Reviews tagging 'Police brutality'

Some People Need Killing: A Memoir of Murder in My Country by Patricia Evangelista

25 reviews

syrup_'s review against another edition

emotional informative sad fast-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Murder, Blood, and Police brutality

Minor: Transphobia

edill09's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

“Journalism, in the end, is an act of faith” (p. 123)

Despite the heartbreak, despair, and anger, Pat also imbued her work with hope. Hope that through the telling of this account, that some semblance of justice would (eventually) unfold for the thousands of victims and their families who’s lives were forever changed with Duterte’s “war on drugs”. A stark warning for others who may find “tough guy” personalities vying for power (ala 2016 and 2024), and what the consequences of complicity looks like among the electorate.

I especially enjoyed the moments of linguistic insight (laban, salvage, and more) and the historical and political context for this moment in Filipino history. The narrative arc of the Edsa Revolution and the ways in which the various political dynasties made promises (and then broke them) … so many discussion points and things to chew on. Would highly recommend to all! 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Police brutality, and Murder

oenophile_bibliophile's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Police brutality, Murder, and Child death

kirstym25's review against another edition

dark informative slow-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Gun violence, and Murder

Moderate: Drug abuse and Addiction

Minor: Colonisation

amy_park's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

3.5

Utterly harrowing and haunting. Not my "typical" type of read but was prompted to give it a go as it's on the longlist for the women's prize for non fiction 2024. This investigative journalistic memoir was eyeopening. I was shocked and horrified throughout, at the many eyewitness testimonies and pure grief families suffered during the drug war was relentless.
This book is not for the fainthearted. I was in such a state of horror throughout reading it did make me slightly disconnect from the book, but that definetly is on me. 
I didn't jell with the occasional passages on language and definitions, I think this was just my personal preference and I was in a state of overwhelm, so wasn't able to digest these sections (and some of the stories of killings) as much as I wanted too.
I learnt alot from this book and made me question how precarious democracy is and how anybody's life can easily change due to extreme political power.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Murder, Gun violence, Police brutality, Torture, and Mass/school shootings

annamusgraves's review against another edition

challenging dark informative sad tense slow-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Child death, and Police brutality

mollylovesbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark informative reflective slow-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gun violence and Police brutality

Minor: Drug use

readabilitea's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality and Murder

Moderate: Drug use

cheruphim's review against another edition

challenging dark informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

 Beautifully written, and chilling. This book details the presidency of Rodrigo Duterte in the Phillipines, from 2016 to 2022, and the casualties that resulted from his 'War on Drugs'. As someone from the United States, this book was highly informative and sobering. It reminds its readers of the real human cost that incurs when a presidency declares how they're dedicated to 'cleaning up the streets'. It's reminiscent of Nixon's war on drugs, on former NYC mayor Rudy Giuliani's war on drugs, on George H.W. Bush's war on drugs, and is probably where Duterte got his inspiration.

I wish nothing but the best for the writer, and hope she is doing well. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Car accident, Sexual assault, Child death, Police brutality, Gun violence, Stalking, Drug use, Grief, Confinement, Child abuse, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Gore, Excrement, Rape, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Addiction and Abandonment

Minor: Religious bigotry, Colonisation, and Sexual harassment

owmyleg's review against another edition

challenging dark informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Gun violence, Child death, Death, Murder, Police brutality, Death of parent, and Violence