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In 1980, Charles Wetli---a Miami-based medical examiner and self-proclaimed “cult expert” of Afro-Caribbean religions---identified what he called “excited delirium syndrome.” Soon, medical examiners began using the syndrome regularly to describe the deaths of Black men and women during interactions with police. Police and medical examiners claimed that Black people with so-called excited delirium exhibited superhuman strength induced from narcotics abuse. It was fatal heart failure that killed them, examiners said, not forceful police restraints. In Excited Delirium, Aisha M. Beliso-De Jesús examines this fabricated medical diagnosis and its use to justify and erase police violence against Black and Brown communities. Exposing excited delirium syndrome’s flawed diagnostic criteria, she outlines its inextricable ties to the criminalization of Afro-Latiné religions. Beliso-De Jesús demonstrates that it is yet a further example of the systemic racism that pervades law enforcement in which the culpability for state violence is shifted from the state onto its victims. In so doing, she furthers understanding of the complex layers of medicalized state-sanctioned violence against people of color in the United States.
Price: $28.95
Pages: 320
Publisher: Duke University Press
Imprint: Duke University Press
Publication Date:
06 August 2024
Trim Size: 9.00 X 6.00 in
ISBN: 9781478030553
Format: Paperback
BISACs:
“At once painful, intimate, and full of insight, Aisha M. Beliso-De Jesús’s powerful book sits at the intersection of memoir, anthropology, and religious studies. The spirits have guided her pen to offer a prayer that exposes the lie of ‘excited delirium syndrome’ and, hopefully, will help in the collective undoing of police violence in this country.”—Eddie S. Glaude Jr., James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor, Princeton University
“An unflinching tour de force, Excited Delirium casts a stark light on the shadows where racism, medicine, and systemic injustice meet. With meticulous research and exquisite prose, leading anthropologist Aisha M. Beliso-De Jesús challenges readers to confront uncomfortable truths and the ways science is manipulated to advance narratives of power and social control—in this case, through a fictitious syndrome that has justified the deaths of Black and Brown people during encounters with law enforcement. This groundbreaking book is a must-read for anyone seeking to understand the full implications of race and policing in America, illuminating a history that is as enlightening as it is urgent. Beliso-De Jesús’s critical work stands as a beacon in the ongoing discussion on police violence---demanding attention, reflection, and, ultimately, action.”—Elizabeth Hinton, author of, America on Fire: The Untold History of Police Violence and Black Rebellion Since the 1960s
"A unique addition to the literature on structural racism and police brutality."—Kirkus Reviews
"This is a fascinating examination of 'excited delirium syndrome,' which was fabricated in 1980 and used by police to explain that Black and Brown people who died in their custody suffered from heart failure and not police violence. It’s almost unbelievable. Almost."—Karla Strand, Ms. Magazine
"This study of religion and policing is a profoundly personal, well-researched, deep dive into what it means to use non-white police systems to justify the murder of non-white people. . . . The author rightly calls for abolishing the syndrome, increasing police accountability, and establishing greater separation between police and medical examiners. Recommended. General readers through faculty; professionals."—Choice
“Beliso-De Jesús weaves a potent historical narrative into her analysis of contemporary police violence cases spanning the last half century. . . . She offers a powerful template for excited delirium to be lobbed back at the dominant culture by reclaiming the experiences of its victims—or, as she articulates, the dead who lead the way.”—Mihir Gokhale and Ben Weiss, H-Sci-Med-Tech, H-Net Reviews
