And Still I Rise

by Doreen Lawrence

In April 1993, Stephen Lawrence was murdered by a group of young white men on a street in south-east London. No one was ever convicted of his killing. From the first police investigation onwards, the case was badly mishandled. In the end, long after the case against the five suspects had been dropped, the government had to give in to mounting pressure and hold a public inquiry, which became the most explosive in recent British legal history. Sir William Macpherson concluded that the Metropolitan Police had been 'institutionally racist', and handed out damning judgements of its attitude to the victim and his family. These facts, though, leave the reader unprepared for Doreen Lawrence's own story of her son's murder. Here, in this raw, honest book, she writes about her life for the first time, and recreates the pain, frustration and bafflement she experienced as she realized that there would never be a moment when she could say to herself that justice had been done. She writes about her difficult childhood in Jamaica. She takes us through the unimaginable events of 1993 and the years that followed as they happened to her. She writes about the breakdown of her marriage, of her terrible moments of withdrawal from the world. But no matter how depressed or marginalized she feels, she keeps her determination to go on fighting for truth. An inspirational book from one of the most extraordinary British women of our time, "And Still I Rise" demands to be read.

Genres: Nonfiction, Autobiography, Biography

Hardcover

First published June 15, 2006

Reviews

[Natalie Richards · Rating 5 out of 5]

I`ve thought for a while about what I wanted to write about this book. I remember Stephen`s murder; the senselessness of it and the failings by the metropolitan police to investigate properly. Like the rest of the nation, who abhor racism and want to live in a world where justice and fairness prevail, I was angry that no one in authority seemed to care about what had happened to Stephen. He was murdered because he was black, by a group of white racist thugs.
Doreen has written movingly about her fight for justice for her son and what the loss of Stephen has done to her family. She has never given up; after twenty years two of her son`s killers are behind bars and she has done so much to challenge the law and change the deep seated racism that was within the metropolitan police.
By her own admission she is a quiet unassuming woman but she has fierce strength and it is that that drove her to make others listen and change their thinking.

[Gill · Rating 5 out of 5]

The racist murder of teenager Stephen Lawrence in 1993 - and the careless incompetence of the ensuing police investigation - led to far-reaching consequences for London's Metropolitan Police. White Britain had thought that overt racism was a thing of the past, and many people were genuinely shocked to discover how Stephen's killers went free for so long despite their identities being common knowledge.

That this abject failure of justice finally received a public airing and was documented by the Macpherson report is entirely due to the ceaseless efforts of Stephen's family, pushing for answers in the face of stonewalling and outright antagonism from the police.

Stephen's mother, Doreen, is a reserved woman who has had to deal with tragedy and deception, and has done so with enormous dignity and apparent strength. In her memoir she chronicles her life right from her West Indian childhood. It's incredibly moving and also flabbergasting; the errors and omissions of the police are breathtaking. It's a must-read.

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can’t remember when I got this book but it has been hovering on my tbr for a few years. I think I was put off but they fact that Doreen isn’t an author (sorry) but having watched the bbc show for the 25 year anniversary of Stephen’s murder it made its way to the top of my tbr pile and I am so glad I read it. It’s well detailed, well thought out, has good pace and so obviously told from the heart. Must look out to see if there is an updated version.

[Shanice Khan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exceptional, powerful and very moving. Reading a mother's personal account and the  harrowing recounts of a senseless murder and it's effects on the family and people around is uttlerly heartbreaking. 


 A complete eye opener into the institutionalized racism prevalent in British society and how this case was dealt with. A must read!

[Kymberly Courage · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m at a loss for words. This is not a book meant for reviewing. Instead it’s an eye opener into the institutionalised racism prevalent in British society. I am certain we are aware of the injustices black people have to face everywhere in the world, but reading a personal account of someone who could easily have been my mother, sister, aunt or associate is heartbreaking. I repeat, this is not a book to be “reviewed”. It’s not a fictional novel, the tragedies of which can be abandoned upon its completion. This is real life. Unfortunately, it’s the life that has been imposed on us by the oppressors. Institutionalised racism is a part of our everyday life and manages to transgress in any way possible. Whether it be through housing assistance or acts of micro aggression, it remains present leering at our blackness. My heart aches for Doreen Lawrence and, although it has been over 20 years since Stephen’s murder, the issues raised in this book are pertinent to current times and must be addressed and rectified for a just and harmonious society. I could say way much more about this book, but I’m tired of it all. White people claim they’re tired of hearing black people always bringing up the race card, but has a white person ever considered what it must be like to be black. Have they ever walked in our shoes(which is almost impossible to do)? Do they walk the streets daily fearful of being randomly attacked? Do they have to constantly tell their kids to be mindful of how they dress in order to not attract police or unsolicited attention? Honestly, as a society we need to do better. In light of the current events regarding Black Lives Matter, Breonna Taylor, Shukri Abdi, George Floyd, we need to remember those we’ve lost as a result of this very system(the westernised system, that is) people continue to glorify. In memory of Stephen Lawrence, Sean Riggs, Sheku Bayoh, Mark Duggan, and countless many others the media has refused or failed to report. The progress we’ve made up until this point has not been without the help of many, including members of the victims, but we still have long to go before we can truly claim to live in a free and just society. I commend anti racist organisations for the work they’ve done and for what they continue to do. We can only pray, hope and continue to fight for justice.

