by Alessandro De Giorgi* The materials presented in this blog series draw from an ethnographic study on prisoner reentry I have been conducting between March 2011 and March 2014 in a neighborhood of West Oakland, California, which is plagued by … Continue reading →

by Gene Grabiner* Critics have long been concerned about the potential for government abuse and overreach, as well as the desire of officials to conduct civic affairs beyond public scrutiny. As moral philosopher Jeremy Bentham cautioned, “secrecy, being an instrument … Continue reading →

by Rebecca Gordon* The 2016 presidential campaign has put torture back on the American agenda. Donald Trump and Ted Cruz are campaigning on promises to bring it back, and even Marco Rubio hinted in that direction. (Of course torture never … Continue reading →

by David Meggyesy* The only reason parents hit their children is because they can get away with it — A. S. Neill, Summerhill As a physically abused child, as many of us are, I read the above quote as a young … Continue reading →

by Alessandro De Giorgi* The materials presented in this blog series draw from an ethnographic study on prisoner reentry I have been conducting between March 2011 and March 2014 in a neighborhood of West Oakland, California, plagued by chronically high … Continue reading →

by Bob Barber* In this series of dispatches, veteran Bay Area journalist Bob Barber shares his impressions and views from the streets of Cleveland, Ohio, during the Republican National Convention. • Friday, July 14 It’s hot here in Cleveland, like in … Continue reading →

 by James Kilgore* There are moments when our longings for social justice cloud our vision, times when the way we want the world to be blocks our understanding of the way things really are. A good example of this is … Continue reading →