Library: Guide to Source Material for Anti-Racist Activists and Thinkers: Michelle Alexander

Michelle Alexander (1967- )

Biography and Writings

Biographical Articles

Writings

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, 10th Anniversary ed. by Michelle Alexander
Call Number: Essential Read
Publication Date: New City Press, 2010, 2020.
In what is now a modern classic, issued in a 10th anniversary edition, Michelle Alexander informs readers how the mass incarceration of a disproportionate number of black men amounts to a devastating system of racial control. Despite the triumphant dismantling of the Jim Crow laws, the system that once forced African-Americans into a segregated second-class citizenship still haunts and the criminal justice system still unfairly targets black men and deprives an entire segment of the population of their basic rights. Outside of prisons, a web of laws and regulations discriminates against these wrongly convicted ex-offenders in voting, housing, employment and education. Alexander here offers an urgent call for justice.

Michelle Alexander (The New York Times)
This links to Michelle Alexander's columnist page for The New York Times. She has been writing for the publication since 2018 and, per this page, has published nine pieces.
Michelle Alexander (Huff Post)
The author page for Michelle Alexander's articles published in Huff Post. There are four articles linked through this page.
Michelle Alexander (The Nation)
The author page for Michelle Alexander for The Nation. There are five articles linked on this page.

Interviews and Documentaries

Interviews

Michelle Alexander: 'A System of Racial and Social Control' (Frontline)
A transcript of an interview on Frontline of Michelle Alexander on incarceration, the War on Drugs, and our society's response to addiction. The interview was conducted on September 5, 2013.
Spirit of Justice Search (Union Theological Seminary)
A search of Union Theological Seminary's YouTube page for Michelle Alexander. The main result is five recordings of interviews/dialogues she held with others in a series titled Spirit of Justice.
A Talk w/Michelle Alexander- How the US Gov, Prisons, Banks & CIA Profit From The War on Drugs (The Real News Town Hall)
(Runtime: 1:18:11, published September 9, 2019)
"A discussion of the school to prison pipeline and how the The US government, law enforcement agencies, prison industrial complex and banks profit from the War On Drugs." (Video description)
Social Justice Speaker Series: Dr. Michelle Alexander (Texas State University)
(Runtime: 1:32:00, published April 14, 2021)
An interview with people from Texas State University in which Michelle Alexander discusses abolition and defunding the police, the invisibility of incarcerated folks, and how veterans and incarcerated (and formerly incarcerated) share the quality of disposability. Alexander also reflects on her role in the movement saying she was blindsided when she was suddenly lauded as an expert. She notes that she wanted to step into a new role, away from law and the media, with the recognition that this is a marathon, not a sprint. The final question concerns the role of higher education institutions in this work.

Talks, Classes, Speeches

Michelle Alexander (C-SPAN)
The collection of Michelle Alexander's appearances on C-SPAN. There are five videos.
The Future of Race in America: Michelle Alexander at TEDxColumbus
(Runtime: 23:38, published October 16, 2013)
Michelle Alexander's TED talk on mass incarceration and the racial caste system in the United States. The talk focuses on her switch on if the United States legal system has created racial caste system through criminalization, the methods and results of the War on Drugs, and the US Supreme Court's rejection of legal cases trying to point out racial bias.

Related Websites

The New Jim Crow
A website about Alexander's book The New Jim Crow with an about page, guides for reading, and reviews.

Guide to Source Material for Anti-Racist Activists and Thinkers

Michelle Alexander (1967- )

Biography and Writings

Biographical Articles

Writings

Interviews and Documentaries

Interviews

Talks, Classes, Speeches

Related Websites

Contact the Ezra Lehman Memorial Library