when politicians talk about crime and law and order, they are not making policy arguments about how best to preserve public safety, but rather conjuring an image of the world that is a ceaseless battle between Our People (White People) and Those Who Would Seek to Take What’s Ours (immigrant gangs, black criminals, various dark marauders). That the language of crime is really the language of white fear, which is an engine of American politics, a propulsive force constantly seeking an outlet.
