August Book Club - "The Black and the Blue", by Matthew Horace

Civic tech isn't just about data, coding, and designing. A major part of our work as civic technologists and engaged community members is educating ourselves about issues and opportunities in the communities where we live.

In August, we'll meet up virtually to discuss the book "The Black and the Blue: A Cop Reveals the Crimes, Racism, and Injustice in America's Law Enforcement" by Matthew Horace. Horace has a long career as a law enforcement officer at the federal and local levels, and now acts as a law enforcement analyst and contributor to national conversations on policing and systematic racism inside of the profession. Together with co-author Ron Harris, a journalism professor at Howard University, he conducted interviews with a diverse range of law enforcement professionals, elected officials, community advocates, and survivors of police shootings. The book combines these perspectives to tell an important story of racial injustice in our law enforcement communities. In the book, "Horace addresses the convergence of technology, policing and community unrest. He chronicles his experience living inside of the BLUE LINE, what it's like to be 'Black in Blue', shares real-life policing anecdotes while addressing systematic racism inside of the profession and offers a blueprint for change" (http://matthewhorace.com/about/).

If you only have time to read part of the book, then skim one or two of the sections that interest you most and we can compare notes. We look forward to seeing you there!

You can find the book at:

• Hennepin County Library: https://hclib.bibliocommons.com/item/show/5699630109
• St. Paul Public Library: https://sppl.bibliocommons.com/item/show/2413527138

Note: If you would like to join the conversation, but are having trouble accessing the book due to library closures, please contact Alison (alink (at) opentwincities (dot) org) and we can work on getting you access to the book.