Policing The Black Man

Policing The Black Man

Adult nonfiction
"The tragic killings of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric
Garner, Walter Scott, Tamir Rice, Freddie Gray, and others served as
the catalyst for this anthology. But these killings also inspired the
contributing authors to think about all the ways that black men are
"policed"--in the broad sense of the word--heavily and harshly at
every step of the criminal process. In fact, black men are policed
and treated worse than their similarly situated white counterparts at
every step of the criminal justice system, from arrest to sentencing.
These unwarranted disparities exist whether black men are charged with
crimes or are victims of crime...This anthology explores and explains
the "policing" of black men--from slavery to the present day and at
every stage of the criminal process and beyond."
It seems like every time we watch or read the news another black
man or boy has been killed by a police officer. Most of the boys and
girls in blue are acquitted if they are ever charged. Although this
is tragic in its own right, Policing the Black Man, edited by Angela
J. Davis, shows that this civil wrong is only the visible tip of a
disturbingly huge iceberg. Never before have I seen such a
comprehensive compilation of evidence of racism in the criminal
justice system by experts in the field. Some of the essays include:
*In A Presumption of Guilt: The Legacy of America's History of Racial
Injustice Bryan Stevenson, director of the Equal Justice Initiative,
traces this sordid and heartbreaking history from slavery through the
black codes and lynching to race as a salient feature in capital
punishment sentencing.
*In Poverty, Violence, And Black Incarveration Jeremy Travis,
president of John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and Bruce Western,
Harvard professor, explore the intersectionality of those factors to
show the long lasting devastation the incarceration of large numbers
of poor black men inflicts on their families and entire communities.
*In The Grand Jury and Police Violence Against Black Men Roger A.
Fairfax Jr., professor and dean at George Washington University,
explores the role of this group in deciding whether accused people
should face criminal charges and why, in most cases concerning white
police officers killing black men, they choose not to indict.
The essay I found most heartbreaking was Boys to Men: The Role
of Policing in the Socialization of Black Boys by Kristin Henning,
Georgeton law professor. Henning starts off with two narratives of
black boys being treated abusively by police officers. She shows how,
in a society that has bought into the super predator myth popularized
(and later abandoned) by John Dilulio Jr., police unfairly target
black boys and they are tried as adults as young as 13 or 14--the ones
who aren't shot by officers who see thugs rather than children or
teens. Parents have to teach sons how to protect themselves from
those sworn to serve and protect. Then there are the school resource
officers hired to prevent school shootings. Although the shooters are
primarily white and middle class, the cops patrol poor, black schools
where their presence causes incidents that would otherwise be treated
in house to be punished as criminal activities.
Some of those cops carry military grade assault rifles.
Policing The Black Man is a must read for all who care about
racial justice.
On a personal note, it was wicked hot and humid for awhile. Then we
had some spectacular thunder storms which made it comfortably cooler.
I'm getting good hours at work. One of the groups we're feeding is
the football team. It's so much fun when they arrive with their
boisterous good humor and laughter and heart melting smiles. When
they line up for food they are ever so polite and patient--a credit to
their families.
A great big shout out goes out to our Black Bear athletes and coaches.
jules hathaway


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