The british made a simple mistake. They fell into the trap of believing that because they had resources, weapons, soldiers and experience it did not matter what the people of northern iseland thought of them. General freeland believed lidies and wolf when they said that influencing popular behavior requires neither sympathy nor mysticism. And ladies and wolf were wrong. It has been said that most revolutions are not caused by revolutionaries in the first place, but by the stupidity and brutality of governments.
Malcolm has been writing about race and policing for a very long time, going back to the killing of Amadou Diallo in 1999. Sometimes, it is useful to take a step back and consider policing in a broader context. Here we present a chapter from Malcolm's book David and Goliath, which includes an analysis of a riot in Northern Ireland in 1970. Many miles and many years away. About divisions of religion and class and not divisions of race. But the core questions to be asked in 1970 and 1999 and today are the same: if you have power, what does it mean to use it, and use it wisely? And what are the consequences if you don't?
David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits and the Art of Battling Giants was published in 2013 by Little, Brown and Company. Audiobook production by Hachette Audio.
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