A Political and Literary Forum

Menu Search
Donate Shop Join

Law & Justice

Slaves of the State: Prison Uprisings and the Legacy of Attica

A historian uncovered an archive of massacre at Attica—only to have the records disappear.

Robert Chase

Read More

Law & Justice

Law & Justice

No Rights Which the White Man Is Bound to Respect

The spectre of Dred Scott is haunting St. Louis.

Walter Johnson

Law & Justice

What Does Police Abolition Mean?

Abolition is not about transforming the police, it is about transforming the nation.

Derecka Purnell

Law & Justice

Policing: A Public Good Gone Bad

Policing as we know it must be abolished before it can be transformed.

Tracey L. Meares

Law & Justice

Whom Do Sanctuary Cities Protect?

Public safety is precisely why sanctuary cities are a good idea.

Lauren Carasik

Law & Justice, Race

How the Government Built a Trap for Black Youth

Throughout the twentieth century, bipartisan consensus was that black youth were latent criminals in need of abundant policing.

Kelly Lytle Hernández

Law & Justice, Race

Mass. High Court Says Black Fears Matter

A Massachusetts high court ruling acknowledges that black men aren’t wrong for wanting to run from police.

Simon Waxman

Global Justice, Law & Justice

On Ice

Undocumented immigrants face horrible conditions in U.S. detention, with little legal recourse.

Colin Dayan

Class & Inequality, Law & Justice

No Easy End to Prison Profiteering

The DOJ says it will stop using private prisons. The truth is more complicated.

Christopher Petrella

Law & Justice, Race

Paying for Punishment

Debt still sends many people—especially black people—to jail.

Donna Murch

Law & Justice, Politics

Racial Violence in Black and White

Images of police violence against African Americans have a radical heritage.

Benjamin Balthaser

Law & Justice, Politics

Waiting at Guantánamo

After fourteen years, Mohamedou Ould Slahi may finally have a chance at freedom.

Henry Ace Knight

Gender & Sexuality, Law & Justice

Brock Turner and The Problem of Punishment

Rapists should be held accountable. But is more incarceration the best way?

Judith Levine

Sign Up for Our Newsletter

Vital reading on politics, literature, and more in your inbox

Love Boston Review?

Then you’ll love our new membership program! Join us to support engaged discussion on critical issues. You’ll also enjoy exclusive membership benefits.
Get Started

Copyright © 1993-2017 Boston Review and its authors.

Support Boston Review

Become a Member

Make a tax-deductible donation today

Boston Review Printing Note: For best printing results try turning on any options your web browser's print dialog makes available for printing backgrounds and background graphics.