The New Jim Crow
Michelle Alexander
5/5
I think that I speak for many Americans when I say that it's been difficult to find any "national pride" within the last few months. The pandemic has really displayed how inadequate our health services are, the information being pushed to the forefront with the BLM Movement has displayed how utterly we have failed our Black community. This book was written over ten years ago, I'm too young to have comprehended it then, but the information was obviously out there and should have been dealt with far before the nation was pushed to revolt during a global pandemic.
This book brings up valuable facts that I feel like a lot of people have been hearing throughout the last couple of months, or the people who are listening at least. With such direct links between the current system of mass incarceration and the previous system of Jim Crow, how can anyone question why people have reached the end of their tolerance? There are no excuses for the way the American government continues to fail these communities, but there's an obvious need for them to address it and work towards moving forward in a positive direction.
I learned a lot from this book and I believe that everyone could learn a lot from this book. I'm the kind of person who wants to learn though, so I don't know how to emphasize this sort of education for the people who are refusing to see a problem. The burden shouldn't fall upon individuals to learn about the horrible realities of the American system, bigger characters need to get involved. I don't know what the solution is, but it's good to have better facts to arm yourself with when you get into debates with your older relatives.
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