Just Mercy, Bryan Stevenson

Bryan Stevenson’s Just Mercy presents a prime opportunity for us—as readers, as thinkers, as citizens and community members—to decipher the arguments that our criminal justice system makes about us as a nation and about the values we hold (or to which we aspire). As you have already seen, Just Mercy is not merely the story of one man or one crime. Stevenson’s story spans many states and time periods. He gives histories, analyzes social and economic conditions, introduces us to real people’s pain and triumph, educates us about law and criminal justice, and inspires us by making us think about ways to alleviate the great suffering that exists in our world. He also makes many profound ARGUMENTS of the kinds we have been studying: • He exposes the many definitions that society makes about people of color, the poor, the marginalized, the criminal, and the hidden voices of our society. • He defines his vision of social justice. • He examines the causes of crime and of failed justice. • He details the effects wrought by unfair practices and flawed understanding. • He asks us to see the fallacies at work in current understanding of the criminal justice system. • Above all, he evaluates our society to determine how highly we value humanity and he proposes new ways of thinking about the hidden voices of our society. Research Question: EXAMINE the arguments that Bryan Stevenson makes in Just Mercy, and you will evaluate his argument through your own research on this important issue.