A Feminist Critique of Police Stops

Through diverse narratives, this book unpacks stop-and-frisk from the point of view of victims of unwanted police encounters. Drawing connections between police pat-downs and sexual harassment, Ross's transparent legal analysis is for feminists, opponents of racial injustice, and anyone interested in how this form of policing can be eliminated.

A Feminist Critique of Police Stops examines the parallels between stop-and-frisk policing and sexual harassment. An expert whose writing, teaching and community outreach centers on the Constitution''s limits on police power, Howard Law Professor Josephine Ross, argues that our constitutional rights are a mirage. In reality, we can''t say no when police seek to question or search us. Building on feminist principles, Ross demonstrates why the Supreme Court got it wrong when it allowed police to stop, search, and sometimes strip-search people and call it consent. Using a wide range of sources - including her law students'' experiences with police, news stories about Eric Garner, and Sandra Bland, social science and the work of James Baldwin - Ross sheds new light on policing. This book should be read by everyone interested in how Court-approved police stops sap everyone''s constitutional rights and how this form of policing can be eliminated.