Author: Michael Tonry
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0199926468
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 222
Book Description
Punishing Race addresses enduring paradoxes of racial disparities in America and the problems of race in the criminal justice system. The white majority, Tonry observes, has a remarkable capacity to endure the suffering of disadvantaged black and, increasingly, Hispanic men. The criminal justice system is the latest in a series of devices, including slavery, Jim Crow, and legally countenanced discrimination, that have maintained white dominance over black people. Setting out a new agenda, Tonry pushes for overdue - and realistic - changes in racial profiling and sentencing, and to the War on Drugs, to reduce their staggering human and social costs.
Punishing Race
Privilege and Punishment
Author: Matthew Clair
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 069123387X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 320
Book Description
How the attorney-client relationship favors the privileged in criminal court—and denies justice to the poor and to working-class people of color The number of Americans arrested, brought to court, and incarcerated has skyrocketed in recent decades. Criminal defendants come from all races and economic walks of life, but they experience punishment in vastly different ways. Privilege and Punishment examines how racial and class inequalities are embedded in the attorney-client relationship, providing a devastating portrait of inequality and injustice within and beyond the criminal courts. Matthew Clair conducted extensive fieldwork in the Boston court system, attending criminal hearings and interviewing defendants, lawyers, judges, police officers, and probation officers. In this eye-opening book, he uncovers how privilege and inequality play out in criminal court interactions. When disadvantaged defendants try to learn their legal rights and advocate for themselves, lawyers and judges often silence, coerce, and punish them. Privileged defendants, who are more likely to trust their defense attorneys, delegate authority to their lawyers, defer to judges, and are rewarded for their compliance. Clair shows how attempts to exercise legal rights often backfire on the poor and on working-class people of color, and how effective legal representation alone is no guarantee of justice. Superbly written and powerfully argued, Privilege and Punishment draws needed attention to the injustices that are perpetuated by the attorney-client relationship in today’s criminal courts, and describes the reforms needed to correct them.
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 069123387X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 320
Book Description
How the attorney-client relationship favors the privileged in criminal court—and denies justice to the poor and to working-class people of color The number of Americans arrested, brought to court, and incarcerated has skyrocketed in recent decades. Criminal defendants come from all races and economic walks of life, but they experience punishment in vastly different ways. Privilege and Punishment examines how racial and class inequalities are embedded in the attorney-client relationship, providing a devastating portrait of inequality and injustice within and beyond the criminal courts. Matthew Clair conducted extensive fieldwork in the Boston court system, attending criminal hearings and interviewing defendants, lawyers, judges, police officers, and probation officers. In this eye-opening book, he uncovers how privilege and inequality play out in criminal court interactions. When disadvantaged defendants try to learn their legal rights and advocate for themselves, lawyers and judges often silence, coerce, and punish them. Privileged defendants, who are more likely to trust their defense attorneys, delegate authority to their lawyers, defer to judges, and are rewarded for their compliance. Clair shows how attempts to exercise legal rights often backfire on the poor and on working-class people of color, and how effective legal representation alone is no guarantee of justice. Superbly written and powerfully argued, Privilege and Punishment draws needed attention to the injustices that are perpetuated by the attorney-client relationship in today’s criminal courts, and describes the reforms needed to correct them.
Punishing Places
Author: Jessica T Simes
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520380339
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 251
Book Description
A spatial view of punishment -- The urban model -- Small cities and mass incarceration -- Social services beyond the city : isolation and regional inequity -- Race and communities of pervasive incarceration -- Punishing places -- Beyond punishing places : a research and reform agenda -- Appendix : data and methodology.
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520380339
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 251
Book Description
A spatial view of punishment -- The urban model -- Small cities and mass incarceration -- Social services beyond the city : isolation and regional inequity -- Race and communities of pervasive incarceration -- Punishing places -- Beyond punishing places : a research and reform agenda -- Appendix : data and methodology.
