I don't know how anyone could call this boring. I also am not sure why some folks say it's a rebuttal to "The New Jim Crow" as he speaks positively of that text as revolutionary in changing hearts and minds. I have definitely fallen into the toxic kind of identity politics where one hopes that their own monolithic demographic or that of another oppressed group will shift things if given leadership positions- often when I didn't even believe it would happen. This book is a good antidote to that shallow way of thinking.

I was completely engaged with this book from beginning to end. This was both fascinating for it's detailed history of a majority Black location (DC) and the criminal (in)justice system as well as a refreshing thesis on the complexity of these issues.

It sucks that this needs to be said in any discussion of any marginalized group, but Black folks are like other humans- complex and diverse in opinions and beliefs. They are also susceptible to corruption by unjust systems, as we all are. Tokenizing folks and pretending like just adding more Black (or enter any other group) cops/prosecutors/judges will somehow automatically solve an authoritarian regime is misguided at best. Though it makes sense- in desperate times we all want solutions and we often use the only things we've ever known, even if they're known to destroy us.

This book was also a good look into the unique confounding factors that Black people have to navigate in various neighborhoods, being forced to clean up messes they didn't create with tools they didn't design. The author is a good writer, story teller, and does very well to make his points by both telling and showing. Highly recommended reading.