The author's entire worldview is unhinged. That question assumes well, what if you're in a food desert? All these tropes come down to claiming that the rioters and the looters don't know what they're doing. Importantly, I think especially when it's in the context of a Black uprising like the one we're living through now, it also attacks the history of whiteness and white supremacy. Of course, the argument goes that there are food and retail deserts because of racism. The author of the book is pretty clearly not guilty of incitement. Willie Osterweil, Cornell Class of 2009: For people who haven’t read your book, how do you define looting? Importantly, I think especially when it’s in the context of a Black uprising like the one we’re living through now, it also attacks the history of whiteness and white supremacy. If the chaos continues and spreads it could conceivably result in a declaration of insurrection. And, lest we forget, Martin Luther King Jr., the man who embodied the respectable non-violent voice that the white power structure claims they would listen to today, was murdered by that same white power structure anyway. The assault troops were to consist of urban workers as well as poor and landless peasants; the ‘enemy’ was the ‘kulaks,’ the rural ‘bourgeoisie. For most of America’s history, one of the most righteous anti-white supremacist tactics available was looting. If not, you should. Now, as protests and riots continue to grip cities, she stakes out a provocative position: that looting is a powerful tool to bring about real, lasting change in society.

If you use this reasoning you can justify anything. It's taken from Hindi, lút, which means "goods" or "spoils," and it appears in an English colonial officer's handbook [on "Indian vocabulary"] in the 19th century.

This not about George Floyd, it, however, part of a strategy to first destabilize with the goal of changing our political and economic framework. We have cities that have abandoned the laws of society. It’s a political operation, an insurrection-but-you-can’t-convict-me, and a blatant, my team beats your team program. Even under those conditions, Freedom Riders and student protesters were often protected by armed guards. Vicky Osterweil joins the Beyond Prisons podcast to discuss her new book, “In Defense Of Looting: A Riotous History Of Uncivil Action.”. %���� ha! Capitalism is founded on the ten commandments. We also have the same type of no bail system that they have in NY. 1. call the cops? However, why is it drilled into our heads, from grade school onward, in every single venue, by presidents, professors and police chiefs alike, that the civil rights movement was victorious because it was non-violent? “which means that they are capable of living and reproducing their lives without having to rely on jobs or a wage”. Rent control has already been imposed. In other words, anywhere in America. Can you talk about rioting as a tactic?