Punishing Immigrants
Author: Charis E. Kubrin
Publisher: NYU Press
ISBN: 0814749496
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 273
Book Description
Arizona’s controversial new immigration bill is just the latest of many steps in the new criminalization of immigrants. While many cite the presumed criminality of illegal aliens as an excuse for ever-harsher immigration policies, it has in fact been well-established that immigrants commit less crime, and in particular less violent crime, than the native-born and that their presence in communities is not associated with higher crime rates. Punishing Immigrants moves beyond debunking the presumed crime and immigration linkage, broadening the focus to encompass issues relevant to law and society, immigration and refugee policy, and victimization, as well as crime. The original essays in this volume uncover and identify the unanticipated and hidden consequences of immigration policies and practices here and abroad at a time when immigration to the U.S. is near an all-time high. Ultimately, Punishing Immigrants illuminates the nuanced and layered realities of immigrants’ lives, describing the varying complexities surrounding immigration, crime, law, and victimization. Podcast: Susan Bibler Coutin, on the process and effects of deportation —Listen here.
Publisher: NYU Press
ISBN: 0814749496
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 273
Book Description
Arizona’s controversial new immigration bill is just the latest of many steps in the new criminalization of immigrants. While many cite the presumed criminality of illegal aliens as an excuse for ever-harsher immigration policies, it has in fact been well-established that immigrants commit less crime, and in particular less violent crime, than the native-born and that their presence in communities is not associated with higher crime rates. Punishing Immigrants moves beyond debunking the presumed crime and immigration linkage, broadening the focus to encompass issues relevant to law and society, immigration and refugee policy, and victimization, as well as crime. The original essays in this volume uncover and identify the unanticipated and hidden consequences of immigration policies and practices here and abroad at a time when immigration to the U.S. is near an all-time high. Ultimately, Punishing Immigrants illuminates the nuanced and layered realities of immigrants’ lives, describing the varying complexities surrounding immigration, crime, law, and victimization. Podcast: Susan Bibler Coutin, on the process and effects of deportation —Listen here.
Uneven Roads
Author: Todd Shaw
Publisher: CQ Press
ISBN: 1071824589
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 527
Book Description
Uneven Roads helps students grasp how, when, and why race and ethnicity matter in U.S. politics. Using the metaphor of a road, with twists, turns, and dead ends, this incisive text takes students on a journey to understanding political racialization and the roots of modern interpretations of race and ethnicity. The book’s structure and narrative are designed to encourage comparison and reflection. Students critically analyze the history and context of U.S. racial and ethnic politics to build the skills needed to draw their own conclusions. In the Third Edition of this groundbreaking text, authors Shaw, DeSipio, Pinderhughes, Frasure, and Travis bring the historical narrative to life by addressing the most contemporary debates and challenges affecting U.S. racial and ethnic politics. Students will explore important issues regarding voting rights, political representation, education and criminal justice policies, and the immigrant experience.
Publisher: CQ Press
ISBN: 1071824589
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 527
Book Description
Uneven Roads helps students grasp how, when, and why race and ethnicity matter in U.S. politics. Using the metaphor of a road, with twists, turns, and dead ends, this incisive text takes students on a journey to understanding political racialization and the roots of modern interpretations of race and ethnicity. The book’s structure and narrative are designed to encourage comparison and reflection. Students critically analyze the history and context of U.S. racial and ethnic politics to build the skills needed to draw their own conclusions. In the Third Edition of this groundbreaking text, authors Shaw, DeSipio, Pinderhughes, Frasure, and Travis bring the historical narrative to life by addressing the most contemporary debates and challenges affecting U.S. racial and ethnic politics. Students will explore important issues regarding voting rights, political representation, education and criminal justice policies, and the immigrant experience.
