Bryan Stevenson Talk: Just Mercy
represented people on death rows for 30 years
helped win freedom for a man who was in solitary confinement for 30 years
intellectual retardation
banned from courts to ban him
ie. the man
court, appeals, state, and federal said it was too late
our courts are more committed to finality than fairness
denied motion for a stay
call man on death row to give him heartbreaking news
man began to cry and thanked him for the work he did
Prisoner Statistics
400% increase in women
often single mothers
causes them to go to other homes
40% mentally ill
Four Points: How to Change the World
1. proximity to places in our community
you’ll find power
rather than staying away
those preaching about difficulties often aren’t proximate
making their declaration to solve these issues difficult
2. narrative as racial difference
people talking about Civil Rights Movement
1. Rosa Parks not moving from the bus
2. MLK marching down Washington
3. all laws changed for better
still exists but in another context
afraid of acknowledging our historical past
Japanese Internment camps
lynchings
3. must be hopeful
hopelessness is the enemy of justice
justice pervades where hope persists
guilty vs. innocent
guilty and rich helps those win
while innocent and poor makes them lose
simple yet so complex
4. willing to do uncomfortable things
we enjoy comfort
cannot change the world without doing uncomfortable things
inconvenient
difficult
witness
uncomfort
Why do we want to kill the brokenness in this country?
all broken people
dealing with....
poverty
mental illness
disease
neglect
racism
works in a broken system
thought why he’s been doing it
questioned his career and why he does what he does
“I do what I do because I’m broken too.”
must stand in solidarity and love with others
opposite of poverty is not wealth
opposite of poverty is justice
if we want to deconstruct poverty, then we must help justice
look at how we treat the poor, incarcerated, and condemned
new generation
don’t doubt your capacity to change the world
don’t think grades are measure of your capacity to change the world and do justice
income isn’t measure of your capacity to change the world
measured by our willingness to do the things that have to be done
cuts and bruises
not just marks
but medals of honor
