From New York to Los Angeles, police departments across the country are consistently accused of racism. Although historically white police precincts have been slowly integrating over the past few decades, African-American officers still encounter racism on the job. Bolton and Feagin have interviewed fifty veteran African-American police officers to provide real-life and vivid examples of the difficulties and discrimination these officers face everyday inside and outside the police station from barriers in hiring and getting promoted to lack of trust from citizens and members of black community.

About the Author

Kenneth Bolton is Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice at Southeastern Louisiana University.

Joe Feagin is Professor of Sociology at the Texas A&M University. He is a past president of the American Sociological Association. Among his many Routledge books are: White Racism (2nd edition, 2001), Racist America:Roots, Current Realities, and Future Reparations (2000), and The Agony of Education: Black Students at WhiteColleges and Universities (1996).

Reviews

"The stories in Black in Blue, from the previously unheard voices of African-Americans who dared to become police officers in the South, will make you angry and make you cry, but most importantly, they will give you hope in the power of the human spirit to break free of the bonds of prejudice and stereotype." -- David Cole, author of NoEqual Justice: Race and Class in the American CriminalJustice System
"In their thoughtful qualitative analysis, Bolton and Feagin tackle an important, though largely overlooked topic--the lived experiences of Black police officers. Their research exposes the personal and social costs of men in blue engaging in business as usual." -- Katheryn Russell-Brown, University of Florida
"Black in Blue brilliantly breaks an unwitnessed silence about the price and potential of piercing the color barrier of policing in America, where the battle against injustice persists behind the badge of justice itself. Bolton and Feagin allow the poignant voices of stoic African-American police officers to boldly articulate the challenges within legal institutions that are still brutally divided by race." -- John Hagan, author of Northern Passage: American Vietnam War Resisters inCanada
"Black in Blue offers and intensive look into the struggles blacks still face with acceptance from their white counterparts in positions of power and influence...This is a much-needed book that provides a controversial and harsh reality about the often glamorized realm of law enforcement." -- Black Diaspora

"In their thoughtful qualitative analysis, Bolton and Feagin tackle an important, though largely overlooked topic--the lived experiences of Black police officers. Their research exposes the personal and social costs of men in blue engaging in business as usual." - Katheryn Russell-Brown, University of Florida

Book Information
ISBN 9780415945189
Author Kenneth Bolton
Format Hardback
Page Count 296
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 580g