Excessive Punishment

This book’s strength is in its expansiveness, featuring work by academics, policymakers, and incarcerated people examining aspects of excessive punitiveness in the United States. All of the pieces are inviting: some are written in an accessible, friendly, conversational tone; others are more lyrical. But there is definitely something for everyone. This is a one-stop shop of critical and radical perspectives on the criminal justice system. -- Hadar Aviram, author, <i>The Legal Promise and the Process of Justice</i> From the perspective of someone who has endured fourteen years within the confines of federal prison, I have witnessed the stark and often brutal realities of our criminal justice system. Excessive Punishment emerges as a beacon of understanding in this complex landscape, offering a profound insight into the cycle of mass incarceration that grips our nation. This book isn't just a collection of statistics; it's a window into the lives affected and the profound harm inflicted by a system overly invested in punitive measures. What makes this book truly stand out is its chorus of diverse voices – it's a tapestry woven from the experiences of those who have lived behind bars and the relentless efforts of advocates working for systemic change. It exposes the deep-seated flaws in our justice system, tracing the roots of these issues back to poverty, systemic racism, and the enduring impact of a criminal record. As someone who has journeyed from the depths of incarceration to the forefront of advocacy for justice reform, I see Excessive Punishment as more than just a book – it's a catalyst for change. This is not merely an exposé of the system's failings; it's a call to action, inspiring us to think differently and work collectively towards a justice system that embodies fairness, rehabilitation, and a true sense of justice for all. -- Louis L. Reed, Film Producer, Council of Criminal Justice Trustee, Executive Vice President of The Frederick Douglass Project for Justice The thirty-eight essays in Excessive Punishment weave a path towards reform of the U.S.’s fragmented system of criminal punishment, producing too many harms and too little safety for anyone. This book brilliantly distills the histories of control and of racism, as it maps interactions on streets, in prisons, and after release that need to be reoriented to recognize the political voice and social worth of all members of the country. -- Judith Resnik, Arthur Liman Professor of Law, Yale Law School This book brings together an amazing array of contributors to outline the biggest problems with American conceptions and implementation of punishment — and also to propose solutions. -- Emily Bazelon, author of <i>Charged: The New Movement to Transform American Prosecution and End Mass Incarceration</i> This book breaks through the tropes about what it takes for our criminal legal system to ensure public safety; it smashes the generalizations that have fueled our failed experiment in mass incarceration for the past several decades. And it does so with experts of all kinds - scholars, activists, practitioners - who chronicle how our system went off the rails and more important, how to fix it. -- Judge Nancy Gertner