Scan barcode
mlatimer's review against another edition
5.0
i could (and probably will) write a multitude of papers analyzing the arguments that berger structures within the realm of prison organizing and the catalysts of the carceral state. i found that my eyes were opened to new ways of viewing prisons as a systematic means of oppression. i was introduced to landmark cases and historic events that immensely shaped the Black Power and Prison Rights movements. while berger’s analyses can sometimes be as dense as a white frat boy in a sociology class, i truly loved reading his perspective (and intentional depictions of George Jackson, Angela Davis, and other within the Black Power movement).
with all of that said, there’s always room for critique. while Angela Davis was graced with a (shared) section on her works and contribution, the representation of women is laughable. berger left out an entire demographic of women that were monumentally responsible for the copious number of progressive victories that were won in this era.
furthermore, the way he depicts Davis is interesting to me. i found that he was intentional in depicting the juxtaposition of Ruchell Magee and Davis’ trial. she was written as a calm and poised woman, paralleled to Magee as a flamboyant, disruptive defendant. i believe this was due to the prejudice of intersectionality that Davis faces by being a Black woman on trial for all america to see. i’d like to think berger did this with purpose; however, he never mentions the term intersectionality or delves into the gender roles that confine women (especially women of color).
the book concludes in the epoch where the country was at this height of activism. however, shortly after there is a push away from rehabilitation into the era of law and order (causing the large support for activist groups to disperse into mere whispers).
overall, highly highly recommend this read. it’s also slightly pessimistic to find that the perils of the prison state are still abundantly present today, with little progress being made.
with all of that said, there’s always room for critique. while Angela Davis was graced with a (shared) section on her works and contribution, the representation of women is laughable. berger left out an entire demographic of women that were monumentally responsible for the copious number of progressive victories that were won in this era.
furthermore, the way he depicts Davis is interesting to me. i found that he was intentional in depicting the juxtaposition of Ruchell Magee and Davis’ trial. she was written as a calm and poised woman, paralleled to Magee as a flamboyant, disruptive defendant. i believe this was due to the prejudice of intersectionality that Davis faces by being a Black woman on trial for all america to see. i’d like to think berger did this with purpose; however, he never mentions the term intersectionality or delves into the gender roles that confine women (especially women of color).
the book concludes in the epoch where the country was at this height of activism. however, shortly after there is a push away from rehabilitation into the era of law and order (causing the large support for activist groups to disperse into mere whispers).
overall, highly highly recommend this read. it’s also slightly pessimistic to find that the perils of the prison state are still abundantly present today, with little progress being made.
loppear's review
4.0
Simultaneously a detailed history of George & Jonathan Jackson and Angela Davis, a wide-ranging overview of prison's central role in black national identity and resistance organizing of the 60s and 70s, and a strong case for the revolutionary marxist view of black power / black nationalist movements. Left in my head a lot of the powerful analogies these groups used to connect prison to the general black experience; between colonization and incarceration (in migration, resistance, nations-within-nations); with prison and judicial changes/legitimacy as Jim Crow laws receded and black-as-criminal took their place, both in black expressions of self-determination and white expressions of law-and-order. Berger ends on a strong discussion of state violence under neoliberalism and the state-empowering militarizing effects of attempting to achieve freedom through violence.
More...