| Description |
xiii, 417 p. : ill., maps ; 29 cm. |
| Series |
American experience |
|
American experience (Facts on File, Inc.)
|
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| Contents |
Old crimes in the New World, 1500-1699 -- A new system of justice, 1700-1789 -- The American experiment, 1790-1829 -- The American city, 1830-1854 -- A nation dissolved, 1855-1869 -- East and West, 1870-1889 -- The Gilded Age and Progressive Era, 1890-1913 -- Bootleggers and G-men, 1914-1933 -- World War II and the Cold War, 1934-1957 -- Civil disobedience and civic reform, 1958-1970 -- A crisis of confidence, 1971-1981 -- Responding to urban crime, 1982-1992 -- Crime and justice as public issues, 1993 to present. |
| Summary |
Extending beyond the traditionally infamous gangsters, juvenile delinquents, and serial killers, Wolcott and Head's thoughtful and thorough analysis brings gender, race, and political issues into focus as well. It attends to women criminals (Lizzie Borden) and activists (Ida B. Wells) and issues such as domestic abuse and abortion-clinic bombing. There is a strong emphasis on the treatment of African Americans by the justice system, linking societal and justice issues to conditions established under slavery-a relationship that is traced from the abolition movement and the Underground Railroad up to the Rodney King beating and the Los Angeles riots of 1992. Each chapter presents a 10- to 12-page chronological analysis of an era, followed by a year by year time line and a fascinating three- to seven-page compendium of primary-source quotations and narratives. The four appendixes include 25 pages of excerpts from important documents, 33 pages of capsule biographies, and sections of maps, graphs, and tables. -School Library Journal |
| Subject |
Crime -- United States -- History.
|
|
Criminal justice, Administration of -- United States -- History.
|
|
Punishment -- United States -- History.
|
| Added Author |
Head, Tom.
|
| ISBN |
9780816062478 (alk. paper) |
|
0816062471 (alk. paper) |
|
