Naomi Murakawa & #BlackLIvesMatter: Liberals, Guns, and the Roots of the U.S. Prison Explosion

We keep hearing there’s mistrust between police officers and communities of color as if the relationship just needs repair. But the fact is, police don’t suffer from a deficit of procedure; they suffer from an excess of power, and liberal procedural forms are not going to change that, says this week's guest, Naomi Murakawa, an associate professor of African American Studies at Princeton and the author of "The First Civil Right: How Liberals Built Prison America." According to Murakawa, liberals and conservatives have both expanded our criminal code to produce today’s mass-incarceration state. She recommends we throw out our language about police brutality and profiling and transform the system entirely.

"The Laura Flanders Show" has been on the streets with activists from the Black Lives Matter movement from the beginning. Take a look back at some highlights from our coverage.

Also on this episode, a few words from Flanders comparing mandatory minimums from 1790 to today.