We bear the weight of history, of a system that has failed.
Steve Bogira
The Hustle of Kim Foxx
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Format:
audiobook – currently audio included on Kindle Unlimited
Publisher’s Synopsis:
After the fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald by a white police officer, Chicagoans demanded change. Can a new state’s attorney, the first black woman to hold the position, bring real reform to a broken system?
With a brick on her desk from the Cabrini-Green housing project where she spent her childhood, Kim Foxx must adapt her hard-won ideals to the realities of criminal justice in Chicago. In this intimate narrative by award-winning author Steve Bogira, Foxx reveals: “My mother taught me how to be a hustler. Hustle in the sense of work hard, grind – find a way out of no way.”
Rellim’s Thoughts:
At 2 hours this is the longest of The Southside books, a collection of shorts by The Marshall Project.
A mini-biography of Kim Foxx, the first Black woman to become Cook County state’s attorney. I like the way that Bogira presented different aspects of the job and shared commentary from various people, even those critical of Foxx’s administration. Even Foxx herself admitted that she wasn’t going to accomplish everything she thought she would, that it’s been a learning experience for her. It’s interesting how politicians either seem to be “too much” or “not enough” to the majority. No one seems to embrace compromise even if they laud it.
I appreciated understanding even more how bail and even certain jail/prison sentences don’t actually provide the deterrence they’re purported to. This whole series has been eye-opening and I’ve appreciate the “bite size” looks into a variety of issues.
Narration:
This is the second one narrated by Ron Butler (The Gun King being the other) and I enjoyed his performance again. Dynamic narration, especially for non-fiction. I hope to hear more of his work soon.
About the author:
You can connect with Steve Bogira here:
About the narrator:
You can connect with Ron Butler here:
My Favorite Quotes
“The office’s 750 prosecutors greatly influence what offense if any will be charged, which defendants will stay in jail while their cases are pending, who will wind up with a felony conviction, and who will serve time in prison and for how long.”
“Defendants who can’t make bail often plead guilty for probation to get out of jail quicker, and some of them are pleading guilty to crimes they didn’t commit, she said, which only deepens cynicism about the system.”
“Deterrence is “a concept we cling to, in the hope that what we’re doing actually makes a difference.””
“we bear the weight of history, of a system that has failed.”
Rellim Reads 