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The New Jim Crow
Named one of the most important nonfiction books of the 21st century by Entertainment Weekly‚ Slate‚ Chronicle of Higher Education‚ Literary Hub, Book Riot‚ and Zora
A tenth-anniversary edition of the iconic bestseller—"one of the most influential books of the past 20 years," according to the Chronicle of Higher Education—with a new preface by the author
"It is in no small part thanks to Alexander's account that civil rights organizations such as Black Lives Matter have focused so much of their energy on the criminal justice system."
—Adam Shatz, London Review of Books
Seldom does a book have the impact of Michelle Alexander's The New Jim Crow. Since it was first published in 2010, it has been cited in judicial decisions and has been adopted in campus-wide and community-wide reads; it helped inspire the creation of the Marshall Project and the new $100 million Art for Justice Fund; it has been the winner of numerous prizes, including the prestigious NAACP Image Award; and it has spent nearly 250 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list.
Most important of all, it has spawned a whole generation of criminal justice reform activists and organizations motivated by Michelle Alexander's unforgettable argument that "we have not ended racial caste in America; we have merely redesigned it." As the Birmingham News proclaimed, it is "undoubtedly the most important book published in this century about the U.S."
Now, ten years after it was first published, The New Press is proud to issue a tenth-anniversary edition with a new preface by Michelle Alexander that discusses the impact the book has had and the state of the criminal justice reform movement today.
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Reviews
This book gave me a new perspective about life it was so knowledgeable and now I have a better understanding about why my people act the way we do between reading this book and MLK Jr and reading about Fred Hampton with the Panther Party and Malcolm X I feel like I have a sense of where I came from and now where I wanna go I feel like the only way to repay my ancestors for everything they did to get us here is to do better don’t take anything for granted like freedom family education voting it give me pride knowing what we been through and still came out strong I wished we learned this during school but at the age of 33 it’s never to late to change
By norman209
I read this book while recovering from hip surgery. Heavy subject matter and so well documented citing many legal cases and precedents for court decisions and legal and law enforcement practices. Ms. Alexander makes a very strong case for the racial discriminatory practices since the War On Drugs was initiated, which has covertly marginalized the majority of poor African American males over the past 60 years since the civil rights movement, kept deliberately under the racial radar, making it legally impossible to use racial discrimination defense for the majority of incarcerated black males during the “tough on crime” era emphasizing individual poor choices of criminality. Very powerful book that should be required high school and college reading for all American youth. I was totally astonished to learn that Ms. Alexander wrote the book while raising three young children! A multitasking genius!
By DCE49
I’m truly grateful for this book and sad for it to end. Thank you
By S Steptoe
Obviously clueless about Jim Crow laws, that was written by Democrats.
By hargisP
I was reluctant to read this for a long time. The hesitation grounded in the understanding that once you dive into the ugly truth nothing will ever look the same again. Even worse, you in turn will be consumed with bitterness and despondency. So, you avoid truths as powerful as this book and look for other convenient narratives. I can say after reading this gripping account of how America’s deep racial animus is masked behind the “rule of law” and “criminal justice system,” it is high time to rip the bandaid off. In doing so, you’ll see how Michelle Alexander gives us a detailed glimpse into the rotting of America’s soul. A machine that does not care that the outcomes don’t warrant the methods. So, why would we perpetuate this system if not for hate? The decomposition of America’s soul is rooted in the regularly reimagined systems of dehumanization of minorities and black men in particular. In its latest incarnation, the orchestrators of oppression have built the most durable system of control ever devised and we all sit idly letting it happen. The single thread of hope is that in knowing the tools and methods of the oppressors we can maybe turn the tide.
By Richard Bakare