Black Book of Rights: In Furtherance of the Civil Rights Movement *[PDF]
The Green Book was designed to keep Black Americans safe during the turbulent Jim Crow Era, and now the Black Book of Rights is designed to keep you safe during police interactions, which are often unpredictable and stress-filled. With approximately 90% of individuals waiving their Miranda rights, the Black Book is critical for teaching you the rights you possess during a police encounter and how to invoke those rights correctly and safely. The Black Book of Rights: In Furtherance of the Civil Rights Movement is written in two distinct but related sections. The first section reviews law enforcement in the United States, citing several studies demonstrating how, despite the successes of the Civil Rights Movement, Black Americans are still under attack by the Criminal Justice Regime (police, prosecutors and judges). Relevant United States Supreme Court case law is highlighted to show, 1) the progression of how courts have viewed Black Americans and their place in the United States, and 2) how close in time we are to American cultural practices and customs that were said to have detrimental effects that “are likely to be undone.” The second section of the Black Book details the various encounters you have with police officers, provides you with bullet point law and facts concerning those encounters and explains, in step-by-step fashion, how to best navigate the encounter for your safety and the preservation of your rights following the encounter. The stated goal of the Black Book of Rights is to reduce the number of Black men in prisons. The Black Book acknowledges that law enforcement is unlikely to change the tactics it deploys against Black Americans that create the disproportionality found in all aspects of the Criminal Justice Regime, so the author places the responsibility on Black America to learn their rights and asks for accountability to one another for properly invoking those rights. You are now charged with the duties of education and application, because no one else is not coming to save you. “Ignorance of each other is what has made unity impossible in the past. Therefore, we need enlightenment. We need more light about each other. Light creates understanding, understanding creates love, love creates patience, and patience creates unity. Once we have more knowledge (light) about each other, we will stop condemning each other and a United front will be brought about.” – el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz Read more
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Why Must Read Black Book of Rights: In Furtherance of the Civil Rights Movement?
This is a valuable book. It is straightforward and easy to read. It is a book that is likely to save lives. The first half of the book describes one segment of systemic racism in the U.S. - what Hopkins calls the three tiers of the Criminal Justice Regime: the police, prosecutors, and judges. Recently, we have heard a lot about the discriminatory treatment of Blacks, particularly young Black men, by police. Hopkins points out how that unfair and unjust treatment extends to prosecutors and judges, all with the ultimate result of increasing incarceration rates. He draws an interesting analogy between slavery and incarceration, explaining the economic roots of each practice. Slavery was a billion-dollar industry, and those in power at the time acquired great wealth through buying, selling, and owning slaves. Those in power now acquire great wealth through a lucrative Criminal Justice Regime and a burgeoning prison system. This book instructs in ways to manage police encounters to minimize the risk of providing police reasons for arrest, prosecutors' reasons to charge and convict, and judges' reasons to impose lengthy prison sentences. Each of those three tiers is a billion-dollar industry on its own, and each continually expands. That expansion pours into the prison system and all its related industries. The second half of the book describes specific rules for behavior during interactions with police. Hopkins walks us through ways to respectfully exercise our rights when we are stopped by police. We learn about reasonable suspicion and probable cause. We are given specific words to say, and more importantly, when (and how) not to say anything. We are also given tools to use during interrogation, traffic stops, searches, police knocking on the door, and checkpoints for DUIs and border patrol. Hopkins explains the 4th and 5th amendments and the Supreme Court cases that defined them. The book includes a "Quick Reference Guide" that would make a nice pocket pamphlet to always carry with you. And while the focus is on young Black men, the practical advice is helpful for anyone. Nice work, Mr. Hopkins.
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