Not Guilty is an anthology of twelve original essays by some of America's most influential young black male writers and critics dealing with how they see this country and how this country sees them. American society, past and present, has a contentious relationship with black men. The greatest evidence of this hostility is the use of racial profiling by law enforcement. Incidents involving Amadou Diallo, Patrick Dorismond, Rodney King, Abner Louima, and the New Jersey State Police all highlight this problem. With the Diallo case as a springboard for exploration, essays range from discussions on encounters with police to hesitating to purchase a luxury car for fear of police suspicion to historical examinations of race relations in the United States. The contributors -- poets, journalists, lawyers, writers, and professors -- are as varied as the contents of their essays. Each presents an honest, personal, and erudite examination on life as a black man in America.
JABARI ASIM is the acclaimed author of What Obama Means . . . For Our Politics, Our Culture, Our Future as well as the author of the highly praised and controversial The N Word: Who Can Say It, Who Shouldn't, And Why.
He is the editor-in-chief of Crisis magazine, a preeminent journal of politics, ideas and culture published by the NAACP and founded by W.E.B. Du Bois in 1910. He spent 11 years at the Washington Post, where he served as deputy editor of the book review section. For three years he also wrote a syndicated column on political and social issues for the Post.
In April 2009, the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation awarded him a fellowship in nonfiction, one of 180 fellowships awarded to artists, scientists and scholars in 2009 selected from a group of almost 3,000 applicants.
He is a frequent public speaker and commentator who has appeared on "The Today Show," "The Colbert Report," "Hannity & Colmes," "The Tavis Smiley Show," "The Diane Rehm Show" and countless other programs. He has lectured at many of the nation's finest universities, including Seton Hall University, Northwestern University, Syracuse University and the University of Florida.
His first novel for adults, A Taste of Honey, will be published in April 2010. The Road To Freedom, his first novel for young readers, was published in 2000. His other children's books include Whose Toes Are Those, Whose Knees Are These, Daddy Goes to Work, and The Road to Freedom. His next children's books, Boy Of Mine and Girl Of Mine, will be published in April 2010.
Jabari Asim lives in Illinois with his wife, Liana and their five children.
