Rodney King video

Why Didn’t the Rodney King Video Lead to a Conviction?

The grainy pictures speak for themselves. Or so thought many Americans who watched the video of the March 3rd, 1991, beating of motorist Rodney King by Los Angeles police officers.
James Baldwin

Why James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time Still Matters

For James Baldwin (1924-1987), the fundamental premises of American society needed revisiting. How we might view #BlackLivesMatter through his lens.
Philando Castile shooting video

Viral Black Death: Why We Must Watch Citizen Videos of Police Violence

We should acknowledge and absorb the pain captured in videos of police violence, just as antiracist activists bore witness in the past to lynchings.
19th century police

The Birth of the “Policed Society”

Over the course of the nineteenth century policing became increasingly professionalized.
Philando Castile shooting video

How Do I (Not) Look? Live Feed Video and Viral Black Death

When we have the choice to look, we are bound ethically and politically to what we witness and what we do with what we have seen.
rio olympics

How Olympics Host Cities Hide Their Homeless

Olympic host cities have historically cleared away and marginalized their homeless in advance of the games.
Police officer directing traffic behind a Do Not Cross line

Do Police Deter Crime?

Is there a connection between larger police forces and lower crime rates?
Blue and red flashing police lights

The Roots of Modern Police Work

The beginnings of modern police work have roots in the colonial experience in Ireland.