States of Confinement - by Na Na (Paperback)

About the Book

A diverse and pre-eminent group of scholars and activists expose the injustices of the U.S.'s incarceration policies, including domestic policing, imprisonment, the dealth penalty, and border militarization.

Book Synopsis

The United States has the highest incarceration and execution rate in the industrialized world; 70 percent of the nearly two million incarcerated in prisons and immigration detention centers are people of color. States of Confinement uncovers the political, social, and economic biases in policing and punishment. The distinguished contributors- Angela Y. Davis, Manning Marable, Gary Marx, Robert Meeropol, Julie Su, and Judi Bari-discuss abuses of police powers in American society. They expose racial profiling and sentencing disparities that target African Americans and Latinos, the sexual exploitation of women, racist and homophobic violence, the policing of Asian Americans and Arabs, the conditions of HIV-positive prisoners, the use of the Grand Jury and police to undermine political activity, and environmental activism.

Review Quotes

"This challenge to conventional wisdom about the criminal justice system is needed." - Booklist

"This book is an enormously useful treasury of information, joining powerful personal stories with bold, thoughtful analysis." - Howard Zinn, author of A People s History of the United States

About the Author

JOY JAMES is Professor of Political Theory, Department of Africana Studies at Brown University. Her books include Transcending the Talented Tenth: Black Leaders and American Intellectuals and The Angela Y. Davis Reader.