Play Book Tag discussion

James Forman Jr.’s Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America is an insightful, deeply considered examination of how America’s mass incarceration crisis was shaped not just by external forces, but also by decisions made within the Black community itself. A former public defender turned Yale law professor, Forman brings both personal experience and academic rigour to a topic that’s often discussed in binaries, and rarely with this much nuance.

The book focuses on Washington, D.C., during the 1970s and '80s, a time when rising crime and drug addiction were wreaking havoc on Black communities. What makes Forman’s work so compelling is his willingness to confront difficult truths: that Black leaders — judges, police chiefs, politicians — often supported tough-on-crime policies in an effort to protect their communities, even when those policies would later prove destructive.

Rather than assigning simple blame, Forman asks readers to consider context. He shows how the desire for safety and justice collided with a system already tilted by racism and neglect. His writing is honest and accessible, rich with human stories and courtroom realities, and he avoids moralising. Instead, he invites reflection on how good intentions can lead to harmful outcomes, and how systemic change must be paired with compassion and understanding.

Locking Up Our Own doesn’t offer easy solutions, but it does offer clarity. It's a necessary, often sobering read that challenges assumptions and expands the conversation around criminal justice in America. Thought-provoking and impeccably researched, this book deserves every bit of praise it has received. It’s not only an important contribution to legal and social history, but also a powerful reminder of how change must be rooted in both justice and empathy.

Love to see a review on this one! You did such a great job of capturing some of my own thoughts on this book.

I read this a couple years ago and also found it powerful and insightful. I didn’t always agree with the author - I’m pretty strongly anti-drugs, I believe they destroy lives and entire communities - but I appreciate how much I learned about the “War on Drugs” while reading this book. Specifically how the laws put in place disproportionately affected communities of color. I found it particularly disturbing to read about the Stop and Search policies that were put in place. I feel like I also better understood the impacts of generational wealth and white flight coming out of this book. So impactful!

I’ve been meaning to get around to read The New Jim Crow - I believe it would be a good companion read to this one - but it just never seems to float to the top of my TBR. Maybe someday soon.

I read The Other Wes Moore the same year I read Locking Up Our Own and appreciated the contrast that book provided to this one. I didn’t find either book to be perfect, but it’s good to read books from different perspectives of the same topic when you can.