Law, Lawyers and Race
Author: Mathias Möschel
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317811526
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 247
Book Description
Critical Race Theory (CRT) is virtually unheard of in European scholarship, especially among legal scholars. Law, Lawyers and Race: Critical Race Theory from the United States to Europe endeavours to fill this gap by providing an overview of the definition and consequences of CRT developed in American scholarship and describing its transplantation and application in the continental European context. The CRT approach adopted in this book illustrates the reasons why the relationship between race and law in European civil law jurisdictions is far from anodyne. Law plays a critical role in the construction, subordination and discrimination against racial minorities in Europe, making it comparable, albeit in slightly different ways, to the American experience of racial discrimination. Anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, anti-Roma and anti-Black racism constitute a fundamental factor, often tacitly accepted, in the relationship between law and race in Europe. Consequently, the broadly shared anti-race and anti-racist position is problematic because it acts to the detriment of victims of racism while privileging the White, Christian, male majority. This book is an original exploration of the relationship between law and race. As such it crosses the disciplinary divide, furthering both legal scholarship and research in Race and Ethnicity Studies.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317811526
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 247
Book Description
Critical Race Theory (CRT) is virtually unheard of in European scholarship, especially among legal scholars. Law, Lawyers and Race: Critical Race Theory from the United States to Europe endeavours to fill this gap by providing an overview of the definition and consequences of CRT developed in American scholarship and describing its transplantation and application in the continental European context. The CRT approach adopted in this book illustrates the reasons why the relationship between race and law in European civil law jurisdictions is far from anodyne. Law plays a critical role in the construction, subordination and discrimination against racial minorities in Europe, making it comparable, albeit in slightly different ways, to the American experience of racial discrimination. Anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, anti-Roma and anti-Black racism constitute a fundamental factor, often tacitly accepted, in the relationship between law and race in Europe. Consequently, the broadly shared anti-race and anti-racist position is problematic because it acts to the detriment of victims of racism while privileging the White, Christian, male majority. This book is an original exploration of the relationship between law and race. As such it crosses the disciplinary divide, furthering both legal scholarship and research in Race and Ethnicity Studies.
Race, Recognition and Retribution in Contemporary Youth Justice
Author: Esmorie Miller
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 135103944X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 286
Book Description
Race, Recognition and Retribution in Contemporary Youth Justice provides a cross-national, sociohistorical investigation of the legacy of racial discrimination, which informs contemporary youth justice practice in Canada and England. The book links racial disparities in youth justice, especially exclusion from ideologies of care and notions of future citizenship, with historical practices of exclusion. Despite the logic of care found in both rehabilitative and retributive forms of youth justice, Black inner-city youth remain excluded from lenience and social welfare considerations. This exclusion reflects a historical legacy of racial discrimination apparent in the harsher sanctions levied against Black, innercity youth. In exploring race’s role in this arrangement, the book asks: To what extent were Black youth excluded from historic considerations of the lenience and social care, built into the logic of youth justice in England and Canada? To what extent are the disproportionately high incarceration rates, for Black, inner-city youth in the contemporary system, a reflection of a historic exclusion from considerations of lenience and social care? How might contemporary justice efforts be reoriented to explicitly prioritize considerations of lenience and social care ahead of penalty for Black, inner-city youth? Examining the entrenched structural continuities of racial discrimination, the book draws on archival and interview data, with interviewees including professionals who work with inner-city youth. In concert with the archival and interview data, the book offers the intractability/malleability I/M thesis, an integrated social theoretical logic with the capacity to expand the customary analytical scope for understanding the contemporary entrenched normalization of racialized youth as punishable. The aim is to advance a historicized account, exploring youth’s positioning as constitutive of a continuity of racialized peoples’, in general, and youth’s, in particular, historic exclusion from the benefits of modern rights, including lenience and care. The I/M logic takes its analytical currency from a combined critical race theory (CRT) and recognition theory. The book argues that a truly progressive era of youth justice necessitates cultivating policy and practice which explicitly prioritizes considerations of lenience and social care, ahead of reliance on penalty. This multidisciplinary book is valuable reading for academics and students researching criminology, sociology, politics, anthropology, critical race studies, and history. It will also appeal to practitioners in the field of youth justice, policymakers, and third-sector organizations.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 135103944X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 286
