Bridging the River of Hatred: The Pioneering Efforts of Detroit Police Commissioner George Edwards

Detroit, Michigan: Wayne State University Press, 1998. C4 - A first edition (numberline starts at "1") hardcover book SIGNED and inscribed by author to previous owner on the half-title page and also SIGNED by Peg Edwards with "For my best friends with a lot f love" written on the front free endpaper in very good condition in very good dust jacket that is mylar protected. Book has stains on the top page edges, lightly cocked, dust jacket and book have some bumped corners, light discoloration and shelf wear. 9.25"x6.5", 347 pages. Satisfaction Guaranteed. Bridging the River of Hatred portrays the career of George Clifton Edwards, Jr., Detroit's visionary police commissioner whose efforts to bring racial equality, minority recruiting, and community policing to Detroit's police department in the early 1960s were met with much controversy within the city's administration. At a crucial time when the Civil Rights movement was gaining momentum and hostility between urban police forces and African Americans was close to eruption, Edwards chose solving racial and urban problems as his mission. Deeply committed to social justice, Edwards was a historical figure with vast political and legal experience, having served as head of the Detroit Housing Commission, a member of Detroit's common council, a juvenile court judge, a Michigan Supreme Court justice, and judge on the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Incorporating material from a manuscript that Edwards wrote before his death, supplemented by historical research, Stolberg provides a rare case study of problems in policing, the impoverishment of American cities, and the evolution of race relations during the turbulent 1960s. Edwards' vision and hope for Detroit gives depth to the national view of Detroit as a symbol of urban decline and offers lessons to be applied to current social and urban problems.. Signed by Author. First Edition. Hard Cover. Very Good/Very Good. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.