Episode 30: The Automotive Police State
Added 2019-10-31 17:38:59 +0000 UTCFor a century, the automobile has been sold to Americans as the ultimate freedom machine. In her groundbreaking new book, “Policing the Open Road,” historian and legal scholar Sarah Seo explodes that myth. Seo shows how modern policing evolved in lockstep with the development of the car. And that rather than giving Americans greater freedom, the massive body of traffic law required to facilitate mass motoring helped to establish a kind of automotive police state. Is a car a private, personal space deserving Fourth Amendment protection from “unreasonable searches and seizures?” Or is a car something else entirely? It’s a question that courts have struggled with for decades, ultimately leaving it up to the police to use their own discretion, often with horrifying results, especially for minorities. In this revelatory conversation with TWOC co-host Aaron Naparstek, Seo offers an entirely new way of looking at the impact of the automobile on American life, law and culture.
Comments
Another excellently packaged “hands-off” style of episode, alongside Barcelona’s Superblocks and Car Talk. This is why soldiers of TWOC should advocate for mobility equity and policies that result in lowered car dependence among minorities. Keep up the good fight!
Joseph VH
2019-10-31 21:25:44 +0000 UTC