Book Description
Race, Recognition and Retribution in Contemporary Youth Justice provides a cross-national, sociohistorical investigation of the legacy of racial discrimination, which informs contemporary youth justice practice in Canada and England. The book links racial disparities in youth justice, especially exclusion from ideologies of care and notions of future citizenship, with historical practices of exclusion. Despite the logic of care found in both rehabilitative and retributive forms of youth justice, Black inner-city youth remain excluded from lenience and social welfare considerations. This exclusion reflects a historical legacy of racial discrimination apparent in the harsher sanctions levied against Black, innercity youth. In exploring race’s role in this arrangement, the book asks: To what extent were Black youth excluded from historic considerations of the lenience and social care, built into the logic of youth justice in England and Canada? To what extent are the disproportionately high incarceration rates, for Black, inner-city youth in the contemporary system, a reflection of a historic exclusion from considerations of lenience and social care? How might contemporary justice efforts be reoriented to explicitly prioritize considerations of lenience and social care ahead of penalty for Black, inner-city youth? Examining the entrenched structural continuities of racial discrimination, the book draws on archival and interview data, with interviewees including professionals who work with inner-city youth. In concert with the archival and interview data, the book offers the intractability/malleability I/M thesis, an integrated social theoretical logic with the capacity to expand the customary analytical scope for understanding the contemporary entrenched normalization of racialized youth as punishable. The aim is to advance a historicized account, exploring youth’s positioning as constitutive of a continuity of racialized peoples’, in general, and youth’s, in particular, historic exclusion from the benefits of modern rights, including lenience and care. The I/M logic takes its analytical currency from a combined critical race theory (CRT) and recognition theory. The book argues that a truly progressive era of youth justice necessitates cultivating policy and practice which explicitly prioritizes considerations of lenience and social care, ahead of reliance on penalty. This multidisciplinary book is valuable reading for academics and students researching criminology, sociology, politics, anthropology, critical race studies, and history. It will also appeal to practitioners in the field of youth justice, policymakers, and third-sector organizations.
Building the Prison State
Author: Heather Schoenfeld
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022652115X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 380
Book Description
The United States incarcerates more people per capita than any other industrialized nation in the world—about 1 in 100 adults, or more than 2 million people—while national spending on prisons has catapulted 400 percent. Given the vast racial disparities in incarceration, the prison system also reinforces race and class divisions. How and why did we become the world’s leading jailer? And what can we, as a society, do about it? Reframing the story of mass incarceration, Heather Schoenfeld illustrates how the unfinished task of full equality for African Americans led to a series of policy choices that expanded the government’s power to punish, even as they were designed to protect individuals from arbitrary state violence. Examining civil rights protests, prison condition lawsuits, sentencing reforms, the War on Drugs, and the rise of conservative Tea Party politics, Schoenfeld explains why politicians veered from skepticism of prisons to an embrace of incarceration as the appropriate response to crime. To reduce the number of people behind bars, Schoenfeld argues that we must transform the political incentives for imprisonment and develop a new ideological basis for punishment.
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022652115X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 380
Book Description
The United States incarcerates more people per capita than any other industrialized nation in the world—about 1 in 100 adults, or more than 2 million people—while national spending on prisons has catapulted 400 percent. Given the vast racial disparities in incarceration, the prison system also reinforces race and class divisions. How and why did we become the world’s leading jailer? And what can we, as a society, do about it? Reframing the story of mass incarceration, Heather Schoenfeld illustrates how the unfinished task of full equality for African Americans led to a series of policy choices that expanded the government’s power to punish, even as they were designed to protect individuals from arbitrary state violence. Examining civil rights protests, prison condition lawsuits, sentencing reforms, the War on Drugs, and the rise of conservative Tea Party politics, Schoenfeld explains why politicians veered from skepticism of prisons to an embrace of incarceration as the appropriate response to crime. To reduce the number of people behind bars, Schoenfeld argues that we must transform the political incentives for imprisonment and develop a new ideological basis for punishment.
