The Profession

Praise

“Succeeding as a centrist in public life these days can be an almost impossible task. But centrism in law enforcement may be the most delicate challenge of all. Bratton’s ability to practice it was a startling phenomenon. Engaging . . . a remarkably candid account . . . a veritable encyclopedia of police tactics and culture. . . . It may be true, as Yeats chillingly reminded us, that the center cannot hold. It doesn’t seem to be holding in public life at the moment. But at certain times, in the right hands and circumstances, it does come forward.” —New York Times Book Review

“From no matter what angle you look at the debate of how we police ourselves, this book is timely and vitally important. Half memoir, half philosophy, this is the bible on police reform and reconciliation with community. Told by a man who changed policing in three major cities, The Profession by Bill Bratton brings deep and new understanding to what it means to protect and serve—from both sides of the badge.” —Michael Connelly, author of The Law of Innocence

“If then-NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton had done nothing other than rescue New York City in the early ‘90s from intolerable violence, he’d still be regarded as the most impactful police reformer of the past forty years. Now in The Profession, Bratton and his co-writer, Peter Knobler, have written a fast-paced tale of his full career, including his seven years as reform chief of the LAPD, and his return as NYPD commissioner, where he permanently ended shamefully racist mass stop-and-frisk policies. The Profession is a must read for anyone wanting to understand how to make policing reform happen in the 2020s.” —Joe Domanick, associate director of The Center on Media, Crime and Justice, John Jay College of Criminal Justice

“Bill Bratton has gone from street cop to America’s police commissioner. There is no more authoritative voice on policing in America. The lessons learned in this book are invaluable.” —Jeh Johnson, former Secretary of Homeland Security
 
“Bill Bratton is the most pivotal and powerful voice in American law enforcement in these times. His candid, revealing story is a must read for every mayor, police chief, and community leader who truly wants to transform law enforcement and create community trust in the twenty-first century.” —Marc Morial, CEO of the National Urban League and former mayor of New Orleans
 
“Bill Bratton sounds a clarion call for racial truth. He takes us on a fifty-year odyssey of transformation and redemption through the worlds of policing, community, and power politics. Bratton reveres the best in law enforcement, demands changes in the worst, and confronts racism in every police department along the way. As a civil rights lawyer and likely foe, I became Bratton’s unlikely ally to change LAPD, because, with moral clarity, he admitted policing’s role in racial unrest and its original sin on American slave ships. Twenty million marched to protest racism in policing. The Profession is a voice police and community need to hear.” —Connie Rice, civil rights lawyer and author of Power Concedes Nothing
 
“Bill Bratton is truly the Sir Robert Peel of American policing. In The Profession, he takes readers on a gripping literary ride-along and provides an intimate look into the complex world of policing. The knowledge gleaned from this book can’t be found elsewhere.” —Art Acevedo, former chief of police, Miami Police Department

“The Profession chronicles Bill Bratton’s unparalleled career while tackling the ongoing challenges of race and policing in America. As police executives across the country look to reform their agencies, his life story is an inspiring tale of what can be done through hard work, imagination, and determination.” —Chuck Wexler, executive director of the Police Executive Research Forum