Americans are slowly waking up to the dire effects of racial profiling, police brutality, and mass incarceration, especially in disadvantaged neighbourhoods and communities of colour. The criminal courts are the crucial gateway between police action on the street and the processing of primarily Black and Latino defendants into jails and prisons. And yet the courts, often portrayed as sacred, impartial institutions, have remained shrouded in secrecy, with the majority of Americans kept in the dark about how they function internally. Informed by over 10 years of work and investigation, Dr. Gonzalez Van Cleve’s book, Crook County, bursts open the courthouse doors and enters the hallways, courtrooms, judges’ chambers, and attorneys’ offices to reveal a world of punishment determined by race, not offense. In 2019, Crook County received 2019 American Sociological Association’s Distinguished Book Prize.

About the speaker:

Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at Brown University and an affiliated scholar with the American Bar Foundation in Chicago, IL. She is the award-winning author of the book, Crook County: Racism and Injustice in America's Largest Criminal Court. “Crook County” won 11 awards or finalist distinctions for its contributions to the areas of sociology, law, criminal justice, media and social justice including the discipline’s highest book honor, The American Sociological Association’s 2019 Distinguished Book Prize. She has provided legal commentary on the American criminal justice system for MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show, NBC News, CNN, NPR, The Atlantic and The New York Times.

Her new book, "The Waiting Room," (Amazon Original Stories) examines life around America’s largest jail – The Cook County Jail - and shows how suffering caused by pre-trial incarceration - extends beyond the cages and into the communities.