With the eloquence of Ta-Nehisi Coates and the persuasive research
of Michelle Alexander, a former federal prosecutor explains how the
system really works, and how to disrupt it
Cops, politicians,
and ordinary people are afraid of black men. The result is the
chokehold: laws and practices that treat every African American man
like a thug. In this explosive new book, an African American former
federal prosecutor shows that the system is working exactly the way
it’s supposed to. Black men are always under watch, and police
violence is widespread—all with the support of judges and
politicians.
In his
no-holds-barred style, Butler, whose scholarship has been featured on
60 Minutes, uses new data to demonstrate that white men commit the
majority of violent crime in the United States. For example, a white
woman is ten times more likely to be raped by a white male
acquaintance than be the victim of a violent crime perpetrated by a
black man. Butler also frankly discusses the problem of black on
black violence and how to keep communities safer—without relying as
much on police.
Chokehold
powerfully demonstrates why current efforts to reform law enforcement
will not create lasting change. Butler’s controversial
recommendations about how to crash the system, and when it’s better
for a black man to plead guilty—even if he’s innocent—are sure
to be game-changers in the national debate about policing, criminal
justice, and race relations.