A Book Discussion on Crime, Justice, and Blacks

Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America by James Forman

Jr. is a book about the reasons and history of why African Americans make up a

disproportionate number in state and federal prisons. This book has implications for how

we classify and define crime, particularly regarding victimless crime. Nevertheless, race

plays a major factor in how justice is administered in the United States.

For many African Americans, it outlines the history of the drug wars in the 1970 and

80s. It also was the beginning of marijuana, crack, and gun control in 1975. Many of the

issues also include the rise of the African American police.

Forman's book is an excellent history of what occurred in many cities, including Omaha.

The dual system of justice and the conflicts between the bourgeoisie Black elites, their

law-and-order demands, and their suffering crime at the hands of drug-related crimes of

the under caste helped create this apartheid justice system. Although this book focuses

on the pendulum of the impact of leaders, along with conservative white politicians,

including President Bill Clinton, it led to our present dual justice system.

The co-discussion of this book is Jeanie Shoemaker Mezger, who is the editor of

Nebraska Criminal Justice Review, a statewide publication that seeks to improve the

deplorable conditions in the Nebraska Department of Corrections. She is also involved

in getting reforms to the sexual registry data collection.

The book should be required for faculty in the criminal justice department and law

schools, and for staff members in the public defender's office and the Douglas County

offices, to address inadequate records of sentences for various racial groups that

illustrate discrimination. The racial numbers in DCYC (kiddy jail) and the Nebraska

Department of Corrections demonstrate this point with their figurehead leadership and

nearly all-white staff.

The book is available at the Omaha Public Library and in bookstores that practice racial

diversity. We will explore how to reform the system and protect victims' rights, in relation

to restorative justice and balance for oppressed groups.

Crime and Punishment in Black America - A Discussion