1st Edition
Police and the Unarmed Black Male Crisis Advancing Effective Prevention Strategies
Presenting both historical and contemporary discussions and coverage, this book provides an in-depth and critical analysis of police brutality and the killing of unarmed black males in the United States of America. Within the book, contributors cover five key areas: the historical context and contemporary evidence of police brutality of unarmed black people in the USA; the impact of police aggression on blacks’ well-being; novel strategies for prevention and intervention; the advancement of a cordial relationship between police and black communities; and how best to equip the next generation of scholars and professionals. Each contributor provides a simple-to-understand, thought-provoking, and creative recommendation to address the perennial social ill of police brutality of black males, making this book an excellent resource for students, scholars and professionals across disciplinary spectrums. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment.
Introduction – A Discourse on Police Shooting of Unarmed Black Males: Advancing Novel Prevention and Intervention Strategies Sharon E. Moore, A. Christson Adedoyin and Michael A. Robinson
Part I: The historical context and contemporary evidence of police brutality of unarmed Black people in the United States
1. A death to justice (The shooting of Michael Brown—Summer 2014) Sylvia Telafaro
2. From "brute" to "thug:" The demonization and criminalization of unarmed Black male victims in America CalvinJohn Smiley and David Fakunle
3. Police shootings of unarmed African American males: A systematic review George T. Patterson and Philip G. Swan
Part II: The impact of police aggression on Blacks’ well-being across the lifespan
4. Police killings of unarmed Black people: Centering race and racism in human behavior and the social environment content Willie F. Tolliver, Bernadette R. Hadden, Fabienne Snowden, and Robyn Brown-Manning
5. Parenting while powerless: Consequences of "the talk" Tracy R. Whitaker and Cudore L. Snell
6. The nation’s unprotected children and the ghost of Mike Brown, or the impact of national police killings on the health and social development of African American boys Raja Staggers-Hakim
7. The death of Black males: The unmasking of cultural competence and oppressive practices in a micro-aggressive environment Folusho Otuyelu, Warren Graham, and Shakira A. Kennedy
Part III: Novel prevention and intervention strategies
8. EVIP—Edutainment violence intervention/prevention model Valerie Dorsey Allen and Phyllis Solomon
9. "Hands up, don’t shoot" or shut up and play ball? Fan-generated media views of the Ferguson Five Emmett L. Gill, Jr.
10. "Police took my homie I dedicate my life 2 his revenge": Twitter tensions between gang-involved youth and police in Chicago Desmond Upton Patton, Patrick Leonard, Loren Cahill, Jamie Macbeth, Shantel Crosby, and Douglas-Wade Brunton
Part IV: Advancing a cordial relationship between police and Black communities
11. Law enforcement perceptions of their relationship with community: Law enforcement surveys and community focus groups Juan J. Barthelemy, Cassandra Chaney, Elaine M. Maccio, and Wesley T. Church, II
12. An authentic discourse: Recentering race and racism as factors that contribute to police violence against unarmed Black or African American men Bernadette R. Hadden, Willie Tolliver, Fabienne Snowden, and Robyn Brown-Manning
13. Vile vigilance: An integrated theoretical framework for understanding the state of Black surveillance Whitney Sewell, Christina E. Horsford, Kanisha Coleman, and Charity S. Watkins
Part V: Equipping the next generation of scholars and professionals
14. Police-involved homicide of unarmed Black males: Observations by Black scholars in the midst of the April 2015 Baltimore uprising Natasha C. Pratt-Harris, Michael M. Sinclair, Cynthia Barbara Bragg, Nicole R. Williams, Kalfani Nyerere Ture, Belinda Davis Smith, Isiah Marshall, Jr., and Lawrence Brown
15. "I can’t breathe": A case study—Helping Black men cope with race-related trauma stemming from police killing and brutality Samuel R. Aymer
16. Hands up—Don’t shoot: Police shooting of young Black males: Implications for social work and human services Sharon E. Moore, Michael A. Robinson, A. Christson Adedoyin, Michael Brooks, Dana K. Harmon, and Daniel Boamah
Biography
Sharon E. Moore is Professor of Social Work in the Raymond A. Kent School of Social Work at the University of Louisville, USA. Her primary research is related to African American faculty at Predominantly White Institutions, as well as issues that affect Black males. She is a national trainer on human diversity issues.
A. Christson Adedoyin is an Associate Professor of Social Work in the Department of Social Work at Samford University, Birmingham, Alabama, USA. His research interests include church-based social work; the integration of faith and learning; the nexus of religion/spirituality in addressing socio-economic, educational, and health disparities among African Americans; and African immigrants.
Michael A. Robinson is an Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work at the University of Georgia, USA. His research interests address the health and well-being of African Americans, and other underserved populations, particularly in relation to substance abuse and mental disorders.
