Race and Justice

Puts the Rodney King and O. J. Simpson trials under the microscope Reviews the turbulent events of the Rodney King and O. J. Simpson trials from a social and political framework of race relations and police misconduct. This thought-provoking book shows that the issue of race was at the very heart of both of these emotionally charged cases. Psychologist and scholar Jewelle Taylor Gibbs shows how King and Simpson have been transformed by their trials into symbols of the different worlds inhabited by blacks and whites in America. Gibbs's compelling analysis of the issues that permeated these trials will challenge even the most cynical observer to rethink any previously held assumptions about race and the criminal justice system.

"Gibbs' book, an in-depth analysis of the Rodney King and O.J. Simpson cases, is bold, courageous scholarship. Penned by a talented clinical psychologist, the study rises above superficiality and even now stands out from the large body of opportunistic, commercial Simpson-King literature. . . . An instant classic." "An excellent manual. . . . Offers constructive insights into both trials from intellectuals, educators and lawyers as well as social workers and community support counselors." "Gibbs finds context and meaning in this first serious, scholarly study of Rodney King and O.J. Simpson cases." ?Race and Justice penetrates the searing headlines of two of the most celebrated criminal trials in American history to ponder their broader implications for our society. Jewelle Taylor Gibbs, the wise and insightful author, offers trenchant observations about the future of race relations in Los Angeles that Americans everywhere should heed, and in a hurry.? -- Hugh B. Price, president, National Urban League ?Must reading for those who want to reinvent the jury system, improve race relations, and make sense of the Rodney King and O.J. Simpson verdicts and their racially polarized aftermaths. Drawing on history, sociology, and psychology, the author analyzes these controversial verdicts and concludes that they are the legacy of racial injustice and police violence.? --Eddie N. Williams, president, Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies ?Sensitive and gripping. Essential for anyone who wants to understand police and racial tension in America.? --Joseph D. McNamara, retired police chief of San Jose, California, research fellow, Hoover Institution Stanford University ?Sensitive and gripping. Essential for anyone who wants to understand police and racial tension in America? --Joseph D. McNamara, retired police chief of San Jose, research fellow, Hoover Institution Stanford University "An important, thoughtful analysis." "This book is brilliant, dramatic and appalling....Her book is carefully documented, but written in an easy and attractive style." "Jewelle Taylor Gibbs, the wise and insightful author offers trenchant observations about the future of race relations in Los Angeles that Americans everywhere should heed, and in a hurry." --Hugh B. Price, President, National Urban League "Careful and provocative analyses . . . essential for anyone interested in a broader perspective of the issues." --Phillip Young Blue, New York State Supreme Court Criminal Branch Library, Library Journal

JEWELLE TAYLOR GIBBS a clinical psychologist and consultant, is Zellerbach Family Fund professor of social policy at the School of Social Welfare, University of California at Berkeley. She is the coauthor of Children of Color (Jossey-Bass, 1989) and the editor of Young, Black, and Male in America: An Endangered Species (Greenwood Press, 1988).