Beyond These Walls, Tony Platt
Beyond These Walls, Tony Platt
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Beyond These Walls
Rethinking Crime and Punishment in the United States

Author: Tony Platt

Narrator: Jason Culp

Unabridged: 12 hr 50 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 01/08/2019


Synopsis

A groundbreaking investigation into the roots of the American criminal justice system reveals how the past bleeds into the present. Beyond These Walls is an ambitious and far-ranging exploration that tracks the legacy of crime and imprisonment in the United States, from the historical roots of the American criminal justice system to our modern state of over-incarceration, and offers a bold vision for a new future. Author Tony Platt, a recognized authority in the field of criminal justice, challenges the way we think about how and why millions of people are tracked, arrested, incarcerated, catalogued, and regulated in the United States. Beyond These Walls traces the disturbing history of punishment and social control, revealing how the criminal justice system attempts to enforce and justify inequalities associated with class, race, gender, and sexuality. Prisons and police departments are central to this process, but other institutions – from immigration and welfare to educational and public health agencies – are equally complicit. Platt argues that international and national politics shape perceptions of danger and determine the policies of local criminal justice agencies, while private policing and global corporations are deeply and undemocratically involved in the business of homeland security. Finally, Beyond These Walls demonstrates why efforts to reform criminal justice agencies have often expanded rather than contracted the net of social control. Drawing upon a long tradition of popular resistance, Platt concludes with a strategic vision of what it will take to achieve justice for all in this era of authoritarian disorder.

About Tony Platt

TONY PLATT is a Distinguished Affiliated Scholar at the Center for the Study of Law & Society, University of California, Berkeley. The author of numerous books dealing with issues of criminal justice, race, inequality, and social justice in American history, including Beyond These Walls: Rethinking Crime and Punishment in the United States, he previously taught at the University of Chicago, Berkeley, and California state universities. Platt’s experience as a political activist and public intellectual informs his research and publications. He lives in Berkeley, CA.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Darcia on January 04, 2019

When the media talks about a rise in crime, prison overcrowding, and repeat offenders, most people automatically think of murderers, rapists, and other violent offenders. In fact, violent crime has been in a sharp decline for years. Rarely does mainstream media clarify that these crimes are relative......more

Goodreads review by TheOtherJessyca on November 15, 2018

This book was an eye opener and life changing. It dives deep into the history of punishment and social control. It explores the criminal justice system and goes into the inequalities that certain genders and races suffer. Brilliant book, absolutely enjoyed reading it and will highly recommend.......more

Goodreads review by Sherry on October 16, 2021

I requested this book through my local library as a zip book...if you have a book you want to read that they don't have, you can suggest they buy it. It gets shipped directly to you, and you have 3 months to read it. Then you turn it in to the library, and they add it to their collection. There is......more

Goodreads review by Josh on February 10, 2019

This is not an easy read, but it is a very important one. With my current job being a grant specialist for a state organization that assists indigent defense systems, but not having a lot of experience in the arena itself, I thought this would be good to pick up. Boy. I learned so much over the cour......more

Goodreads review by Elizabeth on June 24, 2020

I'm surprised this book doesn't have more reviews. While it can get nitty-gritty with numbers that can appear at times dull, this book is an excellent overview of the history of crime and punishment in the United States. It has great sources and, aside from a few typos (Trump was elected in 2016, no......more