts children from impoverished areas more at risk and, yes, poverty disproportionately affects people of color.

So, to recap the journey: A young child of color is far more likely to lack opportunity and strong education from school, is always at risk of being taken out of school and put into prison and displaying curiosity and doing science is actively discouraged because kids like this child are frequently arrested for such things. Top it off with the fact that current science fields are homogeneous and there are very few scientists who "look like me" for this child to see as a role model and the ability to enter the STEM pipeline all but disappears. And for young girls of color, the same applies, but this time they have a whole extra layer of sexist scientists, stereotype syndrome and societal beliefs that "girls can't do math," or "girls shouldn't be engineers" to slog through. The opportunity to become a scientist, engineer, programmer, or mathematician is currently for white children only, especially for white boys only.

How can this problem be fixed? How can we give girls and children of color the boost they need in order to gain equal footing on the road to a STEM life? While there are a lot of problems that need to be addressed before anything can change, there are thankfully a lot of solutions, which are categorized and listen below. However, this issue will not change until we -- and this is where I am talking to you, fellow white people -- work to change our perceptions and attitudes towards people of color. We need to examine very closely our beliefs about people of color and work to dismantle the racist attitudes within us and the racist structures we've created (example: School-to-prison pipeline). Until we do that, any solution we work towards will be incomplete. It may make you uncomfortable to read or talk about, but it's necessary and the knowledge you gain will help towards making society better. To help you, I have also included a list of resources where you can go to learn about racism and how you can work through your own prejudices. This reality won't change unless we do.

Help support minority STEM students with donations/volunteering:
-Great Minds In STEM
-National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering
-TechHive Teen Makerspace
-We Teach Science
-Maker Ed
-GirlStart

Learn about and help low-income schools succeed by paying attention during voting season:
-How We Can Strengthen Schools Serving Low-Income Children
-How Do We Increase Teacher Quality In Low-Income Schools?
-Safe Routes to School (help children get to school safely)
-Low-Income School Districts Need More, But Many Are Starved Instead

Learn about and help fix the school-to-prison pipeline:
-Research on race and school discipline
-Can the School to Prison Pipeline Be Solved?
-How schools can understand and avoid the pipeline

Learn about poverty and what it will take to change:
-Policies that reduce inequality and poverty
-Inequality, Race, and Remedy
-The Colors of Poverty: Why Racial & Ethnic Disparities Persist
-Fixing Poverty Is More Complicated Than Handing Out Cash

Learn about and actively combat racism:
-Be Less Racist: 12 Tips for White Dudes, From a White Dude
-11 Things White People Can Do to be Real Anti-Racist Allies
-A super awesome and extensive Resource List to Help White Americans Learn About Race And Racism that I highly recommend.
-What White Children Need to Know About Race
-Understanding and Dismantling Racism: The Twenty-First Century Challenge to White America
-Talking to Our Children About Racism & Diversity
-Coalition of Anti-Racist Whites
-Untraining White Liberal Racism
-Racist Stuff Smart White People Believe