“Lewis provides a rigorous examination of hate crimes as a cultural product. The first analysis of its kind, the author has eloquently captured hate crimes as a seemingly impossible marriage of an oppressive criminal justice system and an aspiring civil rights movement. A deeply valuable contribution.” - Michael J. Coyle (California State University, Chico) "Beautifully written and powerfully argued, Tough on Hate? cracks a counterintuitive puzzle: how mainstream understandings and denunciations of hate crime magnify rather than mitigate its social harm. A marvelous and important book."- Thomas A. Guglielmo (George Washington University) "Lewis skillfully analyzes the rhetoric around hate crimes, examining news coverage, political hearings, legislation, and documentary films, and deploying theories from diverse disciplines in a way that will engage American Studies scholars." (American Studies) "Lewis’ book is relevant, thoughtful and very well argued. Tough on Hate is a highly valuable work that offers a perspective that compliments, advances, and challenges existing scholarship. Its greatest contribution is its critical central point: that combatting contemporary bigotry must be reassessed and expanded to include not only sensationalized violence, but other pervasive yet often ignored harms, that prejudice continues to inflict in our society." (Criminal Law and Criminal Justice Books) "Lewis’s presentation of the cultural politics of hate crimes is not only thought provoking and courageous but also has a lasting and valuable contribution. The coverage of smaller nuances within the topic, richness of the data, depth and objectivity of the analyses, and eloquence of the language make this book a must read for anyone who has the slightest interest in hate crime and is not afraid of having his or her perceived notion being challenged." (Criminal Justice Review)
