Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America
James Forman, Jr.
Apr 2017 · Recorded Books · Narrated by Kevin R. Free
headphones
Audiobook
8 hr 39 min
Unabridged
family_home
Eligible
info
Want a free 4 min sample? Listen anytime, even offline.
Add
About this audiobook
Former public defender James Forman, Jr., is a leading critic of mass incarceration and its disproportionate impact on people of color. In Locking Up Our Own, he seeks to understand the war on crime that began in the 1970s and why it was supported by many African American leaders in the nation’s urban centers.
Forman shows us that the first substantial cohort of black mayors, judges, and police chiefs took office amid a surge in crime and drug addiction. Many prominent black officials, including Washington, D.C., mayor Marion Barry and federal prosecutor Eric Holder, feared that the gains of the civil rights movement were being undermined by lawlessness—and thus embraced tough-on-crime measures, including longer sentences and aggressive police tactics. In the face of skyrocketing murder rates and the proliferation of open-air drug markets, they believed they had no choice. But the policies they adopted would have devastating consequences for residents of poor black neighborhoods.
A former D.C. public defender, Forman tells riveting stories of politicians, community activists, police officers, defendants, and crime victims. He writes with compassion about individuals trapped in terrible dilemmas—from the men and women he represented in court to officials struggling to respond to a public safety emergency. Locking Up Our Own enriches our understanding of why our society became so punitive and offers important lessons to anyone concerned about the future of race and the criminal justice system in this country.
"A beautiful book, written so well, that gives us the origins and consequences of where we are ... I can see why [the Pulitzer prize] was awarded."—Trevor Noah, The Daily Show
WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR GENERAL NON-FICTON • ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEWS' 10 BEST BOOKS • LONG-LISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD • FINALIST, CURRENT INTEREST CATEGORY, LOS ANGELES TIMESBOOK PRIZES
Forman shows us that the first substantial cohort of black mayors, judges, and police chiefs took office amid a surge in crime and drug addiction. Many prominent black officials, including Washington, D.C., mayor Marion Barry and federal prosecutor Eric Holder, feared that the gains of the civil rights movement were being undermined by lawlessness—and thus embraced tough-on-crime measures, including longer sentences and aggressive police tactics. In the face of skyrocketing murder rates and the proliferation of open-air drug markets, they believed they had no choice. But the policies they adopted would have devastating consequences for residents of poor black neighborhoods.
A former D.C. public defender, Forman tells riveting stories of politicians, community activists, police officers, defendants, and crime victims. He writes with compassion about individuals trapped in terrible dilemmas—from the men and women he represented in court to officials struggling to respond to a public safety emergency. Locking Up Our Own enriches our understanding of why our society became so punitive and offers important lessons to anyone concerned about the future of race and the criminal justice system in this country.
"A beautiful book, written so well, that gives us the origins and consequences of where we are ... I can see why [the Pulitzer prize] was awarded."—Trevor Noah, The Daily Show
WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR GENERAL NON-FICTON • ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEWS' 10 BEST BOOKS • LONG-LISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD • FINALIST, CURRENT INTEREST CATEGORY, LOS ANGELES TIMESBOOK PRIZES
Former public defender James Forman, Jr., is a leading critic of mass incarceration and its disproportionate impact on people of color. In Locking Up Our Own, he seeks to understand the war on crime that began in the 1970s and why it was supported by many African American leaders in the nation’s ...
About the author
James Forman Jr. was born on June 22, 1967. He graduated from Brown University and Yale Law School. He was a law clerk for Judge William Norris of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and Justice Sandra Day O'Connor of the United States Supreme Court. Afterward, Forman worked for six years at the Public Defender Service in Washington, D.C. In 1997, he and David Domenici started the Maya Angelou Public Charter School, an alternative school for school dropouts and youth who had previously been arrested. Forman taught at Georgetown Law from 2003 to 2011 and then joined the Yale Law School faculty. His first book, Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America, received the Pulitzer Prize for general nonfiction in 2018.
James Forman Jr. was born on June 22, 1967. He graduated from Brown University and Yale Law School. He was a law clerk for Judge William Norris of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and Justice Sandra Day O'Connor of the United States Supreme Court. Afterward, Forman worked for six y...
Rate this audiobook
Tell us what you think.
Listening information
Smartphones and tablets
Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.
Laptops and computers
You can read books purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.
