Books & ideas

From Slavery to Police Torture

Jules Naudet — 2022-10-17T07:40:00Z

Laurence Ralph's ethnography explores the various systems of punishment that injure black and brown Americans' bodies and that contribute to maintain social hierarchies that rely on the vestiges of slavery. These injuries call for healing and overcoming trauma, and also for reparative justice.

Facing the Question

Arnaud Fossier — 2018-05-24T07:00:00Z

Despite what some people now imagine, the Middle Ages was no more inclined to torture than other periods. Through a study of the archives of the Paris Parlement, Faustine Harang demonstrates that the medieval judicial system used this practice in a way that was limited and—most importantly—highly controlled.

Total Incarceration

Yasmine Bouagga — 2016-03-21T08:00:00Z

There are currently two million prisoners in the USA, and the use of high security solitary confinement is on the increase. The violence of this procedure and its dramatic effects, in particular on the youngest inmates or those suffering from psychiatric conditions, has now sparked a public debate.