Race and the Crisis of Justice

Race and criminal justice: A long, tortured history

In a new documentary, the Miller Center looks at race, policing, and the criminal justice system through the lens of the presidency

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Presidential Problems: Race and the Crisis of Justice

Beginning with the 1964 shooting of an unarmed African American teenager in Philadelphia, the Miller Center traces the decades-long history of federal policing and crime control policies across presidencies. How do they inform current debates on race, policing, and mass incarceration—and where do they leave us today?

Featured Video

The Willie Horton ad

During the 1998 presidential race, the George H. W. Bush campaign used convicted criminal Willie Horton to present Michael Dukakis as "soft" on crime.

American Forum: Law and justice

Brandon Garrett
The dysfunction of American justice

Brandon Garret, who teaches about criminal procedure and wrongful convictions at the UVA School of Law, discusses how our justice system is broken—and how to fix it.
Heather Mac Donald
Is there a war on cops

Heather Mac Donald, a fellow at the Manhattan Institute, argues that the primary causes of police violence are the high rates of criminal behavior by African Americans.
Risa Goluboff
Vagrant nation

Risa Goluboff, the dean of the UVA School of Law, discusses how laws criminalizing hoboes and beggars became instruments for social control—and were dismantled by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 1960s and 1970s.
Adam Benforado
Criminal injustice

Adam Benforado of Drexel University argues that our judicial processes fail to uphold our values and protect society’s weakest members and proposes a wealth of practical reforms to prevent injustices.
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