Description |
1 online resource (xi, 294 pages). |
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text txt rdacontent |
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computer c rdamedia |
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online resource cr rdacarrier |
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data file |
Series |
Critical America |
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Critical America.
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Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 277-289) and index. |
Contents |
1. The Black Rage Defense, 1846: The Trial of William Freeman -- 2. The Black Rage Defense, 1971 -- 3. The Law: Its Myths and Rituals -- 4. Black Rage 1971: The Case of James Johnson, Jr. -- 5. James Johnson's Workers' Compensation Case -- 6. Racism, Rage, and Criminal Defenses -- 7. To Use or Not to Use the Black Rage Defense -- 8. Race, Class, and the Trials of Clarence Darrow -- 9. A Survey of Black Rage Cases -- 10. Urban War Zones -- 11. White Rage -- Hate Crimes -- 12. White Rage -- Do Prisons Cause Crime? -- 13. The Cultural Defense and the Trials of Patrick Hooty Croy -- 14. "Remake the World." |
Note |
Print version record. |
Summary |
In 1971, Paul Harris pioneered the modern version of the black rage defense when he successfully defended a young black man charged with armed bank robbery. Dubbed one of the most novel criminal defenses in American history by Vanity Fair, the black rage defense is enormously controversial, frequently dismissed as irresponsible, nothing less than a harbinger of anarchy. Consider the firestorm of protest that resulted when the defense for Colin Ferguson, the gunman who murdered numerous passengers on a New York commuter train, claimed it was considering a black rage defense. In this thought-provoking book, Harris traces the origins of the black rage defense back through American history, recreating numerous dramatic trials along the way. For example, he recounts in vivid detail how Clarence Darrow, defense attorney in the famous Scopes Monkey trial, first introduced the notion of an environmental hardship defense in 1925 while defending a black family who shot into a drunken white mob that had encircled their home. Emphasizing that the black rage defense must be enlisted responsibly and selectively, Harris skillfully distinguishes between applying an environmental defense and simply blaming society, in the abstract, for individual crimes. If Ferguson had invoked such a defense, in Harris's words, it would have sent a superficial, wrong-headed, blame-everything-on-racism message. Careful not to succumb to easy generalizations, Harris also addresses the possibilities of a white rage defense and the more recent phenomenon of cultural defenses. He illustrates how a person's environment can, and does, affect his or her life and actions, how even the most rational person can become criminally deranged, when bludgeoned into hopelessness by exploitation, racism, and relentless poverty. |
Subject |
Defense (Criminal procedure) -- United States.
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African Americans -- Psychology.
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Racism -- United States.
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United States -- Race relations.
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African Americans -- Social conditions.
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Extenuating circumstances -- United States.
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Noirs américains -- Psychologie.
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Racisme -- États-Unis.
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États-Unis -- Relations raciales.
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Noirs américains -- Conditions sociales.
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Circonstances atténuantes -- États-Unis.
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Défense (Procédure pénale) -- États-Unis.
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LAW -- Criminal Law -- General.
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African Americans -- Psychology
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African Americans -- Social conditions
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Defense (Criminal procedure)
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Extenuating circumstances
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Race relations
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Racism
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United States https://id.oclc.org/worldcat/entity/E39PBJtxgQXMWqmjMjjwXRHgrq
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Genre/Form |
Electronic books.
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Other Form: |
Print version: Harris, Paul, 1943 February 17- Black rage confronts the law. New York : New York University Press, ©1997 0814735274 (DLC) 97002379 (OCoLC)36372335 |
ISBN |
0585002606 (electronic bk.) |
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9780585002606 (electronic bk.) |
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9780814744765 (electronic bk.) |
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0814744761 (electronic bk.) |
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9780814735275 (cl ; acid-free paper) |
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0814735274 (cl ; acid-free paper) |
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0814735274 |
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9780814735923 |
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0814735924 |
Standard No. |
AU@ 000054148435 |
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DEBBG BV043144748 |
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DEBSZ 422616958 |
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GBVCP 1008647306 |
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GBVCP 800510046 |
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NZ1 14253932 |
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