Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) - Columbus, OH discussion

I'd like us to share resources for deeper exploration for each book we read. Here are a few I have found for The New Jim Crow:

1. The New Jim Crow Study Guide and Organizing Guides: http://www.newjimcroworganizing.org/i...

You can purchase either of these guides, but you can also get the Study Guide for FREE by requesting a download of the PDF version. I downloaded it today! Just scroll towards the bottom of the page.

2. Interview with the author, Michelle Alexander:
https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/fa...

Feel free to comment here with any resources you may find throughout your reading!

Thanks for these resources. I downloaded both guides and browsed through each of them. Both seem well done. I look forward to using them as I read through the book.

Two prisons in New Jersey have banned inmates from reading "The New Jim Crow." The ACLU is fighting back, arguing that such a ban is unconstitutional.

Shaun King did this write-up on it in The Intercept: https://theintercept.com/2018/01/08/n...

UPDATE!

Due to pressure from the ACLU, the two New Jersey prisons lifted the ban:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/...

Interesting article from the NYT about Trump. The themes of creating a wedge between poor whites and blacks in order to maintain the racial caste system, as discussed by Alexander in The New Jim Crow, are explored in this article as well:

"The Lowest White Man" by Charles Blow
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/11/op...

It seems that since I began reading this book, everywhere I turn I see things that connect with what I'm reading.

3 New York prisons have banned inmates from receiving donated books from family or community groups. They now are only allowed to purchase them from 6 state-approved vendors. The prices through these vendors are costly, and we all know that the majority of inmates are already in precarious (to say the least) financial situations. This is a direct attack on inmates' right to information and education.

https://www.wnyc.org/story/ny-inmates...

This link offers ways you can help say NO to the new prison package restrictions, including contact info for Governor Cuomo and Department of Corrections officials:

http://kersplebedeb.com/posts/say-no-...

If anyone is interested, I'm keeping notes on the book in a Google Doc as I read. Thought it might be helpful to share in case you need to quickly refresh yourself on the chapters before making a comment or whatever. You can find the notes here:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1h...

In Chapter 2, Alexander talks about law enforcement's use of search and seizure, and discusses how the Supreme Court has overridden the Fourth Amendment to uphold warrantless searches/seizures in multiple cases.

A small "win" for criminal justice happened the other day, with Ohio's Supreme Court ruling a particular traffic stop search and seizure of a purse unconstitutional. Read more here:

http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/o...

Consider my new book 200 Letters by Amy Watkins to read and discuss in this group. this novel is based on true events. It involves the unfair persecution of a man for instances that were out of his control. He spent 6 months in jail without a conviction. Those 6 months helped to ruin his life as he lost his job, his family, his money, and his freedom. It is available on Amazon and free on KU. Thanks and enjoy.

https://www.amazon.com/200-Letters-Am...