“An unflinching tour de force, Excited Delirium casts a stark light on the shadows where racism, medicine, and systemic injustice meet. With meticulous research and exquisite prose, leading anthropologist Aisha M. Beliso-De Jesús challenges readers to confront uncomfortable truths and the ways science is manipulated to advance narratives of power and social control—in this case, through a fictitious syndrome that has justified the deaths of Black and Brown people during encounters with law enforcement. This groundbreaking book is a must-read for anyone seeking to understand the full implications of race and policing in America, illuminating a history that is as enlightening as it is urgent. Beliso-De Jesús’s critical work stands as a beacon in the ongoing discussion on police violence---demanding attention, reflection, and, ultimately, action.”—Elizabeth Hinton, author of, America on Fire: The Untold History of Police Violence and Black Rebellion Since the 1960s
"A unique addition to the literature on structural racism and police brutality."—Kirkus Reviews
"This is a fascinating examination of 'excited delirium syndrome,' which was fabricated in 1980 and used by police to explain that Black and Brown people who died in their custody suffered from heart failure and not police violence. It’s almost unbelievable. Almost."—Karla Strand, Ms. Magazine
"This study of religion and policing is a profoundly personal, well-researched, deep dive into what it means to use non-white police systems to justify the murder of non-white people. . . . The author rightly calls for abolishing the syndrome, increasing police accountability, and establishing greater separation between police and medical examiners. Recommended. General readers through faculty; professionals."—Choice
“Beliso-De Jesús weaves a potent historical narrative into her analysis of contemporary police violence cases spanning the last half century. . . . She offers a powerful template for excited delirium to be lobbed back at the dominant culture by reclaiming the experiences of its victims—or, as she articulates, the dead who lead the way.”—Mihir Gokhale and Ben Weiss, H-Sci-Med-Tech, H-Net Reviews
Aisha M. Beliso-De Jesús is Olden Street Professor of American Studies at Princeton University and author of Electric Santería: Racial and Sexual Assemblages of Transnational Religion.
Author’s Note: In Warning . . . xi
Introduction: Haunted 1
Journal Entry: Monday, September 20, 2021 10
Emerald Hills, California
1. Nightmares 13
Journal Entry: Saturday, September 25, 2021 26
San Francisco, California
2. Bodies 20
Journal Entry: Saturday, October 2, 2021 43
Antioch, California
3. Murdered 46
Journal Entry: Tuesday, November 2, 2021 58
Stanford, California
4. Manic 60
Journal Entry: Wednesday, October 13, 2021 74
Emerald Hills, California
5. Panicked 77
Journal Entry: Friday, December 17, 2021 95
Stanford, California
6. Tormented 98
Journal Entry: Wednesday, March 16, 2022 117
Stanford, California
7. Brutalized 121
Journal Entry: Tuesday, December 2, 2021 134
Stanford, California
8. Excited 137
Journal Entry: Saturday, January 8, 2022 150
Oakland, California
9. Forced 152
Journal Entry: Tuesday, March 22, 2022 166
Stanford, California
10. Delirious 169
Journal Entry: Sunday, April 10, 2022 182
Emerald Hills, California
11. Conjured 184
Journal Entry: Wednesday, May 25, 2022 195
Antioch, California
12. Empower 197
Journal Entry: Thursday, September 8, 2022 210
Princeton, New Jersey
Afterword 211
Modupué 215
Acknowledgments 219
Glossary 221
Notes 227
Bibliography 273
Index 293
Introduction: Haunted 1
Journal Entry: Monday, September 20, 2021 10
Emerald Hills, California
1. Nightmares 13
Journal Entry: Saturday, September 25, 2021 26
San Francisco, California
2. Bodies 20
Journal Entry: Saturday, October 2, 2021 43
Antioch, California
3. Murdered 46
Journal Entry: Tuesday, November 2, 2021 58
Stanford, California
4. Manic 60
Journal Entry: Wednesday, October 13, 2021 74
Emerald Hills, California
5. Panicked 77
Journal Entry: Friday, December 17, 2021 95
Stanford, California
6. Tormented 98
Journal Entry: Wednesday, March 16, 2022 117
Stanford, California
7. Brutalized 121
Journal Entry: Tuesday, December 2, 2021 134
Stanford, California
8. Excited 137
Journal Entry: Saturday, January 8, 2022 150
Oakland, California
9. Forced 152
Journal Entry: Tuesday, March 22, 2022 166
Stanford, California
10. Delirious 169
Journal Entry: Sunday, April 10, 2022 182
Emerald Hills, California
11. Conjured 184
Journal Entry: Wednesday, May 25, 2022 195
Antioch, California
12. Empower 197
Journal Entry: Thursday, September 8, 2022 210
Princeton, New Jersey
Afterword 211
Modupué 215
Acknowledgments 219
Glossary 221
Notes 227
Bibliography 273
Index 293