[Jade · Rating 5 out of 5]

Start to finish in less than a week. Such heartache, but written beautifully and honestly.

[Iona Metcalfe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would like to give thanks to Dorren Lawrence for writing this book. She and her family have been exposed to the most awful happenings in life. Her precious son was murdered because he was black. The police were corrupt and allowed her son's murderers to remain at large. After almost twenty years, two out of the five white men who murdered Stephen Lawrence were found guilty and jailed. Their sentences are not long enough and they should never be released, in my opinion. The other three murderers have escaped jail due to police corruption.
Please pray for divine intervention that those who have murdered Stephen Lawrence, those who have acted to cover up the crime and those who have stood by and done nothing to bring about justice are rightly held accountable.

[Tay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exceptional and very moving. Would highly recommend.

[Nik · Rating 4 out of 5]

powerful. Lawrence is poised, articulate and incredibly fair in her assesments. I should've read this years ago.

[Lexi Morasquezo · Rating 5 out of 5]

"And Still I Rise," gave me such different understandings. I read this book about a week ago, and still I am trying to decode and understand some of the peoms I had read. But the ones I did understand were so in depth, and so relevent to life in general that it gave me almost advice in some way. The way the poems and memoirs explained race, people, and gender show the want of equalness. And here we are in the 13th century with people who are fighting for gay rights. The right to mary someone with the same gender, and the rights for women to be in combat in the military.
Of all the peoms I read, "And Still I Rise" was my favorite. I see now why the title of the book was named after it. It's touching, and when read gives you a ffeeling of wanting respect. Well, that's what I got from it. When someone reads a poem the stanzas may give them a different meaning then everyone elses'.
I engoyed this book very much, Lawrence did a great job at pulling all these poems and memoirs together. I recommend this book to poets, teenagers, adults and even juniors. It's a very good book to read. I myself, like to write poems. And this book gave me more inspiration for more. More time to write, poems like these espacially, because they're just that great!

[Sheila · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book when it first was published. At that time I was pretty naive about police and political corruption. Currently, I am reading "The Untouchables", and the Stephen Lawrence case is mentioned so often I decided to go back to Doreen's book. I ended up by re-reading the whole book. That sent me back to Maya Angelou's poem, so it was a good experience all around. How courageous Doreen Lawrence was, and in the face of such establishment and police disapproval. She has been proven right, of course, and I now realise that all wasn't as it should have been in Scotland Yard and other involved police forces, and probably still isn't, judging from the number of corruption investigations.

[Katrina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't read memoirs often but this one was well worth it. Much has been written about the murder of Stephen Lawrence but the opportunity to read how his mother viewed the events was unique. But mostly it was heartbreaking. The investigation into the young man's death was already a tragedy but to see the clear disregard by police for his young life and the suffering for his family harkens back to another time, definitely not the 1990s. But there are glimmers of hope, especially in the ways in which Mrs. Lawrence and various other people rose to the occasion to fight (and continue to fight) for justice in the murder of a talented young man.

[Jo]

In light of the recent conviction of 2 of Stephen Lawrence's murderers, and thinking about the future of my son growing up in this country, how his experience is going to be different from mine although the same in some respects. How can I not read this mother's account. It is gonna be painful. But me and mine have benefited from her courage, rage, tenacity and love for her son; to read it I feel is the least I can do. 19th Jan '12.

[Adam Beddoe · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm never sure how to review a non-fiction book as you can't really criticise the story on its believability or poor characterisation. This book however gives often heartbreaking details to the death of Stephen Lawrence. I would however temper the review as in historical terms this is a fascinating piece of Primary evidence but clearly an unbalanced potentially problematic secondary source. You sympathise with Doreen but also clearly wonder if there is another side to the story.

[Nike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heart bteaking on all levels! I

[Jake · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Review

[Carol · Rating 2 out of 5]

Harrowing recount of a senseless murder, and how it affected the family. I do truly sympathise with Doreen, but at the same time do feel there is another side of the story to be told.

[Freya (freydawreviews) ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastically important, insightful, educational and moving book. I believe everybody should read this, let alone people who believe race is no longer apparent in the UK.