Criminological Perspectives on Race and Crime
Author: Shaun L. Gabbidon
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317575903
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 299
Book Description
Ideal for use in either crime theory or race and crime courses, this is the only text to look at the array of explanations for crime as they relate to racial and ethnic populations. Each chapter begins with a historical review of each theoretical perspective and how its original formulation and more recent derivatives account for racial/ethnic differences. The theoretical perspectives include those based on religion, biology, social disorganization/strain, subculture, labeling, conflict, social control, colonial, and feminism. The author considers which perspectives have shown the most promise in the area of race/ethnicity and crime.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317575903
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 299
Book Description
Ideal for use in either crime theory or race and crime courses, this is the only text to look at the array of explanations for crime as they relate to racial and ethnic populations. Each chapter begins with a historical review of each theoretical perspective and how its original formulation and more recent derivatives account for racial/ethnic differences. The theoretical perspectives include those based on religion, biology, social disorganization/strain, subculture, labeling, conflict, social control, colonial, and feminism. The author considers which perspectives have shown the most promise in the area of race/ethnicity and crime.
Trayvon Martin, Race, and American Justice
Author: Kenneth J. Fasching-Varner
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 9462098425
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 212
Book Description
Trayvon Martin, Race, and “American Justice”: Writing Wrong is the first comprehensive text to analyze not only the killing of Trayvon Martin, but the implications of this event for the state of race in the United States. Bringing together contributions from a variety of disciplines and approaches, this text pushes readers to answer the question: “In the wake of the killing of Trayvon Martin, and the acquittal of his killer, how post-racial can we claim to be?” This collection of short and powerful chapters is at times angering and at times hopeful, but always thought provoking, critical, and poignant. This interdisciplinary volume is well suited for undergraduate and graduate students as well as faculty in sociology, social work, law, communication, and education. This book can also be read by anyone interested in social justice and equity through the lens of race in the 21st century. “This text is an invitation to a rebellion—the inevitable insurgency of Black youth brewing right now across the land as the descendants of enslaved workers step up to exercise their agency, and at that moment become agents of liberty and actors in history.” – William Ayers, Distinguished Professor from the University of Illinois–Chicago “... the authors [...] offer incisive and vivid examinations of the contours of white supremacy today, inviting readers into a much-needed discussion of moral questions surrounding the very foundation life in the U.S.” – Christine Sleeter, Professor Emerita, California State University Monterey “Trayvon Martin, Race, and American Justice: Writing Wrong is a powerful assemblage of voices that speak to the salience of race, gender, and their intersection. Collectively, the authors provide us with poignant reminders of the multiple forces that rail against Black males in our society. Each chapter grabs our attention, ignites our activism, and encourages us to remain steadfast in the struggle toward a true democracy for all Americans – a society where Black males’ lives are valued and they no longer face daily threats to their humanity.” – Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz, Assistant Professor, Teachers College, Columbia University “While motivated by Trayvon Martin’s unfortunate and tragic death, this impressive collection serves as a one-of-a-kind tribute to Martin and will help to keep his legacy alive. The contributions are evocative and accessible, and while the focus is on Martin, the contributions also call attention to mundane, severe, and systemic racial wrongdoings, biases in existing research, colorblindness and white privilege, and erasures of history and failures of memory.” – Tony E. Adams, Professor at Northeastern Illinois University and NCA book award winner “The editors and contributors have taken a tragic topic and presented it in a way that is engaging, effective, and surprisingly optimistic. There is a style for everyone here, making it a great text for multiple audiences and classrooms. A truly superb addition to any classroom and a great read for those interested in social justice in today’s world.” – U. Melissa Anyiwo, Professor and Coordinator of African American Studies, Curry College “Trayvon Martin, Race, and American Justice: Writing Wrong is true to its title; it focuses attention—through critical writing—on the pernicious, pervasive, and persistent violence waged against black men, especially black male youth, in American society. Using the still unpunished pre-meditated murder of Trayvon Martin as a highly emblematic example of this violence, the editors and authors use carefully crafted and sequenced poetry and prose to write truth to power about the economic, political, social, and