barbara fister reviewed Policing the City by Didier Fassin
Review of 'Policing the City' on 'LibraryThing'
This graphic "novel" is not fiction. It is a graphic version of a sociological ethnography of policing in France. The author embedded himself in police units that patrolled the ring suburbs of Paris that are home to largely minority populations. Americans will see great similarities in both the law enforcement practices (focused largely on harassing non-white youth and provoking unnecessary arrests and violence) and culture (apparently many of these bored cops admire the crooked cops portrayed on The Shield and model their swagger on it). Also, as in many American cities, police come from rural and white-suburban areas and bring to the job a host of prejudices and assumptions about the people they are supposed to serve and protect. returnreturnI often wish academic studies about social issues received a wider audience. This is a fascinating approach for distilling key findings to major themes and presenting them in a highly accessible …
This graphic "novel" is not fiction. It is a graphic version of a sociological ethnography of policing in France. The author embedded himself in police units that patrolled the ring suburbs of Paris that are home to largely minority populations. Americans will see great similarities in both the law enforcement practices (focused largely on harassing non-white youth and provoking unnecessary arrests and violence) and culture (apparently many of these bored cops admire the crooked cops portrayed on The Shield and model their swagger on it). Also, as in many American cities, police come from rural and white-suburban areas and bring to the job a host of prejudices and assumptions about the people they are supposed to serve and protect. returnreturnI often wish academic studies about social issues received a wider audience. This is a fascinating approach for distilling key findings to major themes and presenting them in a highly accessible and compelling way. I would love to see more "ethnographics" in future.