Lehigh Prof: ‘Law and Order’ Has Been About Criminalizing People of Color

James Peterson, Lehigh University Associate Professor of English and Director of Africana Studies, reacted Saturday on MSNBC to GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump calling himself the “law and order candidate” during his speech at the Republican National Convention by arguing that “law and order” in the historical context “has been about the criminalization of people of color.”

Peterson said, “[L]aw and order, when we think about in this historical context, has really been about the criminalization of people of color. The law and order ideology’s what really changed how we approached law enforcement over the course of the 20th century. It’s largely responsible for things like stop and frisk, the prison industrial complex and mass incarceration. I think we have to check Mr. Trump on that.”

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