cultural factors that produce and reproduce systemic aggression toward especially men and boys of African descent, but also toward members of other societally minoritized groups. The breadth and depth of the contributions included in Trayvon Martin, Race, and American Justice: Writing Wrong makes it a particularly valuable resource for faculty and students engaged in teaching, learning, research, service, and activism related to issues of race, racism, blackness, whiteness, class, caste, classism, language, dialect, literacy, linguicism, geographic and national origin, immigration status, sex, gender, gender identity and expression, masculinity, sexual orientation, size, appearance, and, more broadly, equity, equality, and social justice. Chapters reflect the thoughtful insight and advanced expertise of their authors, who bring increased levels of complexity to historical and contemporary dialogue, discussion, and debate about especially race and racism in the United States. The editors’ selection of contributors and organization of contributions balances pain truth-telling with hope and possibility for a more just future. In sum, Trayvon Martin, Race, and American Justice: Writing Wrong reciprocally links theory and practice relating to issues of power, privilege, oppression, discrimination—and liberation.” – Christine Clark, Professor & Senior Scholar in Multicultural Education, and Founding Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion, University of Nevada, Las Vegas “Chapters in this timely and probing book stare straight at a difficult incident, refuse to ignore injustice, but call on a higher purpose of great academic criticism in “writing the wrong.” Here the wrong is the corrosive and sometimes lethal bias by many in power toward black males, who are too often seen as dangerous and disposable in American society. The killing of Trayvon Martin and the subsequent acquittal of his killer George Zimmerman are examined by minds informed by reflection on theory and history. We hear of conversations that black parents, particularly mothers who often felt on trial themselves, had with their teenage sons. Some of these endangered sons were outraged by the act and verdict, while some others were indifferent. Chapters are devoted to the incident, the trial and aftermath, and to the future of the struggle against racial injustice. Through what T. J. Yosso calls “resistant capital” we are urged to continue to interrogate a judicial system that prosecutes not only black males but their parents and families. There is much to learn here about the current state of social justice and the way we live with and among each other. In both prose and poetry these impassioned authors strive to write the wrong of Trayvon Martin and many others like him. I recommend this volume highly and will use it in my graduate classes.” – AG Rud, Distinguished Professor, College of Education, Washington State University Kenneth J. Fasching-Varner, PhD is Shirley B. Barton Endowed Assistant Professor of Foundations and Elementary Education and holds a Ph.D in Language, Literacy, and Culture from The Ohio State University. Rema E. Reynolds, PhD is Assistant Professor of Education Policy, Organization, and Leadership and holds a doctorate in Education from the University of California, Los Angeles. Katrice A. Albert, PhD is Vice President for Equity and Diversity and holds a doctorate in Counseling from Auburn University. Lori L. Martin, PhD is Associate Professor of Sociology and African American Studies and holds a doctorate in Sociology from University of Albany, State University of New York.
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 9462098425
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 212
Book Description
Trayvon Martin, Race, and “American Justice”: Writing Wrong is the first comprehensive text to analyze not only the killing of Trayvon Martin, but the implications of this event for the state of race in the United States. Bringing together contributions from a variety of disciplines and approaches, this text pushes readers to answer the question: “In the wake of the killing of Trayvon Martin, and the acquittal of his killer, how post-racial can we claim to be?” This collection of short and powerful chapters is at times angering and at times hopeful, but always thought provoking, critical, and poignant. This interdisciplinary volume is well suited for undergraduate and graduate students as well as faculty in sociology, social work, law, communication, and education. This book can also be read by anyone interested in social justice and equity through the lens of race in the 21st century. “This text is an invitation to a rebellion—the inevitable insurgency of Black youth brewing right now across the land as the descendants of enslaved workers step up to exercise their agency, and at that moment become agents of liberty and actors in history.” – William Ayers, Distinguished Professor from the University of Illinois–Chicago “... the authors [...] offer incisive and vivid examinations of the contours of white supremacy today, inviting readers into a much-needed discussion of moral questions surrounding the very foundation life in the U.S.” – Christine Sleeter, Professor Emerita, California State University Monterey “Trayvon Martin, Race, and American Justice: Writing Wrong is a powerful assemblage of voices that speak to the salience of race, gender, and their intersection. Collectively, the authors provide us with poignant reminders of the multiple forces that