By Paul Butler. "They" say cops, politicians, even ordinary people are afraid of black men. The result is the Chokehold: laws and practices that treat every African American man like a thug. In this explosive new book, an African American former federal prosecutor shows that the system is working exactly as designed. Black men are always under watch, and police violence is widespread—all with the support of judges and politicians. The New Press (2017), English, 256 pages.
Butler, uses new data to demonstrate that whites commit the majority of violent crime in the U.S. For example, a white female is ten times more likely to be raped by a white male acquaintance than be the victim of a violent crime perpetrated by a black man. Butler frankly discusses black on black violence too. Chokehold powerfully demonstrates why current efforts to reform law enforcement will not create lasting change. Butler’s controversial recommendations about how to crash the system, and when it’s better for a black man to plead guilty—even if he’s innocent—are sure to be game-changers in the national debate about policing, criminal justice, and race relations.
About the Author
A former federal prosecutor, Paul Butler provides legal commentary for CNN, MSNBC, and NPR and has been featured on 60 Minutes and profiled in the Washington Post. A law professor at Georgetown University, he is the author of Let’s Get Free: A Hip-Hop Theory of Justice, winner of the Harry Chapin Media Award, and Chokehold: Policing Black Men (both from The New Press). He has published numerous op-eds and book reviews, including in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Boston Globe, and the Los Angeles Times. He lives in Washington, D.C.
