† Criminal InJustice is a weekly series devoted to taking action against inequities in the U.S. criminal justice system. Nancy A. Heitzeg, Professor of Sociology and Race/Ethnicity, is the Editor of CI. Kay Whitlock, co-author of Queer (In)Justice, is contributing editor of CI. Criminal Injustice is published every Wednesday at…
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Marisa Alexander, the thirty year-old mother of three sentenced to twenty years in prison for firing a warning shot to fend off an attack form her husband. From The Grio/Joy-Ann Reid: Marissa Alexander’s daughter turns three today but there is not plan for a birthday party. Instead, the 31-year-old remains…
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Moral Mondays protest in North Carolina. Photographer: Eric Etheridge. From The Nation: North Carolina was long regarded as one of the most progressive Southern states—an island of moderation amid a sea of conservatism. But since Republicans took over the state legislature in 2010 and the governorship in 2012—putting the GOP…
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From Time/Michelle Alexander: One of the reasons that Trayvon Martin’s tragic death resonated so powerfully with millions of people of color, black and brown men in particular, is that it was one of those rare situations in this so-called era of colorblindness when suddenly the curtain was pulled back. All…
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From Democracy Now: According to a recent study, the shooting death of Trayvon Martin and the acquittal of his killer is not unique. In “Operation Ghetto Storm,” the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement (MXGM) found at least 136 unarmed African Americans were killed by police, security guards and self-appointed vigilantes in…
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Despite the heat, a teen at Trayvon Martin rally asks if he looks dangerous. #wbz pic.twitter.com/a7mf6Lcv2N — Mark Katic (@MarkKWBZ) July 20, 2013 From ThinkProgress: On Saturday, 100 cities held rallies organized by the National Action Network for Trayvon Martin, where large crowds demanded a federal civil rights investigation into…
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Curtis Flowers at his capital trial in 2004. The Mississippi Supreme Court reversed his first conviction after prosecutors used all of their peremptory strikes against blacks in the jury pool. From NYT: [T]he practice of excluding blacks and other minorities from Southern juries remains widespread and, according to defense lawyers…
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† Criminal InJustice is a weekly series devoted to taking action against inequities in the U.S. criminal justice system. Nancy A. Heitzeg, Professor of Sociology and Race/Ethnicity, is the Editor of CI. Kay Whitlock, co-author of Queer (In)Justice, is contributing editor of CI. Criminal Injustice is published every Wednesday at…
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