rail against Black males in our society. Each chapter grabs our attention, ignites our activism, and encourages us to remain steadfast in the struggle toward a true democracy for all Americans – a society where Black males’ lives are valued and they no longer face daily threats to their humanity.” – Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz, Assistant Professor, Teachers College, Columbia University “While motivated by Trayvon Martin’s unfortunate and tragic death, this impressive collection serves as a one-of-a-kind tribute to Martin and will help to keep his legacy alive. The contributions are evocative and accessible, and while the focus is on Martin, the contributions also call attention to mundane, severe, and systemic racial wrongdoings, biases in existing research, colorblindness and white privilege, and erasures of history and failures of memory.” – Tony E. Adams, Professor at Northeastern Illinois University and NCA book award winner “The editors and contributors have taken a tragic topic and presented it in a way that is engaging, effective, and surprisingly optimistic. There is a style for everyone here, making it a great text for multiple audiences and classrooms. A truly superb addition to any classroom and a great read for those interested in social justice in today’s world.” – U. Melissa Anyiwo, Professor and Coordinator of African American Studies, Curry College “Trayvon Martin, Race, and American Justice: Writing Wrong is true to its title; it focuses attention—through critical writing—on the pernicious, pervasive, and persistent violence waged against black men, especially black male youth, in American society. Using the still unpunished pre-meditated murder of Trayvon Martin as a highly emblematic example of this violence, the editors and authors use carefully crafted and sequenced poetry and prose to write truth to power about the economic, political, social, and cultural factors that produce and reproduce systemic aggression toward especially men and boys of African descent, but also toward members of other societally minoritized groups. The breadth and depth of the contributions included in Trayvon Martin, Race, and American Justice: Writing Wrong makes it a particularly valuable resource for faculty and students engaged in teaching, learning, research, service, and activism related to issues of race, racism, blackness, whiteness, class, caste, classism, language, dialect, literacy, linguicism, geographic and national origin, immigration status, sex, gender, gender identity and expression, masculinity, sexual orientation, size, appearance, and, more broadly, equity, equality, and social justice. Chapters reflect the thoughtful insight and advanced expertise of their authors, who bring increased levels of complexity to historical and contemporary dialogue, discussion, and debate about especially race and racism in the United States. The editors’ selection of contributors and organization of contributions balances pain truth-telling with hope and possibility for a more just future. In sum, Trayvon Martin, Race, and American Justice: Writing Wrong reciprocally links theory and practice relating to issues of power, privilege, oppression, discrimination—and liberation.” – Christine Clark, Professor & Senior Scholar in Multicultural Education, and Founding Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion, University of Nevada, Las Vegas “Chapters in this timely and probing book stare straight at a difficult incident, refuse to ignore injustice, but call on a higher purpose of great academic criticism in “writing the wrong.” Here the wrong is the corrosive and sometimes lethal bias by many in power toward black males, who are too often seen as dangerous and disposable in American society. The killing of Trayvon Martin and the subsequent acquittal of his killer George Zimmerman are examined by minds informed by reflection on theory and history. We hear of conversations that black parents, particularly mothers who often felt on trial themselves, had with their teenage sons. Some of these endangered sons were outraged by the act and verdict, while some others were indifferent. Chapters are devoted to the incident, the trial and aftermath, and to the future of the struggle against racial injustice. Through what T. J. Yosso calls “resistant capital” we are urged to continue to interrogate a judicial system that prosecutes not only black males but their parents and families. There is much to learn here about the current state of social justice and the way we live with and among each other. In both prose and poetry these impassioned authors strive to write the wrong of Trayvon Martin and many others like him. I recommend this volume highly and will use it in my graduate classes.” – AG Rud, Distinguished Professor, College of Education, Washington State University Kenneth J. Fasching-Varner, PhD is Shirley B. Barton Endowed Assistant Professor of Foundations and Elementary Education and holds a Ph.D in Language, Literacy, and Culture from The Ohio State University. Rema E. Reynolds, PhD is Assistant Professor of Education Policy, Organization, and Leadership and holds a doctorate in Education from the University of California, Los Angeles. Katrice A. Albert, PhD is Vice President for Equity and Diversity and holds a doctorate in Counseling from Auburn University. Lori L. Martin, PhD is Associate Professor of Sociology and African American Studies and holds a doctorate in Sociology from University of Albany, State University of New York.