They can't kill us all : Ferguson, Baltimore, and a new era in America's racial justice movement / Wesley Lowery.

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  • Additional Information
    • Publication Information:
      First edition.
    • Abstract:
      Summary: A behind-the-scenes account of the #blacklivesmatter movement shares insights into the young men and women behind it, citing the racially charged controversies that have motivated members and the economic, political, and personal histories that inform its purpose.
    • Abstract:
      Summary: "A deeply reported book that brings alive the quest for justice in the deaths of Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, and Freddie Gray, offering both unparalleled insight into the reality of police violence in America and an intimate, moving portrait of those working to end it. Conducting hundreds of interviews over the course of more than one year of reporting on the ground, Washington Post writer Wesley Lowery traveled from Ferguson, Missouri, to Cleveland, Ohio; Charleston, South Carolina; and Baltimore, Maryland, and then back to Ferguson to uncover life inside the most heavily policed, if otherwise neglected, corners of America today. In an effort to grasp the magnitude of the response to Michael Brown's death and understand the scale of the problem police violence represents, Lowery speaks to Brown's family and the families of other victims as well as local activists. By posing the question "What does the loss of any one life mean to the rest of the nation?" Lowery examines the cumulative effect of decades of racially biased policing in segregated neighborhoods with failing schools, crumbling infrastructure, and too few jobs. Studded with moments of joy, and tragedy, They Can't Kill us All offers a historically informed look at the standoff between the police and those they are sworn to protect, showing that civil unrest is just one tool of resistance in the broader struggle for justice. As Lowery brings vividly to life, the protests against police killings are also about the black community's long history on the receiving end of perceived and actual acts of injustice and discrimination. They Can't Kill us All grapples with a persistent if largely unexamined aspect of the otherwise transformative presidency of Barack Obama: the failure to deliver tangible security and opportunity to those Americans most in need of both."--Dust jacket.
    • Content Notes:
      Introduction : the story -- Ferguson : a city holds its breath -- Cleveland : coming home -- North Charleston : caught on camera -- Baltimore : life pre-indictment -- Charleston : Black death is Black death -- Ferguson, again : a year later, the protests continue -- Afterword : three days in July.
    • Notes:
      "November 2016"--Title page verso.
      Includes bibliographical references (pages 237-240) and index.
    • Other Titles:
      They cannot kill us all.
    • ISBN:
      9780316312479
      0316312479
    • Accession Number:
      2016948558
    • Accession Number:
      ocn944933782
      944933782
    • Accession Number:
      fay.547592

Reviews

LJ Reviews 2016 June #2

A political journalist with the Washington Post, Lowery was part of the team that won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize in national reporting for creating a database of fatal shootings by the police and using it to clarify why they shoot to kill and who the victims will likely be. Here he details the many violent events leading to #blacklivesmatter as well as the impact of that movement. Significantly, he contextualizes with a 50-year history of racial violence and personalizes with the story of his own life growing up biracial in Cleveland, the son of a black journalist. Important note: creating the database was his idea. With a 50,000-copy first printing.

[Page 53]. (c) Copyright 2016 Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

LJ Reviews 2016 October #2

Washington Post reporter Lowery draws on his investigative reporting experience to tell the stories of black communities and their relationship to the police. This journey takes him from Ferguson, MO, to his hometown of Cleveland, OH, to Charleston, SC, and Baltimore as he chronicles the aftermath of the deaths of Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, Walter Scott, and Freddie Gray. By focusing on protesters, the families of the deceased, and other reporters, Lowery brings a much-needed human context to these events. The narrative is highly personal, since the author also reflects on his childhood in Cleveland, his identity as a black reporter, and his own arrest while covering events in Ferguson. Included are brief profiles of prominent activists, such as Johnetta Elzie, DeRey Mckesson, Bree Newsome, and Brittany Packnett, in order to explain their motivations. Furthermore, Lowery muses on the media's role in documenting the protests and the broken relationship between police and the communities that they serve. The work ends with an account of activist activities at the University of Missouri and protesters' thoughts on the future of the continued movement for equal social justice. VERDICT Highly recommended for those seeking additional clarity on current events.—Rebekah Kati, Durham, NC. Copyright 2016 Library Journal.

LJ Reviews 2017 January #1

One of the first books on the Black Lives Matter movement, Washington Post writer Lowery's debut draws upon journalism, memoir, and history. (LJ 10/15/16)

Copyright 2017 Library Journal.