Review: All American Boys by Jason Reynolds & Brendan Kiely

All American Boys by Jason Reynolds & Brendan Kiely
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Published: September 2015
 

Rashad was just stopping by the corner store to pick up some chips before hanging out with his friends. A lady trips over his bag and the chips fly out of his hands, and the next thing you know he is accused of stealing and beaten by the police.
Quinn is about to walk into the same corner store to find someone to buy him and his friends beer. As he rounds the corner, he sees Rashad getting beat up by the cop. A cop he knows. The entire town is split about who and what to believe.
Told from the perspective of both boys, we hear how one incident can affect so many people in different ways.

Even though this story was written nearly five years ago, the incidents in it still ring true today. Young black boys are being beaten and gunned down in our streets for mostly unknown reasons. It's hurt first, ask questions later. As a mother of a young black boy, who also has a disability, I worry for his safety every day.

Quinn and Rashad didn't know each other in school. They had mutual friends and hung out in the same places, but they really didn't know each other. Quinn was on the basketball team and Rashad was in ROTC. Quinn was more deeply affected by the incident then he thought he was going to be especially after seeing his friends feelings towards it.

Rashad spent several days in the hospital watching himself on the television and trying to decide how he was going to carry out the rest of this week and the rest of his life. This is the type of incident that will change various people in various ways. The lady in the store, the store owner, Rashad, the police officer that beat him, the person who shot the video, Rashad's parents and brother, kids at the school, Quinn, the police officers family. And these are just people directly involved.

Too many times we hear these stories and it's time for them to come to an end. Reading the statistics in this book about the difference in policing in other countries is very enlightening. We need to take a stand to make sure our black boys are protected.

#RashadisAbsentAgaintoday



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